EUROPA Research II

EUROPA - Research Information Centre

EUROPA - Research Information Centre

Protein in Huntington's linked to neurogenesis

EU-funded scientists have discovered that a mutated protein inherent in Huntington's disease (HD) performs an unforeseen role in neurogenesis. The finding could lead to a better understanding of HD, an inherited neurodegenerative disorder that is characterised by severe psychiatric, cognitive and motor defects, and neuronal death in the brain. The work was supported by CEPODRO ('Cell polarization in Drosophila'), a project that received EUR 1.159 million under the European Research Council?s Starting Grant scheme. Findings from the study are published in the journal Neuron.
 

Future phones just got smarter

The next generation of mobile phones will be able to do more than ever before ? both safely and efficiently. An EU-funded team has created a software platform that enables the use of multi-core technology on mobile embedded computing devices by way of virtualisation techniques. The dual multi-core and virtualisation solution developed by the EMUCO ('Embedded multi-core processing for mobile communication systems') team allows for both higher processing capacity and low power consumption, with the added value of security and flexibility. The project received almost EUR 3 million in support under the 'Information and communication technologies' (ICT) Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).
 

Warm water can trigger deformities in farmed fish

EU-funded scientists have discovered that temperatures greater than 16°C can cause skeletal deformities in young salmon. The finding is part of the FINE FISH ('Reduction of malformations in farmed fish species') project, which received EUR 3.02 million under the SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) cross cutting activity of the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). Results of the study were recently published in BMC (BioMed Central) Physiology.
 

Another milestone for marine science's greatest endeavour

As the largest ever collaboration in marine biology history, research under the Census of Marine Life initiative, funded in part by the EU, has resulted in the discovery of at least 1 200 new species, and generated more than 2 600 publications. The latest in a long list of achievements is a species inventory of distribution and diversity in 25 key ocean areas. The inventory is part of a collection of articles published in PLoS (Public Library of Science) ONE.
 

Car versus plane: travel and the climate change debate

Which is worse for global warming: travelling by car or by plane? According to the results of an EU-funded study, car travel increases global temperatures more than an air travel for the same journey but only in the long term. Travelling by plane, on the other hand, adversely affects short-lived warming processes at high altitudes. The findings are part of the QUANTIFY ('Quantifying the climate impact of global and European transport systems') project, which was funded EUR 8.39 million under the 'Sustainable development, global change and ecosystems' Thematic area of the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

Better design with more savings

A new design methodology, process and tool environment has been created under the four-year SPEEDS ('Speculative and exploratory design in systems engineering') project that is set to significantly enhance Europe's embedded systems industry. Designed for model-based, safety-critical systems, the product not only improves design quality but cuts down on time and cost. SPEEDS was funded more than EUR 9 million under the 'Information society technologies' (IST) Thematic area of the EU's Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

Waste powers autonomous robots

As the saying goes, one person's garbage is another person's treasure. In this instance, the garbage in question is used by a robot to harness energy for its own operation. For the last few years, the team of EU-funded scientists behind the EcoBot series (I, II, III) of robots has generated energy by feeding the machine food waste and raw materials. They have now set their sights on converting energy from urine for the same outcome. The EcoBot-III project received EUR 320 000 in funding under the EU's Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

New sensor unit protects a ship's lifeblood

EU-funded scientists have developed a computerised warning sensor that monitors a ship's all-important lubricated systems. A black box attached to the ship's engine together with the unit's oil-monitoring software work together to warn a crew if the lifeblood of their vessel is under threat. The sensor can even provide solutions to get the ship back on track. The unit is the successful culmination of the POSSEIDON ('Progressive oil sensor system for extended identification on-line') project, which was funded EUR 1.2 million under the 'Sustainable development, global change and ecosystems' Thematic area of the EU's Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

Mix and match your own movie

A novel set of tools developed by a team of EU-funded researchers has given artists and media professionals the means to create a quality audio-visual animation at a fraction of the time and cost. The tools allow a user to choose their character's facial expressions, physical attributes, and even the pitch of their voice. The 'intelligent content' technology was developed under the SALERO ('Semantic audio-visual entertainment reusable objects') project, which was funded EUR 8.85 million through the EU's 'Information society technologies' Theme of the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

Urban mixed reality for better cities

EU-funded researchers have taken science out of the lab and onto the streets to stimulate greater engagement in city living. The IPCity ('Integrated project on interaction and presence in urban environments') project partners assembled a range of technologies in real-life settings to allow people to discover new aspects of their city and to voice their opinion on future developments. IPCity was funded EUR 5.27 million under the 'Information society technologies' Thematic area of the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

Study finds alarming breaches in criminal defence in Europe

A major EU-funded study into existing criminal defence practices has uncovered significant rights violations in nine European jurisdictions. The three-year project 'Effective defence rights in the EU and access to justice: investigating and promoting best practice' was funded by the Criminal Justice Programme in 2007. Results of the analysis and subsequent conclusions have been collated in the publication, Effective Criminal Defence in Europe.
 

Commission pushes for new 'Green Car' research proposals

At an FP7 'Information Day' in Brussels, European Commission officials urged potential researchers to put forward new proposals for research under the 'Green Cars' public-private partnership.
 

New aircraft engine designs reduce CO2 emissions

The EU-funded NEWAC project has delivered new engine designs to help Europe meet pressing emission targets for air transport.
 

Botanists find genetic noise fuels hybrid vigour

Researchers at the John Innes Centre in the UK have discovered that a degree of variation in gene activity gives plant hybrids the boost they need to become more vigorous. The research, funded in part by a Marie Curie grant for early stage training, sheds light on the mystery of why hybrids outpace their parents most of the time. The results of the study were recently published in the Public Library of Science (PLoS) Biology journal.
 

Merging e-services seamlessly

Information technology (IT) experts and computer scientists from Europe and Israel have begun work on a project that seeks to resolve the significant business stumbling block of interoperation between e-services (electronic services). The ACSI ('Artifact-centric service interoperation') consortium's two-pronged solution will examine the viability of interoperation hubs and dynamic artefacts as ways to improve the process whereby e-services are merged into one dynamic system. The project has been funded EUR 3.24 million by the 'Information and Communication Technologies' (ICT) Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).
 

Rewarding research excellence

Two young scientists have received the first ever Excellent Paper in Neuroscience Award, an initiative of the ERA-NET NEURON project (Network for European Funding for Neuroscience Research). NEURON received EUR 2.7 million under the ERA-NET scheme of the EU's Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) to better coordinate national research funding programmes and funding activities in Europe in the field of disease-related neurosciences.
 

Plug-ins to cut back on energy waste

Two percent of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are attributed to the information communication and technologies (ICT) sector. This figure represents 1 billion kilowatts of electricity required to keep 3 billion PCs and mobile devices and over 500 million host computers running! The EU-funded team under FIT4Green ('Federated IT for a sustainable environmental impact') has set itself the ambitious goal of tackling this overconsumption. The project is funded with EUR 3.18 million under the ICT Theme of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).
 

Tracking down neuromuscular diseases

Neuromuscular diseases (NMDs) are chronic and so far incurable conditions that gradually affect patients' muscles, leading to potentially severe disabilities. Biomedical researchers are busy looking for the diseases' Achilles' heel. Rising to meet this challenge head on are scientists from the EU-funded BIO-NMD ('Identifying and validating preclinical biomarkers for diagnostics and therapeutics of NMDs)' project, which was granted more than EUR 5.6 million under the Health Theme of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) to identify new biological markers for future clinical trials.
 

First ever 'naturalistic' study to monitor motorbike drivers

Motorbike and scooter accidents are often fatal. The '2BESAFE' project will carry out a study of the behaviour of motorbike and scooter drivers, to be able to prevent more two-wheeler crashes in the future.
 

DustCart: the rubbish collecting robot

Since 2006, an EU-funded team of researchers has been working on a project that would see an 'on-call' robot collect rubbish from your home without you lifting a finger. Well, perhaps just one finger to make the initial telephone call. For the last few months, the project's prototype robot, known as DustCart, has been servicing around 100 households in the village of Peccioli in Italy. After a series of pilots and demonstrations, the DustBot ('Networked and Cooperating Robots for Urban Hygiene') team expects as many as 100 000 DustCarts to operate in Europe in the not-too-distant future. The project was funded EUR 1.9 million under the 'Information society technologies' (IST) Thematic Area of the EU's Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

EU scientists make virtual reality touchable

It sounds like science fiction, but a team of European researchers has 'virtually' teleported real objects through cyberspace, 'touched' virtual reality (VR) and even felt the movements of a virtual dance partner thanks to advances in haptic technology and a new approach to generating VR content. EU support for the research came from the Immersence ('Immersive multi-modal interactive presence') project, which received EUR 5.5 million from the 'information society technologies' (IST) Thematic area of the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).
 

Become your own TV director

Do you sometimes get frustrated while watching a sports game or a live concert on television? Have you ever wished you could pick your camera angles or zoom in on a player at will? A network of European researchers is working to make this science-fiction fantasy a reality ? be it on a panoramic LCD (liquid crystal display) screen with surround sound, or on a mobile phone. The FascinatE ('Format-agnostic script-based interactive experience') received EUR 9.35 million from the 'Information and communication technologies' (ICT) Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) to create a technologically advanced system for future immersive and interactive TV (television) services.
 

EU-funded conservation halts decline of threatened Maltese Shearwaters

EU-funded conservation work has halted the decline of the Yelkouan Shearwaters, one of Europe's most threatened bird species on the Rdum tal-Madonna peninsula in Malta. EU support for the research came from the LIFE Nature Programme that provides funding for projects contributing to the EU Birds and Habitats Directives. The programme provided 50% of the research's funding to the tune of nearly EUR 500 000.
 

How three-legged dogs improve robot design

EU scientists working at the Friedrich Schiller University of Jena in Germany have examined how three-legged dogs move in order to develop robots that can help them continue functioning in the event of the loss of a limb. EU support for the research came from the Locomorph ('Robust robot locomotion and movements through morphology and morphosis') project, which received EUR 2.7 million from the 'Embodied intelligence' Initiative within the 'Information and communication technologies' (ICT) Thematic area of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).
 

Fighting cancer with greater accuracy

Breast cancer is the most widespread form of cancer among women. Experts suggest that some 350 000 European women will be diagnosed with it this year. Researchers in the EU-funded HAMAM ('Highly accurate breast cancer diagnosis through integration of biological knowledge, novel imaging modalities, and modelling') project believe that early detection is currently the most effective defence against breast cancer, and are developing ways to make more accurate diagnoses. HAMAM has been funded EUR 3.6 million under the Information and communication technologies (ICT) Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).