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Jeffrey Bajramovic has been the new head of the 3Rs Centre Utrecht (3RCU) since July 2022. His ambition for the 3RCU is to become an advocate and a centre of action for the 3Rs, by centralizing information and by facilitating researchers to take up new approach methods (NAMs). On 11 May, the 3RCU will organize a seminar to present Jeffrey and the plan of action for the centre.

Jeffrey Bajramovic has been the new head of the 3Rs Centre Utrecht (3RCU) since July 2022. His ambition for the 3RCU is to become an advocate and a centre of action for the 3Rs, by centralizing information and by facilitating researchers to take up new approach methods (NAMs). On 11 May, the 3RCU will organize a seminar to present Jeffrey and the plan of action for the centre.

Last Friday, the renewed Electron Microscopy Centre (EMC) of Utrecht University was officially opened. Robbert Dijkgraaf, Minister of Education, Culture and Science, and Isabel Arends , Dean of the Faculty of Science , did so with the symbolic push of a button. The centre, which houses electron microscopes that are among the most advanced in the world , brings together a wide variety of scientific disciplines, both in life sciences and material sciences.

Can a rapid warming of Earth trigger tipping points in our climate? For decades scientists have debated if today's warming can strongly amplify itself by triggering a catastrophic release of greenhouse gases. New research, published in Science Advances , now presents evidence that such tipping points did occur in Earth's history.

Specialized microorganisms that are found in only one type of environment turn out to occur there in relatively low but stable numbers. Microorganisms that live in many different types of environments, on the other hand, are able to rapidly increase in numbers when conditions are favourable. Researchers from Utrecht University and the Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena conclude this based on a new method to distinguish generalist and specialist microbes, which they applied to a large, global dataset.

Nearly 2.5 billion years ago, seas on our planet alternately contained more or less oxygen, due to the slow "wobble" of the rotating Earth. So writes an international team of scientists, some affiliated with Utrecht University and the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ). "The fact that the Earth eventually became an oxygen-rich planet with a pleasant climate may be partly due to the right astronomical influence at the right time," says Utrecht PhD candidate Margriet Lantink, first author of the article.

The IPCC released the final part of its Sixth Assessment Report on March 20, urging that only swift and drastic action against climate change can avert irreversible damage to the world. A new study published in Nature Climate Change has found that limiting climate change is also more beneficial for the economy.

After the North Sea Flood of 1953, it took nearly 45 years to finalise the Delta Works. If we want to protect The Netherlands against sea-level rise, we should take measures in time. But how much time do we have left? An international team of researchers from Utrecht University, Deltares, and NIOZ, among others, devised a new method to calculate when we can expect a certain increase in flood probability in a specific area.

Can a scientist, a farmer and a nature organisation ensure that nature can better withstand periods of extreme drought or massive flooding? Can a 'regular civilian' help to counteract drought and improve biodiversity in our country in the near future by sowing certain species of grass and herbs? If it were up to Dr. Edwin Pos , yes.

Geologists from Utrecht, London and Granada have found the first direct proof of the largest known mega-flood that ever occurred on earth. This mega-flood ended what is known as the ' Messinian Salinity Crisis' , a period around six million years ago when the water level in the Mediterranean Sea sank by around 1.5 km, causing an extreme environmental crisis in the region.

Under the coordination of Utrecht University, seventeen organizations will be working together over the next four years to improve detection and measurement of all major greenhouse gases in eight European countries. The new insights are vital to improve strategies for greenhouse gas mitigation, and improve the countries' emission reports requested annually by the United Nations.

Experimental and theoretical physicists at Utrecht University have observed an unexpected phenomenon in mixtures of colloidal particles: the Brazil nut effect. The discovery is important for knowledge about matter, including colloids, polymers, liquid crystals and surfactants. But developers of paints and inks, and completely different disciplines, such as geology, will also benefit from understanding this phenomenon.

Analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands suggests that locally targeted pandemic control measures could have been just as effective as national lockdowns. Researchers from Utrecht University, Erasmus MC and the University of Amsterdam conclude this based on a mathematical model that they developed.

The fate of coastal ecosystems depends on their ability to keep pace with sea-level rise-yet projections of accretion, the process by which marshes build up vertically, have widely ignored effects of animal ecosystem engineers.

An improved global understanding of river temperature could provide an important barometer for climate change and other human activities. River temperature is the fundamental water quality measure that regulates physical, chemical and biological processes in flowing waters and, in turn, impacts ecosystems, human health, and industrial, domestic and recreational uses by people.

Last week, Utrecht University hosted an online lecture on the 6 February 2023 earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.

The new state-of-the-art Ecotron module of the Netherlands Plant-Ecophenotyping Centre (NPEC) is now fully functional. The module, located in the new NPEC-dedicated building on the campus of Utrecht University, allows researchers to simulate and study agricultural and natural ecosystems. It consists of 36 enclosed units in which environmental conditions can be fully controlled and monitored.

Contrary to what has been assumed, children with severe developmental language disorder (DLD) do in fact partially catch up upon their delays in language development. This was observed by researcher and speech and language therapist Gerda Bruinsma , Professor of Speech Therapy Ellen Gerrits and Professor of Psycholinguistics Frank Wijnen in their research at the Institute for Language Sciences.

Around the world, retreating glaciers leave vast areas of unstable sediments behind. Researchers from Utrecht University, University of Bayreuth and University of Wuerzburg found that across mountain regions, plants actively aid the stabilisation of these sediments in a similar way, regardless of climate and plant species.

NWO has awarded funding of 760,000 euros for research into the mathematical modelling of thin polymer films. In the PRONTO project, mathematicians at Utrecht University and computational chemists at the University of Amsterdam will work together with non-academic partners to develop a new generation of models for materials science.