Living with zero-emission technology
How does technology change people, and how do people change in response to technology? Sixteen people volunteered to live in a high-tech, zero-emission house to help researchers answer those exact questions.
Brewing Viking beer — with stones
When archaeologist Geir Grønnesby dug test pits at 24 different farms in central Norway, he nearly always found thick layers of fire-cracked stones dating from the Viking Age and earlier. Long ago, Norwegians brewed beer using stones.
Moonwalkers three
Just 12 Americans have set foot on the lunar surface, and of those, only six are still alive. Three—Buzz Aldrin, Charlie Duke and Harrison “Jack” Schmitt — will be in Trondheim at the Starmus Science Festival to talk about the future of humankind in space.
Finding life — and farming minerals — deep under the sea
Japanese researchers have access to the largest scientific vessel ever constructed, one that has a 120 metre tall derrick capable of drilling to 7500 metres below the seafloor. They’re using it to hunt for life deep under the seafloor and explore for mineral deposits at the bottom of the ocean — topics that are of great interest to Norwegian researchers.
Water reservoirs save lives and create value
While there is considerable opposition to dams and reservoirs in the Western world, reservoirs built to store water during the rainy season so it can be used during the dry season can save lives and secure values when the rains fail.
Going deep to learn the secrets of Japan’s earthquakes
The 11 March 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake was the largest and most destructive in the history of Japan. Japanese researchers — and Norwegian partners — are hard at work trying to understand just what made it so devastating.
The toy boat that sailed the seas of time
A thousand-year-old toy boat from an abandoned water well gives archaeologists tantalizing clues about the culture that produced the object.
A force more deadly than polar bears
You might think that polar bears— and the potential for attack— are the biggest danger on the Norwegian island archipelago of Svalbard. But avalanches kill far more people on Svalbard than polar bears ever have.
Martin’s world
Visualizing oil reservoirs or tectonic plates under the seafloor requires lots of computing power and the imagination to envision what the data are showing you. That’s Martin Landrø’s work world. But he’s also fascinated by how teachers from a century ago taught their students about the Earth and the way it moves around the sun.
Putting Bluefin tuna back on the menu — by farming them
The Japanese eat one in ten of the world’s fish, and 80 per cent of the planet’s prized —and critically threatened — Bluefin tuna. Tuna aquaculture pioneered at Kindai University in Japan offers hope for both fish lovers and the fish.
Finding ways to fix the climate before it’s too late
Scientists and policymakers rely on complex computer simulations called Integrated Assessment Models to figure out how to address climate change. But these models need tinkering to make them more accurate.
Big data shows how what we buy affects endangered species
We don’t have to snuff out species when we eat a hamburger or buy a tee-shirt— if we know how our consumption affects endangered and threatened species.
Setting Spaceship Earth on the right course
If the world is going to be able to meet the UN’s sustainability goals by 2030, research must give individuals and businesses alike the tools they need to make the right choices.
Keeping electric car design on the right road
Pushing nanoscale battery developments in the right direction can help create a sustainable transport sector.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Helping today’s power companies anticipate tomorrow
It’s not easy for big, profitable companies to respond to huge technological changes. One NTNU researcher hopes to help Norway’s electric power industry cope with the market challenges from renewable energy and changed consumer behaviour.
Lazarus ice
Global climate change is causing Arctic sea ice to melt at an accelerating rate, increasing the ability of ships and other structures to travel though Arctic waters. But even as they melt, some sea ice structures actually get stronger.
Three Arctic researchers at North Pole
Three NTNU researchers have visited the North Pole during a research cruise in their efforts to better understand sea ice.
Ocean acidification bad for cod
Increasing ocean acidification could double the mortality of newly-hatched cod larvae, a study just published in the American online journal PLOS ONE reports.
Summer is for the birds
Five Gemini stories that detail the secrets of Norway’s bird populations.
Jellyfish invaders: Trondheim Fjord in transition
Jarle Mork has spent the last 40 years of his career studying Trondheim Fjord and its finned inhabitants. Warmer waters and the arrival of new creatures are bad news for the fjord’s cod population, he says. But other fishing practices are problematic, too.
Trashing the ocean
Marine debris has become a big problem. But plastic and old fishing nets can be turned into a resource rather than being an environmental hazard.
Five Nordic universities look into the crystal ball
The Nordic Five Tech, an alliance of the leading technical universities in the Nordic countries, celebrated its tenth anniversary this June with a high level summit to plot a strategy for its next decade. There was talk of horses, cars, and swimming robot snakes.
Major climate benefits from shifting to renewable energy
Wind and solar power are variable sources of energy that require storage and transmission capacity. But the benefits outweigh the disadvantages.
Premature babies may grow up to have weaker bones
Low birth weight babies are at higher risk of osteoporosis later in life, especially if they are born prematurely. Targeting these children with the appropriate diet and weight-bearing exercise can help improve the problem.
Plastic floors, concrete ceilings and hot fish
Fish can adapt their metabolisms to cope with warmer ocean temperatures, but not necessarily with extreme heat.
Uncovering the secrets of Arctic seabird colonies
Seabirds nest by the hundreds of thousands in colonies along the Norwegian coast. By combining an ocean current model with fish larvae transport modeling and bird population numbers, Norwegian researchers have uncovered the factors that help determine the location of seabird nesting colonies.
Bombs away— WWII bombs provide living laboratories for cold-water coral reefs
Ocean dumping of munitions from WWII was common in Norway and along the European coast. Some of these bomb dumps offer a natural living laboratory where biologists can study cold-water coral reefs.
Dissolving cholesterol crystals may help treat heart disease
An American mother’s hunch might result in new treatments for patients who can’t tolerate conventional cholesterol-lowering drugs.