Research*EU Magazine | Number 15 (September 2012)

Africa: international cooperation, research for development and the digital divide

Summary:

The special feature in this issue of Research*EU results magazine focuses on ‘Africa: international cooperation, research for development and the digital divide’. The ‘environment and society’ section features many examples of research for development and research in Africa, starting with ‘How trees can help poor farmers’. This is an interview with Graciela M. Rusch, Senior Research Scientist at the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA) and coordinator of the Funcitree project, which is studying ‘Agro-forestry systems’ and the factors affecting or preventing their adoption in two sub-Saharan sites, in Mali and Senegal.

The ‘biology and medicine’ section also starts with an article on research relevant to development in Africa. ‘New nomenclature for Biomphalaria species in Lake Victoria?’, reports on a project that investigated the water snails in Africa’s Lake Victoria that act as an intermediate host for the human parasite responsible for schistosomiasis. Understanding the types of snail species present in the lake may help prevent the spread of this disease.

The ‘energy and transport’ section starts with the article ‘Sounding out bubbles in pipes’. The story focuses on how European researchers helped find a new method of measuring gas bubbles in pipelines, enabling workers to avoid bubble ‘blow-outs’ like the one that took place in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.

Contents:

Digital Economy

Industrial Technologies

Energy

Health

Climate Change and Environment

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