Archive
30 April 2018
First papers published in TU Delftâs Open Access Journal Superhero Science and Technology
In the same week as the worldwide release of Avengers: Infinity War, the latest Hollywood superhero film, the first papers and editorial have been published in the new superhero-themed online journal. The papers in Superhero Science and Technology focus on two members of the Avengers - the Winter Soldier (Bucky Barnes) and Iron Man (Tony Stark).
27 April 2018
Publication Nature Scientific Reports: Beaches worldwide are growing
We love holidays on the beach and about a quarter of the world's population live on coasts because of the favourable economic location. But until now we have had only a very vague picture of how coastal areas have evolved worldwide over the years. Scientists in Delft are changing this. Researchers from Deltares, Delft University of Technology and IHE have analysed changes in 50,000 beaches over a 35-year period. They present their findings today in Nature Scientific Reports.
26 April 2018
Cas3: a biological fishing rod and a shredder rolled into one
CRISPR-Cas9 has made gene editing a lot easier and will eventually help us erase hereditary diseases from our DNA.
26 April 2018
Super computing power for rainfall modelling in Africa
Prof. Nick van de Giesen received an IBM Technology & Data grant in the form of free super computing power and weather data. The project of Prof. Van de Giesen and Camille le Coz (both from the Water Management department) focusses on the simulation of rainfall and weather data in Africa to increase farmer resilience.
26 April 2018
Royal honours for three TU Delft professors
TU Delft professors Isabel Arends, Jenny Dankelman and Andy van den Dobbelsteen each received a royal honour this year.
26 April 2018
Haptic assistance proves excellent solution for working with two robots
Researcher Jeroen van Oosterhout has developed a haptic assistance system that makes it easier to control two robots simultaneously. On Wednesday 1 May, he will be awarded his PhD at TU Delft for his work on the subject.
24 April 2018
Gerwin Smit nominated biggest scientific talent 2018
Dr.ir. Gerwin Smit from Biomechanical Engineering, 3mE faculty, TU Delft, has been nominated by New Scientist for the title of biggest scientific talent in the Netherlands and Flanders.
23 April 2018
KNAW chooses Kofi Makinwa
Prof. Dr. Kofi Makinwa, Professor Electronic Instrumentation and chair of the Micro Electronic department to the faculty of EEMCS, is selected as a new member of The Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences (KNAW).
20 April 2018
Researchers build DNA replication in a model synthetic cell
Researchers at Delft University of Technology, in collaboration with colleagues at the Autonomous University of Madrid, have created an artificial DNA blueprint for the replication of DNA in a cell-like structure.
19 April 2018
Hurricane Harvey: Dutch-Texan research shows most fatalities occurred outside flood zones
A Dutch-Texan team found that most Houston-area drowning deaths from Hurricane Harvey occurred outside the zones designated by government as being at higher risk of flooding: the 100- and 500-year floodplains. Harvey, one of the costliest storms in US history, hit southeast Texas on 25 August 2017 causing unprecedented flooding and killing dozens. Researchers at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands and Rice University in Texas published their results today in the European Geosciences Union journal Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences.
18 April 2018
Het âbeest van de TU Delftâ is klaar voor actie
De hexapod, 60 ton zwaar en 6x5x3 meter groot, is de nieuwste aanwinst van de TU Delft: een testfaciliteit die krachten van 100 ton in alle zes richtingen kan aanbrengen. Het apparaat kan onder meer in 4 weken de vermoeiing in gelaste scheepsstukken nabootsen van 20 jaar varen op zee, maar is ook breder inzetbaar om constructies beter te kunnen ontwerpen.
12 April 2018
TU Delft in three National Roadmap projects
TU Delft is taking part in three National Roadmap for Large-scale Scientific Infrastructure projects. The three projects concern measuring changes in the atmosphere by Ruisdael Observatory (where TU Delft is the coordinating university), EPOS-NL, on the European infrastructure for geological sciences, dangers and resources, and NEMI, on the Netherlands Electron Microscopy Infrastructure.
12 April 2018
Ruisdael Observatory: measuring the Dutch atmosphere on a 100m scale
âWeatherâ is the result of a combination of many diverse factors, such as solar radiation, the concentration of greenhouse gases, air quality and humidity, local building density or vegetation, wind direction and a whole host of underlying physical and chemical processes.
12 April 2018
'Paternalâ and âmaternalâ DNA in fungi active at different times
Many types of mushroom have two different nuclei in their cells, one from the âfatherâ and another from the âmotherâ. Researchers at the universities of Delft, Utrecht and Wageningen have discovered that the genes from the parental DNAs are expressed at different times in mushroom development. âThis means that when genes involved in mushroom formation are identified, we first need to find out whether the paternal or maternal nucleus is active,â says TU Delft doctoral candidate Thies Gehrmann. The research results were published in the journal PNAS on 11 April 2018.
10 April 2018
ERC Grants for Nynke Dekker and Ibo van de Poel
The European Research Council has awarded an ERC Advanced Grant of 2,5 million euros to two professors from Delft University of Technology.
09 April 2018
Cycling motion keeps hydrofoils upright during flight
09 April 2018
Using superheroes such as Hawkeye, Wonder Woman and the Invisible Woman in the physics classroom
âWe find ourselves in an age where superhero films are immensely popular. With many students familiar with many of these characters and their superpowers, superheroes can facilitate a unique platform to aid in the dissemination of physics materials in the classroomâ, says scientist Barry W. Fitzgerald of TU Delft. In a paper published in Physics Education on 5th April 2018, he considers Wonder Woman, Hawkeye and Invisible Woman.
06 April 2018
Synergy Certificate for the smart production of composites
29 March 2018
Micro-CT scanner reveals secrets hidden in prehistoric eggs
29 March 2018
Open Education Global Conference 2018
Dutch universities strive for open access publication of their research. Increasing numbers of universities and lecturers around the world also want open education, the free sharing of educational resources, primarily online.
28 March 2018
Majorana trilogy completed
Since the breakthrough discovery of the Majorana particle in 2012 in Delft, researchers faced great challenges. An international team of researchers from the Netherlands (QuTech, Microsoft and Eindhoven University of Technology) and United States (JQI Maryland, UC Santa Barbara) joined forces to understand the next steps required to improve the experiments. Now, the scientists provide a complete toolbox for the final proof of Majorana existence, paving the way towards Majorana quantum bits. They publish their work in Nature.
28 March 2018
MIT benchmark puts TU Delft at the forefront of innovative education
25 March 2018
Inaudible infrasound also useful for weather and climate forecasts
Research by Pieter Smets of TU Delft and the KNMI shows that infrasound can be used for weather and climate forecasts. These inaudible low sound waves can be used to gain a better picture of the stratosphere, which can barely be measured in any other way. On Wednesday 28 March, Smets will be awarded his PhD at TU Delft for his work on this subject.
23 March 2018
Direct high-speed charging of electric cars by solar panels
Researcher Gautham Ram Chandra Mouli developed a system which charges electric cars quickly and directly using solar power. On Monday 26 March, he will be awarded his PhD at TU Delft for his work on this subject.
23 March 2018
TU Delft receives Open Education Award for Strategic Framework 2018-2024
The international Open Education Consortium is honouring TU Delft with an Open Education Award in the Open Policies category.
22 March 2018
Potassium gives new generation perovskite-based solar cells an efficiency boost
A simple potassium solution could boost the efficiency of next-generation solar cells, by enabling them to convert more sunlight into electricity.
22 March 2018
2018 Stockholm Water Prize for TU Delft biotech pioneer Mark van Loosdrecht
Professors Mark van Loosdrecht (Delft University of Technology) and Bruce Rittmann (Arizona State University) are named the 2018 Stockholm Water Prize Laureates for revolutionizing water and wastewater treatment. By developing microbiological processes in wastewater treatment, they have demonstrated the possibilities to cut costs, reduce energy consumption and even recover chemicals and nutrients for recycling. Their pioneering research and innovations have led to a new generation of energy-efficient water treatment processes that can effectively extract nutrients and other chemicals â both valuable and harmful - from wastewater.
22 March 2018
PME researcher Nima Tolou wins Prins Friso Engineering Award
He received the Prince Friso Engineering Award at the University of Groningenâs Engineering Center in the presence of Princess Beatrix and Princess Mabel.
21 March 2018
Mystery of superior Leeuwenhoek microscope solved after 350 years
Researchers from TU Delft and Rijksmuseum Boerhaave have solved an age-old mystery surrounding Antonie van Leeuwenhoekâs microscopes.
15 March 2018
Increasingly accurate picture of accelerating rise in sea levels
Rising sea levels are affected by all kinds of different factors, most of which we can now effectively unravel and explain almost everywhere in the world. This is according to TU Delft researcher Thomas Frederikse, who has also established that the average rise in sea levels worldwide is accelerating. Moreover, the days on earth are becoming slightly longer... Frederikse will be awarded his doctorate on Monday, 19 March.
09 March 2018
Jan Dirk Jansen appointed as dean CEG
TU Delftâs Executive Board has appointed Professor Jan Dirk Jansen as Dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences (CEG) with effect from 1 May 2018. Jan Dirk Jansen succeeds professor Bert Geerken, who will retire in May 2018.
05 March 2018
TU Delft scans painting Girl with a Pearl Earring by Vermeer
Last week an extensive two week scanning project of the painting Girl with a Pearl Earring - the Dutch Mona Lisa, some say - started at the Mauritshuis. The latest scanning techniques are used, and the audience can follow every step of the process. TU Delft researchers play a major part in this project, and this week their efforts can be followed on the TU Delft Instagram account.
02 March 2018
Wind energy: driving down costs
Despite its recent growth, thereâs still a lot of room for cost reductions in wind energy. Thatâs the view given by prof.dr. Simon Watson in his inaugural lecture at TU Delft on Friday March 2nd.
28 February 2018
Professor Rob F. Mudde new Vice Rector Magnificus/Vice President Education TU Delft
Professor Rob F. Mudde has been appointed Vice Rector Magnificus/Vice President of Education (VRM/VPE), also vice-chairman, of the Executive Board of TU Delft. The Supervisory Board has appointed Rob Mudde with effect from 1 March 2018.
28 February 2018
Ten subjects in Top 50 of QS World University Rankings by Subject
In the World University Rankings by Subject 2018 published today, TU Delft has two subjects in the top ten: âArchitectureâ (3) and âCivil Engineeringâ (4). Ten subjects at TU Delft are in the world top 50.
23 February 2018
Marnix Wagemaker receives Vici for battery research
Dr. ir. Marnix Wagemaker will receive a Vici grant from NWO. Wagemaker is getting this grant, which amounts to 1.5 million euros, to investigate the inner workings of batteries. Among other things, the researcher aims to find out why the storage capacity achieved by the current generation of batteries is lagging behind that which should theoretically be feasible. An additional 250.000 euros of in-kind contributions will be provided by companies that are involved in the research.
22 February 2018
Loops, loops, and more loops: This is how your DNA gets organised
Researchers from the Kavli Institute of Delft University and EMBL Heidelberg now managed for the first time to isolate and film and witnessedâin real timeâhow a single protein complex called condensin reels in DNA to extrude a loop.
15 February 2018
Programming on a silicon quantum chip
Quantum technology makes a great leap forward. While scientists can control a few qubits with great reliability, it doesnât yet look like a real computer. Useful quantum chips require programmability: the ability to perform an arbitrary set of operations. Scientists from QuTech in Delft have now realised a programmable two-qubit quantum processor in silicon successfully implementing two quantum algorithms. They have published their work in the magazine Nature.
12 February 2018
Designing and testing medical instruments without expensive prototypes
Complex new medical instruments often do not make it beyond the expensive and time-consuming prototype phase. With this in mind, Ewout Arkenbout developed a new, virtual development method allowing for instruments to be evaluated and adjusted at an earlier stage. On Monday 12 February, Arkenbout will be awarded his PhD at TU Delft for his work on this subject.
07 February 2018
Mathematics explains why Crispr-Cas9 sometimes cuts the wrong DNA
The discovery of the Cas9 protein has been of great value to medical science. It has simplified gene editing tremendously, and may even make it possible to eliminate many hereditary diseases in the near future. Using Cas9, researchers have the ability to cut DNA in a cell to correct mutated genes, or paste new pieces of genetic material into the newly opened spot. Initially, the Crispr-Cas9 system seemed to be extremely accurate. But unfortunately, it is now apparent that Cas9 sometimes also cuts other DNA sequences similar to the exact sequences it was programmed to target. Scientists at Delft University of Technology have developed a mathematical model that explains why Cas9 cuts some DNA sequences while leaving others alone.