Institute for Basic Science (IBS)
기초과학연구원

South Korea

IBS was established in 2011 aiming at advancing the frontiers of knowledge and fostering leading scientists of tomorrow by pursuing excellence in basic science research. Since then, IBS has been providing infrastructure for long-term, large-scale, and group research as well as supporting autonomous research activities of researchers, focusing on exploration of creative knowledge.

As a basic science research institute representing Korea, IBS is running 28 Centers in physics, chemistry, mathematics, life sciences, and interdisciplinary areas as of late 2017 and planning to increase the number to 50. The institute’s main philosophy is to select a world renowned scientist as a Center’s director and create an environment where the director can concentrate on his/her own creative research. That is because IBS believes that creativity can be maximized when excellent researchers focus on conducting challenging research in an autonomous research environment.

IBS has been generating research outcomes that attract world-wide attention and was named one of Nature Index Rising Stars 2016. Despite a short history, the institute is standing shoulder to shoulder with international basic science research institutes. With the 2018 completion of its new headquarters designed as an urban science park, IBS will maximize merits of group and interdisciplinary research as well as bring IBS’ research capabilities together. It will more actively recruit young researchers at home and abroad with its expansion, heralding an even brighter future.

Since 2016, IBS has been operating Young Scientist Fellowship (YSF) under the slogan ‘Initiate your own research at IBS.’ YSF provides junior researchers with research autonomy and independence so that they can devote themselves to their work. Those selected can have access to IBS’ cutting-edge research infrastructure and equipment as well as can enjoy opportunities to grow through interdisciplinary research with outstanding IBS researchers.

1 October 2017 - 30 September 2018

Region: Global
Subject/journal group: All

The table to the right includes counts of all research outputs for Institute for Basic Science (IBS) published between 1 October 2017 - 30 September 2018 which are tracked by the Nature Index.

Hover over the donut graph to view the FC output for each subject. Below, the same research outputs are grouped by subject. Click on the subject to drill-down into a list of articles organized by journal, and then by title.

Note: Articles may be assigned to more than one subject area.

AC	FC
293	79.27

Outputs by subject (FC)

Subject	AC	FC
Chemistry	136	36.25
Physical Sciences	172	45.38
Life Sciences	54	12.22
Earth & Environmental Sciences	6	1.75

Highlight of the month

The empathy gene

A genetic mutation that makes mice more empathetic has been uncovered.

The ability to understand and share other people’s emotions is a complex social phenomenon, making the genetic origins of empathy difficult to study in humans.

Researchers from the Institute for Basic Science in Korea have studied how 18 different strains of lab mice responded to seeing a fellow mouse receive a mild electric shock. To varying degrees, all mice froze in fear, as though they had received the shock themselves. But one mouse displayed extreme empathy.

When the team sequenced the mice’s genomes, they spotted a mutation in neurexin 3, a nervous system protein, in the most empathic mouse. Introducing this mutation to mice with normal empathy made them more responsive in the observational fear test.

Pinpointing the genes that control empathy could improve our understanding of, and potentially reveal treatment for, a lack of empathy associated with autism, psychopathy and schizophrenia.

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