Science in society - Headlines - Information Centre - Research & Innovation - European Commission

Navigation path

Success stories

Science in society

	Education & popular sciences
	Ethics
	Future science & technology
	Governance
	People in science
	Public opinion
	Science communication
	Science prizes
	Women & science
	Other

	Australia
	Austria
	Belgium
	Brazil
	Bulgaria
	Canada
	Croatia
	Cyprus
	Czech Republic
	Denmark
	Estonia
	Finland
	France
	Georgia
	Germany
	Greece
	Hungary
	Iceland
	Ireland
	Israel
	Italy
	Japan
	Kazakhstan
	Lithuania
	Netherlands
	Norway
	Poland
	Portugal
	Romania
	Russia
	Slovakia
	Slovenia
	Spain
	Sweden
	Switzerland
	Turkey
	United Kingdom
	United States

Science and Society web site

For more information, visit the Science and Society web site

Social Sciences & Humanities web site

For more on EU research in the social sciences and humanities, visit the Social Sciences and Humanities web site


Headlines - Science in society	Last Update: 24-05-13

sub-themes

	Education & popular sciences
	Ethics
	Future science & technology
	Governance
	People in science
	Public opinion
	Science communication
	Science prizes
	Women & science
	Other

Results: 1-10 of 335

Page(s) 1 of 34 Next >>

Tick (check) box to add article to PDF "basket"

Bridging the knowledge gap between research and policy

Knowledge is power only if you know how to use it, which is why the Knossos project is building a bridge between available scientific evidence and policy-making in the environment field. By making pertinent research and information easily available to those at decision and policy-making levels, KNOSSOS is facilitating more effective environmental policies through increased access to knowledge.

05-02-13

Biological information is proving to be vital © Shutterstock

New bioeconomy initiative in Finland to support SMEs

The bioeconomy is growing at an unprecedented rate, and the demand for new services and more efficient tools to boost business in this industry is ever increasing. Because of this growth, the need for management of biological information is proving to be vital in keeping up with demand and new concepts. This is evident with the latest figures, which reveal that the global market for bioinformatics is expected to reach more than EUR 4.5 billion next year. In order to home in on this demand, Tekes, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation, has devised a concept aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Its focus is on developing new business from the management of biological information.

23-01-13

Focus on employment and education © Shutterstock

Still a huge gap between the sexes

It is common knowledge that despite significant efforts to reduce the education and employment gap between the sexes, the issue remains unresolved. Women still earn less than men, and are still a minority in political decision-making and senior management positions. Women also form the majority of the unemployed, and perform most of the part-time and unpaid jobs. In the latest data published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, a four-year Structure of Earnings Survey produced detailed information on the distribution of earnings in the EU. Perhaps one of the most startling facts to come to light is the news that one out of every six employees in the EU-27 was a low-wage earner in 2010.

18-01-13

Developing international links with researchers © Shutterstock

Developing global links in research

Europe has no shortage of potential when it comes to world-leading research, entrepreneurs and companies. But the number of researchers in Europe as a share of the population is well below that of the United States, Japan and other countries. If the EU wants to reach its target of spending 3 % of GDP on research and development it will need to create at least 1 million new research jobs. As global competition for the best research talent continues to grow, a significant number of European researchers are choosing to work outside Europe. Together they represent an untapped asset to further develop European research, which is why the European Commission has initiated the EURAXESS Links project.

10-01-13

Gender equality in science © Shutterstock

Drive to integrate the gender dimension in science

Disparities in gender equality in science and innovation constitute a major issue as women in science are under-represented in almost all European countries. However, the European Commission has set up a number of initiatives to change this and encourage more women in science. These include 'Science in Society', which provides financial support to research organisations for establishing gender equality plans. Whilst the European Research Council (ERC) are working to inspire female talent to apply for grants. Likewise, the Marie SkÅ‚odowska-Curie Actions (MCA) encourage women to work in research while also helping to address the balance between career and family life. Through this initiative, nearly 40 % of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie fellows funded so far under the EU's current research Framework Programme (FP7) are women.

21-12-12

Twitter is being used to generate support © Shutterstock

Progress for the European citizens' initiative

Collecting a million signatures for the European citizens' initiative is not an easy task but social media is rapidly becoming a favoured way to drum up support. Citizens gained the right to request EU legislation on the issues that matter to them on 1 April 2012 following the launch of the European citizens' initiative. This gives citizens the freedom to call directly on the Commission to propose new laws if they can collect one million signatures of support from at least seven Member States. They have one year in which to collect the signatures. Twitter and Facebook are some of the platforms being used for many of the initiatives.

19-12-12

Recruiting more women board directors © Shutterstock

Striking a balance in the boardroom

Companies have been very slow in recruiting more women board directors; but according to an EU report the period between October 2010 and January 2012 has seen the best progress in improving the gender balance on company boards. While figures are still remarkably low, this development signals a turning point and is seen to be linked to the intensified public debate initiated by the European Commission and the European Parliament in their calls for action. They were followed in some Member States by concrete steps to accelerate the pace of change.

17-12-12

Woodpecker © Shutterstock

Scientists discover link between birds and West Nile virus

A West Nile virus outbreak in 2010 was responsible for the deaths of 35 people in Greece. Can wild or migratory birds influence the import and increase of West Nile virus? A Greek-British team of researchers led by the University of Thessaly in Greece investigated whether they can, finding evidence that wild birds could have permitted West Nile virus maintenance and amplification before and during the virus outbreak two years ago. The study, presented in the Virology Journal, was funded in part by the WILDTECH ('Novel technologies for surveillance of emerging and re-emerging infections of wildlife') project, which has received EUR 6 million under the 'Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnology' (KBBE) Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).

07-12-12

Study investigates conflict prevention warnings

Professor Christoph Meyer from King's College London in the United Kingdom presented his research on the impact of warnings on policy decision-making vis-à-vis violent intra-national conflicts at the recent United Nations Disarmament Week, an annual observance that begins on the anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. Professor Meyer received a European Research Council Starting Grant worth EUR 754,000 for his research, which was presented in the journals Media, War & Conflict and International Studies Review. Professor Meyer's findings are an outcome of the FORESIGHT ('Do forecasts matter? early warnings and the prevention of armed conflicts') project.

15-11-12

Babies benefit from their mom's touch © Shutterstock

Study spotlights a mother's soothing touch

Mothers who stroke their newborn infants in the first few weeks of their life could change the effects that stress during gestation has on early-life development, new research from the United Kingdom shows. Increasing maternal depression has been linked with decreasing physiological adaptability and with increasing negative emotionality when mothers do not stroke their babies enough. The study, recently presented in the journal PLOS ONE, could help increase our understanding of this issue and in turn provide better information services for pregnant women and their partners.

09-11-12

Results: 1-10 of 335

Page(s) 1 of 34 Next >>

Search articles

Notes:
1) This search is for articles in the Information Centre, i.e. this site. To search all the European Commission's research and innovation sites, use the search box at the top of the page to the right of the menu.
2) In both cases, new content may take between a few minutes to a day to be indexed by the search engine and therefore to appear in the results.
3) If after clicking on a link in the search results the page is blank, please refresh the page (press F5 or CTRL-R). This problem is limited to Internet Explorer and the way it has been installed in some organisations; you should have no problem with other browsers. We will implement a solution as soon as possible.

Top