Research from new centre to prevent diseases

6 September 2012 by Andreas G. Jensby

- We can and will conduct amazing interdisciplinary research of practical significance and which, in the long term, can contribute to preventing diseases and their social consequences. CIRRAU members include experts of international standing, and with access to enormous data volumes about the Danish population, the centre stands every chance of being able to generate some truly exciting research.

This is the clear expectation of Professor Preben Bo Mortensen, Director of CIRRAU, ahead of the opening seminar on 28 September. On this day, a number of CIRRAU researchers will talk about the scope and applicability of the enormous data resource which the centre has accumulated and which will form the basis of a five-year research venture.

Interdisciplinarity attracts researchers and data
CIRRAU was established in 2012 to facilitate interdisciplinary research within the social sciences, health sciences and some of the natural sciences. The centre's research is based on data from research databases and biobanks and focuses on translational population studies. The overriding focal points of the interdisciplinary work are social epidemiology and health economics.

In addition to the centre's vast data resource, CIRRAU's strength lies in its interdisciplinary approach which is given a high priority.

Experts from the various main academic areas at Aarhus University work together, the National Institute for Health Data and Disease Control (Statens Serum Institut) is a partner, and PhDs and postdocs are never affiliated with just one main academic area, but always with a minimum of two. This means that new data, new knowledge and new brain capacity are added all the time.

- When experts from such diverse areas as, for example, demography, biology and criminology come together to look at data about the population, it variably throws up new and exciting results. Experts come here both from Denmark and from abroad because of the quality of our data and our strong academic environment.

CIRRAU has been given a five-year grant by Aarhus University with the possibility of an extension.

Facts: More interdisciplinary research at Aarhus University

Aarhus University has earmarked strategic funding for interdisciplinary research of a high international standard.
The ideas are presented by researchers who are provided with the financial and organisational resources required to take their research to new heights.
Interdisciplinarity builds on strong core academic expertise.
The interdisciplinary centres at Aarhus University are expected to also focus on education, talent development and knowledge exchange.
Politicians and research councils are becoming increasingly focused on the importance of interdisciplinarity. A good example is the European strategic research programme under Horizon 2020.

Read more about the five new interdisciplinary centres: http://www.au.dk/om/nyheder/nyhed/artikel/fem-nye-lovende-interdisciplinaere-forskningscentre/ (Only in Danish)

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