science wire

An EPFL study shows that suburban commuters do not necessarily take environmental concerns into account when deciding whether to use their car. Many car commuters - especially those with hectic schedules - feel they have no other choice. That's especially true when it comes to working mothers. Transportation accounts for a third of greenhouse gas emissions in Switzerland, and 75% of those emissions come from car travel.

Scientists from EPFL and University of Bern have successfully implanted - in vivo - their first artificial tubular muscle that augments the aorta and assists cardiac function in pumping blood.

Under a new rating system, it will soon be possible to assess the social, economic and environmental impact of space missions. The consortium behind the initiative, which includes the World Economic Forum (WEF), has tasked EPFL's Space Center (eSpace) with finalizing the assessment criteria and implementing the system in this fast-changing field.

As part of his Master's degree in civil engineering, an EPFL student developed a connector for use in building sustainable structures.

EPFL has just opened a new imaging center to serve as a hub for state-of-the-art technology in imaging systems.

An EPFL Master's student has shown that artificial intelligence can be used to further automate the process of land-use classification in Switzerland, especially for rare and complicated land categories that until now have been classified manually.

The R2T2 Mars Mission is an educational project developed at EPFL for grade-school and high-school classes that use the Thymio robot.

Throughout the summer, architectural works by first-year students at EPFL's ALICE studio will be on display at four sites in Geneva Canton: Genthod, Aigues-Vertes, Vernier and Onex.

Tech4Dev, an EPFL program to develop technology that addresses the specific needs and living conditions of communities in the developing world, has announced four new winning projects for its research grants.

There is a strong link between hormonal contraceptives and breast cancer risk. The main culprit are progestins, synthetic mimics of the pregnancy hormone progesterone that stimulate cell growth in the breast.

Scientists at EPFL and the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF have issued recommendations for what type of renewable energy should be produced in Switzerland's various regions, to help achieve the country's goals of carbon neutrality and energy self-sufficiency. According to a new study, the most effective way for Switzerland to become carbon-neutral and energy self-sufficient is to install a combination of wind turbines and solar panels in its Alpine regions.

Sociologists at EPFL conducted a survey of the factors that prompt people to select one form of transportation over another, and then compared the results from cities across Switzerland.

The Amazon rain forest may have reached a tipping point. According to a recent study, it now emits more CO2 than it absorbs, which could speed the pace of climate change.

Space debris threatens human safety in space and puts at risk critical space-based infrastructure that supports services such as the internet, global navigation and climate monitoring.

A team of EPFL researchers has repurposed an algorithm they initially developed for self-driving cars to help people comply with social distancing requirements.

In universities, relationships between students and teachers play a key role in creating a conducive learning experience.

Scientists are developing a completely new "brain stress test" for evaluating the mental status of patients with Parkinson's disease, the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disease worldwide. It involves awakening the "ghosts" hidden in specific networks of the brain to predict the onset of hallucinations.

A multidisciplinary Swiss team explored the future of urban digitization in its theoretical, technical, and legal dimensions by modeling the city of Sion with an innovative ScanVan.

EPFL spin-off Readily3D has developed a novel system that can print biological tissue in just 30 seconds.

A team of EPFL scientists has studied the behavior of defects on 2D crystals in water in order to better understand the crystals' properties and assess their quality.

Researchers show that foreign companies are less likely to have their patent applications granted in China than their Chinese counterparts.

Researchers show that foreign companies are less likely to have their patent applications granted in China than their Chinese counterparts, and point out that this discrimination occurs in technologies of strategic importance to the Chinese government: the telecommunication and biotech industries.

In a new monograph, Bruno Marchand and Pauline Schroeter document 25 years of architecture in the Canton of Vaud, from 1975 to 2000.

EPFL engineers are taking part in PROMETEO - an EU research project to generate hydrogen on a large scale from renewable sources, in an effort to lower industrial carbon emissions.

EPFL startup INERGIO has just unveiled a prototype for a lightweight, eco-friendly, high-performance fuel cell that can supply energy in situations where there's no power grid.

PyTorch is used for countless AI applications ranging from Tesla's Autopilot to Facebook's translation software and its latest version, just launched, features an EPFL communication-efficient training algorithm that even helps the planet.

Twenty EPFL students recently completed the first EPFL Changemakers program - a new initiative designed to help students develop leadership and entrepreneurial skills and flesh out their business ideas.

For the first time, an EPFL survey has traced the careers of its women graduates. Its findings - together with several alumnae's personal accounts - show how effectively these women have integrated into the job market.

The Board of the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology has announced the appointment of professors at EPFL.

Using anonymized policyholder data from Swiss insurance company La Mobilière, EPFL scientists were able to predict a number of socio-economic indicators in 170 Swiss towns. This innovative approach could help increase the granularity and applicability of official statistics. A huge volume of digital data has been harvested, stored and shared in the last few years - from sources such as social media, geolocation systems and aerial images from drones and satellites - giving researchers many new ways to study information and decrypt our world.

Thanks to technology developed by start-up Bloom Biorenewables, plant materials can be used as an alternative to petroleum derivatives for producing a wide range of products, including bioplastics, textiles, cosmetics and even perfume.

A successful climate policy means preparing for unintended adverse impacts, such as job losses in declining energy sectors or potential environmental impacts of scaling up renewables.

As part of the EPFL - UM6P 's Excellence in Africa initiative, the EXAF centre has announced the names of the six successful teams which will take part in the Junior Faculty Development programme (JFD).