NTNU establishes a factory to produce coronavirus tests

NTNU researchers recently figured out a whole new method for testing people for the coronavirus. The university is now producing tests on a continuous basis, under the auspices of the Norwegian Directorate of Health. Currently 100 000 tests a day are being manufactured, with production soon likely to be scaled up dramatically.

Robo-turtles in fish farms reduce fish stress

Robotic turtles used for surveillance could help prevent escapes from salmon farms. The “turtle robots” are paving the way for a technology that improves monitoring inside sea cages.

China’s rapid development of solar and wind power

Chinese authorities are investing heavily in green energy. The country has become a world leader in solar and wind power. This rapid expansion was made possible by the approach taken by authorities.

Following sea trout minute by minute

Sea trout populations have declined sharply. Researchers have studied the life of sea trout by means of acoustic telemetry tags and listening stations. Now they know more about what we need to do to protect the sea trout population.

Making future transport more climate friendly

The world’s transportation network is constantly growing. “Green asphalt” and sustainable bus transportation will ease the environmental impact of future transport routes.

Norway is the EU’s most integrated non-EU country

Norway has been on its way to EU membership four times, but has stopped at the threshold every time. November 28, 2019 marks 25 years since Norwegians last voted “No” – with an EEA agreement in hand for better or for worse.

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NTNU will lead European sustainability project

Through the Research Centre on Zero Emission Neighbourhoods (FME ZEN) in Smart Cities, NTNU has received funding from the EU to research sustainable plus energy neighbourhoods in Europe. SINTEF and OBOS are partners.

Exposing bad science in medical research publishing

Some medical research data never get published because they don’t fit in with the pharmaceutical industry’s desired results. Profiled researcher and social commentator Ben Goldacre will shed some light on this very topic when he takes part in NTNU’s The Big Challenge science festival in Trondheim in June.

New drones check ships for cracks and rust

Inspecting ship tanks and storage spaces underwater is a challenging task for humans. A start-up company that originated at NTNU is manufacturing autonomous drones that can take over the job – and do it more cheaply.

Teaching on Mount Everest and Mars

In the virtual world, inaccessible places become accessible. NTNU uses virtual reality – or VR – technology to create new teaching methods.

Tourism, aquaculture and offshore accidents with Blueye

Blueye is an underwater drone that got its start at NTNU. The drone can be used for serious purposes – such as when it mapped damage to the Norwegian frigate Helge Ingstad – or for entertainment, such as showing cruise passengers the underwater landscape.

When the Chinese giant awakes

When China sets its sights on a goal, the country can change at a blindingly rapid pace. Now the country is focused on innovation and technological innovations, with renewable energy at the forefront.

Prison garb? No thanks!

Inmates are issued a starter pack of prison clothes upon arrival. Many would rather use their own clothes as a way to reclaim some power for themselves.

From royal crown to a crown of thorns

Church art from the Middle Ages reflects the dramatic societal changes that were underway during this period. Artists changed the way they depicted Christ from a regal figure with a crown of gold to a suffering Christ with a crown of thorns.

Using new technology to find shipwrecks on the ocean floor

An estimated three million shipwrecks lie in seabed graveyards around the world – with as many as 1000 of them around Svalbard. Each of them has their own unique story — one that’s made much more accessible with new technology.

Japan’s cuteness phenomenon is hundreds of years old

You’ve seen the pictures and the products: Japanese teenage girls in a pastel little-girl world, and children and adults who love Hello Kitty products. They’re all part of the Japanese kawaii phenomenon, which actually started several hundred years ago.

Cheerful Madonna with a lot of bling

A Madonna figure from Grong municipality is one of the best preserved and special church sculptures in Norway from the Middle Ages. She looks like a sweet, friendly girl who’s been asked to model for the sculpture.

How forgetting about Middle Age treasures saved them

One of Scandinavia’s finest collections of church art from the Middle Ages lay hidden and forgotten in Norwegian churches for centuries. Indeed, this long forgetting is precisely what preserved the unique church art.

Secrets of the sea raised from the depths

The mysteries below the ocean’s surface have triggered human exploration and imagination for centuries. New marine robotics now make it possible to explore what goes on in the ocean depths.

The Maasai’s unknown cousins

They live side by side with the Maasai people and maintain a culture where rituals and music play an important role. The Sonjo people’s harvest ceremony is their most central ritual.