# USERN

The Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (official acronym – USERN) is a non-profit organization and network for non-military scientific investigation and policy-making. USERN was established on January 1, 2016, and the basic statutes of USERN were drafted on January 21, 2015. The official inauguration of the statutes was held on November 10, 2016, the UN Day of Science for Peace and Development.
USERN is an organization dedicated to promoting ethical and professional scientific research and education, as well as advancing science for non-military purposes.

## Membership

USERN began its official activity in early 2016, and following the first meeting, has encouraged individuals to become members via the USERN website. However, the USERN website has been criticized for its functionality, as users have frequently experienced difficulties logging in, changing their passwords, or modifying their pages.

## USERN Prize

The USERN Prize is an international award annually bestowed to junior scientists or researchers less than 40 years of age for any novel advancement or achievement in scientific education, research, or serving humanity in five scientific fields including medical sciences, life sciences, formal sciences, physical sciences, and social sciences.

### USERN Prize Awarding Festival

The closing day of congress and awarding the international rewards ceremony of USERN, the universal scientific education and research network prize or USERN prize will be awarded in 10 November the World Science Day for Peace and Development to 5 young scholars under 40 ages in different theoretical sciences (Mathematics and Computer), Physics sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Engineering), Environmental Sciences, Medical Sciences, and Social Sciences.

#### USERN Laureates 2016

Floris De Lange (Netherlands) in Social Sciences
For: Expectation sharpens the visual response
Alexander Leemans (Belgium/Netherlands) in Medical Sciences
For: Processing and Visualization in Diffusion Imaging
Jamshid Aghaei (Iran) in Physical Sciences
For: Evaluating Technical Benefits and Risks of Renewable Energy Sources Increasing Penetration in Electrical Networks
Morteza Mahmoudi (Iran/USA) in Biological Sciences
For: Defining the Biological Identity of Nanotherapeutics for High Yield Cancer Therapy
Lucas Joppa (USA) in Formal Sciences
For: Technology for Nature

## The Second International USERN Congress

The 2nd international USERN congress was held in Kharkiv, Ukraine on 8 to 10 November 2017.

### USERN Laureates 2017

Matjaž Perc (Slovenia) in Social Sciences
For: Transitions Towards Cooperation in Human Societies
Lucina Qazi Uddin (USA) in Medical Sciences
For: Brain Dynamics and Flexible Behavior in Autism and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity
Maria-Magdalena Titirici (UK) in Physical Sciences
For: The Design of Efficient and Low Cost Electrocatalysts Catalysts Without the Use of Critical Metals
Valentina Cauda (Italy) in Biological Sciences
For: Hybrid Immune-Eluding Nanocrystals as Smart and Active Theranostic Weapons Against Cancer -TrojaNanoHorse
Manlio De Domenico (Italy) in Formal Sciences
For: Multilayer Structure and Dynamics of the Physical World: Modeling the Complexity of Systems of Systems

## The Third International USERN Congress

The 3rd international USERN congress was held in Reggio Calabria, Italy on 10 to 14 November 2018.

### USERN Laureates 2018

Igor Grossmann (Canada) in Social Sciences
For: Wisdom - Towards The Social and Behavioral Science of Sound Judgment
Gian Paolo Fadini (Italy) in Medical Sciences
For: Circulating Stem Cells in Diabetic Complications (Remediation)
Alex Fornito (Australia) in Biological Sciences
For: Maps, Models, and Modifiers of Brain Changes in Psychosis
Xavier Moya (UK) in Physical Sciences
For: Barocaloric Materials for Environment-Friendly Solid -State Refrigeration
Jacob Biamonte (Russia) in Formal Sciences
For: Quantum Enhanced Machine Learning

## The Fourth International USERN Congress

The 4th international USERN congress was held in Budapest, Hungary on 8 to 10 November 2019.

### USERN Laureates 2019

Benjamin Sovacool (Denmark, UK) in Social Sciences
For: Social Justice in an Era of Climate Change and Energy Scarcity
Eugenia Morselli (Chile) in Medical Sciences
For: Mechanisms of Hypothalamic Autophagy in Obesity
Ajeet Kaushik (USA) in Biological Sciences
For: Nano-Bio-Technology for Personalized Health Care
Giulia Grancini (Switzerland, Italy) in Physical-Chemical Sciences
For: Multi-Dimensional Ferroelectric Hybrid Perovskites for Advanced Optoelectronics
Lucas Lacasa (UK) in Formal Sciences
For: Bridging sIgnal Processing and NETwork science (BIPNET

## The Fifth International USERN Congress

The 5th international USERN congress was held in Tehran, Iran on 7 to 10 November 2020.

### USERN Laureates 2020

Lianne Schamaal (Australia) in Social Sciences
For: A Global Alliance to Elucidate Neurobiological Signatures of Depression and Suicide
Mohammad Ali Shahbazi (Finland) in Medical Sciences
For: A Thermo-responsive Biopolymeric Micro-implant for the Treatment of Autoimmune Disorders
Daniel Sauter (Germany) in Biological Sciences
For: Deciphering Molecular Determinants of Coronavirus Spread in the Human Population
Gregory Mark Allen Ashton (Australia) in Physical and Chemical Sciences
For: Black Holes and Neutron Stars: Enabling Astrophysics with Bilb y
Dongrui Wu (China) in Formal Sciences
For: Signal Processing and Machine Learning for Calibration-free and Secure Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs)

## The sixth International USERN Congress

The 6th international USERN congress was held in Istanbul, Turkey on 6 to 13 November 2021.

### USERN Laureates 2021

Xudong Zhao (China) in Formal Sciences
For: Control synthesis of switched systems
Minghao Yu (Germany) in Physical and Chemical Sciences
For: Developing sustainable energy storage devices with resource-abundant raw materials
Federico Bella (Italy) in Biological Sciences
For: From air to fertilizers: zero-impact agriculture of the future
Hassan Abolhassani (Sweden) in Medical Sciences
For: Integrative Multi-Omics Analysis of Unsolved Inborn Errors of Immunity
Daniel King (Australia) in Social Sciences
For: Empowering vulnerable populations to overcome unhealthy gaming habits and gaming disorder

## The seventh International USERN Congress

The 7th international USERN congress was held in Muscat, Oman on 8 to10 November 2022.

### USERN Laureates 2022

Fabien Lotte (France) in Formal Sciences
For: BrainConquest: Boosting Brain-Computer Communication with high Quality User Training, for Healthy and Motor-Impaired Users alike
Mirjana Dimitrievska (Switzerland) in Physical and Chemical Sciences
For: SMARTCELL - Sustainable Materials for development of Advanced Renewable Technologies for the Next Generation Solar CELLs
Jianing Fu (USA) in Biological Sciences
For: Functional Profile, Migration Pattern and Microenvironment of Human Hematopoietic Stem Cells in Ectopic Organs in Physiological and Inflammatory Conditions
Sara De Biasi (Italy) in Medical Sciences
For: Unravelling the Role of MHC Class I–related Molecule–restricted T cells on Response to Anti-PD-1 Therapy in Metastatic Melanoma
Joseph Firth (England) in Social Sciences
For: Implementing Lifestyle Medicine into Youth Mental Healthcare: Improving Physical and Mental Health Outcomes in Young People

## The eighth International USERN Congress

The 8th international USERN congress was held in Yerevan, Armenia on 8 to 10 Nov 2023.

### USERN Laureates 2023

Navid Akhtar (Australia) in Formal Sciences
For: Enabling transparent and trustworthy Artificial Intelligence
Hialiang Wang (USA) in Physical and Chemical Sciences
For: Advancing Molecular Electrocatalysis for Renewable Energy Storage and Environmental Remediation
Prashant Kesharwani (India) in Biological Sciences
For: Survivin targeted siRNA using cancer selective nanoparticles for triple negative breast cancer therapy
Hao Chen (China) in Medical Sciences
For: A tunable microgel with sustained hierarchy releasing of macrobiotics for the treatment of enteritis
Katrien Fransen (Belgium) in Social Sciences
For: From autocracy to empowerment: Harnessing the human potential for improved team effectiveness and enhanced well-being across cultures.

## The ninth International USERN Congress

The 9th international USERN congress and prize awarding festival was held in Plovdiv, Bulgaria on 8 to 10 Nov 2024.

### USERN Laureates 2024

Andrea Luppi (UK) in Formal Sciences
For: Synergistic information across artificial and biological intelligence
Dongliang Chao (China) in Physical and Chemical Sciences
For: Finding safe, low-cost, and scalable aqueous battery technologies and its practical applications
Tiziana Cappello (Italy) in Biological Sciences
For: EMBRYotoxicity tests and integrative multi-biomarkers and -OMICS to unveil the impact of microplastics and associated contaminants - EMBRYOMICS
Fabiana Corsi-Zuelli (Brazil) in Medical Sciences
For: Peripheral blood immune signatures of psychosis; testing the regulatory T cell hypothesis
Ewa Szumowska (Poland) in Social Sciences
For: Research program aimed at understanding proneness to extremism

## USERN Offices Worldwide

Since the beginning of its establishment, and in order to promote universal scientific education and research, USERN has signed several Memorandum of Understanding (MOUs) and established several offices in scientific research centers and universities worldwide.

## USERN Executive Directors

* Dr. Sanam Ladi Seyedian (2016-2017)
* Dr. Arya Aminorroaya, Dr. Sara Hanaei, Dr. Mahsa Keshavarz-Fathi (2018)
* Dr. Farnaz Delavari (2019)
* Dr. Saboura Ashkevarian (2020)
* Dr. Heliya Ziaei (2021-2022)
* Dr. Niloufar Yazdanpanah (2022-current)