Leading experts to discuss mental health at Cambridge Festival
To what extent has the pandemic impacted teenagers’ mental health and development? Could a video game help promote mental wellbeing and reduce mental suffering? What about support for people suffering with dementia?
Forests' long-term capacity to store carbon is dropping in regions with extreme annual fires
Researchers have analysed decades’ worth of data on the impact of repeated fires on ecosystems across the world.
Historian wins major journalism award for Indigenous land project
Dr Robert Lee, Cambridge University lecturer in American History, has been awarded a George Polk Award, one of the most prestigious in journalism, for his investigation into how the United States funded land-grant universities with expropriated Indigenous land.
Cambridge Festival focuses on climate change action
Global experts, from Sir David Attenborough to Tom Rivett-Carnac, Emily Shuckburgh and Mike Berners-Lee, will lead a wide-ranging series of events on climate change at the Cambridge Festival with an emphasis on action.
Artificial ‘brain’ reveals why we can’t always believe our eyes
A computer network closely modelled on part of the human brain is enabling new insights into the way our brains process moving images - and explains some perplexing optical illusions.
Identification of ‘violent’ processes that cause wheezing could lead to better diagnosis and treatment for lung disease
A team of engineers has identified the ‘violent’ physical processes at work inside the lungs which cause wheezing, a condition that affects up to a quarter of the world’s population.
University of Cambridge Festival reveals world-leading health research
The latest COVID-19 research, including long COVID, developments in early cancer detection and a new artificial valve that could transform open-heart surgery are some of the health-related topics being discussed at the free online Cambridge Festival next month.
Scientists launch a pre-emptive strike on deadly post-transplant infection
A potential new treatment to protect immunosuppressed patients from human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) has been discovered by scientists at the University of Cambridge.
From the future of democracy to bridging political extremes: political debates at the Cambridge Festival
The future of democracy in a digital age, the impact of the Black Lives Matter movement, efforts to rebuild trust after Brexit, how we bridge political extremes and what we have learnt from a year of ‘following the science’ form just some of the political debates at the Cambridge Festival this year.
Cambridge psychologist helps Facebook fight climate change misinformation
Social media giant turns to behaviour and communication expert to help it tackle the dangerous anti-science myths that circulate online.
Cambridge engineers unveil Digital Twin to support the ‘future of farming’
Hydroponic farming challenges traditional methods in favour of soil-less, water-based farming processes. To ensure the ongoing operational success of farms such as these, Cambridge engineers have developed a virtual forecasting model to provide bespoke feedback to farmers.
First COVID-19 lockdown cost UK hospitality and high street £45 billion in turnover, researchers estimate
UK supermarkets and online retailers made an additional £4 billion each thanks to the coronavirus lockdown that began in March last year, according to econometric models.
Robotic dogs and laughter therapy: 10 ways to combat loneliness and isolation while social distancing
Robotic dogs, laughter therapy and mindfulness are some of the ways that might help people – particularly the elderly – cope with loneliness and social isolation while social distancing, say researchers at the University of Cambridge.
Light used to detect quantum information stored in 100,000 nuclear quantum bits
Researchers have found a way to use light and a single electron to communicate with a cloud of quantum bits and sense their behaviour, making it possible to detect a single quantum bit in a dense cloud.
Cambridge Festival asks: can robots ever truly mimic humans?
Could AI help us reach a more equitable and fair society? Should chatbots and AI be built to care and have empathy? If such machines are built, should we consider their moral and legal status? Or are we giving up too much control to machines that are too stupid to handle the tasks they are already charged with?
Astronomers identify new method of planet formation
Scientists have suggested a new explanation for the abundance in intermediate-mass exoplanets – a long-standing puzzle in astronomy.
Proper fit of face masks is more important than material, study suggests
A team of researchers studying the effectiveness of different types of face masks has found that in order to provide the best protection against COVID-19, the fit of a mask is as important, or more important, than the material it is made of.
Function identified of ‘mystery protein’ that kills healthy brain cells of people with Parkinson’s
Scientists have made a ‘vital step’ towards understanding the origins of Parkinson’s disease – the fastest growing neurological condition in the world.
New method developed for ‘up-sizing’ mini organs used in medical research
A team of engineers and scientists has developed a method of ‘up-sizing’ organoids: miniature collections of cells which mimic the behaviour of various organs and are promising tools for the study of human biology and disease.
‘Multiplying’ light could be key to ultra-powerful optical computers
A new type of optical computing could solve highly complex problems that are out of reach for even the most powerful supercomputers.
‘Magnetic graphene’ forms a new kind of magnetism
Researchers have identified a new form of magnetism in so-called magnetic graphene, which could point the way toward understanding superconductivity in this unusual type of material.
University of Cambridge unveils extensive programme for new festival
On Monday 22nd February, the University of Cambridge unveils the programme for its exciting, new festival, the Cambridge Festival, which is set to host an extensive series of free, online events that can be viewed by anyone anywhere in the world between 26 March – 4 April this year.
Climate change may have driven the emergence of SARS-CoV-2
Global greenhouse gas emissions over the last century have made southern China a hotspot for bat-borne coronaviruses, by driving growth of forest habitat favoured by bats.
Study highlights risk of new SARS-CoV-2 mutations emerging during chronic infection
SARS-CoV-2 mutations similar to those in the B1.1.7 UK variant could arise in cases of chronic infection, where treatment over an extended period can provide the virus multiple opportunities to evolve, say scientists.
The Lightest Beam Method - to find steel savings and reduce embodied carbon in steel framed buildings
Over the past ten years, global demand for concrete has grown three-fold and for steel two-fold. Both are responsible for approximately 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), 75% of which is associated with buildings and infrastructure.