MaterialDistrict Rotterdam 2019: imaginative new materials
MaterialDistrict Rotterdam, the yearly exposition and conference on new materials, has 140 exhibitors this year, 200 new materials, presentations by 100 front-runner start-ups & designers, and op top of that a conference program with some 60 speakers. Rotterdam Ahoy will be the host again to wonderful, exciting, problem solving and actual materials innovations. MaterialDistrict Rotterdam
Efficient protein production and utilization
The world runs into planetary boundaries, or has transgressed them already. The three main problems can all be alleviated by a more efficient agriculture. Being: emission of greenhouse gases, excess of nitrogen fertilization, and biodiversity loss. But we will only succeed in doing so, says Johan Sanders, if we treat these jointly: above all, we
Circular agriculture, the model of the future
In September 2018, the Dutch minister for agriculture Carola Schouten announced that circular agriculture will become her main policy goal. Circular agriculture, also known as low external input farming, is the model of the future. The minister intends to remove obstacles to it, and to stimulate this model all across the country. An old principle
Insects are in decline, around the world. How worried should we be?
Widely reported studies this year and last led to headlines globally of an ‘insect Armageddon.’ The real story of insects is more nuanced — but probably just as unsettling. This article was originally published on the site of Ensia. When Susan Weller travelled to Ecuador to study tiger moths in the 1980s, she found plenty
Biohydrogen: the next green alternative fuel
Hydrogen has a high energy content (120-142.9 MJ/kg); it is a clean energy carrier and can replace fossil fuels. Hydrogen is already a fuel of choice for space programs; it guarantees environmental quality and mitigates climate change. However, the presently used commercial methods for its production are not environmentally friendly; they require a major energy
Engineering life will require responsibility and control
The quest for engineering life is an infinite ‘marketplace’ for science, commerce and society. They are the very stakeholders that will have to decide on the rules of the game: responsibility and control. An almost impossible task, but one that we will have to face squarely. The answers will determine our future. This is the
Do not avoid risks, but contain them
Brexit and The Wall not only generate news. These issues also provide for interesting comments that ultimately can apply to other, or much broader, areas like the bio-economy. Where continuous development is hampered by risk aversion, learning to identify and manage risks better is a necessity. I read a striking comment by CNN’s Chris Cillizza
on: 21 February 2019