news 2022

Scientists have developed a theory that can explain how flying insects determine the gravity direction without using accelerometers. It also forms a substantial step in the creation of tiny, autonomous drones. Scientists have discovered a novel manner for flying drones and insects to estimate the gravity direction.

The Living Planet Report published by WWF on 13 October shows well-documented evidence that humanity has far exceeded our planet's safe limits. The second part of the report offers the prospect of solutions. "We need to change the root causes of environmental degradation," state Francisco Alpizar and Jeanne Nel of Wageningen University & Research in their contribution to the report.

The Living Planet Report published by WWF on 13 October shows well-documented evidence that humanity has far exceeded our planet's safe limits. The second part of the report offers the prospect of solutions. "We need to change the root causes of environmental degradation," state Francisco Alpizar and Jeanne Nel of Wageningen University & Research in their contribution to the report.

In the Netherlands, community service was introduced in the Criminal Code in 1989 as an alternative to imprisonment. In the juvenile justice system, community service is the most imposed punishment for perpetrators. Even though community service is most often imposed in the juvenile justice system, few large-scale, reliable studies have been conducted on its effectiveness since the 1990s.

How can you teach seven-year-olds to read better? Just let them play a game. Friday 14 October 2022 was the launch of a new version of the 'Letter Prince' reading app, an online game that teaches children to read or improve their reading skills. "We don't have to confront children with long lists of words or boring fill-in-the-blanks exercises," said psycholinguist Esther Steenbeek, co-developer of the game.

Birdwatchers beware! The next few weeks are all about crane migration. When the wind is just right, sometimes thousands of "cranes" fly over the Netherlands. But even with those numbers, it is not easy to spot them. That is why Dr Koen de Koning, in collaboration with Sensing Clues, developed an app that works as a 'rainfall radar for cranes'.

People in deprived city areas tend to have less services available than inhabitants in wealthier parts. They have less access to urban infrastructure such as pharmacies, libraries, sports clubs and even public transport in their neighbourhood. Reversing this tendency is a priority for today's policy-makers.

Mothers who served a prison sentence can help prevent their children from becoming delinquents by taking part in Better Start. This parent intervention aims to prevent that children of these mothers go on to exhibit antisocial behaviour, such as committing offences. Ankie Menting , developmental psychologist at Utrecht University, and Bram Orobio de Castro, Professor of Child and Youth Care Sciences at the University of Amsterdam, have researched the long-term effects of the intervention.

The new Living Planet Report 2022 of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) reveals that populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish have declined by an average of 69% since 1970. The report highlights the stark outlook of the state of nature and warns governments, businesses and the public to take action to reverse the decline in biodiversity.

Wageningen University & Research has been part of a global cross-disciplinary process to develop the first comprehensive classification of the world's ecosystems across land, rivers and wetlands, and seas. This ecosystem typology will enable more coordinated and effective biodiversity conservation, critical for human wellbeing.

How can we ensure that the fundamental values which we consider important in the Netherlands and Europe, such as privacy, transparency and democracy, are safeguarded in a digital society? How can we make a truly positive contribution to society using AI? A conversation between Geert-Jan Houben, pro-vice rector AI, Data and Digitalisation and leader of the AI Initiative, and Professor Jeroen van den Hoven (TPM), leader of the Digital Ethics Centre.

Many plant species, probably including a third of all trees, are threatened by extinction. One of the growing threats is rapid climate change and the inability of plants to move rapidly enough, or cross barriers, to places where they can persist. This threat is particularly acute for species that live on or near cool mountain tops and have no opportunity to go ever higher as temperatures increase.

Pour coffee into a mug and you might notice that the liquid cascading from the jug resembles droplets linked in a chain. Such oscillating "waterfalls" crop up frequently in our daily lives, but their origin is still not fully understood. In a publication that appeared in Physical Review Fluids this week, UvA-IoP physicist Antoine Deblais and coworkers shed light on these chains of liquid.

Marleen van Stevendaal has researched how communication between synthetic cells and living tissue can be controlled using chemokines. Many things are already possible when it comes to mimicking organic cells. For example, Jan van Hest's group has developed a synthetic cell platform in which all kinds of cell aspects can be mimicked in order to better understand them.

Researchers from TU/e, Wageningen University & Research, Utrecht University and UMC Utrecht come together within the Centre for Unusual Collaborations to seek answers to societal issues from uncommon perspectives. Research is always exceptional, but not always unusual. That is precisely why that extra dimension is sought within CUCo (Centre for Unusual Collaborations), where - as the name suggests - unusual research collaboration takes center stage.

Mental health disorders affect one out of four people during their lifetime, with more than three quarters affected before the age of 24.

Scientists at the University of Twente have developed a new technique to effectively trap soundwaves and light, using multilayer silicon nitride waveguides. The research project successfully proved that manipulating light with sound in large-scale circuits is viable and compatible with current production methods Expanding the photonic toolbox In recent decades, chips and electronic devices have become exponentially smaller and faster.

Printing food sounds futuristic, but that future is approaching fast. And Wageningen is at the forefront; the latest success is a 3D plant-based 'meat' printer.

Parents of small children can usually get away with serving apple sauce, especially if it's the chunk-free variety. Try putting something green on their plate, however, and those little teeth invariably clamp shut. Teaching toddlers and pre-schoolers a healthy diet is not easy. But children are not preordained to dislike vegetables, say PhD candidates Anouk van den Brand and Britt van Belkom.

Applications in tissue scaffolds for artificial organs, and functional devices The University of Amsterdam has reached a license agreement with the Gouda-based company Atum3D on a method for fast, large-scale 3D-printing with sub-micron resolution.