The Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) is the world’s largest and most sensitive low frequency radio telescope and a prominent national and international scientific facility. Thanks to its spectral coverage (10-250 MHz) and resolution, it has opened up new areas of studies in astrophysics ranging from the early Universe to transient phenomena, pulsars, solar studies, and galaxy clusters science. After initial processing, the data from the telescope are sent to the LOFAR long-term archive (LTA) for open distribution to the Worldwide community. More than 50 PB of data (~43 PB publicly available) have been delivered to the community through the LTA. Due to intrinsic challenges related to the reduction of low-frequency data, LOFAR has so far attracted mostly expert users and thus its scientific impact has been hindered. Innovative techniques are now available to efficiently and automatically handle these challenges, therefore ASTRON is preparing to offer services to generate science-ready data, which will attract a much wider community of users. This will generate a dramatic increase of the science output from the instrument. This is the aim of the LOFAR Data Valorization (LDV) project, which will apply the innovative reduction routines on all the LOFAR data hosted at SURFsara (~28 PB). The LDV project will follow a staged approach and will last for 3 years. In this proposal, we request SURFsara resources for the first two years of the project to increase the value of the data in the LTA and prepare it for very low frequency (~ 50 MHz) and long-baseline science. Resources for the final step of the project will be requested in a follow-up proposal. LDV will have close and crucial interaction with various granted projects, like EGI-ACE, DICE, ESCAPE, and FUSE. These will help bring to a production level the processing routines and infrastructures currently under development. In this proposal, we request 1,500,000 core hours, 1,100 TB of disk storage, and 600 TB of temporary tape capacity in addition to resources that can be allocated from associated projects to enable a successful conclusion of the initial two phases of the LDV project.

The tuberculosis bacterium protects itself from our immune system and antibiotics with an almost impermeable cell wall. However, channels in this cell wall are still needed to secrete virulence factors. These are formed by co-called type VII secretion systems. This research will analyse how exactly the type VII secretion systems are able to secrete proteins without compromising the function of the mycobacterial cell wall. Understanding these weak spots in the cell wall will give rise to new strategies for the control of tuberculosis.

The matter-antimatter asymmetry was possibly generated in a phase transition in the early universe. The goal of this project is finding models that explain the asymmetry, and predicting how particle physics and gravitational wave experiments can test them. The phase transition temperature will be accurately determined with a new technique. The matter-antimatter asymmetry was possibly generated in a phase transition in the early universe. The goal of this project is finding models that explain the asymmetry, and predicting how particle physics and gravitational wave experiments can test them. The phase transition temperature will be accurately determined with a new technique.

Stress can have profound effects on health, emotion and cognition. For example, stress promotes a shift from goal-directed to habitual control of behaviour, which has been related to an increased risk of relapsing to addictive behaviours following stressful experiences. Why are some people particularly sensitive to the effects of stress, and thus more susceptible to stress-induced relapses to maladaptive, addictive behaviour? In the proposed project, I will systematically address the underlying architecture and the sources of interindividual differences in the vulnerability to the stress-induced shift towards habits by focussing on the assumed link between these shifts and the mineralocorticoid receptors (MR). Specifically, I will (i) examine rapid versus delayed stress effects and the underlying neural signature using EEG, and (ii) employ a behavioural genetics approach to examine naturally occurring genetic variants. The proposed project will be performed in the lab of Prof. Lars Schwabe, a world-leading expert on stress and cognition, at the University of Hamburg, Germany. This project will provide novel insights into the mechanisms underlying habit behaviour after stress and interindividual difference. Thereby, shedding light on the role of stress in relapsing to addictive behaviour, this can then be utilized in better treatment and prevention of addiction.