Black Sea research could reveal cultural sites and methane ice – Dr Adrian Stanica

Understanding the Black Sea requires chemistry, biology, geology, hydrology and oceanography, says Dr Adrian Stanica.

Cooperative marine research projects between the countries surrounding the Black Sea could reveal cultural heritage sites and unknown resources such as frozen methane, as well as enhance economic growth, bolster tourism and strengthen political bonds, according to Dr Adrian Stanica. He is Director-General of the Romanian National Institute of Marine Geology and Geoecology (GeoEcoMar) and … Read more

Construction waste to be turned into gas masks and sports equipment

MDF is widely used in the walls of buildings and has so far proven hard to recycle.

Huge volumes of waste building materials that are discarded every year could be recycled into new products such as gas masks and sports equipment following research being conducted by scientists and recycling firms. Dr Kenny Vanreppelen, a renewable product researcher and founder of Belgian start-up Act&Sorb, set up the FibreCarb project to recycle waste fibreboard … Read more

Theory of predictive brain as important as evolution – Prof. Lars Muckli

State-of-the-art functional brain imaging techniques allowed Prof. Muckli to investigate the human brain at sub-millimetre resolutions.

Our brains make sense of the world by predicting what we will see and then updating these predictions as the situation demands, according to Lars Muckli, professor of neuroscience at the Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging in Glasgow, Scotland. He says that this predictive processing framework theory is as important to brain science as evolution is … Read more

Microsatellite swarms could paint clearer picture of our planet

Microsatellites such as those developed by ICEYE not only reduce the size of the satellite but also cut costs significantly.

by Gareth Willmer Tiny, low-cost satellites that can work together to boost their output and a technology that reduces the loss of satellite data are two of the latest innovations to hit the Earth observation market – and the results promise to reveal a more detailed image of our planet. Space is not just a … Read more

Complex diseases get the big data treatment

Large databases can help shine a light on the complexities behind many cardiovascular diseases.

The big data explosion, which allows scientists to analyse factors such as people’s lifestyles, genes and medical records to develop personalised treatments for conditions, has so far mostly benefitted rare diseases with simple causes. But now, complex problems such as cardiovascular disease and dementia are getting the big data treatment. The big data explosion, which … Read more

Solar Impulse ‘Efficient Solution’ label for profitable start-ups to boost clean energy investment

Investors respond better to the profit potential of green innovations such as solar-powered planes rather than their eco-credentials, according to Dr Bertrand Piccard, founder of Solar Impulse.

The pioneering solar flight foundation Solar Impulse has launched an ‘Efficient Solution’ label for clean energy start-ups and innovations that can demonstrate their profitability, in a bid to boost investment in the sector. It was one of a number of initiatives launched at the Mission Innovation clean energy conference in Malmö, Sweden, on 23 May. … Read more