Wealth of fascinating abstracts will lead to a voyage of discovery
The deadline for abstracts to be submitted for the Minoritised Life Scientists Future Forum has now closed - and the results are in.
The Future Forum takes place from 31st March to 2nd April 2025 at the ICC Birmingham, and we’re delighted to have received a wealth of fascinating abstracts covering a huge range of intriguing subjects.
In the end we received more than 160 abstracts, covering a huge range of topics, with a last-minute surge as the deadline loomed.
Topics included everything from vaccine research and the Black community to recovering the routes of historic icebreaker vessels in Antarctica and the use of artificial intelligence to transform depression risk prediction.
And while the conference is primarily European, we have received abstracts from across the globe, including Florida Atlantic University in the US, Quaid-I-Azam University in Islamabad in Pakistan and no fewer than eight abstracts from Nigeria.
We’ve learned about scientific discoveries from Ghana, Cameroon, Pakistan, India, Uganda, Spain, France and Portugal.
Intriguing research areas from around the world include the antibiotic resistance profile of bacteria isolated from worn jewellery in Nigeria; traditional plant extracts from Ghana that can be used to replace antibiotics in broiler production; and an Indian project on detecting gut microbiota linked to Type 2 diabetes.
One intriguing abstract from Paris covers the role of neuroscience research in solving the climate crisis, while research from Spain looks at tilapia welfare in Egyptian aquaculture.
One piece of research on adaptive hearing aid design integrates mechatronics and machine learning to explore personalised solutions, while another simulates the urban environment for last mile drone logistics. An inspiring abstract explores innovativions in civil engineering that will help to build more sustainable cities, while another looks at end of life management practices for onshore wind turbines.
Many of the abstracts tackle careers challenges that will be of particular interest to the Future Forum delegates, including how to transform an innovative idea into a grant funding opportunity; diversifying genetics education; and navigating a scientific career.
Many insightful pieces of work will feed into a lively and engaging programme that will provoke discussion and lay the foundation for fresh directions.
Keep an eye on the conference website for updates on the research that will be explored.