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PRESENTED BY INVEST STOCKHOLM

Six incredible studies to come out of Stockholm

Stockholm is lauded as one of the world’s most innovative cities and these six amazing studies prove just why.

Published: 7 January 2020 06:00 CET
Six incredible studies to come out of Stockholm
Photo: Henrik Trygg/imagebank.sweden.se

Stockholm’s three main universities are working independently and collaboratively to improve the wellbeing of both people and the planet. Between them, Stockholm University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Karolinska Institutet are tackling issues like climate change, chronic pain and age-related diseases as well as shedding light on the universe as we know it.

Here are six incredible studies to recently come out of Stockholm.

Electrifying the future

Photo: miflippo/Depositphotos

Is it possible to create an electrical system that contributes to a more sustainable society? What do we need to do to electrify our roads? These are some of the questions that were asked at KTH’s seminar ‘Electrified mobility – the path to a fossil-free society’ and that are an everyday focus for Lina Bertling Tjernberg, professor of power grid technology at KTH.

Technologies like AI and machine learning combined with access to smart grids and solar and wind power are paving the way for a fossil-free society. The challenges, however, revolve around infrastructure, flexibility and how best to convert, transfer and store energy. Tjernberg’s current research aims to develop cost-effective methods for the modernisation of the electric power system, also known as the Smart Grid, as well as working out how to reduce the loss of electricity between generation and usage.

“There’s plenty we can solve using new methods and access to data. It’s going incredibly fast and electrification is a huge trend at the moment,” says Tjernberg.

Cutting consumption

Photo: AllaSerebrina/Depositphotos

Back in 2015, the UN published its 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development outlining 17 goals which must be urgently addressed by all United Nations Member States. Among them was the need to ensure sustainable consumption and production to promote resource and energy efficiency, sustainable infrastructure and a generally greener, better quality of life for everybody.

But how to go about changing the habits of a lifetime?

KTH’s new research programme ‘Mistra Sustainable Consumption’ aims to give more knowledge about what sustainable consumption is and design a roadmap for the general public to make more sustainable everyday choices. The programme will explore ways in which policy makers, businesses, civil society organisations and consumers can find practical solutions to bring about a shift in behaviour. 

Treating chronic pain

Photo: belchonok/Depositphotos

Pain may be unpleasant but it’s necessary for survival. It helps us to avoid hurting ourselves further as well as telling us when we need to rest and heal. Some people are unfortunate enough to suffer from chronic pain disorders which doctors struggle to diagnose or effectively treat. 

Now researchers at Karolinska Institutet have discovered a new sensory receptor organ that could offer fresh insight into why we feel pain. The organ is made up of octopus-like shaped glial cells which combine to form a mesh-like organ within the skin. The breakthrough moment came when researchers used optogenetics – the use of genetic engineering and optics to selectively monitor or control nerve cell activity – to discover the organ is sensitive to environmental irritation, like pricks and impacts. The findings could be key to developing new pain-relieving drugs to treat chronic pain disorders.

Click here to find out more about innovation in Stockholm

“The discovery changes our understanding of the cellular mechanisms of physical sensation and it may be of significance in the understanding of chronic pain,” says Patrik Ernfors, professors at Karolinska Institutet and chief investigator of the study.

Turning back time

Photo: ocskaymark/Depositphotos

Ageing is a natural phenomenon and there is, sadly, nothing we can do about it. But we can try to understand the ageing process better in order to explain – and prevent – certain age-related diseases. There may also be a way to reverse our ‘biological age’, i.e. how old our cells are as opposed to the number of birthdays we’ve celebrated.

That’s the goal for Sara Hägg, senior researcher at Karolinska Institutet. Using samples from the Swedish Twin Registry (STR), a registry managed by KI with the information of around 85,000 twin pairs, the Genomics Aggregation Project in Sweden (GAPS), and the UK Biobank, Sara is investigating how different ‘biological age’ predictors can explain common health conditions associated with ageing. She is also exploring the use of geroprotectors – substances that support healthy ageing or that extend healthy life – to find out if it’s possible to turn back the clock on cell changes and reverse our biological age. 

It might be time to rewrite the old maxim ‘you’re only as old as you feel’ to ‘you’re only as old as your cells’!

Click here to find out about life sciences in Stockholm

Hearing dark matter

Photo: agsandrew/Depositphotos

Dark matter makes up around 85 percent of the universe yet scientists are unable to directly observe it. The elusive substance – which researchers believe may be theoretical particles known as ‘axions’ – emits neither light nor energy and only makes itself known through weak interactions with regular matter. 

“Finding the axion is a bit like tuning a radio: you have to tune your antenna until you pick up the right frequency. Rather than music, experimentalists would be rewarded with ‘hearing’ the dark matter that the earth is travelling through,” explains Dr. Alexander Millar, researcher at Stockholm University’s Department of Physics.

Dr. Millar and his physicist colleagues are using plasma, a material where electrons can flow freely, to ‘hear’ the dark matter. Within a magnetic field, the axions generate a small electric field that drives oscillations into the plasma and amplifies the signal resulting in an ‘axion radio’. The plasma creates an environment where the dark matter can be heard more easily at the same time making it possible to collect the energy of the converted dark matter. By building this ‘tuneable’ plasma, researchers can search for axions within the plasma’s haloscope. In layman’s terms, it means scientists are one step closer to solving the mystery of dark matter. 

“The fact that the experimental community has latched onto this idea so quickly is very exciting and promising for building a full-scale experiment,” says Dr. Millar.

Climate-friendly mining
Photo: michaeljung/Depositphotos

At Stockholm University, Aji Mathew and her research team are improving a nanocellulose membrane and 3D-printed filters which have unique properties for purifying industrial water waste.

The membrane – which has many pores that are invisible to the naked eye but which can be modified during manufacturing – makes it possible to separate a higher proportion of metals from the water. Both the captured metals and membrane material can be recovered or recycled, allowing for the upcycling of natural resources.

“We have had very good results in testing the nanocellulose filters at industries from southern Europe and we aim to use it for the mining industry in Sweden,” says Aji Mathew.

Mathew, who has been working with nanocellulose for two decades, hopes that 3D-printed nanocellulose implants will one day be used to assist in regenerating damaged body parts.

“In one of our projects, we try to modify the mechanical properties and pore structures of nanocellulose-based materials to mimic body tissue as much as possible. 3D-printed nanocellulose implants give unlimited possibilities in this aspect.”

Want to take part in incredible studies of your own? Find out how you can move to Stockholm and become part of the city’s innovative academic community.

This article was produced by The Local Creative Studio in partnership with Invest Stockholm.

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READER INSIGHTS

How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who’ve been there, done that

The Swedish job market poses unique challenges for newcomers. The Local's readers share their best tips for cracking the career code.

Published: 10 April 2024 11:32 CEST
Updated: 13 April 2024 15:50 CEST
How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who've been there, done that

Network, network, network!

A statistic that often gets tossed around is that seven out of ten jobs in Sweden are obtained through personal connections, and there’s no doubt that a good network is crucial to your job hunt, making the labour market extra challenging for newcomers to the country.

In fact, networking was the main tip mentioned by The Local’s readers.

“The job market is quite hot in Sweden, and talent is in short supply. People hiring do not have a lot of time to find the right talent, and tips from friends, colleagues and former colleagues are the way to first, find out organisations are hiring, and secondly, get your CV on the short list,” said Kyle, a Canadian reader who works in innovation management in Gothenburg.

“If you are going for a major employer like Volvo, network gets you in the door, as HR does not have much to do with hiring… the hiring managers do all of it and have no time, due to the insane number of consensus meetings. If you are looking for smaller organisations, they have even less time to find people, and networking is their primary way to find talent,” he added.

NETWORKING IN SWEDEN:

Some of the networking tips readers mentioned were going to job fairs, getting an internship to help you establish connections in your preferred field, joining clubs (this could be anything from your local gardening association to meetups for coders, but focus on clubs that may be popular among people working in your chosen field), and drawing on your organic network of friends, neighbours and others.

Don’t neglect the groundwork

The saying “dress for the job you want, not the job you have” is getting worn out (and people may look at you funny if you turn up to interviews in a Batman suit), but there’s truth to the notion of making sure you know what you want – and preparing for it.

In other words, don’t wait for a job ad to appear before you start to customise your CV and figure out what skill set you need. Create your CV now so that you’re ready to tweak it to your dream job – you could even have a general look at job ads in your field to see what requirements are needed. And don’t forget to spruce up your LinkedIn profile so that it fits with your career goals.

“I believe that several factors contribute to successfully landing a desirable job in Sweden. It’s essential to prepare to meet the requirements beyond just having a university degree. Many individuals realise these requirements only after completing their studies when they start searching for a job, which can be too late,” said Adnan Aslam from Pakistan, who works as a food inspector.

“I recommend identifying the job advertisements for positions you aspire to hold in the future and then preparing for those requirements during your studies. For me, acquiring a basic level of proficiency in the Swedish language and obtaining a Swedish driving licence were crucial. I pursued these goals during my studies and was able to secure a desirable job before graduating,” he added.

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Felipe Cabral even has a GPT assistant trained on his own CVs and old cover letters, and said the set-up only takes ten minutes if you already have your documents. “With that in place, you can give instructions like: Read this job description and create a tailored version of my CV and letter for it. (…) Remember to always review and ask it not to create data aside from your documents.”

Be flexible and ready to adapt

Moving to a new place inevitably means having to learn not just the practicalities such as how to write a CV or which websites to use to look for job openings, but also learning how to navigate a new culture with all its unspoken expectations.

Swedish workplaces are generally less hierarchical than many other countries, but that doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want whenever you want without anyone raising an eyebrow. Swedes are usually direct, but be careful of being too abrasive or boastful: raising your voice, even during a spirited argument, or banging your own drum to show off your skills may not go down well.

“Talk, deliberate, complain like a Swede and you’ll come across like you know what the job entails, so your trustworthiness increases,” said an Indian data analyst who preferred to remain anonymous.

“Office politics are just as strong in Sweden as anywhere else. The flat hierarchy is deceiving as social hierarchy is enforced quite a bit in that lack of formal hierarchy. Take your time in learning these dynamics wherever you work before revealing your talent and capabilities. Expect those internal politics to happen, and they won’t hurt so much when they do,” said Kyle, the Canadian reader in Gothenburg.

This article about Swedish office politics may be useful.

Stay true to yourself

Adapting to your surroundings is one thing. Completely changing who you are is another.

For one thing, your happiness is as important as your career progression, and for another, your foreignness need not be an impediment: it’s also a skill that sets you apart from the rest. It means you have unique experience, and also, in the right setting, provides an opportunity to sometimes violate those social rules we mentioned above, because people assume you will, anyway.

“Trust is key. Build trust in your network, work with integrity. It’s OK to violate jantelagen if you are maintaining integrity. Sometimes your outsider and more honest/open opinion will burn bridges, especially those that may feel threatened by talent. But it will build trust with other colleagues who see it as brave and more trustworthy to work with,” said Kyle from Canada.

Hunker down for the long haul

We don’t want to scare you, because there are plenty of examples of people who quickly find their dream job in Sweden and settle into their new workplace, enjoying perks such as long summer holidays, generous parental leave and the famous work-life balance.

But if you do find it tougher than you expected: know that you’re not alone.

Several readers who responded to the survey said they were still trying to find a job in Sweden.

“I found jobs all over Europe but not here. They say they have a lack of experienced senior engineers but the don’t seem to be doing much to solve this,” said a Brazilian in Gothenburg.

A reader from Bangladesh said she was “at a loss” as to how to make a career change from her current AI role in Stockholm, despite many years of experience as an IT project manager.

“Over the past 18 months, I’ve submitted over 600 applications to various organisations. Unfortunately, despite being overqualified for some positions, I’ve faced rejections at every turn, from both large and small companies. The job market here, especially for foreign-born women, feels overwhelmingly challenging,” she said, adding that the struggle had impacted her mental health.

The Local has on several occasions reported on foreign residents’ struggle to get a foot on the Swedish job ladder, with many facing hurdles such as employers’ unfamiliarity with international degrees, discrimination, or a lack of network that can provide paths into a company.

So during the job hunt, don’t forget to care for yourself. Share your concerns with fellow job-seekers, ask for help and join networking groups – this is good not just for creating new contacts, but also in terms of your social well-being and meeting people who are in a similar situation.

And finally, as one British reader in Stockholm advised, keep looking: “Be open-minded with the opportunities that present themselves. It isn’t an easy market to enter and doesn’t feel inclusive.” But he added, “don’t give up”.

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