The magazine, to be published twice a year, is part of college’s drive to cement its reputation as a world-class research led university, and signals its commitment to communicating the real world applications of academic research to a variety of audiences.

Issue I, just launched, has 31 full-colour glossy pages with feature stories written by journalists including Anna Nolan and Louise Holden.

“What goes on in the universities is increasingly seen as a key feature of a knowledge society, and a platform for economic success,” explains Professor Ray O’Neill, vice president of Research at NUI Maynooth.

”We have always been deeply committed to research at NUI Maynooth, but we are increasingly turning our face outwards, to international partners, to business, to society”.

The university’s focus is on research that has tangible and quantifiable benefits for society.

"It's not about arcane knowledge and research for its own sake," Prof O'Neill says.  

Some of the projects profiled in the first edition of ReSearch include:

• The creation of a real-time satellite navigation system by a team at the National Centre for Geocomputation (NCG) based at NUI Maynooth. This will see drivers not only receive clearer directions, but also get additional information on traffic congestion, road conditions and alerts to possible 'black spots' such as icy stretches or sharp bends. The new initiative could make driving a more stress-free experience and could help reduce road deaths.  
  
• A project in the Hamilton Institute, where mathematician Dr Wilhelm Huisinga is applying his skills to provide a novel way of looking at drug optimisation.
  
• Ongoing work in An Foras Feasa, the Irish Cultural Research Institute, where the team is applying 21st century technology to forensically examine the past and deepen our knowledge of Irish history and culture. 

ReSearch is available both online and in hard copy format. To subscribe phone 01-708 3363 or visit www.nuim.ie