In the Media - November 2024

New Ocean Data Shakes Up Our Understanding of Climate Change

external page “The discrepancies between the climate models and the observed temperature trend at the beginning of the 20th century are mainly due to an incomplete understanding of the observations, rather than incomplete climate models or natural climate variability. There are well-established approaches to account for the effects of changing measurement methods on ocean surface temperature measurements. The new research shows that in the early 20th century these methods don’t properly account for very rapidly changing differences in the way the observations were made. Our new understanding confirms the climate models and shows even more clearly the human impact since pre-industrial times,” says co-author Professor Reto Knutti, Professor for Climate Physics at ETH Zurich.

Also reported in...

external page ECO - Environment coastal & offshore magazine

Swiss university applies stricter measures to Chinese students

external page In October, ETH Zurich, Switzerland’s top technical university, tightened its admissions criteria for masters and PhD programs in certain science and technology fields. It justified the move as complying with Swiss laws to counter international espionage.

How can I tell if there’s methanol in my drink?

external page “…Researchers based at ETH Zurich in Switzerland are working on a portable smartphone-based methanol detection system that sniffs out methanol vapours from liquid a bit like a breathalyser. The handheld sensor, which is not yet commercially available, may soon help consumers, authorities and healthcare workers to more easily screen for methanol. Publishing in Nature Food, researchers said 789 people died as a result of methanol poisoning in 2019, mostly in Asia.”

Also reported in...

external page Aol.

Solving a 40-year mystery, scientists ID chemical found in millions of Americans’ tap water

external page “My first thought is, ‘let’s get this on a mass spectrometer, and let’s try and determine its accurate mass, so then we can determine its chemical formula,’ ” said (Dr. Juliana) Laszakovits, a co-author of the study who works in the department of environmental chemistry at the Institute of Biogeochemistry and Pollutant Dynamics, ETH Zurich.

Also reported in...

external page Chemistry World

external page AZO Materials

external page SciTech Daily

external page The Hill

external page PHYS.org

In the Quantum World, Even Points of View Are Uncertain

external page “In the quantum world, the reference frames should [also] be described by the formalism of quantum theory,” said Renato Renner (opens a new tab), a theoretical physicist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich.

Over half of the world’s glaciers are on pace to disappear by 2100

external page However, there are big changes ahead. A recent study reveals that over half of the world’s glaciers could disappear by the end of this century...The research, conducted by scientists at ETH Zurich in Switzerland and Vrije Universiteit Brussel in Belgium, suggests a chilling forecast for our planet’s glaciers.

Also reported in...

external page Technology Networks

external page Tech and Science Post

external page PHYS.org

The Classical-Quantum Connection: Scientists Link Quantum Processors With Real-Time Classical Connection

external page Researchers (led by IBM Quantum, but including ETH Zurich and many other contributors) report they linked two 127-qubit quantum processors using a real-time classical connection, effectively creating a 142-qubit system capable of computations beyond the limits of a single processor.

Rapyuta Robotics Opens the First U.S. Demo Space for Its Dynamic and Flexible Automated Storage and Retrieval System (Rapyuta ASRS)...

external page (ETH Spinoff) Rapyuta Robotics Inc. has opened a demonstration space in Schaumburg, Illinois, for its Rapyuta ASRS (Automated Storage and Retrieval System). This new space allows visitors to experience demonstrations of the system in the U.S., which previously could only be experienced in Japan.  

Scientists reach 424 Gbit/s data speed in space transmission

external page Researchers at ETH Zurich have accomplished a significant leap in high-speed data transmission, as high as 424Gbit/s across a 53-km turbulent free space optical link. As a Gigabyte is equal to 8 Gigabits, 424Gbit/s is equivalent to 53GB/s.

Smart microcapsule arrays mark local stress variation in materials

external page Predicting material failure is a significant challenge in materials science, as stress history often leaves no visible signs. To address this, researchers at ETH Zurich's Laboratory for Soft Materials and Interfaces, Multi-Scale Robotics Lab, and Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences have developed a smart self-reporting material.

Spectroplast’s latest Series A funding to capitalize on silicone 3D printing capabilities

external page Swiss silicone 3D printing company Spectroplast has completed its Series A financing round led by HZG Group, with existing investor AM Ventures also contributing...Although the amount remains undisclosed, this funding aims to strengthen customer relationships while expanding patented silicone materials into new industries, addressing the rising demand for customized manufacturing solutions. Originating as a spin-out from ETH Zurich, Spectroplast targets a gap in industrial 3D printing by developing materials tailored specifically for additive manufacturing.

Also reported in...

external page 3PRINTR Industrial Magazine

A visit to ETH Zürich’s geotechnical centrifuge testing facility

external page In her final blog post, ETH Zürich master’s student Petra Fatér delves into centrifuge testing at the Swiss university...To enhance their resilience, new structures must be built so they can withstand harsh environments and natural hazards, such as tsunamis or flooding. Modern software equips designers with the tools to simulate these scenarios, but the models must be validated through testing...Centrifuge testing is a more cost-effective way to test scaled down versions of structures under conditions similar to those the real structures would encounter during their design life.  

Forests With More Diverse Trees Capture More Carbon, Study Finds

external page “At the community level, we find that more diverse forests, which include a wider mix of fast-growing short-lived and slow-growing long-lived species, sequester more carbon. This result suggests that more demographically diverse forests are better able to tap into a larger resource pool within a given environment (e.g., include tree species that acquire nutrients from different soil profiles), which minimizes direct competition for limited resources,” lead author of the study Dr. Lalasia Murphy, a lecturer in the department of environmental systems science at ETH Zurich, told EcoWatch in an email. “Alternatively, this emergent trend could be due to positive facilitation among species. Either way, this result emphasizes the importance of forest biodiversity.”

How Calvin Risk Wants To Help Companies Navigate AI Risk

external page Calvin Risk, a Switzerland-based start-up that is today unveiling the successful completion of a $4 million seed funding round, pitches itself as the solution to this dilemma. “As the number of AI models increases, along with their complexity, the dangers are increasing,” warns Julian Riebartsch, CEO and co-founder of the company with Dr Syang Zhou. “There is now a significant risk of financial and reputational damage, and that has increased since the mass adoption of generative AI (GenAI).”

Also reported in...

external page Tech EU

external page Tech Funding News

Scientists may have finally solved a key weight loss mystery

external page We may now be a step closer to explaining the ‘yo-yo’ effect seen in weight loss...This is a piece of the puzzle in potentially explaining how adipose tissue [body fat] changes occur during weight change,” Dr Ferdinand von Meyenn, assistant prof at ETH Zürich’s Department of Health Sciences and Technology, explained to BBC Science Focus.

Also reported in...

external page Nature Briefing

external page INDEPENDENT

external page Smithsonian Magazine

external page Woman's World Magazine

external page SciTechDaily

external page Science Alert

external page Science News

external page New York Post

external page Medical Xpress

external page Labroots

external page Irish Independent

external page EuroNews

external page El Pais

external page Inside Precision Medicine

What It's Like to Be a Scientist Working on a Cruise Ship in Antarctica

external page When Brandi Revels joined Viking in 2021 as the cruise line’s first Chief Scientist, she hadn’t really considered what it would mean to live for months at a time on an expedition vessel...Dr. Revels received her Master of Science in Oceanography, Chemical and Physical from the University of South Carolina and her Doctor of Science in Geochemistry and Petrology/Analytical Chemistry from ETH Zurich...We caught up with Dr. Revels in between expeditions to chat about the potential long-term impact of citizen science, why icebergs still blow her mind, and what it’s like to have 250 roommates.

Mechanical Quantum: ETH Zürich’s Hybrid Qubit Merges Innovation and Tradition

external page ETH Zürich researchers created a functional qubit from a tiny mechanical resonator, reimagining early mechanical computer design within quantum computing’s framework. They overcame challenges of evenly spaced energy states in mechanical oscillators by introducing “anharmonicity,” using a hybrid system of mechanical motion and superconducting quantum control...

Also reported in...

external page DevX

external page Physics World

Scientists Establish the Best Algorithm for Traversing a Map

external page Bernhard Haeupler, a Computer scientist affiliated with INSAIT and ETH Zurich...became fascinated with the promise of universal optimality while writing a grant proposal in the mid-2010s. Many researchers find that part of the job tedious, but Haeupler saw it as an opportunity. “It allows you to throw your skepticism out and just dream big,” he said. Those dreams came to fruition in 2021, when Haeupler and two graduate students proved that it was possible to build universally optimal algorithms for several important graph problems. He didn’t think to ask whether the same condition was achievable for the classic single-source shortest-paths problem. That would have to wait until a different graduate student dared to dream big.

Robot snake goes where people can’t

external page RoBoa was created in the Autonomous Systems Lab at ETH Zurich. It moves flexibly and efficiently through narrow spaces such as pipes or sewers and combs through debris in the wake of catastrophes...Its soft and pneumatic design make the snake-like robot safe for use by people and in dangerous environments where there is a danger of explosion and sparks must be avoided.

Also reported in...

external page Interesting Engineering

Torsten Hoefler on the Present and Future of HPC-AI – ‘The Age of Computation’

external page PODCAST: Special guest and a leading light of the HPC community, Prof. Torsten Hoefler of ETH-Zurich, joins Shahin and Doug for a lively discussion (sponsored by Lenovo) on his vision of HPC-AI’s present and future, which he calls “The Age of Computation.”

Switzerland Stakes Its Claim As Europe’s Hottest Tech Centre

external page The new generation of technology firms is therefore spread across deep-tech areas such as industrial automation, materials science, healthcare and more; such businesses can base themselves anywhere, rather than needing to be in the largest countries. Switzerland can be that place, argues Founderful. It points to the quality of the country’s technical universities in Lausanne and Zurich; ETH, in the latter city, now produces more university spin-outs than any other university worldwide. This is one reason why Switzerland has topped the Global Innovation Index for 13 years running. The world’s largest technology companies have swooped; Google has 5,000 developers in the country, with Disney, Nvidia, Meta, Huawei and Intel all maintaining sizable Swiss R&D teams.

With first mechanical qubit, quantum computing goes steampunk

external page ...A mechanical oscillator has “harmonic” energy states, spaced evenly like the rungs on a ladder. That makes it impossible to isolate and control two of them to form the qubit: A stimulus that drives one state to a higher state would also drive that higher state to the next higher one, and so on. The challenge “is whether you can make the energy levels unequally spaced enough that you can address two of them without touching the others,” says Yiwen Chu, a physicist at ETH Zürich (ETHZ).

Everyday routines as the key to logging in to smart homes

external page Smart homes are intended to make life easier, but logging into individual devices is often still an onerous task. Researchers from ETH Zurich have investigated how everyday routines could be used for secure and user-friendly authentication—with no need for cumbersome passwords...“At present, authentication is an additional hurdle and challenge for smart home users to overcome,” says Verena Zimmermann, psychologist and Professor for Security, Privacy and Society at ETH Zurich.

Swiss VC firm Founderful closes oversubscribed $140M Fund II

external page Founderful has funded tech companies such as ETH Spinoffs Chiral Nano’s alternative silicon chips, Eigthinks’ advances in lithium-ion batteries, and EthonAI...For the 13th consecutive year, Switzerland has ranked first in the Global Innovation Index - topping the lists for technology, knowledge, and creative output. It also has the world's highest patent per capita ratio, and ETH Zurich produces more university spin-outs than any other university worldwide.

Corporate climate action: The key to effective climate strategies

external page Climate-conscious investors should consider supporting companies with a wide range of climate policies, rather than companies that cherry-pick specific individual policies, according to a study published November 13, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS Climate by Lena Klaaßen of ETH Zurich, Switzerland and colleagues.

1000-Year Durability Of Carbon Removals Needed To Meet Climate Goals

external page 2024 is the first year to exceed 1.5 degrees of warming, widely accepted as the one-way door where irreversible climate breakdown starts to occur. In the global fight against climate change, achieving "net-zero" carbon emissions is not just a target; it’s a necessity to limit the Earth’s temperature rise further. Recent research from UC Berkeley and ETH Zurich has revealed that the concept of "durability" in carbon dioxide removal — how long captured carbon stays out of the atmosphere — is a critical factor that could make or break climate goals.

Using CRISPR to decipher whether gene variants lead to cancer

external page Researchers in the Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering at ETH Zurich in Basel have now found a further application for these novel CRISPR-Cas methods. Led by ETH Professor Randall Platt, the researchers are using them to decipher how mutations in a cell's genome affect its function. The research is published in the journal Nature Biotechnology.

Five Dubai Design Week pavilions translating Arab vernacular through sustainable materials

external page Emirati architect Abdalla Almulla...showcases the possibilities of a novel concrete binder made from construction waste...Developed by ETH Zurich spinoff Oxara, the low-carbon binder is used as a substitute for cement – concrete's key ingredient responsible for around eight per cent of global emissions – more than any other material except fossil fuels..."Dubai generates a lot of waste and a lot of demolition waste, which nowadays is not reused at all," said Oxara co-founder Thibault Demoulin. "We believe it's a very interesting emerging market and I think it's also understood by the authorities, who want to push it as well."

Europe has a key role to play in the development of robots, humanoids

external page ANYbotics (Switzerland) emerged from pioneering work at ETH Zurich in 2009 and was officially founded in 2016. It has made strides in autonomous robots for industrial applications...Swiss-Mile (Switzerland), incorporated in April 2023 as a spin-off from ETH Zurich‘s Robotic Systems Lab. In its first year, the company achieved early traction with pilot deployments for last-mile delivery in smart cities and security for critical infrastructure...Swiss-Mile raised $22 million in seed funding round in August 2024, led by Jeff Bezos and HongShan.

The 100 Million Cell Challenge Announces Winning Projects

external page Barbara Treutlein, ETH Zurich, Predictive Modeling of Cell State-Specific Responses to Small Molecule Perturbations in Human Organoids among projects selected for full subsidy.

Chasing Impossible Vortices: Supersolid Discovery and the Future of Quantum Technology

external page In recent years, advancements have been made using ultracold atomic gases. In 2017, teams at MIT and ETH Zurich created supersolid states in Bose-Einstein condensates by manipulating interactions between atoms using lasers and magnetic fields...These experiments provided clearer evidence of supersolid behavior, making progress in the field. This journey from theoretical prediction to experimental realization of supersolids highlights the complexities and challenges in understanding and observing exotic phases of matter.

Swiss scientists plan powerful hydrogen engine to propel green aviation

external page A the world prepares for a cleaner energy future, researchers at ETH Zurich are developing jet engines that can burn hydrogen as fuel. Today’s jet engines are designed to burn kerosene, and while shifting to clean hydrogen will be a game changer for the aviation industry, it will also require technological changes to the jet engine.

Also reported in...

external page ScienceDaily

external page Yahoo! News

external page Hydrogen Fuel News

Fed Cuts Rates; Powell Says Wouldn’t Resign If Asked By Trump | Daybreak: Europe

external page TELEVISION: Bloomberg Daybreak Europe is your essential morning viewing...we'll tell you what matters for investors in Europe, giving you insight before trading begins. Today's guests: Gorana Grgić, Senior Researcher in Euro-Atlantic security at ETH Zurich and Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney & Frederique Carrier, Head of Investment Strategy at RBC Wealth Management.

Experts See a Technological Turf Battle Brewing Between Quantum Computing and Classical AI In Chemistry, Materials Science

external page ...(Prof) Juan Carrasquilla from ETH Zurich explained, approximations that are “good enough” might suffice for practical purposes, making the solution effectively indistinguishable from an exact answer in real-world applications...This capacity for approximation opens doors to more collaborative methods, combining AI with other classical simulation techniques.  

2024 Will Be World's Hottest Year on Record, EU Scientists Say

external page Sonia Seneviratne, a climate scientist at public research university ETH Zurich, said she was not surprised by the milestone, and urged governments at COP29 to agree stronger action to wean their economies off CO2-emitting fossil fuels..."The limits that were set in the Paris agreement are starting to crumble given the too-slow pace of climate action across the world," Seneviratne said...Countries agreed in the 2015 Paris Agreement to try to prevent global warming surpassing 1.5C (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit), to avoid its worst consequences. The world has not breached that target - which refers to an average global temperature of 1.5C over decades - but C3S now expects the world to exceed the Paris goal around 2030.

Also reported in...

external page Aol.

external page DailyMail

external page Japan Today

external page SkyNews

external page The Straits Times

external page Yahoo! News

As well as numerous digital and radio & television broadcast channels

Scientists train $120 robot arm with GPT-4o to clean spills in 4 days

external page In a remarkable demonstration of open-source innovation, a team has developed a cheap cleaning robot to complete a set of actions...A pair of roboticists at UC Berkeley and ETH Zurich successfully trained a duo of $120 robot arms to handle spill cleanup...In just four days, they programmed the robots using GPT-4o, creating a visual language model for effective human-robot interaction

Laser-Activated Gel Forms Tissue Scaffolds for Medicine and Research

external page Using a laser and a light-reactive gel, a research team led by Hao Liu at ETH Zurich produced highly aligned microfilament structures for growing connective, nerve, and muscle tissue in a lab. The optically-based approach developed by the team could open new possibilities for building lifelike tissue models for biomedical research and translational medicine.

Consortium receives 10 million euros to study in vivo tissue mechanics

external page The European Research Council is funding a consortium consisting of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, ETH Zurich and TU Graz with a total of 10 million euros for developing new methods to determine the mechanical properties of living human tissue.

Investors scour Europe's universities for the next unicorn

Riverkin, a spinout from ETH Zurich in Switzerland, has developed sensors that can measure the health of river systems and spot changes that could indicate a risk of flooding or pollution. Another company, FloodWaive — a spinout from RWTH Aachen — has developed an AI model that acts as a real-time early warning system for flooding risk.

New method in fight against forever chemicals

external page ETH Zurich researchers have used a technology known as ‘piezocatalysis’ to break down hazardous PFOS chemicals in water with the help of nanoparticles and ultrasound...The method has shown promising results in the laboratory, with tests showing that it degraded 90.5 percent of the PFOS.

Quadruped robot climbs ladders, creeps us out

external page Just when you thought you'd seen it all, ANYmal, the quadrupedal robot developed by ETH Zurich and commercialized by ANYbotics, is back to creep us out a bit, this time by conquering ladders...This Swiss-engineered robot continues to push the boundaries of robotic capabilities, showcasing its versatility in tackling complex industrial challenges.

The Cybathlon: Bionic Athletes Compete for the Gold — And Push Assistive Technologies Forward

external page In the international competition, people with physical disabilities put state-of-the-art devices to the test as they race to complete the tasks of everyday life...The Cybathlon has no affiliation with the Paralympics and there are big differences between them, says Robert Riener of ETH Zurich, an expert on robotics and rehabilitation who launched the Cybathlon a decade ago. “The Paralympics are more athletic, and more about rewarding the strongest and fastest — but that excludes many people,” Riener says. In the Paralympics, people can use a prosthesis, but all devices must be passive: no motor, no display, no sensors...By contrast, the Cybathlon is unabashedly “technotopian,” says Riener. It is about the fullest possible collaboration of technology and human effort. For that reason, the competitors are not called athletes: They are “pilots.” The device they are piloting might be a prosthetic arm, for example, or an exoskeleton or a robot assistant.

Ruined plants, energy heroes and dark hospitals: Ukraine’s fight for light as winter looms

external page Ukraine could even become a green power hub for Europe due to its big potential for renewable energy production...According to researchers at ETH Zurich, the country could produce 180 gigawatts of wind energy and 39 gigawatts of solar. In comparison, Germany has targets for 130-140 GW of wind power and 200 GW of solar.