Until electric cars and other energy-efficient innovations are practical and affordable to all, the internal combustion engine will continue to be widely used, with the consequent greenhouse gas emissions. To help reduce pollution levels, EU-funded researchers have developed new laser ignition techniques, which have the potential to make combustion engines far more energy-efficient.
People born with sex characteristics that fail to fit into the typical definitions of male or female often face a lifetime of marginalisation, discrimination and social exclusion. They are also often subjected to potentially harmful surgical procedures. But new EU-funded research aims to change this by providing policymakers with fact-based information about the intersex experience.
IT solutions/tools can make urban services more efficient, sustainable and user-friendly. The citizens from these areas would need to fully understand how these tools work, and what the benefits are to profit from them. An ambitious EU-funded project has sought to achieve this by developing citizen-focused tools and supporting the next generation of smart city innovators.
Studying neutron star systems could tell us a great deal about the universe. However, finding these distant objects and extracting data is a challenge. To address this, an EU-funded project has developed groundbreaking models based on gravitational waves, earning a researcher a prestigious award in the process.
In nature, bacteria take care of breaking down organic matter from plants and animals. This unique capacity is called anaerobic digestion and has the potential to revolutionise the way we produce energy. But it suffers from two major drawbacks, both of which the EU-funded DIET project set out to overcome.
While information technologies have opened up new business opportunities, they have also left companies exposed to new threats. Smaller companies in particular are often ill-prepared to defend against cyberattacks. An EU-funded project has developed new tools to help businesses, and by extension citizens, protect themselves better and have made these available on an easy-to-use platform.
Short Bowel Syndrome is a medical disorder without a cure and with limited treatment options. But one EU-funded project aimed to change this by creating a functional small bowel using a patient’s own cells or tissue. The result has the potential to substantially improve the chances of survival and the standard of living for those suffering from the disorder.
Probiotics are used by many citizens as a means to preserve or restore the 'good' bacteria in the gut. The EU-funded MetaBiota project has gone one step further by demonstrating how these beneficial bacteria - the microbiota - also have a positive impact on helping stroke patients make a better recovery. This could open the door to a number of new and exciting treatment options.
Intrapartum antimicrobial prophylaxis (IAP), is a standard procedure used while delivering babies. According to EU-funded researchers, it may have important implications for infant health, increasing risks of obesity, diabetes, and antibiotics resistance. This finding opens the door to the development of new dietary strategies for minimising the effect of this very common medical procedure.
Technology developed in an EU-funded project for high-energy physics experiments also has the potential to greatly enhance the sensitivity of PET scanners for medical imaging.
