Only Three Minutes to Share Your Research: Giulia Raffaella De Luca Wins the Challenge
With her pitch titled “A GPS for Lung Cancer”, she will represent the University of Bologna in the European selection of the Coimbra Group Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition, the academic contest that challenges PhD students to deliver the most engaging presentation of their research project in just 180 seconds
Giulia Raffaella De Luca, a PhD candidate in Health Sciences and Technologies, will represent the University of Bologna in the European selection of the Coimbra Group Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition — the international challenge that rewards the ability to present years of research in only three minutes to a general audience, in English.
During the ninth edition of the 3MT Competition, held on 25 February in the Sala VIII Centenario of Palazzo Poggi, ten PhD candidates transformed complex research projects into compelling narratives. From medicine and biomedicine to urban environments and intercultural linguistics, the three finalists communicated science with clarity and passion, demonstrating that to communicate is to share.
Giulia Raffaella De Luca impressed the jury with her pitch A GPS for Lung Cancer, which introduces the first Universal Coordinate System for the Lungs. By creating an “average lung” model and aligning patient scans within a shared reference space, she developed a probability map of lung cancer, distinguishing between high- and low-risk areas. Integrated into an artificial intelligence model, this map guides screening towards the most critical regions, improving diagnostic accuracy and turning cancer detection into a true precision mission.
Second place went to Agata Morelli, a PhD candidate in Agricultural, Environmental and Food Science and Technology, who in her pitch Seeing the City Through a Pollinator’s Eyes shared how explored the role of urban green spaces in supporting pollinators, showing how urban farms and flower-rich parks can become crucial refuges for bees and hoverflies in cities.
Third place was awarded to Patrycja Lidia Stempniewicz, a PhD candidate in Translation, Interpreting and Intercultural Studies, for her presentation of her pitch Beyond “Mokusatsu”: Training Translators to Shape Wor(l)ds, a reflection on the ethical impact of words in the translation profession, proposing service-learning as a training model for socially aware and responsible translators.
Organized with the support of Professor Marco Carricato, Delegate for Doctoral Research, and Professor Maria Letizia Guerra, Delegate for Public Engagement, the 3MT Competition once again confirmed its role in promoting the work of doctoral candidates and strengthening the connection between research and society, fostering a culture of open and shared knowledge.
The top three candidates from the European selection will advance to the live final, which will take place on 18 June at the University of Granada during the Coimbra Group General Assembly.