Testimonials
Learn more about how FQxI makes a difference directly from our grantees, Scientific Advisory Council, and Members.
Mile Gu
Associate Professor
Nanyang Technological University
The FQxI grant has been extremely beneficial in my research in Singapore. FQxI support has allowed me to take on more exciting, fundamental projects, to host a workshop focused on this topic, which helped catalyze student interest. Such pursuits would not be possible in Singapore otherwise, where there is no local funding agency willing to support such upstream, foundational directions of research.
Mind Matters: Intelligence and Agency in the Physical World is one of the most scientifically stimulating workshops I have attended (and very well organized)!
Johannes Kleiner
Physicist and Mathematician
Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy
I think it’s fair to say that without FQxI, our growing community which we now call “Mathematical Consciousness Science” would not even exist. The best funding agency ever! Really!
You’ve supported basically all workshops and conferences which were essential in my research. I think it’s fair to say that without FQxI, our growing community which we now call “Mathematical Consciousness Science” would not even exist. And the large grant you awarded us recently gives us the chance to make a real difference. Thanks so much! The best funding agency ever! (Really!)
Hiranya Peiris
Professor of Astrophysics
University College London
FQxI has catalyzed much-needed dialogue between disciplines that rarely engage in an intellectual discourse; such connections have already enabled path-breaking research and could drive future paradigm shifts…FQxI remains almost unique in this space.
Carlo Rovelli
Professor
Aix-Marseille
FQxI is a fundamental resource in the landscape of contemporary intellectual work in science. Thank you FQxI!
I think that FQxI, it’s a fundamental resource in the landscape of contemporary intellectual work in science. A lot of scientific research today, the very large majority of it, it’s in one way or another oriented toward the technical, or practical, or useful applications, which is very good, but it misses a deep reflection of the foundations. There are very few supporting structures for bringing together the thinkers that think about the depth of the foundations of our current understanding of reality on the basis of what science tells us and I think FQxI is one of the very few, if not almost the unique one that plays this role. I’m extremely grateful that for what it has provided for me, in terms of connection with other people, in terms of resources for doing things, in terms of the fantastic ideas that I’ve seen there developed, taken seriously, discussed, abandoned, or sometimes brought to success. Thank you FQxI!
Joshua Deutsch
Professor of Physics
UC Santa Cruz
FQxI has had an impact on science that vastly exceeds its size and resources.
From my perspective, FQxI has had an impact on science that vastly exceeds its size and resources. Its funding model distinguishes itself from more traditional sources, by selecting high quality proposals that emphasize originality and creativity. Their approach is far more likely to lead to real advances than, say, the U.S.’s NSF and NIH, where it is widely acknowledged that new and innovative submissions get squelched, all too often. Their grant calls are well chosen to be in broad areas which are of fundamental importance, and not part of some fleeting trend. They get applications from a wide range of researchers in science, philosophy, and history. Lastly, its highly original meetings have had an enormous influence on my thinking, and many other researchers, in ways that are very significant.
Eric Cavalcanti
Associate Professor
Griffith University
FQxI grants have given me the “excuse” I needed to justify working on topics I am passionate about and have given me a valuable lifeline before obtaining a permanent position. I probably would no longer be in academia were it not for FQxI.
QSpace Latest
PressRelease: Shining a light on the roots of plant “intelligence”
All living organisms emit a low level of light radiation, but the origin and function of these ‘biophotons’ are not yet fully understood. An international team of physicists, funded by the Foundational Questions Institute, FQxI, has proposed a new approach for investigating this phenomenon based on statistical analyses of this emission. Their aim is to test whether biophotons can play a role in the transport of information within and between living organisms, and whether monitoring biophotons could contribute to the development of medical techniques for the early diagnosis of various diseases. Their analyses of the measurements of the faint glow emitted by lentil seeds support models for the emergence of a kind of plant ‘intelligence,’ in which the biophotonic emission carries information and may thus be used by plants as a means to communicate. The team reported this and reviewed the history of biophotons in an article in the journal Applied Sciences in June 2024.