We are Nordic champions in physics and geoscience
SDU is at the very top when it comes to research in physics and geoscience in the Nordic countries, according to a new report that compares research performance of the Nordic universities.
SDU's top place is attributed to the fact that researchers from SDU have written some of the most cited research papers in physics and geoscience in the Nordic countries.
19 per cent of SDU's geoscience research papers are among the most cited, which earns SDU a first place.
18 per cent of SDU's physics research papers are among the most cited. The same is also the case for physics research at the Technical University of Denmark, therefore the first place is shared by the two universities.
Tackling basic research
Martin Sloth, professor in theoretical cosmology at the Centre for Cosmology and Particle Physics Phenomenology (CP3-Origins), has this theory as to why SDU's physics papers are at the top:
– We have a very international physics research environment at SDU, which is focused on tackling the biggest basic research problems.
The high-ranking articles about geoscience come from the Nordic Centre for Earth Evolution (NordCEE) at the Department of Biology, and Head of Department Marianne Holmer also points to the strong international environment at the Centre.
– NordCEE's researchers are incredibly good at creating new and groundbreaking research. It attracts the best researchers from all over the world, she says.
Researchers from all over the world
The precise definition of the category "highly cited research article" is the following: The article belongs to the 1 per cent of research articles about the subject which are most cited by other researchers within a year of being published.
The report is issued by NordForsk, an organisation under the Nordic Council of Ministers that provides funding for and facilitates Nordic cooperation on research and research infrastructure.