Departmental news
Tata Power and University of Warwick forge strategic alliance in new energy systems innovation
Memorandum of Understanding highlights the strategic importance of research expertise to industry partners
The University of Warwick has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Tata Power, India’s leading integrated power companies, to deliver research and innovation in grid modernisation, fast charging, power storage, industrial decarbonisation, digital energy systems, optimisation and advanced manufacturing approaches.
Mechanochemistry of Molecular Motors and Cytoskeletal Filaments, a focused scientific meeting, 8-9 May 2026, University of Warwick
A focused scientific meeting on cytoskeletal filaments and molecular motors - the cellular machinery that drives cell division, cell migration and the motility and correct distribution of organelles. The programme will include inspiring keynotes from Joe Howard and Kristen Verhey, and provide many speaking opportunities for postdocs and students. Further, we will celebrate the career of Rob Cross and his contributions to kinesin and tubulin biophysics as he transitions into life as Emeritus Professor. The event will also be available via Livestream.
WMG honorary professor delivers inaugural lecture
On Thursday 19 February, WMG hosted the inaugural lecture of Dr Praveer Sinha, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Tata Power. The lecture, which took place in WMG’s 45th anniversary year, was held in the International Manufacturing Centre on the University’s campus, with an audience of industry partners, staff, students and alumni.
Arts and Humanities Impact Funding
The call for the 2026/27 round of the Arts and Humanities Impact Funding is now open.
The deadline for submission of applications for the next round of AHIF grants is Monday 30 March 2026 at midday.
Applications for activities which will translate Arts and Humanities research into impact are welcomed for the following schemes:
- Main Fund: Impact in Action: up to £10,000 per financial year between 1 August 2026 and 31 July 2027
- Supporting Fund: Enhancing Impact: up to £1,000 per financial year between 1 August 2026 and 31 July 2027
- Seed Fund: Early-Stage Activity: up to £1,000 per financial year between 1 August 2026 and 31 July 2027
The Panel will meet on 14th May and decisions will be communicated by the end of May.
The Rapid Response Fund providing up to £1,000 to enable researchers to undertake urgent impact generating activity or respond to opportunities which are time limited remains open until 31 July 2026.
For full details regarding the funds and the kind of activities and initiatives they can support please see the AHIF webpages: https://warwick.ac.uk/services/ris/research-funding-opportunities/art_hum_impact/Link opens in a new window
If you have any questions please contact us: arts.impact@warwick.ac.uk
Kind regards,
The Arts Impact Team
Three WLS colleagues receive Research Celebration Award nominations
In recognition of their contribution to excellence, Professor Jane Bryan, Dr Rajnaara Choudhury Akhtar and Dr Charlotte Woodhead have been nominated for a Warwick 2026 Research Celebration Award.
ATPγS substantially defeats the biasing mechanism for kinesin steps
Kinesin molecular motors step directionally along microtubules inside cells, hauling molecular cargoes. This is fundamental to the way cells organise themselves and is crucially important, for example. for brain function. Karnawat et al use single molecule optical trapping to show that replacing kinesin's ATP chemical fuel with ATPγS, in which just one oxygen atom of ATP is replaced with a sulphur, still allows stepping but defeats most of its directional bias. Asking why reveals the mechanism of directional stepping in unprecedented detail.
Read the paper here.Link opens in a new window
A geometrically informed permutation test for dependency in spatiotemporal patterns of protein species in microscopic images
Colocalisation in microscopy is notoriously difficult to quantify. Here, we applied a new statistical method using the Earth mover's distance to analyse microscopy movies of microtubule-associated proteins moving inside cells. The work was done by Tom Honnor in Julia Brettschneider's group in Statistics in collaboration with the Royle lab in BMS.
Faculty of Arts Showcase
Faculty of Arts Showcase
As some of you know, the showcase space in the FAB foyer was originally conceived in 2015 as part of a cabinet of curiosities project space to highlight research across the Faculty. The History of Art department’s 50th anniversary display showed what a strong, department-led presentation can deliver.
New Programme to Highlight Research
To increase strategic use of the showcase, the Art Collection curatorial team has worked with the Faculty on a new proposal, enabling staff and students to develop displays selected through a Faculty process.
While this programme gets underway, the Art Collection team has supported a new display by a Coventry artist, aligning with the University’s cultural strategy and its commitment to strengthening the city’s arts ecology.
This gives colleagues time to propose exhibitions for consideration. The Art Collection team will provide support and a small interpretation budget of £250 including VAT. If proposals are not forthcoming or viable, the young talent group from the Art Collection Committee will curate displays featuring other Coventry artists. Please see the paper for further detail on the policy and how to apply.
Mead Gallery Forward Programme
Your proposals may also connect with our upcoming programme and help generate broader engagement and impact. Our schedule for the next academic year is:
Autumn Term 2026
British Art Show 10: 1 October 2025 -10 January 2026
The British Art Show, held every five years, is the UK’s major survey of contemporary art. Coventry is the opening venue for its 10th edition, launching across the Mead, Herbert Art Gallery, and Coventry University.
I hope it would be possible to include any related departmental activity or events in the city-wide programme that is being curated around the core exhibition.
Curated by Ekow Eshun, its themes include:
- A People Yet to Come: alternative futures, myth, and new forms of kinship
- Inner Visions: dreams, memory, and the subconscious
- Listen to the Land: ecological attention to the more‑than‑human world
- Traces of History: fragments of suppressed or unstable histories
Summer Term 2027
George Shaw
George Shaw paints Tile Hill, the area immediately beyond the cemetery from campus. Using enamel paint, his work addresses themes of memory, urban environments, and British working‑class identity.
If you would like to discuss any of this, do please contact me.
Very best wishes
Sarah
Sarah Shalgosky (she/her)
Principal Curator, University of Warwick