Africa is at the tipping point, as it needs enough scientists to carve its place as a global player. That’s according to Thierry Zomahoun, a development economist who is CEO of the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences. In this podcast interview, he tells EuroScientist about the urgent need to train a critical mass of bright scientists with mathematical skills so that they can become critical thinkers and problem solvers to address the African development challenges. Read more […]
Successfully gaining trust in complex situations where prospects are uncertain may require calling upon risk analysis to help to put things in perspective. In this interview, risk assessment guru Ortwin Renn from the University of Stuttgart discusses facts and facets of coping with uncertain outcomes and how effective risk communication strategies can help restore public trust in many areas of life. Read more […]
The State is not just a market-failure fixer, it has to be active in investing in innovation
Mariana Mazzucato is a professor of economics of innovation at SPRU in the University of Sussex, UK. She presents her research in an internationally known book Read more […]
Could using naked boobs help attract people’s attention to science? The Tumblr blog Boobs for Science has just proved it’s no joke. It asks volunteers to send photos of themselves naked or wearing underwear, attaching a scientific statement of their choice. Some pictures are then published together with a concise scientific explanation on the chosen topic. The initiative was born in Italy, where the parent blog Tette per la Scienza has already made a splash and the Facebook page has gathered more than 20,000 fans since late October 2014. Read more […]
Maciej Żylicz is an outstanding Polish molecular biologist with an international career, currently based at the International Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology in Warsaw. He is also president of the Foundation for Polish Science, which is a non-profit funding agency, which is the largest source of science funding in Poland outside of the state budget. In an exclusive podcast interview to EuroScientist, he shares his views on the future of Polish science policy. Read more […]
Science is not neutral. It can have both positive and negative consequences. Scientists increasingly have to face the ethical dilemma of the consequences of their research. And, thus, their responsibility in science governance. Examples from biotechnology, and nanotechnologies, show that the negotiation of responsibility between scientists and the outside world is still a crucial issue in modern research. Read more […]
Riccardo Polossa heads up the Centre for Tobacco Research at University of Catania, Italy. He is the author of more than 250 peer reviewed articles and books, covering respiratory medicine, clinical immunology, and tobacco addiction. He is also the chief scientific advisor for Lega Italiana Anti Fumo (LIAF), the Italian Anti-Smoking League. As one of Europe’s top expert on e-cigarettes, he shares his views on the issues surrounding the regulation of such novel products. Read more […]
They call him the “Lady Gaga of the mathematicians”. And he does not really mind. French mathematician Cedric Villani has become a bit of a pop icon after obtaining the Fields Medal in 2010. This highly prestigious award is the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for Mathematics; except that it is awarded every four years. And it is only destined to people younger than 40. Incidentally, until now, no woman has won it. Read more […]
Pablo Echenique-Robba stared his political career back in January 2014. Until then, his day job was to work as a physicist for the public research agency CSIC, working, among others of the issue of proteins folding. He is involved in a citizen democracy movement, called Podemos. Echenique shares his view on science in Spain and in Europe in an exclusive interview to the EuroScientist. Read more […]
Anne Glover currently serves as Chief Scientific Adviser to the President, European Commission. She is also a Scottish biologist and professor of molecular biology and cell biology at the University of Aberdeen, UK. She was previously the first ever Chief Scientific Adviser for Scotland, between 2006 and 2011. We present here an exclusive Skype interview of Anne Glover with the EuroScientist. In this interview, Glover talks about the art of providing science policy advice to policy makers, using evidence-base… Read more […]
Jean-Patrick Connerade, is emeritus professor of physics at Imperial College London, UK, and the president of the European Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters (EASAL). He is also a poet in his own right, writing in French, under the pen name of Chaunes. To many, science would seem the very opposite of poetry, being born of reason and rational deduction, whereas a poem appears as the fruit of imagination. Amongst all literary forms, poetry is the one most likely to be associated with the irrational. This could perhaps explain the hidden tension which has driven so many scientists, from Omar Khayyam to Robert Oppenheimer and from William Hamilton to Marie Curie to write poetry. Read more […]
Adriano Henney has been pursuing his interest in Systems Biology, as programme manager for a major German national flagship programme: the Virtual Liver Network (VLN).In this exclusive interview he shares his views on alternative ways of organising research funding based on his experience with the unique funding and management structure of the VLN. He also talks about ways of possibilities of applying alternative research funding approaches at the EU level. Read more […]
European science conversations by the community, for the community
