Subject to signature and conclusion of an Agreement associating Switzerland to parts of Horizon 2020, Switzerland will participate from 15 September 2014 with an associated country status in actions under Future and Emerging Technologies (calls with proposal submission deadline after 15 September 2014).
Neural stem cells – master cells that can develop into any type of nerve cell – are able to generate mini “first aid kits” and transfer them to immune cells. This is the result of a study published today in Molecular Cell, and led by ERC grantee Prof. Stefano Pluchino, based at the University of Cambridge (UK).
It has become a cliché today to talk about the ‘IT revolution’. Computers have changed our lives beyond recognition. However, the scale of this revolution could be dwarfed by the advances promised by the next generation of information technology – quantum computing.
The European Union (EU)-funded project SEXUAL SELECTION has shed light on why shorebirds reverse parenting roles, with males carrying out the child-care duties. The study reports that an imbalance between the number of males and females triggers the change - when there is a higher ratio of males to females. The research is the first supporting the idea that sex ratio plays an important part in the evolution of role reversal in shorebirds, which could have implications for humans as well.
Efficiently detecting possible collisions is vital for the locust - an insect that often needs to quickly overcome big obstacles and avoid what might be, otherwise, a 'fatal crash'. The research team involved in the European Union (EU)-funded project NEURAL DEVELOPMENT has studied the insect's nerve circuits. The project results are expected to help develop highly accurate collision sensors in cars, surveillance technology and video games.
Check out the tips and tricks in this step-by-step video guide to the application process
ESOF2014 offers a platform where researchers, journalists, policy makers, students and organisations can meet and debate European research and global challenges.
The 2014 meeting is entitled “Science Building Bridges”. The aim of this event is to raise awareness of science in the public and to strengthen the effective “bridges” between science and society.
The scientific programme, covering 8 themes, consists of keynote lectures, seminars, workshops and engaging formats for debating the latest research.
This short video animation will guide you through the first steps you will need to take to apply to Horizon 2020.
Find out more about Horizon 2020 in this three minute animation clip which will give you a general overview of the programme specifics.
For most people today, the rapid development of mobile computing and smartphones and the way these have revolutionised our daily lives is a familiar story.
The classical notion of trajectory in physics has its foundation in common sense: the position and the velocity of an object can be predicted by computations and measured at a given time. As opposed to the classical universe, the behaviour of elementary particles is elusive. Only the probabilities of physical events can be predicted. These probabilities are sums of all possible trajectories of the quantum system from the initial to the final state.
The aim of energy harvesting is to scavenge energy from the environment in order to power electrical devices, such as sensors placed at remote locations without external power supply. Targeted sensor applications include meteorological, geophysical and engineering monitoring instruments but also future medical devices operating inside the human body when electrical energy can be extracted from a surrounding flow – air, water, or even blood.
A large number of engineering applications involve granular material or a particulate phase in combination with a gaseous or liquid phase. Applications for this kind of materials mix can be found in diverse domains such as the pharmaceutical industry, the food and processing industry, energy production or systems biology. Everyday products such as coffee, corn flakes, nuts or fertilizer all depend on this field of knowledge known as multi-physics.
European researchers have developed advanced energy harvesting technology that allows wireless sensor networks to power themselves from the sun, heat or vibrations. The innovation is a key enabler for smart cities, environmental and pollution monitoring, and effective disaster management, among many other applications.
An EU-funded project investigating how oxygen in the air millions of years ago might have affected the evolution of plants is making important discoveries that could inform our approach to climate change, space exploration and ensuring future food supplies.
The EU-funded CREST project is tackling the debilitating effects of age-related macular degeneration, a condition that affects a high proportion of older citizens. But the results could have far-reaching implications for the normally sighted as well, enabling what some have called ‘super-vision’.
Certain sections of society suffer from poorer health than others. An EU-funded project based in Dublin is analysing multiple types of data to determine which factors most influence health and how new policies can help to reduce ‘health inequalities’.
The integrated circuits that have been driving the information technology revolution are reaching their physical limit. EU-funded scientists are now looking at light as a replacement for electric signals. In their search for smaller, faster, low-energy alternatives, they are reporting promising work on light particles called ‘polaritons’, paving the way for next-generation circuits for use in devices such as computers and smartphones .
Cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer are just some of the many life-threatening conditions caused by the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV).
EVOLVINGROBOT is a European Union (EU)-funded research project which has developed an artificial intelligence system to control tiny robots, enabling them to replicate the ‘swarming’ behaviour seen in insects such as bees or ants, or even in birds and fish. It is an innovation which could have far-reaching implications for a range of human activities, from medical to industrial, military and disaster relief.
