Examining the highly organized lives of long-distance commuters

Published:28.03.19 — When both parents face lengthy commutes to work, how do families handle the additional stress? An EPFL scientist took an in-depth look at the strategies these parents use for managing their time wisely and dealing with unexpected challenges.

Junior Enterprise EPFL wins award for its avalanche safety project

Published:27.03.19 — At the annual conference of the Confederation of European Junior Enterprises, EPFL’s young entrepreneurs won the award for the most innovative project in Europe. The association oversaw the development of a "safety dropping system" to be mounted on a drone to artificially trigger avalanches.

Blue Brain solves a century-old neuroscience problem

Published:27.03.19 — In a front-cover paper published in Cerebral Cortex, EPFL’s Blue Brain Project, a Swiss Brain Research Initiative, explains how the shapes of neurons can be classified using mathematical methods from the field of algebraic topology. Neuroscientists can now start building a formal catalogue for all the types of cells in the brain. Onto this catalogue of cells, they can systematically map the function and role in disease of each type of neuron in the brain.

Combating fatigue with a smartwatch application

Published:26.03.19 — Scientists from EPFL, UNIL and local startup be.care have developed a system that uses heart rate variability to detect fatigue and identify what kind it is. The system then uses the results to suggest lifestyle changes that can make a difference. An initial test has been carried out on university students under real-world conditions.

In a new quantum simulator, light behaves like a magnet

Published:25.03.19 — Physicists at EPFL propose a new “quantum simulator”: a laser-based device that can be used to study a wide range of quantum systems. Studying it, the researchers have found that photons can behave like magnetic dipoles at temperatures close to absolute zero, following the laws of quantum mechanics. The simple simulator can be used to better understand the properties of complex materials under such extreme conditions.

Engineering cellular function without living cells

Published:25.03.19 — EPFL scientists have come up with a systematic method for studying and even predicting gene expression – without using cells. Using their innovative, quantitative approach, they measured important parameters governing gene regulation. This allowed them to design and construct a synthetic biological logic gate, which could one day be used to introduce new functions into cells. Their research has just been published in PNAS.

How fluid viscosity affects earthquake intensity

Published:22.03.19 — A young researcher at EPFL has demonstrated that the viscosity of fluids present in faults has a direct effect on the force of earthquakes.