News

They look like microscopic bottle brushes: Polymers with a backbone and tufts of side arms. This molecular design gives them unusual abilities: For example, they can bind active agents and release them again when the temperature changes. With the help of neutrons, a research team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now succeeded to unveil the changes in the internal structure in course of the process.

The Technical University of Munich (TUM) ranks among the 50 best universities in the world in engineering, computer science, and in physical and life sciences. These are among the results of the THE World University Rankings by Subject. The highest position achieved by TUM is in computer science, where it is ranked 14th.

In the Europe-wide project "FIThydro" coordinated by the Technical University of Munich (TUM), researchers worked with industrial partners to study existing hydroelectric power plants. Based on their results, they have developed new assessment methods and technologies such as a fish population hazard index, fish migration simulations and an open-access decision support tool for power plant planning.

The dynamic change in root growth of plants plays an important role in their adjustment to soil conditions. Depending on the location, nutrients or moisture can be found in higher or lower soil layers. This is why, depending on the situation, a short or a long root is advantageous. Caroline Gutjahr, Professor of Plant Genetics at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), and her team investigate how plant hormones influence the growth of roots.

Germany's youth feel well informed about global issues such as poverty and climate change, feel qualified to judge such topics and they also indicate respect for people from other cultures. On the other hand they show little interest in learning about other cultures, they don't think they can do much to change global problems and are less involved in such issues, according to the results of the additional "Global Competence" survey in the most recent PISA study.

Every year, up to 1,200 guest scientists from all over the world come to perform measurements at the Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Research Neutron Source (FRM II). Technical University Munich (TUM) and Forschungszentrum Jülich are now expanding the research capacities of the world's most versatile neutron source with two new buildings providing a total of 4,550 square meters of floor space for laboratories, offices and workshops.

The Technical University of Munich (TUM) and its affiliated institute UnternehmerTUM are launching an initiative – unique in Europe – to support start-ups rooted in top-level research: In key technological fields such as artificial intelligence, robotics, quantum engineering and healthcare, TUM Venture Labs will work with promising start-up teams, providing them with tailor-made support concepts, incubation spaces, training and venturing programs and access to global networks of companies and investors. The goal of the new innovation centers is to make Munich the leading European hub for technology start-ups.

The protein neuropilin-1 facilitates SARS CoV-2 cell entry. A research team including Prof. Mikael Simons of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) recently published these findings in the journal "Science". Because neuropilin-1 is expressed in the mucous membranes of the olfactory and respiratory tract, the findings may be important for understanding the spreading of SARS CoV-2.

The use of e-government in the German speaking region continues to increase. In Germany, 54 percent of Internet users used digital administrative services for the first time in 2020, making up more than half of all Internet users; in Austria the figure is 72 percent and in Switzerland 60 percent. This is the conclusion reached by the eGovernment MONITOR 2020, a representative study conducted by the Initiative D21 and the Technical University of Munich (TUM), carried out by Kantar.

How have the eating, drinking, and exercise habits of children changed since the beginning of the Corona pandemic? Experts from the Else Kröner-Fresenius-Center for Nutritional Medicine (EKFZ) at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have devoted themselves to this topic. According to their research, approximately half of the children between 10 and 14 years old are less active than before the pandemic. Furthermore, especially among the older children, the eating of sweets and salty foods has escalated since the lockdown. The study marks the starting point for the new thematic focus “Nutrition in Childhood” at the EKFZ.