Recharge overview
Fatigue and brain fog due to long COVID: what’s going wrong in the brain?
Tired, a foggy brain, and difficulty concentrating. Although the pandemic is now officially over, you might have noticed that some people suffer long-term from COVID. Long COVID is common, and although people usually first have flu and cold symptoms during a COVID infection, long COVID patients mainly have psychological complaints. So it appears that something goes wrong in the brain. What is actually known about this? It seems that not the virus itself, but – surprisingly enough – our own immune system is mainly responsible for this.
What climate policy can learn from the moon mission
Tijdens de Koude Oorlog leidde een culturele strijd tot een opmerkelijke technologische prestatie: het neerzetten van mensen op de maan. Kunnen de huidige spanningen tussen landen ook leiden tot een andere opmerkelijke prestatie: de energietransitie? En hoe overbrug je cultuurverschillen als je wel moet samenwerken om dat te bereiken?
8.8 million euros for drug repurposing for rare disorders
The SIMPATHIC Consortium, led by the Dutch Radboud University Medical Center and Amsterdam UMC, has developed a new approach to expedite the use of existing drugs for groups of patients with rare neurological disorders. The consortium has been awarded an 8.8 million euros grant from the Horizon Europe program to further develop this innovative method.
More complications when pregnant within three months of discontinuing oral contraceptives
Among women who become pregnant within three months of discontinuing oral contraceptives, preeclampsia and preterm birth are more common. The occurrence of these complications also depends on the type of contraceptive pill used, demonstrates a study conducted by the Radboud university medical center including over 7,000 pregnancies.
Neighbourhood conflicts from the VOC era give Sri Lankans a voice
De Verenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie (VOC) maakte in de achttiende eeuw gebruik van een uitgebreid registratieproces van land, personen en arbeidsdiensten in Sri Lanka. Historicus Luc Bulten ontdekte in zijn promotieonderzoek aan de Radboud Universiteit dat de registers niet alleen werden ingezet door de VOC, maar dat de geregistreerden ze ook in hun eigen voordeel liet werken, bijvoorbeeld in burenruzies. ‘De registers geven inzicht in hoe de Sri Lankaanse bevolking leefde en omging met een koloniaal bewind.’
People are open to algorithms (if they benefit from them)
Algorithms will inevitably play an increasing role in our lives in the coming years. Yet it is often suggested that people are wary of computer systems taking over their everyday choices. For example, do we trust computers with our health and money? A new publication in AI & Society by Radboud University researchers shows that humans are quite open to algorithms’ decisions, as long as we believe that this is to our benefit.
Growing cells on synthetic PIC gel could save millions of mice
The synthetic PIC gel, discovered in 2013 by Radboud University chemists, appears to behave like collagen. This makes the gel very useful for studying interactions between cells and their immediate environment. In practice, this means that the gel seems highly suitable to grow cells in for biological and clinical research. An additional advantage is that unlike the gels commonly used for cell culture, this gel requires no breeding and killing of mice.
Living on autopilot: the role of dopamine
Do you ever Google a healthful diet for your cat but end up scrolling through pet meme videos? You unintentionally do this because your attention is distracted by the pet videos that make you happy. Humans are attracted to rewarding cues in the environment, like memes, deviating from the actions we were actually planning to do. This is a hardwired bias that shapes our behavior automatically.
How emojis can make us better humans
It’s happened to the best of us: you are running late to a doctor’s appointment, so you drive 60 km/h in a 50 zone. You pass a speed camera and a 🙁 appears. Immediately, you slow down and start to feel bad about having broken the rules. How can a simple drawing cause such strong emotions?
Who wants to live forever?
We all face the fact that, sooner or later, we grow old. Despite our attempts to trick time, aging is part of life. There are nevertheless some animals that can delay or escape the passage of time.
Creating maps of the human brain: brain atlases
An atlas is a collection of maps, often containing different kinds of information about countries, continents, and the world. Would it be possible to create an atlas for the brain? This is not a completely new idea: already over 100 years ago, Korbinian Brodmann created the first map of the brain based on patterns of cells. In the same way you can find atlases of the earth showing different heights, vegetation, roads and connections, so too are researchers now trying to map brain structures, types of cells, and connections across the brain.
Allow asylum seekers to work immediately upon arrival
Oekraïners laten zien hoe belangrijk het is dat migranten meteen aan de slag mogen gaan, betogen Tesseltje de Lange, hoogleraar migratierecht aan de Radboud Universiteit, en sociaal ondernemer Raphaël Nouwen.
The history of the Dutch Heidemaatschappij in times of war and crisis
The Nederlandsche Heidemaatschappij (NHM, the predecessor of the KNHM Foundation and Arcadis) was the main private employment contractor in the Netherlands and supervised the employment of Jews from Jewish labour camps during the Second World War. This was the conclusion drawn by historian Lennert Savenije in his book Werk in Uitvoering ('Work in Progress'), which focuses on the history of the NHM in times of crisis and war.
Gender and power research: as relevant as ever
Last Fall, the Hot Spot Gender and Power in Politics and Management, an interdisciplinary group of researchers, celebrated its tenth anniversary. Although there is a lot from the past to celebrate, the present and future pose new challenges to the researchers. ‘There is still a lot of work to be done.’
Climate goals have strong philosophical foundations in liberalism
Climate change: according to Professor of Political Theory Marcel Wissenburg and Political Science alumnus and Member of Parliament Silvio Erkens, in particular climate change deniers and climate activists dominate the social debate. This is a shame, they think: the conversation should be about solutions and how we are going to implement them. They themselves are ambitious yet realistic when looking at climate and energy issues. And they find solutions that fit seamlessly into the tenets of liberalism, which can both strengthen the economy and make it more sustainable.
How multinationals can make a long-term impact
Inequality in the world is on the rise. Research shows that people have less and less equal opportunities in terms of access to health, education, and job opportunities. Ayse Saka-Helmhout, Professor of Comparative Management at the Department of Business Administration, studied what multinationals are doing to address these challenges and what factors play a role in achieving long-term social impact. For example, Saka–Helmhout analyzed the partnership between the city government of Buenos Aires and Randstad Argentina; since 2018 they have been working together to improve employability and labor inclusion for residents in Barrio Mugica. An example that underscores the importance of multistakeholder initiatives in achieving long-term social impact.
‘Universities need to connect with practitioners more’
Both are concerned with sustainability. One from science, the other from practice. What problems do they encounter? What common ground is there? And how can science and practice reinforce each other? ‘As a university, we need to go that extra mile.’
University and Dar find each other in circularity ideal
Researchers at Nijmegen School of Management often work together with organisations. For example, Associate Professor Sjors Witjes, who for years has had close contact with Bart de Bruin, the director of Dar. Together, they work on various circularity projects.
Gaming helps GP and triage operator quickly decide which help is necessary
Fast, accurate, and safe decisions by general practitioners and in the emergency room ensure that patients receive the right (emergency) care as quickly as possible. This allows for a more efficient throughput throughout the entire care chain. As of March 15, general practitioners and triage specialists (and those interested) can use Triagegame.nl (in Dutch) to improve this assessment and decision process (triage). The game will also be included in the national general practitioners training program. Triagegame.nl is an initiative of Boukje van Dijk of Radboudumc, has was developed in collaboration with general practitioners and triage specialists.
Praying helped during eighteenth-century disasters
Praying in a packed church for a whole day, singing psalms, and hearing thunderous sermons about your sinfulness was what eighteenth-century Dutch people did during a prayer day. Governments and churches organised these days after a disaster hit a community. Did these rituals have any use? According to historian Adriaan Duiveman, they did. On Tuesday 4 April, he will receive his doctorate from Radboud University. “Religion was not a sign of despair, but a form of collective resilience.”