Globe 21/01: Disruptions
"Disruptions" How they affect us. How we deal with them.
Disruption disrupts: at best, it’s a nuisance; at worst, it poses a real threat. Our intricately connected, high-tech society is particularly vulnerable. Yet disruption is more useful than we might think: it compels us to reconsider and search for new solutions.
Shaking the foundations of life
Focus
Evolution never stops – and disruptions can speed up the process. Now ETH researchers are delving deeper into the secrets of evolutionary change.
In the giant’s workshop
Report
An 80-metre-high skyscraper made of wood is soon to be built in Zug. A pioneering project for which basic research is being carried out in the construction hall on the Hönggerberg.
Keeping an eye on systems
Focus
Even minor disruptions in infrastructure systems can have fatal consequences. Researchers and practitioners counter that risk by taking action on multiple levels. Four examples.
Working for Peace
Profile
ETH alumna Therese Adam spent 28 years in the diplomatic service working for peace and development. Now she shares her knowledge as a lecturer.
Insight into tumour samples
Community
Bernd Bodenmiller studies the mechanisms of cancer development. The quantitative biologist uses 3D analysis and virtual reality to detect groups of cells that break away from tumours.
Resilience as a positive force
Focus
Disruption has the power to upend our lives. But approached constructively, disruption and resilience can be positive.
What are disruptions – and how should we judge them?
Focus
We register disruptions as a deviation from our expectations. We often experience this as a moment of uncertainty or as frustrated expectations. Does this mean that disruptions are always a bad thing? The philosophical essay explores these questions.
In the eye of the storm
Focus
As Chair of the National Science Task Force, Martin Ackermann has to perform a constant balancing act between science, politics, the media and society. So how does he do it?
About Globe
Globe, the magazine of ETH Zurich and ETH Zurich Alumni, is issued jointly by ETH Zurich and the ETH Alumni Association.