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IMAGE: Neil Adger, winner of the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Climate Change. view more
Credit: BBVA FOUNDATION
The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Climate Change has gone in this thirteenth edition to Neil Adger, Ian Burton and Karen O Brien for changing the paradigm of climate change action, previously confined to mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, by folding in the concept of adaptation to unavoidable impacts.
While earlier editions of the Frontiers of Knowledge Awards have distinguished contributions to climate change science from the realms of modelling, physics or economics, this year s prize recognizes the contribution of the social sciences. Specifically, the committee has selected three researchers who have pioneered the study of how social conditions and culture shape our vulnerability to climate change and our ability to adapt, in the words of the award citation.
NEUROPA: new innovative European project to treat neurodegenerative diseases with laser light
The research group for Monitoring and Modulation of Brain Circuits in Brain Diseases of the Institute of Neurosciences (UBNeuro) led by Dr. Mercè Masana participates in the NEUROPA project. The project is led by a pioneering international consortium in the field of phyto-optogenetics, with experts in photonic engineering, imaging and neurobiologists. Phyto-optogenetics is an innovative technique that combines genetic and optical methods to selectively stimulate brain circuits using light. Specifically, the goal of NEUROPA is to develop new types of photoreceptor proteins called phytochromes that can be activated by a new type of laser that emits infrared light. With this laser we could modulate the neural network in the long term with a compact and non-invasive device.
anodic oxidation. As a result, one can obtain amorphous barrier-type oxides, crystalline barrier-type oxides or amorphous nanoporous oxides. Currently, highly-ordered nanoporous anodic aluminum oxides (AAO) are obtained with various electrolytes to form nanostructures with a range of geometrical features. This material can serve as a template for nanofabrication of variety of nanowires, nanotubes and nanodots. In this way, porous alumina can be fabricated electrochemically through anodic oxidation of aluminum, yielding highly ordered arrays of nano-holes several hundreds down to several tens of nanometers in size.
Sol-gel chemistry offers a flexible approach to obtain a diverse range of materials. It allows differing chemistries to be achieved as well as the ability to produce a wide range of nano-/micro-structures.