A Rare Urban Research Center: VEKAM
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The Vehbi Koç and Ankara Studies Research Center (VEKAM) stands out as a unique and unparalleled urban research center, renowned for its comprehensive and interdisciplinary knowledge base on Ankara and its environs. Professor Filiz Yenişehirlioğlu, the director of VEKAM, recently shared her valuable insights regarding the current state and prospects of the center.
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The Aftermath of the Earthquake and Preparing for the Next One
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The February 6 earthquakes took the lives of tens of thousands of people, left as many injured, and destroyed an important part of our historical and cultural heritage. Since then, efforts continue to support those affected. Koç University is among the institutions that embrace the subject with all its workforce. Researchers in all departments of the university, from medicine and nursing to engineering and social sciences, design several projects both individually and collectively. Find out more about these efforts on KURIOUS, Koç University’s platform for curious minds.
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Koç University maintained its leading position with the largest number of BAGEP Awards (Science Academy Young Scientist Awards Program) received in the last 10 years since the inception of this program, with ASSOC. PROF. AYKUT COŞKUN from the Department of Media and Visual Arts, ASSOC. PROF. ERKAN KALAFAT from the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, ASSOC. PROF. TUBA MUTLUER from the Department of Psychiatry receiving this year’s awards.
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PROF. ZİYA ÖNİŞ from the Department of International Relations was recognized with the Kadir Has Outstanding Achievement Award of 2023 honoring his original groundbreaking work on the developmental state and global political economy, the political economy of development, the interface of globalization and democracy, the comparative political economy of emerging powers, Turkish politics and European politics, as well as his role and his contributions as a teacher and educator.
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ASST. PROF. ASLI E. MERT from the Department of Sociology was named by the Horizon Europe Program as one of the partners of the “Twinning Research and Innovation Institutions to Design and Implement Inclusive Gender Equality Plans (GEPs) (NEXUS) Project.” The project, which will last for 24 months, has 10 partners, including Koç University.
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PROF. DEMİRCAN CANADİNÇ from the Department of Mechanical Engineering received the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s Humboldt Research Award for his studies on characterizing metallic materials using multiscale experimental and computational methods, designing microstructures and alloys using artificial intelligence, improving the performance of metals under monotonic and cyclic loads, and designing metallic biomedical materials.
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ASST. PROF. CEYHUN ARSLAN from the Department of Comparative Literature was awarded the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s Georg Forster Research Fellowship, presented to experienced researchers, for his work analyzing literary studies, aiming to overcome the established geopolitical and cultural boundaries of the nineteenth century.
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ASST. PROF. MEHMET CENGIZ ONBAŞLI from the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and the Department of Physics was presented the METU Parlar Foundation Research Encouragement Award, given to young researchers who contribute to the development of science or the solution of our country’s problems in this field. Onbaşlı also received this year’s TÜBİTAK Encouragement Award, presented to young scientists who have proven that they can make significant contributions to science at the international level with their work.
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ASST. PROF. ASGAR JAMNESHAN from the Department of Mathematics was honored with the coveted 2022 Ikeda Research Award by the Mathematics Foundation. His research focuses on ergodic theory, additive combinatorics, harmonic analysis, functional analysis, and Boolean-valued logic.
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PROF. SEDA KESKİN AVCI from the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering has been selected for the 2023 Mediterranean Science Team of the Mediterranean Researchers’ Night (MEDNIGHT) by highly esteemed researchers and leaders from the European Commission, the European Research Council, and the European Association of Women Rectors, among thousands of female researchers in 23 countries who have made significant contributions in the field of natural sciences. Prof. Keskin Avcı is the only member selected from Turkey to join this important committee this year.
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One of the Top 10 Most Entrepreneurial and Innovative Universities in Türkiye
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Koç University was ranked among the top ten universities and recognized as one of the “most entrepreneurial and innovative” institutions in our country in the 2022 TÜBİTAK Entrepreneurial and Innovative University Index. According to the Index, which reviewed 192 universities, the schools were evaluated by criteria such as “scientific and technological research competence,” “intellectual property pool,” “cooperation and engagement,” and “economic and social contribution.” Based on the results, Koç University ranked sixth in the 2022 Entrepreneurial and Innovative University Index.
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Encouraging and Fostering Invention
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The KUIMPACT Patent Competition, which aims to foster and inspire innovation and invention, continues to see great interest. In total, 12 outstanding applications were submitted for consideration to the Koç University’s Committee on Intellectual Property Rights.
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The winners were announced after a thorough assessment process:
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1st place: “Water soluble, biocompatible, biodegradable, 3D printable and radiation curable polyurethaneurea bioinks” by İskender Yılgör, Emel Yılgör, and İpek Atay.
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2nd place: “Preparation and Harvesting of Responsive Substrate for Neuronal Cell Sheets” by Seda Kızılel, Kiyumars Jalili, Esra Yalçın, and Büşra Ece Günaydın.
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3rd place: “Skyrmionic Scalable Logic and Memory Device System” by Buse Bilgin, Mehmet Cengiz Onbaşlı, and Arash Mousavi Cheghabouri
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SANERC Is Re-Accredited for a Four-Year Period
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The Semahat Arsel Nursing Education, Practice and Research Center (SANERC) has once again secured reaccreditation from the prestigious American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) for a duration of four years. SANERC first received ANCC accreditation in 2010, which marked a major milestone in recognizing the center’s educational and research excellence. This accreditation has allowed SANERC to achieve global recognition for its high-quality continuing education programs. SANERC holds the distinction of being the only nursing continuing education center in Türkiye to hold an ANCC accreditation certificate.
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FROM OUR DOCS AND POSTDOCS
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PH.D. STUDENT ZEYNEP ECE KULOĞLU received the Prof. Enver Tali Çetin Young Researcher Award of the Turkish Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (KLIMIK) for her study “The effect of BTN162b2 and CoronaVac boosters on the humoral and cellular immunity of individuals previously fully vaccinated with CoronaVac against SARS-CoV-2: A longitudinal study.”
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PH.D. STUDENT FATİHAN PINARLIK received the Best Oral Presentation Award at the KLIMIK Congress for his study “Clinical and Molecular Characteristics of carbapenem resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.” Koç University students NAZLI ATAÇ, LAL SUDE GÜCER, JALE BORAL, GÜZ EKİNCİ, and FRANCIS COOPER have also contributed to this ongoing study.
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BEDİRHAN HAYKAR, ZEYNEP BENGİ EREN, and BERK KABADAYI students from KUSOM are conducting a research project under Prof. Füsun Can's guidance, as part of the KUSOM Research Days initiative. Their study, titled "Presence of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza A viruses in indoor air in the tertiary university hospital during the Omicron wave and normalization period," has been funded by TÜBİTAK 2209-A (BİDEB) program and has been accepted as an oral presentation at ECCMID (European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases).
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SPOTLIGHT ON RESEARCH PROFESSORS
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TÜBİTAK 2247-A Program Video Series |
We continue to introduce Koç University projects, supported by the TÜBİTAK 2247-A National Leader Researchers Program. One of the recipients of this grant scheme is Assoc. Prof. Sedat Nizamoğlu from the Faculty of Engineering. In this video, he discusses his project, titled “Near-Infrared Sensitive, Quantum Dot Based and Hydrogel-integrated Capacitive Optoelectronic Biointerfaces for Cardiac Cell Excitation,” which aims to develop new devices to prevent battery replacement in pacemakers.
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This month, VEKAM’s Echo podcast series hosted guest Taha Altınkaya, the founding editor of Tiyatro.co, an Ankara-based young and dynamic platform that brings art and literature together. Taha Altınkaya talks about the story of theater in Ankara.
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A Close Look at Stem Cells
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A human mesenchymal stem cell has been induced to be an adipogenic cell. Mesenchymal stem cells play a role in the production and repair of many different tissues, such as bone, cartilage, and fat tissue. Adipogenic cell, on the other hand, is a specialized cell type found in fat tissue that is designed for storing fat.
(vimentin: green; lipid vacuoles: red, nucleus: blue). Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope, Leica dmi8/SP8, KUTTAM CMIC, 2019.
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