May 2019

What is the public’s opinion when it comes to the responsibility of Swiss companies abroad? ETH researchers have investigated this question and are able to show that there is a great deal of support for the so-called Responsible Business Initiative.

It’s getting warmer, the gardens are in bloom – spring at last! A deceptively idyllic scene. Something is missing. Christoph Küffer calls for us to stop looking the other way and take action.

To mark its 30th anniversary, the W.A. de Vigier Foundation awarded twice as many start-ups as usual. Six out of ten prizes were won by ETH Zurich start-ups.

The medical sector must now learn from the consequences of the recent Boeing 737 MAX catastrophes, warns Walter Karlen, pointing out parallels.

How will the energy consumption habits of Switzerland change when more consumers use local energy storage options? How will this affect the grids, tariffs and data privacy? ETH Zurich, the Paul Scherrer Institute and Empa have jointly established the new energy research platform ReMaP to find answers to these interlinked questions.

The growing politicisation of AI harbours risks. Sophie-Charlotte Fischer and Andreas Wenger propose a hub for AI research in Switzerland committed to the responsible development of the new technologies.

On the recommendation of ETH President Joël Mesot, the ETH Board appointed several new ETH professors and conferred the title of ETH professor on two researchers during its meeting on 22 and 23 May 2019. All the new appointments consciously connect their subject expertise with other disciplines.

In the new podcast episode, Hoda Heidari and Elliott Ash discuss how big data is changing the world and our perceptions.

ETH students experience a high level of academic pressure, but they consider the way they are treated at the university to be respectful, with the vast majority unaffected by discrimination or unequal treatment. These are the key findings of a wide-ranging survey conducted by the Students’ Association.

Whether building an exoskeleton for paraplegics or an autonomous construction robot, the Focus projects are a chance for mechanical engineering students to solve a complex technical challenge. Besides acquiring new knowledge, they also gain soft skills and practise teamwork and work organisation.