NWO-Vidi of 800.000 euros to six Erasmus University researchers

Of the 86 Vidi research subsidies awarded by NWO, six have been awarded to Rotterdam researchers. Jacco van Sterkenburg, Willem de Koster, Rik Vos, Debby van Riel, Geeske van Woerden and Olivier Marie have been awarded the Vidi research subsidy of 800.000 euros by Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO). The Vidi subsidy enables them to develop their own line of research and build up their own research group.

The awarded are going to conduct research on racial/ethnical stereotypes in soccer journalism, on identical stances of political opponents, on the perfusion of the hart, on the role of the enzyme CAMK2 in brain research, on interventions with criminal behaviour and on the effect of viruses on the brain.

The Rotterdam awards

Dr. J.C. Jacco van Sterkenburg Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communicaton
How racist is televised football and do audiences react?

This project explores meanings given to race/ethnicity in the production process of men’s televised football, and examines how these meanings get translated in the media content and audience reactions. It will do so in four European countries providing new insights in football media as catalyst in discourses surrounding race/ethnicity. Jacco van Sterkenburg talks about his dream for the future and his plans with his Vidi in this video.

Dr. Willem de Koster - Erasmus School of Social and behavioural Sciences – Public Administration and Sociology
Curious cases of public opinion

Strikingly, politically opposed citizens often voice identical stances on the EU, welfare state, and development aid. Do these exist because different groups interpret the same issue differently? And does this also explain their dissimilar reactions to information campaigns? He will develop an interdisciplinary mixed-methods approach for understanding such curious constellations. Read more about his research.

H.J. Rik Vos PhD - Erasmus MC – Biomedical Engineering
Cardiac 3D re-perfusion imaging – QUANTO

After hospital intervention for opening of clogged cardiac arteries, one-third of patients show no restored blood perfusion in the heart wall. The researchers will build a new echographic system to monitor the perfusion in the heart wall during the intervention, which enables patient-specific treatment for better health afterwards.

Dr. Geeske van Woerden - Erasmus MC - Dept of Neuroscience
CAMK2 and brain development: inseparably linked?

CAMK2 is one of the most extensively studied enzymes in the adult brain, but its role in neurodevelopment remains unknown. In this study researchers will investigate the role of CAMK2 in neuronal development and study the downstream signalling pathways.

Debby van RielErasmus MC – Viroscience
Respiratory viruses unmasked: exploring their neurotropic potential

Respiratory viruses, and especially influenza A virus and enterovirus D68, can cause diseases of the central nervous system but the mechanism is largely unknown. The proposed studies will unravel how respiratory viruses enter and causes damage in the nervous system, identify important viral factors and optimize diagnostics

Olivier MarieErasmus School of Economics – Economics
Determinants of a life in or out of crime

This research studies three phases of an individual’s life when crime can be prevented. First, at birth through the effect of parental influence. Second, as a teenager by preventing escalation. Third, by assigning the right prisoner to the right prison. To reduce offending, in which phase is intervention most efficient?

Vidi: subsidy for leading innovative researchers

A Vidi subsidy enables researchers who have already spent several years doing postdoctoral research to develop their own innovative lines of research, and to appoint one or more researchers. Vidi is one of the three types of funding that make up NWO's Innovation scheme. The other two types of funding are Veni (for researchers who have just obtained their PhD) and Vici (for very experienced researchers). 

A total of 571 researchers applied for the Vidi subsidies. 86 researchers out of this total have been awarded. That comes down to a percentage of 15%. NWO selects the Vidi winners on the basis of three criteria: 1) the quality of the researcher, 2) the quality, the innovative character and the scientific impact of the research proposal, and 3) knowledge utilisation. The winners receive a subsidy of a maximum of 800,000 euros. All names of the honoured researchers and a summary of their research projects can be found in the online overview of 2017.

More information

Press Office Erasmus University Rotterdam, +31 10 4081216 or press@eur.nl

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