The magical reindeer nose
Every schoolchild knows about Rudolph the Reindeer and his magic red nose. But Rudolph’s real-life counterparts really do have a magic nose. The colder it is, the better it is in keeping the animals warm and hydrated.
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Helping the blind use sound to “see”
A scientist and a student team have developed the Colorophone system, which translates colour into sound.
Re-ordering plant taxonomy
Advances in our understanding of the developmental history of plants is turning botanical gardens worldwide on end.
Contraception influences sexual desire in committed relationships
How often women in heterosexual couples desire sex depends on how committed the relationship is and what type of birth control the woman uses.
Sick mother was inspiration behind supersmart phone
Using a smartphone is not easy for older people who have problems with fine motor skills or mild disabilities. So a resourceful engineer enlisted the help of some researchers and took things into his own hands. Now a completely different type of phone will soon be on the market.
Smartphones can alert caregivers when seniors fall
A smartphone can be an aid for an elderly person who takes a tumble at home. It can capture the sound of the fall from up to five meters away and thus eliminates the need for elders to actually wear equipment or sensors.
– The world doesn’t realise how much we need CO2 storage
The world will not be able to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement without technology capable of capturing, transporting and storing CO2.
Robots that look like us
Japan is at the forefront of building all kinds of different robots, from industrial machines to robots that look like humans and can talk to us. The only purpose for these humanoid robots is to make us happy.
Speed warning system saves lives and reduces emissions
Universal adoption of the ISA speed warning system in Norway could reduce both the average speed of vehicles and their emissions, concludes a recent SINTEF report. Lower speeds also lead to fewer fatalities and serious injuries on the roads.
Fear and dread in the Norwegian landscape
Norwegians generally have a good relationship with nature. But if you’ve seen any Norwegian horror movies, you might have a different impression. An important characteristic of these films is that the Norwegian landscape is fully developed as an element of the horror.
Almost half of childcare children had respiratory virus
Forty-three per cent of children at two daycare centres researchers studied had at least one virus in their respiratory tract.
Clay and a little salt water can make for enhanced oil recovery
By controlling a mix of clay, water and salt, Norwegian and Brazilian researchers have created nanostructures that might help boost oil production, expand the lifespan of certain foods or that could be used in cosmetics or drugs.
Most of a fish is discarded
Every year 340,000 tonnes of usable whitefish by-product are discarded into the sea. But the fisheries industry has now identified ways of halting this practice.
What makes print more readable for the visually impaired?
Type size is the most critical factor in being able to read printed text, but it doesn’t have to be as big as you might think.
The weeds that settlers spread
Why has ragweed – a highly allergenic plant – been spreading so quickly?
GPs must play their part in palliative treatment
Hospitals typically provide excellent end-of-life care for their patients. But when GPs assume responsibility for terminal patients, things don’t always go so well.
Heart disease – more serious for women?
On average, women live longer than men. But for women with cardiovascular disease who undergo open-heart surgery, it’s different.
Energy savings in shopping centres
Shopping centres are major energy consumers with significant opportunities for savings. Researchers are currently checking the impact of savings made on lighting and air-conditioning at the City Syd centre in Trondheim.
An electrifying find can help with stability in the electric grid
Researchers have established a technique that will help ensure a stable supply of electricity even as new renewable energy sources come on line. The trick is helping all of the subsystems to work in concert.
Microscopic sensor for more precise radiology treatments
A team of Norwegian, French and Australian researchers is the first in the world to succeed in quantifying the effects of radiation on individual cancer cells. This means that radiation therapies can now be tailored to individual tumours and thus be more effective.
Exergames for the elderly
Interactive computer games that encourage people to move can be more than just fun. They can help in rehabilitation and in encouraging the elderly to exercise.
Global hot spot maps link consumers with impacts
A new model creates global hot spot maps to illuminate how what we buy pollutes the planet and where. The idea is to help governments, industries and individuals target areas for cleanup.
New technology can detect fake fingerprints
3D fingerprinting can detect forgers. It could also make border crossings and passport controls safer and faster.
Personalised care for dementia sufferers
The company Noen AS runs courses for its helpers to enable them to establish close relationships with their dementia patients. The aim is to increase the patients’ quality of life. Researchers have developed an IT tool to help the company demonstrate that its approach is on the right lines.
Breakthrough for Norwegian “nori”
First time cultivation of red Porphyra algae in a Norwegian lab.
Glass fibres with potential far beyond transmitting light
Fibre optics are at the heart of today’s communication systems, a number of medical devices and more. But when researchers put a silicon-germanium mix at the core of the fibre and treated it, they made something with potential far beyond transmitting light.
Green cooling with CO2
Man-made refrigeration gases threaten the Earth’s climate. The use of natural compounds like CO2 is an effective counter-measure.
Researching the dark side of microplastics
Minute particles of plastic, called microplastics, are everywhere. An international research team is now about to investigate how toxic microplastics are to marine animals such as plankton, crabs and fish, and to find out if such plastics accumulate in the food chain.
Solving equations to steer drones
How do you get a plane-like drone to land with no runway? You use math, of course!
Does it matter how long you sit—if you are fit?
It may not be enough just to meet public health guidelines for physical activity if you want to stave off the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle, especially if you are older.
A need for more medical alert response centres
Medical alert systems are going to enable you and I to live longer at home. Researchers have recently been looking closely at these systems with a view to improving them.
Silence as a superpower
Silence is not an empty space. It has its own purpose, both in psychotherapy and in music. Olga Lehmann is working to build a theory of silence.