Collaboration without Borders

Professor John Wood delivered the Annual Alumni Lecture on 7 April 2008

Becoming ‘the most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy in the world’ is no small challenge, but it’s a challenge that Europe’s leaders agreed for the European Union back in March 2000.

One of a series of goals to achieve this objective, the European Research Area was created to inspire the best talent to enter research careers in Europe, incite industry to invest more in European research, and strongly contribute to the creation of sustainable growth and jobs. In his lecture, Collaboration without Borders, Professor John Wood explained a variety of European collaborative initiatives such as the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, the first example of cross-European collaboration which will be celebrating 50 years in 2008; the European Space Agency; and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Geneva.

Former Rector and alumnus Sir Eric Ash (Electrical Engineering 1948, PhD 1952) was among the audience of 60 alumni, staff and friends of the College who heard about the European, and indeed global, collaboration in various research areas at Imperial.

Professor Wood spoke about the importance of Europe acting together to pool large scientific resources such as synchrotrons, space programmes, imaging facilities, and establishing robust networks for sharing data and results. This sharing and collaboration happens to varying degrees across the areas of engineering and physical sciences, space science, the life sciences and medicine, and the social sciences in order to find solutions and innovations in the areas of countering terrorism, energy, the environment, healthcare and transport.

Professor Wood’s enthusiasm for his subject, coupled with his personal involvement with the projects he talked about, shone through, making for a thoroughly enjoyable lecture.

Canapés, wine and beer from around the continent were served to alumni in the European drinks reception that followed the lecture. The reception gave all alumni plenty of opportunity to meet up former classmates and to continue their avid conversations about the lecture.

Visit www.imperial.ac.uk/alumni/annuallecture to download the presentation slides from the lecture, view photographs taken throughout the evening, and read more about Professor John Wood in his biography.