Category: In English

The Nokia Bell Labs and University of Oulu Joint Center for Future Connectivity Collaboration Agreement

Also known as the TNBLUOJCFCCA (not really), the agreement between Nokia Bells Labs and University of Oulu was signed this year on February 10th. This would establish the Joint Center for Future Connectivity (possibly JCFF).

The objective of the JCFF is to be at the vanguard of so-called future 10X technologies; that is, technologies with impact ten times greater than today’s state-of-the-art. At first they will focus on next generation radio technologies for 5G and demonstration of 5G capabilities.

The Oulu 5GFWD Hackathon

Imagine downloading a whole HD movie in less than 4 seconds. We are heading towards a future where this will be possible with supercharged 5G networks.

Taking place on June 9-11, the Oulu 5GFWD hackathon is a gathering of coders, designers, and enthusiasts to tackle some of the most relevant development challenges in the upcoming 5G technologies.

There will be three challenges for the teams to tackle: Digital Factory (creating highly autonomous factory operations), Mobile Apps for 5G Age, and Customer Journey (making customer visits to health services more pleasant). Each challenge has a prize between 5000 to 10 000 euros.

If you’d like to apply or are simply interested in the 5GFWD Hackathon, head over to their webpage at 5gfwd.org, the deadline for applications is 12.5.

A material that can harness power from sunlight, heat, and even your movement

Remember a time when you didn’t have to recharge your smartphone every day? Me neither. But maybe there’s still hope.

Researchers at our very own University of Oulu are playing with a material that not could not only surpass silicon in solar cells, but also harness power from movement.

What is a perovskite, you ask? Natural perovskites are calcium-titanium oxides which have a particular shape. Synthetic perovskites mimic the shape of the natural perovskite but with different elements.

One example is the so-called KBNNO (because it’s made of Potassium K, Barium Ba, Nickel Ni, Niobium Nb, and Oxygen O). KBNNO has the capacity to significantly increase the efficiency of solar panels and could be fine-tuned to also take advantage of temperature and pressure changes arising from motion. By combining differently tuned KBNNOs, you could have a gadget that charges itself from light and movement simultaneously.

Longer lasting batteries! A new lithium-ion technology

Since we’re on the subject of not wanting to recharge our smartphones every day, why not address the battery itself?

Picodeon, a company based in Ii, is collaborating with the University of Oulu to creat a whole new generation of lithium-ion batteries. These batteries would not only increase the energy density by up to 500 percent with respect to conventional li-ion cells, but also have comparable reliability and performance.

If that massive increase in energy ends up translating to not having to charge my smartphone in a week, then I‘ll be a very happy camper.

Collaboration to increase the accuracy of optical radar

Optical radars are basically very precise distance measuring instruments, like a ruler but infinitely better. They are called optical because they emit light to make measurements. This light bounces from what is being measured back to the radar, which calculates the distance.

What this means is that you can get a very accurate mapping of surfaces (like the surface of the Earth or the Moon), distance to crafts (like planes and ships), and even the shape and color of an object you want to replicate in your 3-D printer. Optical radars are also used in meteorology, geology, agriculture, and even robotic vacuum cleaners.

Now a group of scientists is collaborating to increase the accuracy of the optical radar. The Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, the Leibniz University of Hanover and the University of Oulu have established the international consortium ‘Research laboratory of high-speed pulse avalanche transistor switches for vision systems’, or as I like to call it, the RLHSPATSVS.

The consortium, together with the Moscow Institute of Electronic Technology have already made some progress by increasing the accuracy of optical radars ten-fold. At this rate, one day soon we might be able to map objects from the sky or space to within millimeters.

“First, i tried to reach my coordinator, then the student centre and then the student union,” explains Alex.

“One by one asking them about any work possibilities. It turned out that they didn’t have much to offer but told me that I had to find a job on my own. I went to the employment office at Torikatu. They said that I should apply for different positions at mol.fi and visit recruiting agencies, since they could not help any foreigner to find a job here – they can only help Finnish people.”

It seems Finland can provide only its citizens with safety nets like different employment programmes, social welfare, training, networking, etc. At some point immigrants that come here for a reason different to studying are in a better position as they are supported by Kela, which offers them free of charge Finnish language courses, work training and monthly payments. Basically, Finnish policy is built to assimilate foreigners rather than integrate them, and that’s the problem.

“I kept applying online and visited two recruiting agencies (Staffpoint and Opteam)”, continues Alex.

“They had the same reply: I should apply online and there are not many possibilities for foreigners who don’t know Finnish. The conversation I had with a person in charge was quite unbelievable.”

Alex has been denied a cleaning and snow-removing job, as apparently they cannot hire anyone without experience in this particular area.

“That was funny because on the same day I learned that another student from my university had got that cleaning job merely on the basis of reference he received from people of his own community in Oulu. Much justice, right? But more than that it was so ironic.”

As a result of such a disappointing experience, now Alex sees no hope and finds himself isolated since he has got no references or community at his back so far. The tipping point was reached when he had been denied a volunteering job at NGOs and animal shelters in Oulu despite his motivation and experience.

Alex is not alone in this situation. Marina (name changed at interviewee’s request), an Oulu university graduate, says that 70% of her groupmates left Finland for the reason that they could not get employed here. Those few who stayed either got a job thanks to their personal networks and bonds or their good command of the Finnish language.

“When I was searching for a job, I was so upset because of the Finnish language requirements. I didn’t have a chance to learn it properly as I had been working since my second year at the university. All the time they chose someone Finnish over me”, Marina tells us.

Marina tends to believe that there is a trust issue among Finnish employers – they’d rather take a Finn than a foreigner even if the latter seems to have more competence. Marina is working as an HR person herself at the moment, and she assumes that international candidates can sometimes put a twist on their skills and experience and that might raise hackles. The motivation can also invite some questions – if a foreigner has such a wide experience, why would he or she want to take this low-paid job? “In order to survive” does not seem to be an answer convincing enough.

There are many other stories when international talents were dismissed on disputable grounds, paid less than the Finns for the same range of responsibilities, denied a job for the reason of being overqualified or not qualified enough in one out of 10 necessary skills. But the most outrageous of all is the reason that they don’t have a native level of Finnish. Native! Just for your information it is pretty illegal to require it, according to the Finnish law.

So, can we call it discrimination? To a certain extent, yes. However, the most confounding factor here is that the Finns don’t mean it in the majority of cases. Finland is simply not an international country yet. They don’t know how to deal with foreigners, how to be around them, how to use their expertise, how to arrange the work process in English, etc. They are constantly overthinking!

The best solution would probably be to just try to be more internationally minded, take a foreign intern to work part-time, for example, and see how it goes. And hopefully after a few years of a positive experience, Finland will finally give up its current approach of making Finns out foreigners and then being unhappy about the unsatisfactory level of their “nativeness”.

In an ideal world, everyone has equal chances and equal pay. In the real world, life is unfair; and the opportunities you get very much depend on where and as who you were born. Luckily, some people realize this and are willing to help smoothen the inequality: They donate their clothes, buy fair trade products and hope the word ‘fair’ actually means something for real. No matter whether it is our time or our money we donate, doing charity usually means giving something we can spare to others who need it.

One branch of charity work could therefore been defined as volunteering. Yet, be aware: This is not to be confused with other situations in which you end up working your butt off without getting any kind of compensation. Usually they come in the sexy cover of (unpaid) ‘internships’, ‘networking’, ‘train your skills’ or other bloomy paraphrases.

Volunteers can be needed without any special skills e.g. helping the Red Cross collect donations by standing in front of a supermarket, or because of their special skills e.g. after catastrophes, as a doctor or mechanic. Sometimes they arise from their own situation and focus on their peers, for instance, students returning from a semester abroad wanting to be involved in taking care of incoming students. The main idea is usually to offer one’s (wo)manpower without getting any personal profit from it, for the sake of a good deed.

However, recently companies and organizations have gotten wind of people willing to work for free, and started to utilize this for their own special needs. It’s sneaky, and it makes sense – the biggest cost cuttings can after all be made in staff, that’s why we love producing in countries with cheap labor, right?

And if you think no one would be so stupid to work for free for a for-profit organization, or the public sector, you are far off. Young people who lack experience are willing to pimp their CVs. Getting ahead of their peers by a few inches is what counts after graduation.

In TellUs Innovation Arena, ‘volunteers’ can for example apply to be connected with companies and then work as something like a host(ess) during events, or produce media content. Writing blog entries clearly requires writing skills, something that should commonly be paid for. Handing out sparkling wine during an event does not require any special skills, nor does it teach any. The target group for this ‘voluntary work’ seems to be students from social or human sciences – engineers usually get their project work paid.

A fair middle way would be something like a trainee position, with a special on-the-job-training and a slightly lower compensation than a fully trained employee. After all, even apprenticeships are paid in Finland.

Unpaid internships of 50+ hours per week are not uncommon, and a usual promise is ‘experience’. This is as if job offers would, besides the salary, announce that there’s free oxygen and toilet usage. The problem with ‘voluntary’ work advertised by companies is that the skills acquired are usually either not very useful in any other job, or so generic that a special training is not really needed in the first place. In the worst case, already existing skills are simply exploited.

Understand That Fear Is Useful

Fear is nothing but a biological response to threats. In animals, it triggers the so-called fight-or-flight response, which as the name suggests, causes the animal to defend itself or to retreat to safety when faced with a threatening situation. This mechanism has been one of the primary drivers of survival in all living species today. However, since humans are conscious beings, we have developed abstract fears based on things that haven’t even happened yet. It might be tempting to wish to be fearless, but simply put, without fear of failure we would never get things done. Would you study as hard if you had no fear of failing that test?

Don’t Let Your Fear Become Terror

Unlike fear, terror is detrimental to survival. It is an extreme case of fear, which causes a so-called freeze response. Terror could cause you to not be able to even pick a book to study for fear of not studying well, or at the time of the exam you could find yourself unable to pick up the pen to start writing. One way to return your mind to a “healthy” state of mild fear is to close your eyes, take a few deep breaths and reassure yourself (out loud or silently). Say things to yourself like “I can do this”, “I will do my best”, “I am stronger than this”, “I am capable”. And try to keep it positive: instead of saying, “I cannot fail”, say “I will succeed”.

Focus On the Things Which Are In Your Control

One of the pitfalls in every project or endeavor is when we start focusing on things, which are out of our control. What is the best way in which you can influence these things? Making a list of the tasks that needs to be done is a good way to organize your thoughts and develop an action plan for that challenging project or that scary final exam. Prioritize the tasks with letters or symbols so you know which ones require your immediate attention, and which ones can wait until you have more time on your hands.

Avoid Self-sabotage

We tend to be overly critical or overly complacent with ourselves. When fear of failure strikes us, we start underestimating ourselves and put ourselves down. For every self perceived “weakness” or “fault”, remind yourself of three strengths or virtues that you have. Every time you feel those icky negative thoughts of yourself surfacing on your mind, remind yourself of another three awesome things about yourself. Eventually you will realize just how strong you really are.

Be Compassionate With Yourself

Sometimes, even when we did our best and did everything right, we might end up in the unpleasant situation of failure. It’s disappointing. The first thing to do when you find yourself in this situation is to know that you are not alone. Talking about the situation with someone is one of the best ways to deal with failure. By sharing your situation, it becomes a more tangible thing that you can analyze and deconstruct, and perhaps find new ways of doing things next time. Don’t forget to remind yourself about all the things you have accomplished. You will generate feel-good juice in your brain. And this in turn will make you more capable to tackle the next big challenge.

What were the main challenges in the process of being elected to this position?
We had to first find out if there are any legal obstacles which might prevent an international student like me from applying for this position, as it was the first case of such kind. We didn’t find any. My nomination will obviously influence some of the communication schemes inside the OYY office and bring at least a bit of English to some of the meetings which were only in Finnish previously.

How did you come across OYY and how did you get involved in its activities?
I started volunteering at OYY and attending the events like International Section right after I started my studies at the University of Oulu in 2014, thus I’ve been around for a while. Being the second ever international student in the OYY’s Council, I felt like I had a lot to contribute. In my humble opinion, the more diverse the backgrounds of people in the Council are, the better.

Will things change somehow for international students now that they have you as their representative?
I don’t see my new position as the main trigger for some brand new changes. My focus will remain on doing my job well and being as dedicated to it as I was before. I’m totally open for communication with any students – international or not – and I highly encourage them to get in touch with me if they have anything on their minds they want to share with me.

Why do you think you are the first international student ever in the OYY’s student council presidency?
I’m not the right person to ask this question. My colleagues were the ones voting. I think my background, experience and past actions had an influence. Plus you have to act and try. I applied in the best way I could, but without having any huge expectations. And it all worked out.

I definitely think the Council needs to have more international students aboard. However, it’s not about the quantity in this case, it’s about the quality of their participation. I’d like to encourage anyone who wants to get involved to apply for the Council in the future and not to be afraid of any challenges it might bring.

What will be the first thing you will do as Vice President?
We’ll keep on working as one team and will strive to improve things as much as we can until the end of the year. We have some plans in mind and we will do our best to have them all come to life.

What’s your opinion about the University of Oulu, its new strategy and the Joint Arctic Agenda?
I’ve loved the University of Oulu from day one. Its new strategy puts an emphasis on our background and location instead of putting it to the back burner, which I appreciate a lot. We have so many unique things to be proud of. It’s definitely a way for us to rightfully stand out.

I’d like to remind all the students that they can help their University to develop further and contribute to the success of the new strategy. If you feel you have some time on your hands you could dedicate to your University while improving your own CV, I highly encourage you to apply for the brand new Tellus Volunteering Programme. Together we can make our University and our city much more student-friendly and exciting to study and to live in.

What do you think about internationalisation in Finland? Is it just a buzzword or a real thing happening?
It’s a bit of both. It’s really happening, of course, and a lot of great people are working on it a lot. But sometimes I feel that the problem is that the international people themselves are talking about it way more than doing something to support and accelerate it. It would help if international students took more actions themselves instead of waiting for things to happen.

Most of the doors are already open, really – you just have to go out there and start contributing. I never really had problems being an international student here – not everything is available in English, of course, but it’s okay – we’re in Finland, after all, thus the omnipresence of the Finnish language makes a lot of sense, right?

Instead of blindly complaining, some people might just learn to adjust a bit and be more vocal about the challenges they are facing. The great people who are listening and who are ready to help you are always around.