Featured projects

Chemists can help create a wide range of plastics from polymers, which are large molecule strings made of repeated sub-units. When chemists come up with a new idea for a plastic, it can sometimes involve a trial-and-error process of mixing elements in the laboratory. To assist with this, the European Union (EU)-funded NANOPOLY research fellows have developed a new software tool to model the polymer molecules on a nano-scale.

A Marie Curie research fellow, Oya Aran, has paved the way for the development of computer techniques that could automatically reveal meaning from body language and other visual cues, predict people's mood and help improve, she says, “collective decision-making”. The scientist studied 100 people interacting in small groups, using computer vision, audio processing and “machine learning” to detect dominance and emergent leadership.

Today, in most developed countries, a woman’s chance of getting breast cancer is 1 in 8. Clinical trials have shown that despite its effectiveness, chemotherapy can also cause long- term side-effects like secondary cancers, cardiac toxicity (damage caused to the heart by toxins), early menopause and a reduction in cognitive functions. It is also assumed that between 12 and 20% of early breast cancer patients are over-treated.

Much as we try to evade it, age catches us all. But are there ways to reverse or slow down the ageing process at a cellular level? An international project examining the biological changes that occur inside our bodies looked at the role of stem cells in organs and tissues, which could lead to a radical new understanding of ageing.

The European Union (EU) has maintained a very rich scientific and technological relationship with its largest neighbouring country, Russia. In fact, since 2005, both the EU and Russia have committed to creating a “Common Space on Research, Education and Culture”. The BILAT-RUS and ERA.Net RUS projects are two key initiatives for developing this “Common Space”. Both projects have strived for durable partnerships and bilateral research programmes between the EU and Russia.

Is a cancer treatment working? Often doctors won’t know for months. By developing a new technique that quickly reveals a tumour through its metabolic consumption of glucose, an EU-funded project has reduced that delay. This gives doctors precious time in which to switch to a more effective treatment if necessary – potentially saving lives.

Tsunamis are not very frequent events, but they can have a terrible impact on human life and on the economy of a country. They occur as a result of earthquakes, usually at the bottom of the sea. But at present such earthquakes cannot be foreseen.

EU-funded researchers have produced groundbreaking proposals to prevent railway suicides and reduce service disruption. The proposals, if adopted, could not only save lives, but also money and time for both railway companies and passengers, they say.

Global demand for food is expected to increase by 70% by 2050, while a steep increase in biomass use will also put pressure on agriculture. Feeding the world without damaging the environment is the focus of World Food Day 2014 – and the goal of several EU-funded research projects.

Flight trials have demonstrated technology that gives aircraft fast connectivity to multiple data sources. While passengers get fast internet, pilots and flight computers can access real-time air traffic information and communicate more easily with the ground and other planes. And it is the first research project in Europe to demonstrate a new wireless protocol developed specifically for the air industry.

It takes a brave person to step outside their comfort zone. Scientist Gillian Hendy is braver than most. She left a job and postponed a wedding in Ireland to do research at the world-renowned Langer Lab (USA). During her time there, she has learnt whole new biological processes, braved hurricanes, and thanks to hard work could well have found a material that can speed up nerve regeneration in damaged limbs.

The demand for wood products and services is increasing worldwide due to economic and climate policy driving forces. It is therefore imperative for experts in forestry research to develop a common framework which could facilitate interactions between different areas of expertise and the exchange of scientific knowledge.

Sun-fired pollution-eating nano-fibres, novel night-vision devices, super waterproofing materials … these are just some of the applications that award-winning Hungarian scientist Dr Imre Miklós Szilágyi came up with in his EU-supported nano-science project exploring new materials and techniques at the molecular level.

Around one third of all food for human consumption is lost or wasted along the supply chain according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). A European Union (EU)-funded research project, NovelQ, has developed new processing technologies to keep food fresh over a longer period of time, potentially saving the billion tonnes of meat, fish, fruit and vegetables that might end up being thrown away each year.

Communication between scientists, policymakers and ordinary people is never easy. EU-funded researchers turned this on its head by bringing everyone together around one key issue – sustainable water management. This led to concrete recommendations on water management, as well as a blueprint for increasing interaction on local issues that could be applied to other policy areas.

Aquaculture holds the promise of reducing the need to catch wild fish. Global demand for fish is increasing, putting many species in danger from overfishing. Fish farming, or aquaculture, is taking some of the pressure off these stocks – half of the fish consumed globally is now produced at fish farms.

Industrial waste can be an asset rather than an economic and environmental cost – the key is to find someone who can use it. An EU-funded project has demonstrated that establishing regional networks for waste by-products and materials is not only possible, but can be profitable for all involved.

When a deluge strikes there’s a risk that a city’s sewers and storm water networks are unable to handle the volume of water – leading to overflows and flooding. In response, an EU-funded project has created an early warning system that allows city authorities and water utilities to take preventative action before sewer and storm water networks overflow and flood the streets – potentially saving lives and protecting homes and infrastructure.

Although Europe’s air quality has improved over the last 25 years, pollution is still prominent - particularly in cities. Cleaning the air is more difficult than before, as most people can no longer smell or see the pollution. However, the European Union (EU)-funded research project CITI-SENSE is harnessing novel technologies to detect contaminated air and share the data in real- time.

A wide range of industrial applications, such as vacuum generators and pressure gauges use gas in tiny amounts. These gas micro-flows behave in a particular manner and need very precise controls of flow.