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News

Four people seated around a low table in a modern study space, collaborating over notes and diagrams, with mathematical equations visible on a whiteboard behind them.

Nominate your outstanding supervisor for MPLS recognition

Nominations are now open for the MPLS Awards for Outstanding Research Supervision 2025/2026, which recognise the supervisors and research group leaders who make a real difference to doctoral students and early-career researchers.

Laboratory bench with sample bottles in the foreground and a researcher working with lab equipment in the background.

New Oxford-led initiative launches to train future leaders in transformative technologies for pharmaceutical research

GSK and the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Southampton have launched Transformative Technologies in Pharmaceutical Sciences (TTPS), a BBSRC-backed doctoral training programme aimed at turning cutting-edge biological research into next-generation vaccines, therapies and medicines.

Glowing sunset with a bright sun against an orange sky, silhouetting trees and a hazy landscape.

Global population living with extreme heat to double by 2050

A new University of Oxford study finds that almost half of the global population (3.79 billion) will be living with extreme heat by 2050 if the world reaches 2.0°C of global warming above pre-industrial levels – a scenario that climate scientists see as increasingly likely.

Vice-chancellor Professor Irene Tracy gives her opening remarks as the conference opens in the Mathematical Institute

MPLS Researcher Conference: AI & Ethics – a day of insight, challenge, and inspiration

Researchers from across the University gathered last week for a full day of discussion and debate on the rapidly evolving relationship between artificial intelligence, ethics, and society.

View across the rooftops from Merton College Tower, with an insert of Bernard Taylor.

Bernard Taylor elected Honorary Fellow of Royal Academy of Engineering

Deputy Steward of the University of Oxford and MPLS Division Board member recognised for over 45 years of international business leadership in engineering and science industries.

The Radcliffe Camera building, Oxford

Oxford researchers awarded first Royal Society Faraday Discovery Fellowships

Three Oxford researchers have been selected for the inaugural Royal Society Faraday Discovery Fellowships – major long-term awards for outstanding mid-career research leaders in the UK. Just seven academics were chosen from over 600 applications.

MPLS researchers recognised by the Royal Society. Photo credits: Public Affairs Directorate, Paul Wilkinson, John Cairns.

MPLS Division researchers recognised in the 2025 Royal Society Awards

Professor Kayla King (Department of Biology), Professor Philipp Kukura (Department of Chemistry) and Professor Michael Wooldridge (Department of Computer Science) are amongst the four Oxford researchers recognised in the 2025 Royal Society Awards.

MPLS Impact Awards

Winners and commendations announced for MPLS Impact Awards 2025

Seven members of the Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division (MPLS) have been recognised for their outstanding research impact at the annual MPLS Impact Awards.

MPLS Teaching Awards

MPLS Division honours teaching excellence with 2025 awards

The Mathematical, Physical, and Life Sciences (MPLS) Division announces the five recipients of this year’s Teaching Awards, recognising their significant contributions to student learning and academic innovation.

Group of students studying at a table

Joint donation to Oxford and Cambridge helps young people overcome barriers and succeed in STEM

The University of Oxford has received a £6.25 million gift to expand its outreach work with socio-economically disadvantaged students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects.

023 Dr Joshua Bull, Winner of the Breakthrough Researcher Award, with the Vice-Chancellor Professor Irene Tracey

MPLS success at the Vice-Chancellor's Awards 2025

The University honoured remarkable talent and dedication to excellence on Thursday 15 May as the winners of the Vice-Chancellor's Awards 2025 were announced. Dr Joshua Bull from the Mathematical Institute received the Breakthrough Researcher Award and Department of Computer Science spinout Oxford Semantic Technologies claimed the Innovation and Commercialisation Award.

A volcanic terrain offering impressively atmospheric scenery in Indonesia

Oxford rises to second in world for Geology and Geophysics

The University of Oxford has climbed to second place globally in Geology and Geophysics in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025, strengthening its position as the UK's leading institution for Earth Sciences.

Binding of live hippocampal neurons by monoclonal antibodies created from a cerebrospinal fluid plasmablast extracted from an encephalitis patient. Image credit: Jakob Theorell, Ruby Harrison et al.

Oxford-led divisional collaboration wins the PNAS Cozzarelli Prize

A collaborative study between the Medical Sciences Division and the Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division has been awarded the 2024 PNAS Cozzarelli Prize in Biomedical Science.

Generated image of continents across the globe

Schmidt Faculty Fellowship Programme opens for applications

The inaugural Schmidt Faculty Fellowship Programme has officially launched and is now accepting applications.

Beyond boundaries entries from the 2023 competition.

Beyond Boundaries art competition for young creatives launches

We are pleased to announce the launch of the 2025 Beyond Boundaries Art Competition, inviting Oxfordshire state school students in Years 5, 6, 7, and 8 to take part in a unique fusion of art and science.

Aerial view of the Radcliffe Observatory Quarter

New scholarships in machine learning announced, thanks to generous gift from G-Research

The University of Oxford’s Mathematical, Physical, and Life Sciences (MPLS) Division is delighted to announce a generous gift from G-Research, which will fund nine DPhil scholarships over the next three years.

Winners of the awards

Winners of the 2024/25 MPLS Awards for Outstanding Research Supervision announced

Ten research group leaders across the Division have been recognised with awards for their exceptional commitment to mentoring and supporting colleagues. Each recipient has shown outstanding dedication to inspiring others and creating an environment where people can thrive and advance in their careers.

Jim Naismith with Principal Investigators from Oxford and Suzhou senior officials at the meeting.

Professor Jim Naismith congratulates OSCAR on six years of achievement

From 28 to 29 November, Prof. Jim Naismith paid his first visit to the Oxford Suzhou Centre for Advanced Research (OSCAR) since his appointment as Head of Oxford’s Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division (MPLS) in October 2023.

AI generated image illustrating AI security research, with a padlock on a computer chip in the foreground

Oxford University to lead AI security research through new national laboratory partnership

The University of Oxford, in collaboration with The Alan Turing Institute and UK Government, will play a lead role in the newly announced Laboratory for AI Security Research (LASR). The £8.22 million government-funded initiative marks a significant step forward in strengthening Britain's cyber resilience.

Oxford-EIT signing ceremony in the Clarendon Building

University of Oxford and Ellison Institute of Technology join forces in a transformative strategic alliance

The alliance aims to develop the solutions and future leaders needed to tackle some of the most enduring challenges facing humanity, with an investment of at least £130m from EIT.

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