http://ec.europa.eu//research/index.cfm?pg=whatsnew en Wed, 22 May 2013 14:45:41 GMT http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=rss For more RSS news feeds click the link above. Wed, 22 May 2013 14:45:41 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/headlines/news/article_13_03_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29393 Ireland may sit on the geographic edge of the EU, but when it comes to ICT, the country is at the very heart of Europe's digital industry. According to the industry association ICT Ireland, the ICT sector is a thriving and growing industry; 9 of the top 10 global companies maintains a presence in Ireland. Could this be the country's foundation for economic recovery? ]]> Sun, 17 Mar 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-03-17:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_03_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29393 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_01_15_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28954 Remember the days when gathering information required a visit to the library? Now we have access to a deluge of information at our fingertips without ever leaving the house. With the Internet, which is increasingly a big part of many people's lives (using search engines like Google and the Wikipedia encyclopaedia, for instance), we have access to an unprecedented amount of information. And while it may seem overwhelming at times, it does have the power to change our lives. This is the premise of a forthcoming international conference which explores the power of information, and how science and technology can make a difference. The conference, organised by the European Commission, aims to address the successes and problems of the use of information and technologies. It will also focus on how 'active information' could increase the quality of human experience, and whether this can make a difference for science and technology.]]> Tue, 15 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-01-15:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_01_15_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28954 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_13_01_07_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28893 The Digital Agenda is now entering its third year, and has already made headway towards the objectives of getting every EU citizen to use the Internet, and helping Europe's citizens and businesses get the most out of digital technologies. Since the agenda was launched, 15 million Europeans have connected for the first time, and 68 % of Europeans are now online regularly, with 170 million on social networks. In addition, broadband is available nearly everywhere in Europe, with 95 % of Europeans having access to a fixed broadband connection. Consumers and businesses also have the flexibility of mobile Internet with 217 million mobile broadband subscriptions across Europe. But there is still more to come. Now the digital 'to do' list has set out the priorities for this year and the next.]]> Mon, 07 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-01-07:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_01_07_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28893 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-unpredict&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28766 Game theory sounds like something more relevant to chess than economics, but it could hold the key to understanding the market failures that trigger financial crises. ]]> Tue, 18 Dec 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-12-18:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-unpredict&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28766 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-bicep&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28757 Nowadays, thanks to a computer program known as complex event processing systems (CEPs), financial market traders use machines to buy and sell stocks, banks can detect fraud instantly, shops know the second stock is running low and computers can make decisions almost instantaneously. ]]> Tue, 18 Dec 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-12-18:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-bicep&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28757 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_11_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28153 A European-funded project promises to improve productivity and working environments across Europe, thanks to its newly developed system, which combines virtual and augmented reality technology, ergonomics and product lifecycle management. The partners of the MANUVAR project ('Manual work support throughout system lifecycle by exploiting virtual and augmented reality') developed a modular, reconfigurable system that will support manual work across a range of industries.]]> Fri, 16 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-11-16:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_11_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28153 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_11_07_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=27913 A team of inventors from across Europe have done away with traditional remotes and have developed a sensor about the size of a wrist watch which is able to track the 3D movement of the hand and allows the user to remotely control any device. The researchers believe that their device could replace your television remote and games controller, and could even control your mobile phone – with just a wave of the hand. Their controller, 'Digits', was presented at the 25th Association for Computing Machinery Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (ACM UIST).]]> Wed, 07 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-11-07:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_11_07_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=27913 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_10_24_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=27714 Investigating the genetic footprint that drug resistance causes in HIV, researchers in Europe have discovered that compensatory polymorphisms enable resistant viruses to survive. Presented in the journal Retrovirology, the study was supported in part by three EU-funded projects: VIROLAB, EURESIST and CHAIN. Both the VIROLAB ('A virtual laboratory for decision support in viral diseases treatment') and EURESIST ('Integration of viral genomics with clinical data to predict response to anti-HIV treatment') projects were funded under the 'Information society technologies' Thematic area of the FP6 to the tune of EUR 3.3 million and EUR 2.1 million, respectively. CHAIN ('Collaborative HIV and anti-HIV drug resistance network') has received almost EUR 10 million under the Health Theme of the FP7.]]> Wed, 24 Oct 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-10-24:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_10_24_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=27714 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_08_23_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=26473 Research into robotics continues to grow in Europe. And the introduction of humanoid robots has compelled scientists investigate the acquisition of language. A case in point is a team of researchers that studied the development of robots that could acquire linguistic skills. Presented in the journal PLoS ONE, the study focused on early stages analogous to some characteristics of a human child between 6 and 14 months of age, the transition from babbling to first word forms. The results, which shed light on the potential of human-robot interaction systems in studies investigating early language acquisition, are an outcome of the ITALK project, which received EUR 6.3 million under the FP7.]]> Thu, 23 Aug 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-08-23:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_08_23_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=26473 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_07_13_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=26133 The Internet has become so ubiquitous it has pervaded our daily life to such an extent that we tend to forget it is there and take it for granted. What is also taken for granted is the ease with which we access sites. But less well known are the people behind the sites who make sure those sites are accessible to everyone, including the otherwise able, the elderly. Generally ensuring a certain standard for sites is also important. In a fine example of cooperation between corporations and research institutions across Europe, researchers have combined their efforts to test web compliance. The study is an outcome of the I2WEB ('Inclusive future-internet web services') project, which is funded with almost EUR 1.9 million under the 'Information and communication technologies' Theme of the FP7.]]> Fri, 13 Jul 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-07-13:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_07_13_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=26133 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_07_02_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=25573 Medical operations have become almost commonplace, but the delicacy of medical procedures involving the brain and the spinal cord force physicians and patients to consider other alternatives. European researchers, however, could change this following their development of a laser for minimally invasive brain surgery. The achievement is a result of an interdisciplinary EU project that involved partners from seven European countries, creating a table-top solid-state laser system that can cut brain tissue with unprecedented precision.]]> Mon, 02 Jul 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-07-02:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_07_02_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=25573 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_06_21_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=25393 Researchers believe coordinated action is fundamental for fuelling social interaction. In a new study, an international team of scientists found that musical performances are executed better when the non-verbal sensorimotor communication between the conductor and the musician is maximised. The study, presented in the journal PLoS ONE, was supported in part by two EU-funded projects: SIEMPRE ('Social interaction and entertainment using music performance experimentation') and POETICON ('The poetics of everyday life: grounding resources and mechanisms for artificial agents').]]> Thu, 21 Jun 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-06-21:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_06_21_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=25393 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_05_23_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24893 Smart phones and tablet computers — once the latest must-have devices for technology geeks — are becoming increasingly more popular with the mainstream. The Android platform is now one of the most popular platforms with over 300 million Android devices in use since February and 700 000 devices being activated with each passing day. One of its main attractions is the open source software that allows a huge community of program developers to write applications. But with so many people contributing to this innovation, the operating system is open to bugs and security holes. In a new study, however, researchers in Italy may have neutralised any potential problems.]]> Wed, 23 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-05-23:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_05_23_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24893 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_04_25_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24713 Europeans are strong innovators, and the latest example of their hard work is a robotic hand able to hold and grasp bottles and cups. The novel 'helping hand' is an outcome of the DEXMART ('Dexterous and autonomous dual-arm/hand robotic manipulation with smart sensory-motor skills: a bridge from natural to artificial cognition') project, which was backed with EUR 6.3 million under the 'Information and communication technologies' Theme of the FP7.]]> Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-04-25:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_04_25_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24713 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_29_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24373 Researchers in Europe have succeeded in presenting an integrated tuneable transmitter on silicon — the first time this has ever happened. This results are an outcome of the HELIOS ('Photonics electronics functional integration on complementary metal oxide-semiconductor, CMOS') project, which is backed under the 'Information and communication technologies' (ICT) Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) to the tune of EUR 8.5 million. The team presented the results at the recent Optical Fiber Communication conference in Los Angeles, United States.]]> Thu, 29 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-03-29:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_29_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24373 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_26_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24314 Smarter computing systems can help give our lives a big boost - in education, healthcare, transportation, security and even the environment. But these computing systems need to be adjusted constantly, to help meet the changes that emerge every year. The HIPEAC ('High performance and embedded architecture and compilation') project is driving innovative computing systems, effectively making our lives much easier. HIPEAC is backed with EUR 3.8 million under the 'Information and communication technologies' Theme of the FP7.]]> Mon, 26 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-03-26:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_26_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24314 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24213 How can one drive and protect the environment at the same time? It's an important question, and one that weighs on the minds of Europeans a lot. In an effort to help consumers, the EU is backing a key project that is investigating how ecological issues in traffic are becoming increasingly pressing as personal transportation is one of the biggest contributors of CO2 emissions. ]]> Fri, 16 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-03-16:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24213 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_08_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24153 Interactions between infants and their environment are limited because of the infants' poor motor abilities. So investigating infant cognition is no easy task. Which sensory event is the result of the infant's own motor action and which one is not? Researchers from the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies and from Goethe-Universitat Frankfurt am Main in Germany may have found the answer.]]> Thu, 08 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-03-08:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_03_08_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=24153 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_02_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=23933 Researchers in Hungary have discovered a clear link between repeat polymorphism in the tyrosine hydroxylase gene with activity-impulsivity in German Shepherd dogs. The research, presented in the journal PLoS ONE, was funded in part by the LIREC ('Living with robots and interactive companions') project, which has received EUR 8.2 million under the 'Information and communication technologies' Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme.]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-02-17:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_02_17_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=23933 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_01_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=23573 Novel light-source technology just got a big boost in Europe thanks to the OLED100.eu ('Organic LED (light-emitting diode) lighting in European dimensions') project which tackled the challenge to develop the techniques needed to form the basis for efficient OLED applications for the European general lighting industry. Backed with EUR 12.5 million under the 'Information and communication technologies' Theme of the FP7, the OLED100.eu project partners have successfully increased the energy efficiency and lifetime of organic LEDs for large-area lighting applications.]]> Mon, 16 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-01-16:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_01_16_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=23573 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_01_13_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=23533 An EU-funded team of researchers has developed a robot able to help neurosurgeons in performing keyhole brain surgery. This robot is accurate in performance and has incredible memory, especially since it has 13 types of movement compared to the 4 available to human hands, as well as 'haptic' feedback – physical cues allowing physicians to assess tissue and perceive the amount of force applied during surgery. The ROBOCAST ('Robot and sensors integration as guidance for enhanced computer assisted surgery and therapy') project received EUR 3.45 million under the 'Information and communication technologies' Theme of the FP7.]]> Fri, 13 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-01-13:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_01_13_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=23533 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=424&item=Infocentre&artid=23553 Already familiar characters in countless sci-fi movies, humanoid robots are well on the way towards stepping off the silver-screen and into daily life.]]> Fri, 13 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-01-13:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=424&item=Infocentre&artid=23553