Cheap, dirty leftovers can produce pure oxygen
Industry needs a lot of pure oxygen. New materials that are affordable and robust can provide us with cheaper and more sustainable oxygen production.
Natural science
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This could make today’s ultra-fast computers seem slow
Magnons, Bose-Einstein condensates and very bright people.
Your apple core may someday fuel an airplane
In the future, your apple core may end up fuelling a Boeing. New research could help make the production of aviation fuel from biomass more efficient.
Unlocking the secrets of evolution
We know that evolution works over many, many millennia, giving rise to everything from hippopotamuses to whales and more. A new study looks at the links between microevolution, or evolution over a shorter period, and macroevolution, or evolution over thousand or millions of generations.
Plastic food packaging contains harmful substances
Plastic food packaging can contain chemicals that affect your hormones, metabolism and the transmission of signals in your body.
Are animals able to cope with climate change?
Professor Jane M. Reid has received NOK 29 million in EU funding to investigate how animals adapt to rapid environmental change.
Saying no to all gene technology is an ethical short-circuit
Conventional breeding techniques result in major and uncontrolled modifications to the genetic material of plants and animals. If arguments based on the ‘precautionary principle’ are used as blindly on this issue as in the gene technology debate, then we are condemning the world to starvation.
4D imaging of fluids in pores
A method based on CT (computed tomography) – a type of imaging that is widely used in hospitals – can help improve our understanding of CO2 storage, batteries, and processes in the body such as nutrient uptake.
Artificial intelligence makes smarter use of seaweed and kelp
Seaweed and kelp, or macroalgae, are used in many products, and may become an even more important resource in the future. Artificial intelligence can help us avoid overusing this valuable resource.
Gloom and doom warnings about climate change do not work
How do you spread a message about climate change? According to an international study involving 59,000 participants, some tactics may actually reduce support.
Connecting computers so they can think faster
Calculations that previously took a year can now be performed in just 10 days by computers connected in a special way.
Development projects should be assessed according to the cumulative impact they have on nature
Does it matter if a small area of rare wetland is lost if a lot more of the same area remains intact? In Norway, it is impossible to say, because no-one can show how many such wetlands are being destroyed elsewhere at the same time.
A master’s student has tracked down greenhouse gas figures much needed by researchers
Climate scientists often lack the data they need for their calculations. A master’s student has helped to track down key figures from Africa’s most populous country.
Precautionary fundamentalism is threatening Norwegian food production
If the Norwegian government rejects the majority opinion of the Gene Technology Committee, it will miss a long overdue opportunity to boost food safety, improve animal welfare and promote more eco-friendly pesticides.
How bats survive Norwegian winter nights
Bats hunt at night, navigating in the dark using echolocation to find insects and other food. During the winter, bats in Norway have to manage as best they can by hibernating, but until now, not much has been known about how they do this.
Jealousy – we understand our own sex best
Do you really know why your partner gets jealous? We understand a surprising amount about other people’s jealousy, but we understand our own sex best.
Climate change in Greenland could cause trouble for arctic char
Greenland’s glaciers are melting and the surrounding seawater is getting warmer. How are arctic char coping with climate change? Scientists are in the process of figuring it out.
Norway needs to know much more before actually mining the deep sea
Norway’s law on mining seabed minerals is too unclear, the knowledge base too flimsy, and the Storting’s White Paper on seabed mining does not hold water.
Climate talks and the way forward
What should power the future’s shipping fleets? How can we change the way we build buildings so that they’re truly climate neutral? If we’re going to actively alter the planet’s climate, how should we study this?
New method identifies bacteria more easily
Researchers have developed a method that identifies bacteria easily, cheaply and more precisely than before. This can help reduce use of antibiotics.
Who should collect, manage and have access to data from the oceans?
Research institutions from Norway and other countries have collected a great amount of data from the northern oceans in recent years. Many people want access to this information.
Climate change causing problems for reindeer
Unstable winters are making reindeer herding more difficult. The animals are also having trouble finding food on their own.
The hunt for the Malvik apple
Finding old — and hardy — apple varieties was a challenge for the Trøndelag apple community.
When trees talk
We think of trees as silent sentinels, watching as the world goes by and the ages pass. But what if you could interview them about what they have seen?