http://ec.europa.eu//research/infocentre/success_stories_en.cfm en Fri, 17 May 2013 13:50:43 GMT http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=rss For more RSS news feeds click the link above. Fri, 17 May 2013 13:50:43 GMT http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=rss http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30033 A European team of researchers is exploring new ways of using fibre-optic technology to deliver ultra-high-speed internet access to even the remotest locations in Europe, at less cost and with less impact on the environment. It is ambitious, but innovative solutions are needed to strengthen Europe's digital economy and provide jobs.]]> Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-17:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30033 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-hydro-coat&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=30034 Bulldozers, diggers, tractors: these heavy machines all apply the same basic hydraulic powers for their trays and claws. Around 85% of all hydraulic fluids leave their system through slow leaks, line breaks or system failures. Exhausted lubricants could be a severe fire risk, with a cumulative impact on plants, fish, and wildlife. When the fluids need to be disposed of at the end of their life, the cost, at €1 per kg, is around the same as the lubricant itself. As the costs associated with disposal rise, there is a growing demand for alternative options. ]]> Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-17:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-hydro-coat&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=30034 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30013 Two professors believe they may have a promising lead from which to develop a new treatment for obesity and diabetes. ]]> Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-16:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30013 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-pancaresurfup&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=30014 "If I have received radiotherapy to my abdomen (to treat cancer) and I have a heart problem or a new cancer 30 years later, to what extent is this linked to the radiotherapy I received?" asks Dr Lars Hjorth of Lund University in Sweden. ]]> Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-16:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-pancaresurfup&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=30014 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_15_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29993 Psychiatric disorders are a major, though often "hidden", health problem. It is estimated that mental disorders affect more than 160 million Europeans - 38% of the population each year. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), one in four of us will suffer from at least one mental disorder during our lifetime. In addition to the direct impact this has on patients and their families, the impact on national healthcare systems is significant. In Europe, the annual cost is estimated to be more than €200 billion. ]]> Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-15:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_15_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29993 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-gp&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29998 Applying advanced economic analysis to climate change policies and the efficient use of resources can sometime lead to surprising and counter-intuitive outcomes. Indeed the longer term impact of some well-intentioned policy initiative may end up having a negative impact. ]]> Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-15:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-gp&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29998 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-efas&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29997 In August 2002 Europe was struck by a disastrous flood when the Elbe and Danube overflowed, affecting the Czech Republic, Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania and Croatia. The cities of Dresden and Prague particularly suffered extensive damage. In response to this disaster, the European Commission's in-house science service, the Joint Research Centre (JRC), launched the European Flood Awareness System (EFAS). ]]> Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-15:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-efas&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29997 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-lignodeco&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29996 If the world is to live within its environmental limits, the need to make the most sustainable use of its raw materials will become ever more vital. Increasingly, this will require us to focus on making maximum use of all the components of those raw materials, right down to the waste products. In today's world, everything has to be used. ]]> Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-15:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-lignodeco&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29996 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-hiwi&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29995 Presently, drives for Fully Electric Vehicles and Hybrid Electric Vehicles develop their highest efficiency of around 93–95% within a speed range of usually 1/4 to 1/3 of the maximum, and at an ideal torque, whereas in real-life driving cycles the motor operates at a wider range of speeds and at partial load, resulting in much lower efficiency. ]]> Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-15:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-hiwi&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29995 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-fuerex&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29994 Overconsumption of fossil fuels, excessive carbon emissions and threats to air quality are all urgent problems that would be addressed if all-electric vehicles were fully operational and in widespread use. Research conducted by the European Union funded Fuerex project could give consumers in the near future the option of driving a car with almost zero emissions, without compromising on the range of the battery. ]]> Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-15:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-fuerex&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29994 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_14_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29973 The ability to measure concentrations of oxygen inside living human cells is a key requirement to help advance our understanding and treatment of a range of serious medical conditions. These include ischaemic stroke (where the stroke is caused by a blockage in the artery, preventing sufficient oxygen from reaching the brain), neurodegenerative disorders, and cancer. ]]> Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-14:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_14_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29973 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-fantom&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29974 To make modern aircraft ever lighter, faster and more fuel efficient, manufacturers are continually introducing new advanced materials, composites and super lightweight structures. Before using them on a plane, the integrity and performance of these materials have to be tested in a non-destructive way, to see how they would perform in the real-life pressure and temperature conditions of flight. Among the techniques aero-space testing facilities currently rely on are two important tests: one using laser beams and one using thermal imaging to see inside the material under stress and detect problems in structures caused by hidden defects. European researchers have found a way to replace these two with a single test. ]]> Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-14:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-fantom&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29974 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_13_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29953 Cancer causes some 13% of deaths worldwide. Of these deaths, some 90% are caused not by the original cancer, but by its spread to other parts of the body. These secondary cancers, known as metastases, are most often caused by 'circulating tumour cells' (CTCs) which escape from the primary tumour and travel around the body in the bloodstream. In the process, CTCs often undergo modifications that make them more resistant to treatment than the primary tumours. ]]> Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-13:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_13_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29953 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-nozzleinspect&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29956 Nuclear power accounts for one sixth of the European Union (EU)'s energy consumption, and there are power plants in 14 of the 27 member states. Safety is a priority and there are regular maintenance checks on every aspect of the plants. But what happens if cracks appear in the machinery that are so small and deep that they escape the human eye? And how can one check every corner of a nuclear reactor when some areas are, by necessity, shrouded in radiation? ]]> Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-13:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-nozzleinspect&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29956 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-modtrain&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29955 When Europe's rail pioneers created the first steam engines some two centuries ago, they gave little thought to whether their inventions might be used in other countries: while their ingenuity helped transform travel, they never got round to setting uniform rail technologies across the continent. ]]> Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-13:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-modtrain&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29955 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-3encult&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29954 From Roman temples and Gothic churches to Greek theatres and medieval castles, Europe is peppered with historic buildings that reflect its rich cultural heritage. But these monuments all need to be preserved, a task complicated by age, pollution, tourist demands and climate change. Now science is lending a hand in this task, with a new European Union research project developing measures to reduce energy loss from within old buildings. ]]> Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-13:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-3encult&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29954 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-one-p&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29936 A radio made completely of plastic? We might see them in the near future, claim scientists. In 1977 researchers discovered that certain types of plastic can conduct electricity, just like metals. Initially these plastics remained a curiosity, but by improving their electrical properties researchers have now opened the way for their use in a large number of electric and electronic devices. ]]> Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-10:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-one-p&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29936 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-autospar&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29935 As a food, asparagus can trace an illustrious lineage back 20,000 years to Egypt; it features in the world's oldest surviving cook book, Apicius's third century 'De re coquinaria'; it is packed with vitamins, and a very good source of dietary fibre. No wonder the asparagus is such a prized food. But its reputation as the ultimate gourmet vegetable is also reflected in its delicate cultivation, with white asparagus in particular requiring labour intensive hilling. And in Europe, this dedicated nurturing is threatening the crop as farmers struggle to find the manpower needed to harvest asparagus. ]]> Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-10:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-autospar&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29935 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-procas&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29934 The seas are Europe’s lifeblood. With the highest ratio of shoreline to land area of any continent, Europe is very much a maritime continent. Now, an EU-funded tool called EMIS (Environmental Marine Information System) allows policymakers and citizens to monitor those seas at the click of a button.]]> Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-10:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-procas&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29934 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_09_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29933 Nanotechnology is opening the way to a new industrial revolution. From 'individualised' medical treatments tailored for each patient to new, environmentally-friendly energy storage and generation systems, nanotechnology is bringing significant advances. Exciting new futures await those businesses able to get ahead in the race to turn this wealth of promise into commercial success. But in a field which requires a high degree of coordinated effort involving many different stakeholder groups, including researchers, policymakers and commercial players across a wide variety of industrial sectors, it has perhaps been inevitable that fragmentation, disconnectedness and duplication have stood in the way.]]> Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-09:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_09_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29933 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_08_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29920 Understanding how the brain processes new skills and actions can help to improve learning and aid research into neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders such as Parkinson's and Huntington's disease. An EU-funded project has collected new data on the development of neural mechanisms of action learning and habit formation and addiction through the manipulation of the brain’s molecular networks. This could lead to breakthroughs in thought-controlled prostheses.]]> Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-08:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_08_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29920 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-sesame&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29927 Wel-known accelerators, like the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, the European Laboratory for Particle Physics near Geneva, smash subatomic particles together to study their properties. But there is another group of accelerators where electrons don´t collide, instead they are kept circulating through a ring-shaped vacuum tube, called a storage ring. While they are racing around this ring they produce intense radiation. ]]> Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-08:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-sesame&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29927 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-effis&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29926 About one million hectares of forests, which corresponds to one third the size of Belgium, are destroyed by fire every year in the Mediterranean basin. Forests are an important economic resource in that region, and the loss of forests weighs on the economies of the affected countries, especially in North Africa where a warming of 2 degrees Celsius and decreasing rainfall has been recorded. It is expected that climate change in North Africa will substantially increase the yearly losses to fire. ]]> Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-08:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-effis&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29926 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-supra&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29925 For pilots, one of the most difficult skills to learn is 'upset recovery' - righting a plane that has stalled or been thrown into an unstable situation due to weather or a technical problem. When a pilot is not able to fly out of an 'upset' and the plane proceeds out of control, accidents can result. And it is precisely because these extreme conditions seldom occur in real life that it is hard for a pilot to be prepared for them: up to now, no flight simulator reflects adequately how an actual aircraft behaves during upset situations. Alternative training methods – such as using large commercial aircraft for training or smaller ones – are either too dangerous or too expensive, or may not be comparable to how large aircraft behave and respond. ]]> Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-08:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-supra&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29925 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-pegaso&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29924 Where better to enjoy a relaxing coastal trip than the Mediterranean? However, with large areas of this and the Black Sea basin under threat from environmental change, collaboration within the local scientific communities is more important than ever. ]]> Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-08:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-pegaso&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29924 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/success_stories_en.cfm For more information on Success stories, click the link above, which will take you to the Success Stories web site. Fri, 17 May 2013 13:50:43 GMT http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/success_stories_en.cfm