Lithium can now be recycled
Lithium from Norwegian electric car batteries isn’t recycled that often. Instead, it ends up as waste when other metals it’s mixed with are recycled. But this may change.
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Testing CO2 transport on the laboratory roof
When scientists carry out experiments to investigate safe and efficient CO2 transport on the roof of the thermal power engineering laboratories at Trondheim, Norway, the noise they make will sound like a jet engine.
Still fewer pupils distracted by school desk computers
In the classroom, non-educational distractions are only a click or two away. However, a recent SINTEF report demonstrates that these thieves of school pupils’ attention are already being severely weakened.
Safer cars and buildings start at the nano level
When accidents happen, the difference between life and death may come down to the materials of the car, boat or building that you find yourself in. The best possible protection requires understanding as much as possible about how different materials behave under stress.
Water was a winner in capturing CO2
Reducing the level of CO2 in the atmosphere will probably require carbon capture. A surprising substance just might be the ticket.
Tinder is a waste of time for most people
Dating apps won’t help you much if your goal is to have more relationships. You would probably succeed just as well – or poorly – without it.
Svalbard reindeer populations rebounding from centuries of hunting
As reindeer go, the animals living on Svalbard might not be Santa’s first choice. They’re a smaller subspecies of their common mainland relatives, and to save energy they basically never run. But because they were nearly exterminated from Svalbard around 1900 — and were then protected in 1925 — the animals provide unique insights into how conservation can help species thrive.
Could a chatbot be your friend or romantic partner?
Researcher Marita Skjuve has been interviewing people who have a close relationship with a chatbot called Replika. Her conclusion is that such relationships offer value and meaning to the chatbot’s users, and can even be romantic.
Moose: like having wild livestock in the woods
Moose prefer to browse on deciduous trees. Then conifers take over and affect the species diversity in the forest. One researcher contends that Norwegian wildlife management is not good enough to address what happens in the wake of these large herbivores.
Computer video simulation can limit flooding
Floods are expensive and at times dangerous. But what if a computer disaster simulation game could show politicians and local people what potential floods in their town would look like?
More hydropower and a better environment
The Norwegian public authorities’ estimates of the potential to expand the country’s power plants are probably too low. A new approach is creating opportunities for increased production while also enhancing environmental aspects.
Buy less, be happier and build a healthy planet
You may feel like you can’t do anything to stop climate change. But climate activists who joined in grassroots movements managed to cut their carbon footprints and were still happier than their non-activist peers, new research shows.
Breaking glass to make it safer
Our craving for daylight has accelerated the use of glass in modern buildings. However, for people concerned about safety, our passion for the light comes with a dark side.
Our mental maps are distorted by changed boundaries
We create mental maps as we move around. But these maps can be distorted if the surroundings change. That makes it more difficult to remember where something was.
Mysterious Viking boat graves unearthed in central Norway
Two people died roughly 100 years apart. Nevertheless, they were buried together. In boats.
Artificial bees from a pressure cooker?
What if we could create artificial bees that helped us with food production? Ola Gjønnes Grendal cooks up the materials needed to do just this.
Improved fitness can mean living longer without dementia
Staying fit or improving fitness over time should be a goal for anyone who wants to reduce the likelihood of getting dementia.
This technology will transform you into Superman
Imagine yourself putting on a suit of extra muscles, seeing with super vision and inspired with new skills – with sensors making sure that you don’t overextend yourself. This is the idea behind the project called “HuMan”, which has recently delivered what looks like pure sci-fi technology to partners including an Airbus factory.
Turning waste heat into hydrogen fuel
Hydrogen as an energy carrier can help us move away from fossil fuels, but only if it is created efficiently. One way to improve efficiency is to use waste heat that’s left over from other industrial processes.
Stave churches in Norway older than previously believed
A newer method of measurement has helped scientists date some stave churches more accurately than in the past. The method shows that several stave churches are older than the dates previously attributed to them.
Here’s how you help kids crack the reading code
Some children learn to read early. Others need more time. But we can do some things to help them, and one of them is important to do first.
Cholesterol crystals play an active role in stroke, heart attacks
Cholesterol crystals form from “bad” cholesterol and are found in plaques that line blood vessels. When these plaques rupture, they can cause heart attacks or strokes. New research suggests that cholesterol crystals in plaques can actually trigger strokes and heart attacks.
High screen use among children can lower emotion understanding
Kids are spending more and more time in front of screens — but it may come at a cost.
Simulating her way to better batteries
Do you have a phone or a car that always runs out of juice? Ingeborg Treu Røe is studying batteries that can store more energy and triple the range of your EV.
Hydrogen plant will make the “whisky island” Myken self-sufficient in electricity
If this solar and wind-based hydrogen project succeeds, it may become a model for many thousands of other small island communities worldwide.
Super-strong magnetic supercrystals can assemble themselves
Materials scientists who work with nano-sized components have developed ways of working with their vanishingly small materials. But what if you could get your components to assemble themselves into different structures without actually handling them at all?
Breaking thought patterns increases chances of recovering from depression
Fewer patients relapse after metacognitive therapy for depression, new research shows.
What young people ask about when guaranteed anonymity
An analysis of almost 300,000 unsolicited questions written by young Norwegians on the website ung.no, has provided major insights into what they’re really interested in today. Their bodies, health and identity are among the topics heading the list.
Nature’s way of keeping surfaces clean
Nature has long been an inspiration for materials engineers and designers — just think of Velcro, the ubiquitous stick-to-itself tape that was created by a Swiss engineer after he picked burs out of his dog’s coat. Now a team of NTNU researchers has looked in more detail at how tiny conical structures on a lotus leaf or insect’s wing repel water and help keep it clean.
People who need health care advice the most like it the least
Most people think it’s a good thing that public health authorities propose preventive health measures. The greatest resistance is found among individuals who need these measures the most – such as smokers, people with unhealthy diets or who don’t exercise.
Tracing the journey of microplastics in the Arctic
By now it’s well established that microplastics are a problem in the environment, even in the remotest parts of the planet. But where do different microplastics come from and how they get there, especially in the Arctic?
Insect or virus? How plants know
How can plants defend against different threats to their cell walls?