Society has opened its eyes to how important the research field can be for society, says DTU professor.
In recent weeks, two prizes have been awarded to DTU researchers related to the HOPE project. In the HOPE project, researchers from Aarhus University, the University of Copenhagen, and DTU used mobile data to examine the Danes' movement and transport patterns in connection with the Danish COVID-19 restrictions and advised the authorities on whether new restrictions have changed the population's behavior.
First, Professor Sune Lehmann together with his partners from Aarhus University and University of Copenhagen received the Columbusprisen. A few days later, Assistant Professor Laura Alessandretti was awarded the prestigious Tietgenprisen in appreciation of her significant research efforts as a young researcher. Both researchers work in the section Cognitive Systems at DTU Compute and at the University of Copenhagen - Copenhagen Center for Social Science Data, SODAS.
"The extremely well-deserved awards for Laura Alessandretti and Sune Lehmann show that data science has made a major breakthrough in Denmark. The new opportunity to analyze behavioral data on a large scale has given us completely new insights into both everyday life and crises."
Lars Kai Hansen, Professor and Section Leader
According to Professor and Section leader Lars Kai Hansen, this testifies to the recognition of the research field data science, where you use scientific methods, processes, algorithms, and systems to find knowledge from large amounts of data and e.g. use that knowledge in decision-making processes in society.
"The extremely well-deserved awards for Laura Alessandretti and Sune Lehmann show that data science has made a major breakthrough in Denmark. The new opportunity to analyze behavioral data on a large scale has given us completely new insights into both everyday life and crises," Lars Kai Hansen says.
Computational Social Science
Laura Alessandretti shares the prize of DKK 500,000 with Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen, who researches education policy and artificial intelligence at the University of Copenhagen / SODAS and, like Laura, uses Computational Social Science - where computers model, simulate and analyze social phenomena.
“My research field of Computational Social Science has grown in the last few years, leading to groundbreaking discoveries on aspects of human behaviour and society. It has also provided solutions to societal issues, from modelling the spread of epidemics to designing efficient transport,” says Laura Alessandretti.
"I am really excited that the Danish Society for Education and Businesses are recognizing the value of these outcomes and the potential of this interdisciplinary field for addressing societal challenges, by awarding the prize to me and Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen."
High ambition and hard work
The Tietgenprisen is one of the most prestigious Danish honors awarded to younger researchers in Northern Europe. Laura Alessandrettiwill use the award to develop new methods for understanding poorly understood aspects of mobility, such as navigation and route selection in so-called multi-layer transport networks, where routes intersect. Understanding these aspects will be crucial to improving mobility and contributing to sustainable cities.
Laura Alessandretti is a busy researcher because since receiving the Tietgenprisen, she has also been awarded DKK 2.9 million from the Inge Lehmann program under the Independent Research Fund Denmark for the project 'Gender Gaps in Human Mobility'. This, again, underlines the importance of the research field. She has good advice for young people who are considering whether life as a researcher is something for them.
“Working in academia has given me much more freedom, as compared to working in the private sector. Students valuing the opportunity of working on topics they genuinely find interesting should consider a career path in academia. At the same time, academia is a competitive environment, where high ambition and hard work are essential to succeed, ”says Laura Alessandretti.
Credit: DSEB - Danish Society for Education and Business
