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AnInformal SWOTAnalysisonbehalf ofthe
TR-EPPCommunity06.03.2020
Serkant AliÇetinTurkish EPPRepresentative BoardChair(2016-2019)
AnInformal SWOTAnalysis…
Why?
ASWOTanalysis isusefulto monitor the status ofexperimental particlephysics within thecountry inrelation butnotlimited to the CERNAssociate Member StatusofTurkey.
How?
Anindico surveywaspreparedandannouncedtothe“TR-EPPGeneralBoard”and“TurkishCERNForum”e-groupsatCERN.AlsobenefittedfromtheRECFAcountryreport.
STRENGTHS
STRENGTHS
Turkeyhasaneducationalnetworkcomprising~200universities,20%ofwhichadmitstudentsinphysics.ThisnetworkissupportedbyalargebodyofacademicswitharelativelyhighlevelofparticipationbywomencomparedtoothercountriesparticipatinginCERN’sactivities,inparticularinphysics.ThehighqualityoftheeducationalsystemiswellillustratedbytheimpactofTurkishscientistsinvolvedinresearchatCERN.Theincreaseinthenumberofhighenergyphysicistsinthelast15years,thehighqualitystudentsinthefieldandthewellestablishedrelationsandachievementsofTurkishteamswithinalargespectrumofCERNcollaborationsthatincludenotonlyrunningprogramsbutalsofuturecolliders,setveryfavourableconditionsforTurkeytobenefitfromitsobtainedstatusasanAssociateMemberStateatCERN.
Highqualityoftheeducationalsystem.Largebodyofacademics.~40physicsdepartments.ParticipationinawidespectrumofCERNprograms.
STRENGTHS
In2017,theCouncilofHigherEducationidentified10stateuniversitiesas"ResearchUniversities".HalfoftheseuniversitiesareofficiallycollaboratinginatleastoneCERNexperimentalprogramme.Thisdemonstrateswelltheprioritygiventoparticlephysicsamonguniversitiesthatareresearchoriented.ThereisalargenumberofuniversitygroupsandwidespectrumofdetectorandacceleratorR&DactivitiescarriedoutbyTurkishscientistsbothwithinthecountryandabroad.Theclosecollaborationatanumberofuniversitiesaroundthecountrybetweentheexperimentalistsworkingondetectorsandacceleratorsisfruitful,whichalsorepresentsabroadpushtoeducatethenextgenerationofdetectorandacceleratordevelopersandstimulatesveryefficientinteractionbetweentheindustryanduniversityresearchgroups.StrongresearchenthusiasmamongTurkishscientistsandstudentsenablehighqualityperformanceevenwithlimitedresources.
50%of“ResearchUniversities”collaborateinCERNprogrammes.WidespectrumofDetectorandAcceleratorR&D.Efficientinteractionbetweenindustryanduniversityresearchgroups.Highqualityperformanceevenwithlimitedresources.
STRENGTHS
Despitethechallengeofbeingspreadoverawidegeographicalarea,theTurkishparticlephysicscommunitymanagestocollaboratesuccessfullyonexperimentsbyformingthematicclustersbetweeninstitutes.TheTurkishtheoreticalphysicscommunityproducessubstantialoutputintermsofpublications,againwithclosecollaborationbetweeninstitutes.Thereisastrongcomponentofmathematicalphysics,butalsosomeconnectiontoexperimentsthroughphenomenology.ThechallengesofCERN’stechnologicalandindustrialneedsarestronglyhighlightednationwidebytheCERNIndustrialLiasonOfficeofTurkeyinthelastfiveyears.Hence,theTurkishindustrialreturncoefficienthasgrownatahighrateandislikelytoincreaseevenatahigherratewithincreasedinvolvementandthesustainedsupportofscientistsandengineersinCERNprojects.
Thematicclustersbetweeninstitutes.Productivetheorycommunity.StrongCERN-TRILO.
STRENGTHS
• Highqualityoftheeducationalsystem.• Largebodyofacademics.• ~40physicsdepartments.• Participation inawide spectrum ofCERNprograms.• 50%of“ResearchUniversities”collaborateinCERNprogrammes.• WidespectrumofDetectorandAcceleratorR&D.• Highperformanceevenwithlimitedresources.• Efficientinteractionbetweenindustryanduniversityresearchgroups.
• Thematicclustersbetweeninstitutes.• Productivetheorycommunity.• StrongCERN-TRILO.
WEAKNESSES
WEAKNESSES
Aroadmapforinvestmentsinthefieldofhighenergyphysicsandrelatedtechnologiesinalignmentwithanationalstrategyhasnotbeeninactoverthelast10years.Hence,theinvestmentsmadeintheexperimentalprogrammeiscurrentlynotatalevelappropriateforbenefittingthebestfromCERNassociatemembershipdespitethepotentialresourcesandaspirationsofTurkey.
Thereisnonationallaboratoryandfacilityforexperimentalparticlephysics.Anationalstructureforgoverningresearchinhighenergyphysics(likeINFN,IFAE,etc.)isnotyetimplemented.
Throughtheself-organizationoftheexperimentalparticlephysicscommunity,arepresentativeboardconsistingofexpertsinacceleratorphysics,detectorphysics,colliderexperimentsandnon-colliderexperimentswaselected,howeverthisrepresentativeboardwasnotrecognizedbythefundingagencyinanycorrespondence.Lateron,theannouncementofaboardappointedbythefundingagencydidnotfunctionefficiently.Hence,thereisthelackofarecognizedcommunityrepresentation.Closer,effectiveandsustainableinteractionbetweenthefundingagenciesandtheparticlephysicsresearchcommunityisneededtooptimisethescientificandtechnologicalreturnofTurkey’sassociatememberstatestatusatCERN.
Noactivenationalroadmap.Lackofnationalstructureforgoverningresearchinhighenergyphysics.UnrecognizedselforganizationoftheEPPresearchcommunity.
WEAKNESSES
Thereisprogressinthefieldofcomputinginfrastructureinthecountry,howevertheresourceschannelledtowardsGRIDcomputingandsimilartechnologiesusedbybigsciencearelimitedwhichrestrictsfurtherreturnbyinvestinginthesetechnologies.ThecurrentrestrictionssetbystatebodiesonthenumberofTurkishauthorsonpublicationsproducedbytheLHCexperimentsconstraintheresearchopportunitiesthatwouldotherwisebeavailable.Thelackoffundingforgraduatestudentpositions,postdoctoralpositions,engineeringandothersupportstaffpositionsaswellasanyinfrastructureneedswithinthecurrentlyrunningprojectsupportstructureisagamestopper.Thesupportmechanismsdonotincludetheseitemsandthenotionofrollinggrantfundingstructure,whichiscrucialforlongtermcommitments,isnotyetinplace.ThefinaldeclarationofthefirstNationalCongressonParticleAcceleratorsandApplicationsorganizedin2001atTAEKemphasizedthedeficitinthenumberofexpertsinthefieldcomparedtoEuropeanstandards.Overthetwodecadessincethisdeclaration,thedeficitstillcontinueswithabout10timeslessexpertsevenwithrespecttotheprojectionmadefor2010.
Limitted resourcesforGRIDcomputingandsimilartechnologies.Lackofprojectgrantswithpersonnelpositionsandinfrastructurebudgets;onlytravelmoney.UndiscussedlimitationsonnumberofphysicistswithPhDbystatebodies.
WEAKNESSES
TheparticlephysicscommunityisratherconstrainedbyfundingbeingorientedonlytowardsparticipationatCERN,whereas,participatinginexperimentalprogrammesorscientificactivitiesworldwidearecomplementaryandnecessary.
Unforeseenmanagerialchangesatstatebodiesdelaysfurthertheestablishmentofacorporateandsustainablesupportstructure.
Although,inrecentyears,averyactiveprogrammeforschoolteachershasbeeninitiatedanddevelopedbyTurkishphysicistsbasedatCERNthroughnon-Turkishinstitutes,thereisalackofcentralsupportfromfundingagenciestosuchactivities.Theseactivitiesareimportanttoensurethefutureofthecountryinthefieldofscienceandtechnology.Thecommunityalsoseekscentralisedfinancialsupportforitsoutreachactivities,whichwouldbringscienceandtechnologyclosertosociety.Furthermore,CERNactivities,suchasOpenDay topublic,Schoolstostudents,andotherinformationactivitiesarenotusedandparticipatedatadesiredrateduetothelackofspecialnationalfinancialsupportforthistypeofactivities.
Centralizedfinancialsupportmechanisms,necessarytoenabletheindustrytobecomemoreactiveinproductionofadvancedtechnologiesrelatedtothefieldisnotinplace.SuchfinancialmeasureswouldincreasebothquantityandqualityoffirmstobeengagedinprocurementsofCERN.
NosupportforparticipatinginEPPprogramsotherthanCERN.Corporateandsustainablesupportstructuremissing.Lackofcentralizedsupportforteachingandoutreachactivities.Missingfinancialmeasurestoensuretheindustrytobecomemoreactive.
WEAKNESSES• Noactivenationalroadmap.• Lackofnationalstructureforgoverningresearchinhighenergyphysics.• UnrecognizedselforganizationoftheEPPresearchcommunity• Limitted resourcesforGRIDcomputingandsimilartechnologies.• Lackofprojectgrantswithpersonnelpositionsandinfrastructurebudgets;onlytravelmoney.
• UndiscussedlimitationsonnumberofphysicistswithPhDbystatebodies.
• NosupportforparticipatinginEPPprogramsotherthanCERN.• Corporateandsustainablesupportstructuremissing.• Lackofcentralizedsupportforteachingandoutreachactivities.• Missingfinancialmeasurestoensuretheindustrytobecomemoreactive.
OPPORTUNITIES
OPPORTUNITIES
WhileTurkishscientistshavebeenparticipatingforoverhalfacenturyintheCERNprogramme(ObserverStatesince1961),Turkey’sAssociateMemberStatestatussinceMay2015openedupnewopportunities.TurkeymaynowbenefitfromallofCERN’sprogrammesandmaymakeuseofthefullstrengthoftheOrganizationwhichprovidesakeyopportunityforthedevelopmentofhigh-techskills,viatheparticipationofTurkishphysicistsintheCERNexperimentalprogramme.
TheTurkishparticlephysicsandacceleratorcommunityarenowinapositiontofocusonoptionsthatwillstrengthenTurkey’spotentialleadingroleintheregion.CERNoffersseveralpossibilitiesforuniversitiesintechnicalfields,whichmayalsoleadtoclosercollaborationwiththeparticlephysicsgroups.StrengtheningandincreasingtheacceleratoranddetectorR&DinTurkeyrequiresteachingofacceleratoranddetectorscienceattheuniversities,whichwouldbeanaturalapproachtoimprovetheindustrialreturnfromCERNandotheradvancedtechnologyinfrastructures.IncreasedinvolvementinCERNclearlyrequiresadditionalinvestmentswithinTurkey,inparticularinexperimentalpersonnel.
Turkeyhasalsotheopportunitytoconstructafacilitythatwillbecapableofworld-classphysics,andTurkishcommunityisinapositiontoachievethis,givensufficientandtimelysupport.
Developinghigh-techskills.Potentialleadingroleintheregion.InvestingmoreonAcc.&Det.R&DhenceimprovingindustrialreturnfromCERN.Potentialtoconstructafacilityforworld-classphysics.
OPPORTUNITIES
TheconstructionofthenuclearplantinTurkeyisanopportunitytoimplementparticlephysics(suchasneutrinophysics)experimentsanddetectorphysicsifnecessarymeasuresareimplemented.ExperimentalParticlePhysicsisauniquefieldthatrequirescuttingedgetechnologiesandscience.Hence,engineersandphysicistscollaboratecloselytodesignandconstructstateoftheartdetectorandacceleratorsystems.Suchaninterdisciplinaryecosystemisaperfectopportunitytoincreasebothquantityandqualityofgraduatestudentsandpostdocsaswellasseniorengineersandphysicists.SuchanecosystemwillnaturallypushtheTurkishindustrytouseandproduceadvancedtechnologieswhichwillresultinastrongereconomiccompetitivepower.
ThenuclearplantgivesanoptiontoimplementPPexperiments.Theinterdisciplinaryecosystemrequiringcutting-edgetechnologiesisaperfectopportunitytoincreasequantityandqualityofexperts.ApushtoTurkishindustrytouseandproduceadvancedtechnologieswhichwillresultinastrongereconomiccompetitivepower.
OPPORTUNITIES
UniversitiesparticipatingtoCERNprogrammeshavealreadystartedtobuildtheirownhigh-performancecomputinginfrastructuresaswellaslaboratoriesfordetectorandacceleratorR&D.KnowhowtransferfromCERNisaperfectopportunityatthisstagetoflourishsuchinfrastructuresandlaboratorieswithincreasedcentralisednationalsupportmechanisms.TurkeyhasaTier-2gridsystem,whichisnotusedonlyamongtheparticlephysicscommunitybutotherdisciplinesaswell.Hence,animprovedgridinfrastructurewouldenablemoredisciplinestobenefitfromdistributedcomputingtechnologies.ThroughtheactivitiesofferedbyCERN,Turkeyhastheopportunitytoenhancetheawarenessandimpactoffundamentalresearchandthespin-offsinthesociety.
KnowhowtransferfromCERNtoflourishinfrastructuresandlaboratories.Moredisciplinestobenefitfromdistributedcomputingtechnologies.Enhancetheawarenessandimpactoffundamentalresearchandthespin-offsinthesociety.
OPPORTUNITIES• Developinghigh-techskills.• Potentialleadingroleintheregion.• InvestingmoreonAcc.&Det.R&DhenceimprovingindustrialreturnfromCERN.
• Potentialtoconstructafacilityforworldclass physics.• ThenuclearplantgivesanoptiontoimplementPPexperiments.• Theinterdisciplinaryecosystemrequiringcutting-edgetechnologiesisaperfectopportunitytoincreasequantityandqualityofexperts.
• ApushtoTurkishindustrytouseandproduceadvancedtechnologieswhichwillresultinastrongereconomiccompetitivepower.
• KnowhowtransferfromCERNtoflourishinfrastructuresandlaboratories.• Moredisciplinestobenefitfromdistributedcomputingtechnologies.• Enhancetheawarenessandimpactoffundamentalresearchandthespin-offsinthesociety
THREATS
THREATS
Insufficientandunstructurednationalsupportmechanismsoverthelast10yearshavenegativeeffectontherateofbenefitingthemostfromCERNassociatemembership.Suchaninternaldeficit,creatinganinefficientgainpicture,mayevencausethegovernmenttoquestionadvantagesofCERNmembership.ThelimitationsonthenumberofqualifiedphysiciststhatsignscientificpaperswithinCERNcollaborations,unavailabilityoftherollinggrants,missingfundingforinfrastructureandresearcher,engineerandstudentpositionsmakeithardforTurkishteamstoenlarge.Thismayevenresultingroupsgettingsmaller,lessdiverseand/orinefficient.Thisisparticularlythecaseforthefutureprogrammes,whichcouldinvolveasignificantTurkishcontributiontotheplannedupgradesoftheLHCexperiments,butforwhichcommitmentscannotbemadeuntiltheparticipationofseniorscientistshasbeenclarified.Suchaprogrammewouldalsoneedadditionalfundingforpostdoctoralpositionsandengineeringsupportstaff,andcouldactasafocusfordetectorR&D.
InsufficientandunstructuredsupportmechanismsresultinginlowgainfromCERNcouldbereadbyauthorities“CERNassociatemembershipdoesnothelp”.Hardconditionstoenlargeteams;eventheriskofgettingsmallerandlessdiverseand/orinefficient.Withoutthefundingforpostdocs,engineersandsupportstaff,commitmentscannotbemadeforupgrades.
THREATS
Theevaluationprocedureofprojectproposalsaswellasthebureaucracyinrunningtheprojectsisnotoptimizedfortheneedsofjointworkthatcollaborationsrequire.Gapsbetweensequentialprojectsaredestructivesincecommitmentscannotbemet;thiscreatesproblemsinsustainability,reliabilityandvisibilityoftheTurkishteamswithintheexperimentalcollaborations.Thevaluabletechnicalandscientificskillsneedtobemaintainedandshouldbeextended.Inordertoattractnewpersonnel,andinparticularyoungpeople,intoscience,themodernisationoflaboratoryequipmentandtheprovisionofadditionalinfrastructureisveryimportant,otherwise,thereistheriskofretentionofhighqualityresearchers.Thefundingscheme,beingonlyorientedtowardsCERN,potentiallypreventsglobalcollaborationsandscientificactivitiesresultinginlessdiverseandlimitedcontributions.Aslongasparticlephysicsandrelatedtechnologiesarenotapriorityinthenationalstrategy,imbalanceddistributionofnationalresourcesamongbasicscienceswillnotbehelpingtoadvanceincuttingedgetechnologiesandsciencesthatcouldresultfromresearchinparticlephysics.
Sustainability,reliabilityandvisibilityoftheTurkishteamswithintheexperimentalcollaborationsatrisk.Riskofretentionofhighqualityresearchers.Lessinvolvementinglobalcollaborationsandscientificactivities;lessdiverseandlimitedcontributions.Imbalanceddistributionofnationalresourcesamongbasicsciences,hencenoteasytoadvanceincuttingedgetechnologiesandsciences.
THREATS• InsufficientandunstructuredsupportmechanismsresultinginlowgainfromCERNcouldbereadbyauthorities“CERNassociatemembershipdoesnothelp”.
• Hardconditionstoenlargeteams;eventheriskofgettingsmallerandlessdiverseand/orinefficient.
• Withoutthefundingforpostdocs,engineersandsupportstaff,commitmentscannotbemadeforupgrades.
• Sustainability,reliabilityandvisibilityoftheTurkishteamswithintheexperimentalcollaborationsatrisk.
• Riskofretentionofhighqualityresearchers.• Lessinvolvementinglobalcollaborationsandscientificactivities;lessdiverseandlimitedcontributions.
• Imbalanceddistributionofnationalresourcesamongbasicsciences,hencenoteasytoadvanceincuttingedgetechnologiesandsciences.
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