Science

At sunrise, deep in Ghana’s tropical forest, a camera 40 metres above ground wakes up. It captures a treetop bursting into bloom, or not... A small detail in a vast green landscape, but one that holds a crucial clue to understanding how our climate is changing.

What if medical imaging could be done not lying down, but standing up? For women with pelvic floor disorders, this is no longer science fiction. At University of Twente, Anique Bellos-Grob is working on innovative solutions that make healthcare more accessible and effective for women. Using upright MRI and 4D ultrasound, she is mapping the dynamics of the female body like never before.

Francesca Toso, Assistant Professor in Human-Centred Design within the HCD Group at the University of Twente, is investigating whether technology can support people with dementia and their loved ones in coming to terms with the diagnosis, preparing for death, and dealing with bereavement. The University’s Technical Medical Centre (TechMed Centre) plays a key facilitating role in her research.

What do billiard balls and Newton’s laws have in common? Quite a lot. Gijs Frijters, an Applied Physics student at the University of Twente, and his classmates studied force, motion, and rotation using a pool table. Gijs shares, “To some extent, studying Physics does change how I look at everyday things.”

The energy transition requires action. Not just from policymakers or engineers, but precisely from the people who have to do it: the installation engineers, work planners and technicians. They are the key to change. But how do you give them space to learn the necessary skills as well as to innovate?