German scientist Theodor Hänsch recently received his Nobel Prize at the Award Ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden. His research group at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics is involved in the EU-funded research project, Conquest, studying quantum phenomena. Theodor Hänsch is just one of many Nobel laureates to work on current EU-funded projects. He joins seven former Nobel Prize-winners in medicine and physiology who are currently involved in projects funded by the EU’s Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).

Meanwhile, the Descartes Prize saw its first winners from the Social Sciences, with the European Social Survey (ESS) recognised with the EU's highest scientific honour. The European Social Survey, led by Professor Roger Jowell from City University London, has developed a unique scientific methodology for mapping changes in social attitudes and behaviour in 26 European countries, providing an authoritative source of EU data for academics and policy makers.