Scientific Award - Bmw Group 2005

Munich/Leipzig.... The prizewinners of this year's Scientific Award BMW Group, which invited entries from institutes for higher education from all over the world, presented their groundbreaking, exciting projects yesterday evening in the Leipzig BMW Plant, Germany. The six best contributions were chosen from 230 entries from 26 countries and covering 24 areas of expertise, earning the contributors prizes with a total value of EUR 70,000.

The subjects scrutinized in the last few months by a jury of experts from all scientific disciplines included: a revolutionary prosthetic hand able to grip with all five fingers thanks to a cleverly devised mini-hydraulics system, green fluorescent proteins as miniature biological dynamometers, scaled-down particle accelerators, atomic "brains" acting as supercomputers, an ingenious anti-theft device for valuable paintings and magnetic levitation, Transrapid-style technology for faster and more accurate machine tools in the future.

With the Scientific Award, the BMW Group emphasises the vital importance of innovations for our society, and expressly rewards the passion of young people who concern themselves with all things new. "An economy - just like a business enterprise - must be innovative on all levels and in all areas: commercially, technologically and socially, in equal measure. This is the only way to ensure that it will progress, develop and be successful on the international stage. That is why passion for innovation must be rewarded, for it helps societies to progress through its technological achievement," pointed out Prof. Dr. Dr. E.h. Burkhard Göschel, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Development and Purchasing, and Patron of the Scientific Award BMW Group 2005.

The Scientific Award BMW Group takes place every two years and rewards outstanding Bachelor's, Master's and doctoral theses by up-and-coming scientists from all fields of expertise. It is one of the most valuable research prizes on offer internationally.

In the evening of 20 September, the official Award Ceremony took place in the new BMW Plant in lace w:st="on">Leipziglace>, whose architectural uniqueness sets it apart from production sites elsewhere in the world. German journalist Wolf von Lojewski was the presenter, and well over 300 guests from the world of business, science, politics and society were present. The six prizewinners received their awards from BMW AG Board member Prof. Dr. Dr. E.h. Burkhard Göschel and the Chairman of the Jury, Prof. Dr. techn. Dr. e.h. Franz Pischinger.

The prizewinners and their projects at a glance.

Category Doctoral Theses:

1st Prize: Dr. Stefan Schulz, lace w:st="on">University of Karlsruhe, lace>
A revolutionary prosthetic hand can grip with all five fingers, thanks to a cleverly designed mini-hydraulics system. Vital to the construction by Dr. Stefan Schulz from the Karlsruhe Research Centre are the ductile plastic cushions, which move the finger joints when a special fluid is selectively pumped into or out of them. At the same time, the cushion effect gives the artificial hand the soft feel of a real one.

2nd Prize: Dr. Robert Raußendorf, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, lace w:st="on">Munich, lace>
Visionaries consider quantum computers to be the superprocessors of the future. It is questionable if they can actually be built in the foreseeable future. However, thanks to a new idea developed by Dr. Robert Raußendorf, there is a tangible and practicable solution. His one-way quantum processor is simple enough to be realised as a larger machine one day. What is more, its atomic "brain" can be easily programmed via software.

3rd Prize: Dr. Martin Ruskowski, lace w:st="on">University of Hanover, lace>
Magnetic levitation technology makes not only the Transrapid train fast, but also German machine tools. Dr. Martin Ruskowski has developed a magnetic guidance system which enables a metal milling machine to operate faster and with greater precision. What is more, the magnets can also actively suppress all unwanted vibration via an electronic control system, thus effectively reducing production costs through greater speed and improved quality.

Category Dissertations, Master's and Bachelor's Theses:

1st Prize: Hendrik Dietz, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany
A green fluorescent protein (GFP), already used by researchers as a fluorescent marker in cell structures, is also suitable as a mini dynamometer to measure mechanical strain. The structure of the protein breaks down beyond a certain tensile load and it stops glowing. Physicist Hendrik Dietz has made a precise measurement of the GFP molecule's mechanical properties, thus giving biologists a completely new opportunity to observe intracellular processes.

2nd Prize: Amit Mizrahi, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, lace w:st="on">Haifa, Israellace>
Particle accelerators could work with light energy instead of electromagnetic micro-waves. Israeli engineer Amit Mizrahi has already demonstrated this in theory. In the vacuum of fibre optics, which conduct light without any spillage, electrons can be made to move at almost the speed of light using laser waves. This would mean that an optical particle accelerator would take up significantly less space than required by conventional devices.

3rd Prize: Thomas Howard, lace w:st="on">University of Bath, Englandlace>
A special fast-lock system prevents the theft of paintings from art gallery walls without detracting from viewers' enjoyment. The system, developed by Thomas Howard, offers galleries twofold security; the pictures are not only firmly fastened to the wall, but can also be removed in an instant in case of emergency. The lock, which fits flush with the wall, can be opened in a fraction of a second using a mechanically coded plastic chip as a key.