DIAS Headquarters, 10 Burlington Road - D04C932 contact@dias.ie 00353 (0) 16140100

Functions and Public Services provided

The functions of the DIAS as laid down in the Act of Establishment  is to “provide facilities for the furtherance of advanced study and the conduct of research in specialised branches of knowledge and for the publication of the results of advanced study and research whether carried on under the auspices of the Institute or otherwise” (IAS Act 1940).   Through its constituent schools, it conducts research in the fields of Celtic Studies, Theoretical Physics, Astronomy & Astrophysics and Geophysics.   The statutory remit of individual Schools laid down in the respective School Establishment Orders.

Given the specialist nature of DIAS’ research work, its activities is mostly of interest to scholars and academics in the national and international community.   In the two science schools in particular a lot of the work is carried out as part of joint externally funded  research projects with partners in universities and other research organisations within Ireland and abroad.     The result of the research is published in books and articles in specialised academic journals.  The Research staff present their work at various national and international conferences and workshops.  Some academic journals are available on the Schools’ websites and scientific papers are also published electronically in open source repositories. Each School publishes a detailed annual Research Report on their work which is available on the DIAS website.

Some aspects of the work of the Schools are specifically directed at the general public. Each of the Schools deliver a public lecture every year on a topic related to the work under study in the School.   Various public outreach events are organised on a regular basis.   The School of Cosmic Physics runs an annual programme of events for the general public at Dunsink Observatory including lectures, guided school tours, workshops as well as the popular open nights during the winter months.    Certain aspects of the geophysics research programme and some of the more general publications of the School of Celtic Studies would also be of interest to the general public.  The Geophysics section also operates a number of national facilities:  Irish National Seismic Network, Seismology in Schools Programme, National Data Centre for CTBTO.

DIAS awards a limited number of scholarships every year to advanced students in the fields of research that are under investigation in the constituent schools.  Awards are for one year in the first instance and will be renewed, subject to satisfactory performance, for a further three/four years.  General Scholarship Information