A total of 540 researchers applied to NWO for Vidi grants of a maximum of 800,000 euros. Vidi grants were awarded to 88 researchers, 30 of them women. NWO is awarding grants totaling 70 million euros. TU/e receives two Vidi grants this year: one for dr. Krist Vaesen (Industrial Engineering & Innovation Sciences) and one for dr. Peter Zijlstra (Applied Physics).

Cultural evolution theory
Vaesen, a researcher in the Philosophy & Ethics group, addresses the trend in which cultural phenomena such as language, technology and religion are described using methods from evolutionary biology ­– even though culture actually makes a distinction between man and other biological species. For example Vaesen observes the use of evolutionary trees akin to the tree of life to describes the development of arrowheads or subsistence agriculture.

‘Darwinization’
Vaesen believes this ‘Darwinization of culture’ in scientific research should be treated with caution because, in contrast with biology, in the field of culture the applicability of biological methods to cultural phenomena has never been studied critically. He is the first researcher to tackle this problem. He uses a statistical method to examine whether the biological models still produce the same results if the original assumptions change.

Single enzyme
Zijlstra, a researcher in the Molecular Biosensors for Medical Diagnostics group, focuses on the study of a single enzyme in a living cell. Enzymes control the biochemical processes within a cell. Up to now, enzyme activity could only be studied in clean water, an environment that is not representative for living cells which are loaded with molecules and organelles. The researchers intend to use a tiny gold nanoparticle that acts as a ‘flashlight’, with dimensions of the order of tens of nanometers.

Nano-flashlights
This nano-flashlight allows a volume in the cell to be illuminated that is less than one ten-thousandth of the size of what is possible with a normal microscope. This will clearly show the effects of the complex environment inside the cell on the activity of the enzyme. In the future Zijlstra hopes to gain an understanding of the relationship between the activity of individual biomolecules in a cell and the functioning of the cell as a whole.

Research Incentives Scheme
The Vidi grants are part of the NWO’s Research Incentives Scheme, which consists of Veni, Vidi and Vici awards. Vidi is aimed at excellent scientists who have already completed a number of years of successful research. The Vidi grant allows them to develop an innovative research line and to start their own research group. The researchers are free in the choice of research subject.