Mari Tõrv – recipient of the Baltic Women in Science fellowship

We are happy to announce that a member of our group, Mari Tõrv, research fellow in the Archemy team, is one of the three Estonian researchers to receive the Baltic Women in Science fellowship this year!

From left: Mari Tõrv, Kadri-Ann Pankratov and Marju Himma (photos by Martin Mae)

Mari’s research delves into the biological and cultural diversity of ancient humans, emphasizing the duality of the human body as both a historical and cultural construct and a biological reality. She studies life and death in past cultures through the analysis of ancient human remains, highlighting the importance of understanding end-of-life rituals to fully grasp human nature, a subject often taboo in the Western world.

Tarmo Soomere, President of the Estonian Academy of Sciences emphasized “Talented and successful women scientists deserve to be highlighted and recognised across the whole spectrum of science. Their example inspires and ignites.”

The fellowships were funded by the Ministry of Education and Research and awarded within the program co-organised by the Baltic National Academies of Sciences and National Commissions for UNESCO. The fellowship is aimed to support the research of young women scientists to continue their outstanding work in the Baltic States. 

See the video below, where Mari talks more about her research. The basis of this blog post and information on the work of the other two laureates can be found here

Ester Oras was selected as the Femal Academic of the Year!

We are happy to announce that Ester Oras, Associate Professor in our Analytical Chemistry Chair and PI of the Archemy group has received the honorary title “Female Academic of the Year” from the Estonian Association of Academic Women

Ester Oras. Photo: Andres Tennus

Ester is a modern scientist who works across multiple disciplines, integrating methods from archaeology, chemistry, biology, and even food science. Her research is primarily focused on ancient diets in Northern Europe, particularly in Estonia. Through this work, she established the first archaeochemistry lab in the Baltic region called “Archemy” at the Univeristy of Tartu. Her studies focus on ancient food practices — what people ate, how diets varied between social classes, and how food was tied to broader economic and cultural systems. She has also applied her expertise in archaeochemistry to investigate topics such as ancient migrations and Stone Age crafting technologies.

At the same time, Ester’s research extends well beyond Estonia. She has trained at leading research institutions worldwide, including Oxford, Cambridge, Max Planck Institute, and Weizmann Institute, mastering advanced analytical techniques like mass spectrometry and chromatography. Internationally regarded as an expert in the biomolecular analysis of food remains, she collaborates with researchers from countries like Germany, Finland, and the UK. Her work has been published in over 50 scientific articles across top journals in archaeology and natural sciences. In recognition of her groundbreaking research, she was recently awarded the prestigious ERC Starting Grant, and she holds several international leadership roles in organizations such as the International Society for Biomolecular Archaeology.

Beyond her scientific work, Ester is deeply committed to public outreach and gender equality in science. She regularly speaks at schools, museums, and on television, raising awareness about archaeology and inspiring future generations of scientists. She is an advocate for women in science, having launched also in Estonia the celebration of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science and contributing to numerous international gender equality projects. Her leadership extends to the University of Tartu, where she has been part of developing the university’s gender equality plan and growing a more inclusive academic environment. Through her interdisciplinary research, international collaborations, and dedication to social issues, Ester is shaping both the future of science and the role of scientists in society.

Congratulations on this well-deserved recognition, Ester!

 

You are what you eat – ERC grant goes to Ester Oras!

We are delighted to announce that the prestigious ERC Starting Grant was awarded to a member of our group and head of the Archemy team  – Associate Professor in Analytical Chemistry and Archaeology Ester Oras!

Ester Oras. Photo: Andres Tennus

The European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant is awarded to early-stage researchers to carry out their outstanding ideas over the next five years. Ester’s project aims to explore our distant ancestor’s identities through diet by conducting biomolecular analysis on at least 150 burial finds, uncovering details of life from a thousand years ago.

Food is a crucial element in understanding identity, revealing details about social roles, status, and even how the person spent their childhood. By examining bones, teeth, and food residues from pottery, the team can reconstruct how a person’s diet evolved over their lifetime. This will help answer questions like whether an individual ate foods typical of their gender or social class and if they grew up in the area where they were buried.

During the project, various burial finds will be analysed, focusing primarily on sites in Estonia from the years 1000–1400. Using advanced techniques, the team will analyse various molecules, including fats, proteins, and DNA, to uncover specific details about what ancient people ate. This comprehensive approach could even identify not only if the person ate fish but also whether it was cod or herring, offering a deeper look into the lives of our ancestors.

What makes this research groundbreaking is its combination of modern scientific methods with traditional archaeology. Machine learning will be used to integrate the results from various analyses, helping to identify connections between individuals and communities. The project marks a significant step forward for archaeological research, offering new perspectives on ancient identities and social structures.

Read the original blog post here.

Congratulations from all of us, Ester!

Professor Peeter Tulviste Memorial Fund scholarship was awarded to Mari Tõrv

We are happy to announce that Mari Tõrv, Research Fellow in Analytical and Physical Chemistry and Associate Professor of Archaeology at the University of Tartu, was awarded the Professor Peeter Tulviste Memorial Fund scholarship.

Rector Toomas Asser and Dr. Mari Tõrv (photo: Andres Tennus)

Her interdisciplinary research combines archaeological heritage and analytical chemistry to gain insight into people’s past habits and practices. By applying both – humanities and natural sciences – she has improved our knowledge on human diet, diseases, and even funeral rites.

Besides research, she has been part of creating an infrastructure for preserving archaeological heritage digitally, founding the Estonian Association of Archaeologists, and developing the webpage eestijuured.ee to gather and promote the research about the ethnic history of Estonia during the last 11,000 years from the first hunter-gatherers to the digital nomads that we are today. 

For Mari, the scholarship was a great recognition. “The scholarship proves that understanding cultural heritage is important in today’s crisis-torn world because it is the basis of our common identity.” She plans to use this scholarship to research further the culture of death by bringing together the analytical tools from biomolecular archaeology and social theory.

Mari obtained her PhD in archaeology in 2016 with joint supervision from the University of Tartu and the Christian-Albrecht University of Kiel. Since 2017, she has led the Collegium for Transdisciplinary Studies in Archaeology, Genetics, and Linguistics at the University of Tartu. In the Chair of Analytical Chemistry, she is part of the Archemy research group, where her expertise lays on stable isotope analysis of human and animal tissues. 

Read more here from the original post. 

Congratulations, Mari!

Congratulations on the ERC Consolidator Grant!

We are delighted to announce that the prestigious ERC Consolidator Grant 2023 was awarded to a former member of our Analytical Chemistry group, Associate Professor Anneli Kruve at Stockholm University!

Anneli Kruve

The European Research Council (ERC) Consolidator Grant is aimed to support early-career researchers to consolidate their own independent research team or program over the next five years. We are very proud that this year one of the awardees was Anneli Kruve, Associate Professor at Stockholm University and head of the Mass Spectrometry Laboratory. In her research, she combines analytical chemistry with modeling and machine learning. The goal of the ERC funding is to support the research of her group on developing broader and more accurate methods to characterize and measure toxic chemicals in environmental samples. 

Only a few percent of chemicals that cause the toxic activity of environmental samples are currently known. In this project, Anneli and her group will combine high-resolution mass spectrometry and machine learning to find novel toxic chemical structures, which enables focusing the toxicity research on chemicals that truly matter. Understanding the emission and transformation processes of toxic chemicals is a necessary step to decrease the chemical risks in the environment. 

More information about the research performed by Anneli’s group can be found on the Kruve lab webpage

The laureates of the Ann Mihkelson’s scholarship have been announced!

Elisabeth working

This year, the laureate of the Ann Mihkelson’s scholarship is Elisabeth Parman!

The scholarship was founded in 2011 by Anu Ebbe Mihkelson and its purpose is to support female scientists and doctoral students, especially chemists, with their research or supervision of master’s and doctoral students. We are happy to announce that this year, the scholarship was awarded to a young researcher from our Chair of Analytical Chemistry group – junior researcher/doctoral student Elisabeth Parman.

Congratulations from all of us to you, Elisabeth!

 

First prize at the Estonian contest for student research

Elo Joandi (in the picture on the right), a gymnasium student of the Miina Härma Gymnasium, won the first prize at the Estonian Research Council’s contest for student research. Congratulations to Elo and her supervisors!

In her work “Identifying diet based on hair isotopic analysis: a case study of modern and archaeological material” Elo studied the dietary habits of present and past individuals through the stable isotope analysis of hair keratin.

A thorough theoretical work with the literature allowed her to conduct real experiments in our Archemy lab to analyse contemporary and archaeological hair samples. She demonstrated that the nitrogen values are clearly different for vegan and carnivorous people, and that both carbon and nitrogen isotope values change when a person changes their diet from omnivorous to that of a vegetarian one.

Elo’s work is the first of its kind at the University of Tartu, aiming to understand and develop the stable isotope analysis on hair keratin. She demonstrated that the pre-treatment has an effect on the stable isotope values, allowing a better-informed sample strategy for archaeological specimens in the future. Elo’s work is an exceptional example of bridging humanities and natural sciences in the study of cultural heritage.

The research was supervised by Holar Sepp, Helen Semilarski, and by two members of our group – Mari Tõrv and Ester Oras. 

Here you can find more information about the contest and awardees (in Estonian).

 

 

Prof. Ivo Leito – recipient of the UT teaching staff awards

This year’s recipients of the teaching staff awards in the University of Tartu have been announced. The UT Student Union chose the recipients based on proposals submitted by the students. We are glad to announce that the Faculty of Science and Technology award was given to prof. Ivo Leito!

According to his students, prof. Ivo Leito is an incredibly charismatic and lively lecturer who is a role model for all. In each lecture, he gives real-life examples of how analytical chemistry can be applied to study the environment around us. Using the flipped learning method, he constantly engages students in discussions and creates a safe environment for asking questions. It is worth noting that Professor Leito does not proceed with the lecture until he is convinced that every last person in the room has understood what he has just said. 

In addition to his dedication to educating students in the classroom, he is always available for every student outside of lecture hours. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is available 24/7, even when he is abroad. He takes a genuine interest in the progress and development of every student. Ivo Leito also holds regular meetings with all his students planning to graduate in the spring to see if their thesis is going well and to give advice on how to advance with the task.  

Here is more information about the award and the other recipients. 

Congratulations!

The laureates of the Ann Mihkelson’s scholarship have been announced!

Sigrid and Marta-Lisette

This year, the laureates of the Ann Mihkelson’s scholarship are Sigrid Selberg and Marta-Lisette Pikma.

The scholarship was founded in 2011 by Anu Ebbe Mihkelson and its purpose is to support female scientist and doctoral students, especially chemists, with their research or supervision of master’s and doctoral students. We are happy to announce that this year the scholarship was awarded to two young females who are both members of the Chair of Analytical Chemistry – researcher Sigrid Selberg and junior researcher/doctoral student Marta-Lisette Pikma.

Congratulations from all of us to you, Sigrid and Marta!

 

 

 

 

The laureate of the Katritzky scholarship is Silvia Hiie Aabloo

Every year the Katritzky scholarship is rewarded to a first-year chemistry MSc student at the Institute of Chemistry, University of Tartu. The scholarship was established in memory of Professor Alan Roy Katritzky, the Honorary Doctor of the University of Tartu. We are glad to announce that this year the scholarship was awarded to a member of our Analytical Chemistry Chair – Silvia Hiie Aabloo!

Silvia Hiie Aabloo

Silvia is doing her MSc project in the Cultural Heritage workgroup, supervised by Dr. Anu Teearu-Ojakäär and Dr. Signe Vahur. Her research revolves around the study of matrix materials used in the matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) analysis. MALDI is a suitable ionization technique for the analysis of large and poorly soluble molecules, which has been used somewhat for the analysis of cultural heritage objects. However, research is still needed to find suitable matrix materials for different cultural heritage materials. An interview with Silvia after receiving the scholarship can be found here (in Estonian). 

Congratulations from all of us, Silvia!