Researchers from Hong Kong, Chengdu, Beijing and Tokyo recently reported a functional link between diabetes and cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis occurs when mutations in the CFTR gene hamper the function of the Cystic Fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator. This leads to a “tough mucus” secretion in the lungs, and its most acute symptoms are therefore shortness of breath. Indigestion is also …
University of Groningen enhances collaboration with BUCT
On 8th August, a delegation from University of Groningen (RUG), led by RUG president Prof. Sibrand Poppema, visited the Beijing University of Chemical Technology (BUCT). Prof. Folkert Kuipers, head of Medical School and vice president of University Medical Centre, Ms. Xuefei-Knoester Cao, Senior Policy Advisor and Director of Groningen Confucius Institute joined the delegation to discuss collaboration possibilities with BUCT. …
China announces 9 pilot Smart Cities
The National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation (NASG, formerly known as SBSM) yesterday announced a Smart City pilot program with nine cities throughout China. The nine cities mentioned are Taiyuan, Guangzhou, Xuzhou, Wuxi, Linyi, Zibo, Zhengzhou, Henan, Chongqing, and Huhan. Li Weisen, deputy director of NASG believes that “the first nine cities are expected to finish Smart City construction …
Chinese Government Invested 200 million RMB in Setting up 3D Printing Research Institute
The 3D Printing Research Institute of China was launched on August 8th 2013 at Zijin Hightech Zone of the Nanjing city, Jiangsu Province. The Institute is planned to carry out applied 3D printing research and seek for opportunities for its commercialization and industrialization. The Institute will combine forces of some best Chinese 3D printing research teams from Tsinghua University, Xian …
Big Data Summit in Beijing
Last Friday (June 14) NOST went to the 2013 Innovation Summit on Big Data, which was held at the Beijing International Convention Center. When datasets become too large to be stored and analyzed by traditional database-management tools and software, these datasets and the technologies surrounding them are nowadays referred to as ‘Big Data’. The topic attracted quite a crowd, but …
Dutch Innovators in Science & Technology 2013
Last Friday evening 8 speakers gave outstanding performances at the Dutch Innovators in Science & Technology (DIST2013) event in Shanghai. The evening was excellently moderated by Professor Mark Greeven of Zhejiang University. If you couldn’t be there on Friday, this is what you missed out on: Levien de Legé, ECN. ‘Real cheap solar energy’ Sander van Deventer, uniQure / Forbion. …
World’s cleanest, most efficient, lightweight, and lowest cost internal combustion engine
Zhongding Power and EcoMotors yesterday announced a commercial agreement to produce the opoc® engine, a breakthrough technology that has the potential to be the world’s cleanest, most efficient, lightweight, and lowest cost internal combustion engine. One of the largest automotive component conglomerates in China, Zhongding will finance and construct the first opoc® plant in the Anhui Province. The plant represents …
3D printing challenges China’s manufacturing industry
An article in Caijing magazine on 3D printing starts with a rather strong quote: “The pressure on the 3D printing industry in China comes primarily from a lack of high-end generic technologies. The root cause is domestic enterprises’ weak R&D capabilities.” According to the reporters of Caijing, the industrialization of 3D printing seems to be budding in Jiangsu and Zhejiang …
China’s top 10 science and technology progress of 2012
Reported by Xinhua News last weekend, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering unveiled the following top ten science and technology progress of China for the year 2012 . Three Chinese astronauts on June 24 successfully completed a manual docking between the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft and the orbiting Tiangong-1 lab module, the first such attempt in China’s history of …
FOM DIFFER renews collaboration agreements in China
Last week, the NWO Institute for Fundamental Energy Research (FOM-DIFFER) visited several research partners in China to discuss research collaboration in the field of fusion energy and solar fuels. During the visit to Hefei, FOM DIFFER renewed its cooperation agreement with the CAS Institute of Plasma Physics (ASIPP) and the University of Science and Technology (USTC). The scientific cooperation between …