Research groups in Graz are exploring the effectiveness of daily training for people who have lost their sense of smell. The training is linked to microorganisms in the nose and to brain networks that process the incoming signals. The first positive news: the researchers were able to prove that olfactory training is fundamentally successful. Continue reading “Training can help recover from lost sense of smell”
A group of researchers from Graz is exploring the socio-economic effects of new technologies wreaking another wave of “creative destruction” on established economic structures and processes. The researchers examine the options open to policy makers in the face of major impending upheavals. For Austria they see both entrepreneurial potential in niches and the danger of new social inequalities. Continue reading “The next industrial revolution is here. What does this mean for Austria?”
Despite all warnings, people continue to ruthlessly exploit land resources around the world, planting monocultures and setting up large-scale infrastructure. Social ecologist Anke Schaffartzik analyses the political and economic interests that precede these developments and their impact on society. The snapshots of global material and energy flows, but also the power gradient of which they are a symptom, reveal that thoughtful consumption in Austria alone stands little chances against oil palm plantations in Indonesia. Continue reading “Saving the world with Christmas cookies?”
When it comes into force at the beginning of 2021, the Open Access initiative “Plan S” is poised to help opening up and improving academic publishing. Ulrich Pöschl, a chemist and Open Access advocate of the first hour, explains why free access to research results is important and how an up-to-date academic publishing system can work. Continue reading ““It’s hard to explain why this is taking so long””
One year ago, the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 was discovered in China and within a few months it caused a pandemic. Initially, the Austrian population supported the immediate containment measures, and many also hoped that the crisis might lead to a change in direction towards a better society and a more sustainable economy. The dividing lines in society have become more accentuated, however, and trust in the government and democracy has declined. Even the readiness of people to be vaccinated has decreased in the course of the crisis – which is paradoxical, since the upcoming vaccination raises hopes for an end to the pandemic. Social scientist Bernhard Kittel explores the causes and consequences of this development. Continue reading “The social fever curve of coronavirus”
In the context of her Schrödinger Fellowship, physicist Anna Galler is conducting research on the optical properties of new, environmentally friendly colour pigments at the École Polytechnique in Paris. In order to be able in the future to design the pigment colour and other material properties on the computer, Anna Galler is developing sophisticated theoretical methods and computer programmes. Continue reading “The colours of Paris”
