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This is another great achievement of UFRO, which climbed 11 places in the prestigious QS Latin America University Rankings compared to last year. |
This is an important step forward for the university Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO), which climbed from 71st (in 2020) to 62nd place in the QS Latin America University Rankings 2021, what brings it even closer to the top 50 in Latin America. Regarding the Chilean universities, UFRO has been ranked 11th overall, and is the fourth best state university in the country. These great results position UFRO as one of the universities that are among the top 16% of the ranking. It is the fifth year in a row that UFRO appears in this ranking. The first time was in 2016, when the university had been ranked in 92nd place. This year, the QS Ranking of the best Latin American universities featured 410 institutions, including 40 Chilean universities. One of the facts that made the improvement in this ranking possible are the indicators in which UFRO stands out: Papers per Faculty (14), one of the most consistent indicators at UFRO; Citations per Paper (33), what means that the scientific productivity of its researchers is significant, sought and cited by peers; and International Research Networks (53), which reinforces the just mentioned. According to Renato Hunter, the Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, this improved position in the ranking is a significant step forward that shows where UFRO stands in the Latin American scenario, but also in the national scenario, where it maintains a leading position. “These 11 places that UFRO climbed compared to last year’s ranking support each of our efforts made to ensure UFROs quality and excellence. At the same time, this is an expression of the institutional commitment towards scientific productivity, and we are proud that the indicators measured by QS also reflect that,” he explained. This ranking uses different indicators to evaluate the universities, such as Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation, Faculty to student Ratio, Staff with PhD, International Research Networks, Citations per Paper, Papers per Faculty and Web Impact. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE RANKINGS
Written by: UFRO Communications Office |
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13 UFRO projects have been awarded a Fondecyt Initiation in Research Grant 2020, what puts the university in eighth place at the national level. |
The university Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO) maintains its leading position in scientific productivity in Chile, after adding 13 projects that have been awarded a Fondecyt Initiation in Research Grant in the competition of 2020. This achievement puts UFRO in eighth place at the national level and among the best state universities in Chile regarding the number of awarded projects. According to Dr. César Arriagada Escamilla, the Vice-rector of Research and Graduate Studies, this achievement is the result of the growth strategies in research that have been implemented at UFRO and of the commitment and talent of the researchers themselves. “We generate knowledge in almost all fields and contribute to in-depth studies of high-impact research ideas that contribute to the solution of scientific and social problems at the regional, national and international level. That way, we position the La Araucanía Region as a knowledge hub in the southern macro-zone,” he explained. It is worth mentioning that UFRO has about 120 active projects that are funded by FONDECYT, which is a significant number at the national level. In this context, Dr. Pamela Serón Silva, the research director, congratulated the researchers, who are the ones who help the university to achieve its goal to provide the society with knowledge, on their success. “Over the past decade, the number of awarded FONDECYT projects has increased by 144%, positioning us always among the ten universities in Chile with the highest number of awarded projects,” she said. THE PROJECTS This year, the awarded projects cover the fields of Agronomy, Biology, Law and Politics, Education, Geography and Urbanism, History, Engineering, Chemistry, Animal Health and Production, and Sociology. Project name: MACROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS THROUGH MULTICOMPONENT REACTIONS WITH MICROTUBULE-STABILIZING EFFECT
Project name: THE IN VITRO EFFECT OF NEUTROPHIL EXTRACELLULAR TRAPS (NETs) ON BOVINE SPERM FUNCTION AND ITS IMPACT IN THE FERTILIZATION OUTCOME
Written by: Karimme Riadi Millas
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The workshop, in which experts from the USA, France, Italy, Mexico and Brazil will participate, takes place from October 28 to 30. |
It will be the first one in Chile in this field: the Research Center – Geometry at the Frontier, of our university Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO). The aim is to position this center as a meeting point for experts and those who are interested in this field, as well as to contribute to research, training and to improve the visibility of this field. Another objective of this new center, which will be directed by Dr. Rubí E. Rodríguez, is to contribute to research in Complex Geometry and its applications, by creating new research lines, increasing scientific productivity, training new top-level researchers and by expanding its national and international networks of collaboration. It also aims at improving the Geometry teaching process at schools and universities. The scientific activities of this center will officially start with an international workshop, which is taking place online, from October 28 to 30, with the participation of outstanding geometricians from the United States, France, Italy, Mexico and Brazil, who will present state of the art topics of current interest in the field. It is worth mentioning that all of the participants are also permanent collaborators of our research group. The Vice-rector for Research and Graduate Studies at UFRO, Dr. César Arriagada Escamilla, expressed his appreciation for this new academic unit. He pointed out that “this center will allow us to contribute to the disciplines of mathematics in general and of geometry in particular, as well as to the scientific and technological progress that is permanently evolving.” INTERNATIONAL GUESTS The international workshop started on October 28, via Zoom, with speakers who have broad experience in this field. Arnaud Beauville is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis (France), a senior member of the Institut Universitaire de France (2001), a fellow of the American Mathematical Society (2012) and a member of the Academia Europaea (2016). Some of his most important achievements are his guest lecture at the International Congress of Mathematicians in 1986 and the Grand Prix Servant (2001) and Ampère de l'Électricité de France (2013), awarded by the French Academy of Sciences. His field of research is complex algebraic geometry. Phillip Griffiths is an Emeritus Professor at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) in Princeton, USA, which he directed from 1991 to 2003, and a Fellow of the American Mathematical Society (2012). Some of his most important achievements are his plenary conferences (1970) and guest lectures (1978) at the International Congress of Mathematicians, the Wolf Prize (2008), and the Brouwer Medal (2008). In 2014, he also received the Leroy P. Steele Prize and the Chern Medal, in recognition of his remarkable achievements in the field of mathematics. His book “Principles of Algebraic Geometry” – which he wrote with his colleague and former student, Joe Harris – is one of the most important texts in the field. His main field of research is complex algebraic geometry. Samuel Grushevsky is a full professor at Stony Brook University in New York, USA. Some of his most important achievements are the Simons Fellowship in Mathematics (2015-2016) from the Simons Foundation and the Bessel Research Award in 2015, from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. His field of research is complex algebraic geometry and its interactions with mathematical physics. Ernesto Lupercio is a professor at the Cinvestav Institute in Mexico City. Some of his most important achievements are the TWAS-ROLAC Prize (2009) from the World Academy of Sciences for young researchers in Latin America and the Caribbean, the Ramanujan Prize (2009) from the International Center for Theoretical Physics, and the Marcos Moshinsky Chair (2012) at the Autonomous University of Mexico. His field of research is differential geometry and its interactions with mathematical physics and algebraic topology. Cecilia Salgado is an assistant professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). Some of her main achievements include a Women in Science Award (2015) from the L'Oreal Foundation, a Humboldt Fellowship (2017) from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and an Associate Simons Fellowship (2020) from the Simons Foundation and the International Center for Theoretical Physics. Her field of research is complex algebraic geometry. Riccardo Salvati Manni is a full professor in Geometry at the University of Rome "La Sapienza" (Italy). One of his most important achievements is the XL Medal for Mathematics from the National Academy of Sciences (2017). This prize is awarded annually, to an outstanding Italian mathematician, since 1868. His field of research is complex algebraic geometry and its interactions with number theory. Alessandra Sarti is a full professor at the University of Poitiers (France), where she currently directs the Mathematics and Applications Laboratory. She is also a member of the scientific management committee of the international Ypatia Laboratory of Mathematical Sciences and she described the so-called “Sarti surfaces” in 2008. Her field of research is complex algebraic geometry. Keti Tenenblat is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Brasilia (Brazil). Some of her most important achievements are the National Order of Scientific Merit honor (in the category Commander), the permanent membership of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences since 1991, and the presidency of the Brazilian Mathematical Society from 1989 to 1991. Her field of research is differential geometry and its interactions with global analysis. For more information about the workshop and the Research Center, please visit: https://www.geometryrc.ufro.cl
Written by: Karimme Riadi Millas UFRO Vice-rectorate for Research and Graduate Studies
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This year’s Research Exhibition of UFRO will take place online, starting on October 19, on a special online platform that will allow the community to access the contents of the different exhibition stands. |
This year, the traditional Research Exhibition ‘FIUFRO’ of the university Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO) will take place online, what allows it to reach a much greater audience and to keep up the university’s commitment to research dissemination, by sharing its knowledge with the entire community. The preparations for the 14th version of FIUFRO, which has become one of the most important scientific events in the south of Chile, with more than three thousand visitors last year, are in full swing. In this context, Dr. Pamela Serón Silva, the director of the UFRO Research Office, pointed out that “it is important to us to carry out this event that represents our talents and vocation as a university, and to share our advances in science and technology with the public. Although the pandemic doesn’t allow us to carry out this event as we usually do, the virtual platforms allow us to overcome the physical distance, so that anyone with access to the internet can access the exhibition”. FIUFRO 2020 will take place on a special online platform (http://feriainvestigacion.ufro.cl/), where you can find the different virtual stands, as well as dissemination activities through the social networks of the Vice-rectorate for Research and Graduate Studies. This year’s presentation format contains audiovisual contents and infographics, which convey the messages of the researchers or working groups in an innovative way both of the processes, results and impact of their research. The Vice-rector for Research and Graduate Studies, Dr. César Arriagada Escamilla, considers that FIUFRO 2020 is very important regarding the university’s purpose of sharing its knowledge with the public, especially in complex times like the current health crisis. “Despite the difficulties, the interest and commitment of our academic staff encourages us to carry out this scientific event that has become one of the most important ones in the south of Chile. We believe that this first online version of FIUFRO will lay the foundation for its future versions,” he added. The online platform will allow you to visit each of the 40 exhibition stands of FIUFRO 2020, to access and download information about scientific projects, laboratories, centers and research results, to communicate with the researchers through social media, and to participate in some of the activities from home. Written by: Karimme Riadi Millas
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Dr. Jorge Farías Avendaño is part of the academic staff of the Department of Chemical Engineering at UFRO and, since this year, also a member of this renowned American society. |
As an acknowledgement for his work in the fields of research, teaching and outreach, Dr. Jorge Farías Avendaño, an academic member of the Department of Chemical Engineering at the university Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO), was invited to join the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) this year. This American scientific society was founded in 1906 and is one of the most renowned in the world of molecular life science. It currently has more than 11,000 members, including students, researchers, educators and professionals in the industry. Dr. Farías explained that “forming part of this Society opens up the possibility to promote scientific cooperation and to establish international networks with world-class researchers. That allows me to grow academically and as a scientist, as well as to promote the internationalization of my working group at the Department of Chemical Engineering and of the Master’s and Doctoral Programs I work for”. Another aspect that is worth mentioning is the large network of ASBMB, “since it is not limited to the academic field and universities, but also has a strong focus on the industry, including research, development, innovation, and technology transfer. It equally focuses on innovation in education in the fields of biochemistry and molecular biology, what will allow me to get to know the experiences of different working groups that are strong in all of these areas and to learn from them.” In order to become a Regular Member of this Society, it is imperative to fulfill certain requirements. You need to have an outstanding international career in the fields of biochemistry and cell biology in terms of scientific publications, teaching activities in doctoral programs and the participation in other international scientific societies, as it is the case of Dr. Jorge Farías.
Written by: Daphne Bormann Parada
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