News EPFL

EPFL startup heads a mission to clean up space

Published:09.12.19 — ClearSpace, a spin-off of EPFL’s Space Center (eSpace), has been selected to lead a major European Space Agency (ESA) space debris de-orbiting project with a total budget topping €100 million. The startup and its consortium will develop and fly the first-ever mission to capture and remove a disused ESA asset from Space.

Liquid flow is influenced by a quantum effect in water

Published:07.12.19 — Researchers at EPFL have discovered that the viscosity of solutions of electrically charged polymers dissolved in water is influenced by a quantum effect. This tiny quantum effect influences the way water molecules interact with one another. Yet, it can lead to drastic changes in large-scale observations. This effect could change the way scientists understand the properties and behavior of solutions of biomolecules in water, and lead to a better understanding of biological systems.

Gaining insight into the energy balance of earthquakes

Published:06.12.19 — Researchers at EPFL’s Computational Solid Mechanics Laboratory and the Weizmann Institute of Science have modeled the onset of slip between two bodies in frictional contact. Their work, a major step forward in the study of frictional rupture, could give us a better understanding of earthquakes – including how far and fast they travel.

NeuroRestore Center: aimed at restoring lost neurological function

Published:05.12.19 — The Defitech Foundation has teamed up with EPFL, CHUV and UNIL to widen access to the groundbreaking neurotechnology developed under the 2018 STIMO study, which allowed paraplegic patients to walk again. Their aim is also to develop new neurosurgical treatments for people suffering from Parkinson’s disease or from neurological disorders following a head injury or stroke.

Big data toolkit to mine the dark genome for precision medicine

Published:04.12.19 — EPFL researchers have developed Big Data tools for identifying new gene functions. The work identifies millions of connections between genes and their functions, and can facilitate the development of precision medicine.

EPFL spin-off makes its mark in virtual reality

Published:03.12.19 — OZWE Games – an EPFL spin-off that develops virtual-reality games – won the 2019 Swiss National Business of the Year Award and will be one of the companies representing Switzerland in the European Business Awards finals on 3–4 December.

Designing and re-purposing cell receptors

Published:02.12.19 — EPFL scientists have developed a computational method modeling and designing protein allostery that allows the accurate and rational engineering and even re-purposing of cell receptors. The method can be a significant tool for drug development.