Further funding decisions have been made as part of the "excellent=austria" excellence initiative to strengthen top-level research at universities and non-university research institutions. In a multi-stage selection process with a hearing, the FWF's Scientific Advisory Board selected six Emerging Fields consortia, which will now receive a total of 35 million euros in funding over a period of five years. The decision was based on the written reviews and the recommendations of an international jury. Following the hearings, the jury assessed the innovation potential and scientific excellence of the projects on the basis of international peer reviews.
The six new consortia bring the total number of Emerging Fields to eleven. Up to 30 scientists will work together in each consortium over a period of five years; an interim review is planned after three years.
In the Emerging Field "Comparative Ecological Innovation Styles", Justus Piater and the other consortium members are investigating how different body structures, ecological niches and cognitive abilities shape the emergence of new behaviours.
Instead of exclusively comparing successful solutions to problems, the team is analysing in detail appropriation, learning and development processes in some of the most innovative animal groups, including parrots, ravens and apes. This provides a process-based understanding of how innovation arises, the role of motor skills and environmental conditions and why inventive strategies differ between species.
The knowledge gained should not only expand our understanding of animal intelligence, but also contribute to the development of robotic systems that are more flexible and adaptable.