Flushing rubbish down the toilet has impacts on nature
Out of sight, out of mind? Far from it! Urine, faeces and toilet paper are the only things you should ever flush down the toilet. Anything else has a negative impact on marine life.
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Are century-old timber beams as serviceable as new ones?
It looks as though they might be. According to SINTEF, many of them exhibit properties that are at least as good as new timber. This is good news for materials reuse.
How mining operations without spoil heaps can become a reality
Mineral recovery by mining generates large volumes of surplus crushed rock that end up polluting natural environments. If we succeed in generating new knowledge, such surpluses can instead be used to manufacture concrete or improve agricultural soils.
Norwegian schools are not adequately accessible to all their users
Only one in three Norwegian municipalities monitors accessibility in its schools. The Norwegian Association for the Disabled is demanding urgent action.
Are you looking to test new AI tools? Make sure you avoid the ‘Tesla trap’
If only techno-optimists get to test AI tools, the results simply aren’t good enough. This is where Tesla made a big mistake – a lesson that the health sector will do well to learn.
Here you can watch a sea cucumber sensation!
After three years of waiting it has finally happened. Researchers have succeeded in getting a red sea cucumber, widely regarded as the world’s most expensive seafood, to spawn in the lab.
Prepared for the holiday queues? Outdated regulations are preventing future improvements to ferry operations
Shortfalls in crew numbers in the Norwegian ferry system are resulting in numerous cancelled crossings. Onshore control centres and new safety technologies are just some of the initiatives that may enable operations with smaller crews.
Why we get seasick – and how to avoid it
Everyone gets seasick, says researcher Toralf Sundin Hamstad at SINTEF, but there are tricks we can employ to avoid the worst of it.
Why are there traffic jams, and what can we do to avoid them?
No one likes sitting in a traffic jam. Research shows that the average Norwegian motorist is willing to fork out almost 100 kroner in order to spend one hour less in traffic. But traffic congestion can also be mitigated.
Don’t store food in plastic grocery bags!
The warning couldn’t be clearer. Standard plastic grocery bags are useful when we’re out shopping, but don’t use them to store food. So says research scientist Lisbet Sørensen at SINTEF.
We should be happy that we have so many bacteria in our bodies
Researcher Hanne Haslene-Hox at SINTEF claims that bacteria are much better than their reputation suggests. Each of us hosts as many as 38 million of them in our bodies.
The summer that changed Norway’s climate policy
He’s been called the father of carbon capture and storage in Norway – but Erik Lindeberg isn’t resting on his laurels. At 76, he’s still crusading to make sure this technology is put to use as quickly and comprehensively as possible, to help the world avoid the worst consequences of global warming.
Norwegian boys dislike school more than any other group
For the most part, Norwegian girls enjoy going to school, whereas boys exhibit a marked dislike of the school setting. One of the problems is that boys experience school as unfair.
New guidelines for green roofs
More green roofs and facades will help to create more space for natural habitats in our urban environments. A new set of guidelines has been prepared for those of us looking to green our roofs.
Building greenhouses on the moon out of moon dust
Is it possible to build greenhouses on the moon without transporting any materials from Earth? Researchers at NTNU Social Research and SINTEF believe it is, and are assisting the European Space Agency (ESA).
Research is helping us to develop healthier and more climate-friendly protective footwear
Protective shoes are stiff and heavy and made primarily for protection. Many people feel they’re more trouble than they’re worth. But research is coming to the rescue, with better ergonomics and a reduced climate footprint.
An essential watershed in emission-free freight transport in Norway
As early as next year, a hundred new hydrogen trucks will be rolling Norwegian roads – with zero emissions and a range of 500 kilometres. And that’s not all! It takes less than fifteen minutes to fill their tanks.
Autonomous ships are on the horizon: Is AI ready to take command?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is well suited to observe and understand what is going on around a ship. However, before we can allow AI to make safety-critical decisions, we need to be aware of how certain the decisions are, as well as why AI makes them.
Artificial geysers can compensate for our mineral shortages
By imitating nature, it may be possible to recover seabed minerals by extracting hot water from the Earth’s crust. We can harvest green energy and be sensitive to the environment – all at the same time.
Hydrogen can remove harmful emissions from energy-demanding industries
Both the glass and aluminium industries cast glass in furnaces that generate large volumes of greenhouse gases. Researchers believe that replacing natural gas with hydrogen will enable us to remove greenhouse gas emissions and promote smarter production.
Are architectural approaches holding water?
Students, researchers and the building industry are collaborating to adapt our homes to climate change. And they’re identifying solutions that hadn’t been obvious before.
Fish residues can compensate for raw materials shortages and improve our health into the bargain
More than a million tonnes of fish residues can rescue the food and cosmetic industries from raw materials shortages – and create new jobs. The key factors here are oils rich in omega-3, collagen and gelatin.
Children in the welfare system are not getting the health care they need
A recent report from SINTEF reveals that children and young people in the welfare system attend more out-patient mental health service appointments than other children. However, both they and their parents think that the help they are getting is inadequate.
What should we be using our electricity for?
Norwegian politicians should not be sponsoring the race to expand the use of AI. The process is wasting too much energy.