News EPFL

Unleashing Big Data of the Past – Europe builds a Time Machine

Published:01.03.19 — The European Commission has chosen Time Machine as one of the six proposals retained for preparing large scale research initiatives to be strategically developed in the next decade. €1 million in funding has been granted for preparing the detailed roadmaps of this initiative that aims at extracting and utilising the Big Data of the past.

EPFL students work on problems encountered by doctors

Published:27.02.19 — Students taking the biomechanics course at EPFL were given the chance to work directly on problems encountered by doctors. They looked at issues such as how to better assess the healing process of skin grafts on patients with severe burns, how to prevent broaches from breaking during hip replacement surgery, and how to replace a windpipe damaged in a traffic accident. 

CRISPR reveals the secret life of antimicrobial peptides

Published:26.02.19 — Using CRISPR, scientists at EPFL have carried out extensive work on a little-known yet effective weapon of the innate immune system, antimicrobial peptides.

Bacteria walk (a bit) like we do

Published:25.02.19 — EPFL biophysicists have been able to directly study the way bacteria move on surfaces, revealing a molecular machinery reminiscent of motor reflexes.

Why a blow to the chest can kill or save you

Published:22.02.19 — It is still a mystery why a blow to the chest can kill some people yet save others. We may be one step closer to an answer, however, thanks to a device developed by researchers at EPFL and the University of Bern that can replicate the experience in the laboratory.

A prosthetic that restores the sense of where your hand is

Published:20.02.19 — Researchers have developed a next-generation bionic hand that allows amputees to regain their proprioception. The results of the study, which have been published in Science Robotics, are the culmination of ten years of robotics research.

The holy grail of nanowire production

Published:20.02.19 — EPFL researchers have found a way to control and standardize the production of nanowires on silicon surfaces. This discovery could make it possible to grow nanowires on electronic platforms, with potential applications including the integration of nanolasers into electronic chips and improved energy conversion in solar panels.