http://ec.europa.eu//research/index.cfm?pg=whatsnew en Fri, 24 May 2013 07:45:08 GMT http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=rss For more RSS news feeds click the link above. Fri, 24 May 2013 07:45:08 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_23_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30093 Over half of the world's population lives in urban areas and that proportion is rising. This has severe consequences for the quality of the air we are exposed to thanks to increased transportation and industry within built-up areas. Rising levels of pollution prompted the European Commission in recent years to fund a number of projects into air quality across the EU at the city, regional and country level.]]> Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-23:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_23_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30093 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_22_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30075 ENRAH-SME was a pioneering European Union (EU)-funded project which laid the crucial groundwork for a major breakthrough in the understanding and potential treatment of a rare childhood neurological disease.]]> Wed, 22 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-22:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_22_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=30075 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=126&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=30073 The brain controls our thinking, feelings and movements and a new exhibition in southern France aims to reveal some of its secrets. ]]> Tue, 21 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-21:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=126&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=30073 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-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/headlines/news/article_13_04_30_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29853 Electrochromic glass – which instantly glazes or shades at the flick of an electrical switch – has proved popular in a range of applications where the control of light and heat is important. But the physical nature of the glass and the costs involved limit the opportunities open to this technology. An EU-funded project has applied these 'smart glass' principles to a flexible film which opens up a whole new world of green, low-cost and commercially viable possibilities.]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-04-30:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_04_30_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29853 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_04_24_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29773 A young scientist from a Czech research institute established in 2011 with European Union funding with the aim of becoming a leading European centre of science has made an important genetic discovery which could lead to more effective treatment for some forms of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. ]]> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-04-24:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_04_24_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29773 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_04_22_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29733 Water is the most vital resource for human life. However, urbanisation, extensive irrigation and variations in rainfall patterns due to global climate change have led to serious water scarcity in many areas of the world. A European research project has developed a transport system consisting of water-bags and tugboats to bring fresh water to the hardest-hit coastal and island regions around the Mediterranean. Areas under increasing pressure from water scarcity, particularly in the summer months, include small cities and islands along the coasts of Spain, Greece and Italy, among others.]]> Mon, 22 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-04-22:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_04_22_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29733 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_04_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29693 Europe and the Mediterranean contain more World Heritage sites than any other global region. These sites include hundreds of museums, churches, houses and castles that capture Europe’s rich history over the centuries. ]]> Wed, 17 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-04-17:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_04_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29693 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_02_19_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29253 For those unfortunate to suffer from kidney failure, an organ transplant may seem like the best long-term treatment. But kidney transplants are loaded with risk, the most salient being the rejection of the donor organ by the host’s body. Now, however an Irish-led research project has developed a new drug that could succeed in preventing organ rejection, offering hope to thousands of patients seeking donor kidneys.]]> Tue, 19 Feb 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-02-19:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_02_19_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29253 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_01_31_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29135 Diamonds have long been recognised as a girl’s best friend. But now a European Union (EU)-funded research project has demonstrated that the unique properties of diamonds extend far beyond that legendary sparkle. They also offer a radical new way to detect the onset of cancer far earlier than has previously been possible – opening up the possibility of more effective treatment and potentially saving the lives of countless cancer patients. ]]> Thu, 31 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-01-31:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_01_31_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29135 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-esoa&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28935 Over the last few decades the use of wireless devices such as cell phones, car keys, and GPS systems has increased enormously. All these devices transmit and receive data at high speed through antennas. "Antennas are where the bottle neck is in all these communication technologies, and with a better antenna you can transmit more data," says Stefano Maci of the Department of Information Engineering at the University of Siena in Italy. This is why students at technical universities and engineering departments of universities need courses in the theory and application of antennas. ]]> Thu, 10 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-01-10:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-esoa&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28935 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_08_30_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=26573 The Dutch tyre company Apollo Vredestein has successfully produced the first prototypes of tyres obtained from natural latex from guayule and Russian dandelion plants. An outcome of the EU-PEARLS ('EU-based production and exploitation of alternative rubber and latex sources') project, the prototypes will be tested before their production is initiated. The researchers say these tyres could find a solid niche in the global market, helping Europe compete against Asian rubber manufacturers. EU-PEARLS received almost EUR 5.9 million under the 'Food, agriculture and fisheries, and biotechnology' Theme of the FP7.]]> Thu, 30 Aug 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-08-30:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_08_30_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=26573 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_07_05_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=25873 The world was gripped in an Ice Age around 19 000 years ago, leaving large tracts cold, dry and inhospitable. Much of northern Europe was covered by ice, northern areas of what is now the United Kingdom were covered in ice, while its south was little more than a polar desert. The Ice Age, however, eventually came to an end and as the ice retreated, Europe once again began to be populated by human beings. New research drawing in expertise from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Italy, Russia and the United Kingdom is giving us rare insight into how Europe became repopulated as the Ice Age ended. The findings were published in the American Journal of Human Genetics.]]> Thu, 05 Jul 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-07-05:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_07_05_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=25873