Professor Borghs took part in the establishment of the IMEC centre and he currently teaches at the Katoliekhe Universiteit in Leuven, Belgium. He is also the founder and Director of a new research centre which focusses on neuroelectronics (NERF - Neuroelectronics Research Flanders). IMEC, with its headquarters in Leuven and branches all around the world, is the leading research institute in the area of nanotechnologies. Thanks to the interconnection of scientific findings and its propensity to innovate, IMEC is successful in applying research results mainly in the areas of health care improvements, smart electronics, renewable energy and safer transportation.
The aim of the Neuroelectronics Research Flanders (NERF) Centre is to unravel the neuronal circuitry of the human brain. It aims to push the boundaries of science by researching the workings of neurons. NERF has attained an unprecedented level of detail in this area. In the future the centre aspires to generate new insights into the functional mapping of the brain as well as research methodologies and technologies for medical applications, e.g. the diagnostics and treatment of disorders of the central and peripheral nervous system.
The Belgian expert arrived in Brno today not only to give a lecture to Brno scientists but especially for the meeting of the CEITEC Coordination Board. Today’s meeting will be chaired by Mikuláš Bek, Rector of Masaryk University. The principal item to be addressed in the meeting will be the assessment of the past year and, in particular, the first months of operation following CEITEC’s approval. The approval of the Scientific Activity Plan of the project for 2012 are also on the agenda. “So long as CEITEC is faithful to its principles – i.e. the regular administration of international independent evaluations and the implicit focus on the quality of science, I am persuaded that CEITEC has the potential to duplicate the success of IMEC,” Borghs summed up.
CEITEC’s set-up and management system are derived from the experience of important international institutes, therefore there are foreign experts involved in the management of the Centre. These experts regularly assess the scientists and approve all substantial steps related to the Centre’s operations. The Central European Institute of Technology was approved by the European Commission on 6 June 2011 and introduced itself to the public for the first time at its Opening conference this September. “I am pleased that we can cooperate with world-renowned experts from prestigious institutes such as IMEC. There are products of their experience in implementation, and other well-proven procedures like these, which Czech scientific centres like CEITEC need in order to stand within international competition”, said Executive Director of the institute, Tomáš Hruda.
Photogallery can be found HERE.
