Eleven research projects approved

Eleven joint-venture research projects between Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab Europe (MLE) and Irish institutions have been approved by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) for funding from a special £1 million fund. Media Lab Europe, a spin-off of MIT's well-known Media Lab in Boston, is the Dublin-based research facility located in the former Guinness Hopstore.

The cutting edge research laboratory will be at the centre of a multi-million pound digital enterprise area centred in the Liberties and the Coombe. The HEA established a £1 million annual fund specifically for collaborative projects between MLE and Irish research or third-level institutions.

Three of the projects are at University College Dublin, according to Professor Mark Keane of UCD's engineering and computer science department. Mr John Callinan, chief operations office for MLE, said all of the projects were proposed by individuals in Irish institutions, who made contact with a researcher or faculty member working on a relevant area at MIT.

Once a project is approved, one or more students will join the Irish and MIT researchers on each project. "The sum of the parts is extremely encouraging," said Mr Callinan. He noted that the level of project proposals was very high and that several that did not receive funding in this round "would clearly go through for subsequent rounds".

In a related development, telecommunications company 360networks confirmed that it will provide a private high-speed, broadband link between MLE and Media Lab in Boston. Mr Patrick Coughlan, Irish general manager for 360networks, said the company's two terabit-capacity transatlantic cable was on schedule to go live in the Republic in March.

He said the company also expects to supply bandwidth to companies and facilities locating in the digital hub around MLE. Connectivity from 360networks will complement a highbandwidth Internet research network announced last week for the State, to be overseen by the national education network, HEAnet.

Mr John Boland, chief executive of HEAnet, said he expects the network to provide connectivity to organisations based in the digital hub, but noted that access to the network would be limited to organisations conducting research.