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More than 70 grants awarded yesterday by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation showed a shift away from traditional hierarchies of science research, with graduates and post-doctoral researchers most likely to win support. Among the successful applications are projects to develop chocolate that boosts a vaccine’s efficacy, a paper cup that turns TB-positive saliva bright orange and use of mobile phones to record cough and sleep sounds and diagnose cases of pneumonia. Each will receive initial grants of $100,000 (£65,000) from the Gates Foundation as part of its Grand Challenges Explorations programme, with the chance of follow-on grants of $1 million if their projects show success. In a radical departure from conventional funding systems the foundation asked only for a two-page application and no preliminary data for the first stage award. It is hoped that this approach will encourage and accelerate bold and largely unproven research.  more

From Times Online October 21, 2009 Left-field projects get backing from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Once only an eccentric but respected professor could command funding for “out-there” projects as novel as chewing gum that can detect malaria or an electronic nose to smell tuberculosis. But a growing number of young scientists, armed with ideas to fight infectious disease at the far edge of innovation, are now being rewarded in the search for a world-changing discovery. More than 70 grants awarded yesterday by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation showed a shift away from traditional hierarchies of science research, with graduates and post-doctoral researchers most likely to win support. Among the successful applications are projects to develop chocolate that boosts a vaccine’s efficacy, a paper cup that turns TB-positive saliva bright orange and use of mobile phones to record cough and sleep sounds and diagnose cases of pneumonia. Each will receive initial grants of $100,000 (£ ...  more

Once only an eccentric but respected professor could command funding for “out-there” projects as novel as chewing gum that can detect malaria or an electronic nose to smell tuberculosis. But a growing number of young scientists, armed with ideas to fight infectious disease at the far edge of innovation, are now being rewarded in the search for a world-changing discovery. More than 70 grants awarded yesterday by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation showed a shift away from traditional hierarchies of science research, with graduates and post-doctoral researchers most likely to win support. Among the successful applications are projects to develop chocolate that boosts a vaccine’s efficacy, a paper cup that turns TB-positive saliva bright orange and use of mobile phones to record cough and sleep sounds and diagnose cases of pneumonia. Related Links Each will receive initial grants of $100,000 (£65,000) from the Gates Foundation as part of its Grand Challenges Explorations programme, ...  more