Circular strategies are intended to create sustainable material and product cycles. Multidisciplinary research groups are developing solutions for the automotive industry. Also in this issue: How Close is the Point of No Return? limatic changes often build up continuously for years, leading to a tipping point that may be irreversible. And: AI systems in medicine must be particularly trustworthy. Patient data can be reliably protected when training algorithms.
Veins adapt to the flow to which they are exposed - this could be the key to new therapies against pathological changes in blood vessels. Also in this issue: Five research projects in the Global South examine current topics in medicine, economics, and AI ethics, and propose a new, circular view of water, energy, and food resources. Plus, what if? Urban simulations provide answers to key questions for the future.
What exactly is a 'good' innovation? We explore the social, political, and ethical dimensions of this question. Further highlights of this issue: A special 3D printing technique can be used to create scaffolds for new heart valves, RNA-based drugs could cure COVID-19 and other diseases in the future, and an interdisciplinary approach promises new insights into how cells move and form structures.
Mobility and goods transport of the future will have to accomplish many things: They will have to become more climate-friendly, low-noise, low-emitting, intelligent and connected. And they will need to be embedded in existing infrastructures to create highly livable urban design. In this issue, we share some fascinating insights into the ideas, goals and achievements of our researchers working on smart mobility.
Capturing viruses in tiny DNA capsules, using a gold ion to render even novel viruses harmless, and helping stroke patients to regain the power of speech – our scientists work together in interdisciplinary teams to achieve all this. Also in this issue: A more environmentally friendly alternative to palm oil, new developments in additive manufacturing, and ideas for how the incredible amounts of data generated by satellites can be put to use with artificial intelligence.
We find ourselves at a turning point in history – and we are shaping the change we see around us. With research into climate change that engages local citizens, with carbon fiber reinforced polymers made of algae, and with multifunctional, fully recyclable 3D-printed facades. Also in this issue: A third, independent measurement method for the Hubble constant that could solve one of the most hotly disputed questions in astrophysics.
An issue devoted to viruses and infections: A new Hepatitis B vaccination that could finally cure the disease, a recently discovered substance that fights dangerous, multi-resistant hospital germs, and a spin-off working on highly specialized viruses that offer an effective treatment for bacterial infections. Also featured: New research into processes at protein level paves the way for more effective treatment approaches for both chronic infections and tumors.
