Lemming years are important for far more than just predators
The number of lemmings varies greatly from year to year. Other species also have similar fluctuations. Why is it like this, and what happens if lemming years happen less often?
Natural science
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Farms especially suitable for energy sharing
Allowing Norwegian farmers to buy and sell excess electricity they generate is good for everyone. Today’s regulations prevent this.
Mapping the conflict between farming and biodiversity
A new study provides the most detailed dataset yet on the biodiversity footprint of food. The results can lead to more sustainable diets.
Gaining a better overview of life on earth
Approximately 47 000 different species have been identified in Norway – and there are probably many more. A new tool can help us gain a better overview.
Supergenes helped bring alien plant to Norway
The plant is called common ragweed, and if you are allergic to pollen, you should probably pay extra close attention. This is one of the invasive plants that supergenes have brought to Norway.
Tracking whales as they cruise the Arctic
For the first time ever, researchers have been able to track eight fin whales in near real time for five hours, as they swam along a stretch of fibre-optic cable line in the Arctic. The breakthrough suggests that fibre-optic cable networks could be harnessed to help prevent whale deaths by ship strikes.
Bacteria could make salmon healthier
Bacteria-free fish fry put researchers on the track of how they could make fish more disease resistant.
Cultivating salad plants that can be grown on the Moon
NASA has finished its planning and is ready to go. Humans will soon be returning to the Moon – this time in a manned base. But, if this project is to succeed, astronauts must be able to grow their own food. Norwegian researchers are in the process of making this possible.
The ice in Antarctica has melted before
The ice sheet in Queen Maud Land in East Antarctica is not stable. Large amounts of ice have melted in the past, most recently as 5,000 years ago.
Prestigious EU support to save species
An NTNU professor has been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant to investigate how species can survive a changing environment.
Moose can play a big role in global warming
Climate researchers have long known that large animals, like moose, could play a role in how much the Earth will warm due to climate change. But the question is, how much? New research shows the answer can be a lot.
Over a hundred new species discovered in Norway
You don’t get to discover a new insects and arachnids numbering in the hundreds every day. Most of the new discoveries were of the biting midge variety.
A counterintuitive way to make stronger alloys
By using a cutting edge technique to observe what’s happening at the atomic level inside their material, researchers at NTNU have discovered a surprising new method to make aluminium alloys stronger.
Just one degree can change a species
Even seemingly small changes in the climate can change the number of animals and plants in an area and how species behave, new research shows. Natural history collections provide valuable insights.
Making oxygen on the Moon
The Moon’s atmosphere is entirely devoid of oxygen. If humans want to stay there for extended periods, it will be of great benefit to make breathable oxygen there instead of having to transport it from Earth. But is this at all possible?
Enzymes from bacteria and fungi break down plastic
Plastic is useful but also poses an environmental problem. Scientists are now using enzymes from bacteria and fungi to break down plastic.
Eavesdropping on the Earth itself
This summer, a coalition of researchers led by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology reported the first-ever use of a fibre-optic cable network to eavesdrop on whales in the Arctic. Now they suggest these networks be used to establish a low-cost global ocean-earth observatory.
World’s food production footprint on climate and environment
Cattle farming has often been portrayed as having the most detrimental environmental impact because it takes the most grazing land, uses a lot of water and has large methane emissions. But it’s not the worst. And is locally produced food always best for the environment?
Goal is to add 15 000 species to the DNA library in Europe
DNA from European species is being collected in an open reference work. Norway’s contributions are well underway.
More efficient ocean mapping and monitoring
Australia has a seafloor monitoring program where they can precisely surveil the changes in the environment. NTNU has attracted one of the key researchers from this project. Oscar Pizarro’s research goal is to find tools to facilitate continuous observation with less resources.
ERC support for coral research
Lena van Giesen, an associate professor at NTNU’s Department of Biology, was awarded EUR 1.7 million by the European Research Council (ERC) to study larval development of the coral Lophelia pertusa as well as its environment.
Half of the data deficient species may be threatened with extinction
We know very little about very many species. Unfortunately, that’s often not a good sign.
It is not enough to save water – we must reuse it
Is it safe to use treated wastewater to irrigate lawns and vegetable crops? This is the question now being addressed by researchers and the water industry.
Atomic-level 3D models show us how gadgets work
New research on semiconductors using microscopes that provide 3-D models at an atomic level could one day have an impact on your electronic gadgets.