Humans’ family tree revealed by ancient proteins

Humankind’s genetic links to long-extinct relatives are being mapped in a rapidly expanding research field called palaeoproteomics. By  Michael Allen They are a fixture of almost every novelty T-shirt shop: humorous pictorials of human evolution, five figures in silhouette – from ape to human – usually with the last replaced by a skateboarder, Darth Vader … Read more

Easing job jitters in the digital revolution

As new technologies reshape workplaces, EU research has come up with new ways to help companies and workers stay in control. By  ANDREW DUNNE Professor Steven Dhondt has a reassurance of sorts for people in the EU worried about losing their jobs to automation: relax. Dhondt, an expert in work and organisational change at the Catholic … Read more

Talking tolerance in polarised societies

EU research projects provide fresh insights into what it takes for communities to accept different religious and world views.  By  ALISON JONES  Ann Trappers harnessed a shock in her native Belgium to help heal social wounds across Europe.   After Islamic terrorist attacks in Brussels in March 2016 left 35 people – including three suicide bombers – … Read more

Europe’s ancient languages shed light on a great migration and weather talk

Painstaking archaeological exploration is a familiar, often widely admired, method of unearthing history. Less celebrated, but also invaluable, is the piecing together of fragments of ancient languages and analysing how they changed over thousands of years. Historical linguists have reconstructed a common ancestral tongue for most of the languages spoken today in Europe and South … Read more

Europeans make love but not babies

As Europe’s population ages, understanding the causes of declining birth rates becomes more important. By  ANDREW DUNNE When demography expert Daniele Vignoli asked young couples for their thoughts about having children, a theme emerged: uncertainty about the future. In an experiment that Vignoli conducted in Italy and Norway in 2019, he showed a total of 800 … Read more

Innovation in Europe – the secrets to entrepreneurial success and the importance of “patient capital”

As of today, the European Innovation Council (EIC) has a new President of the Board, Dr Michiel Scheffer. With a budget of €10 billion, the EIC aims to identify and scale up new technologies and scientific breakthroughs. In an interview with Horizon magazine, Scheffer looks at the task ahead, where he feels innovation in Europe … Read more