Latest Technische Universität München Stories
Michael Harper for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online It’s easy enough to simply recognize that something smells like a strawberry, but it’s much more difficult to understand why something smells that way. Scientists from the Technische Universität München (TUM) set out to get to the bottom of the strawberry smell in order to understand a little more about scents and how our brains understand which scent and taste belong to which foods. Though many people might describe a...
Technische Universität München Can an electric vehicle be extremely light and safe at the same time? Researchers working on the Visio.M project aim to show that the answer is yes. Scientists as well engineers from Germany’s leading technology companies have teamed up to develop a Visionary Mobility concept car to meet tomorrow’s electromobility needs. They have chosen a sturdy monocoque body, state-of-the-art carbon fiber materials and a lightweight engine and transmission system. A...
Technische Universität München Researchers from Technische Universität München (TUM) have developed a new generation of image sensors that are more sensitive to light than the conventional silicon versions, with the added bonus of being simple and cheap to produce. They consist of electrically conductive plastics, which are sprayed on to the sensor surface in an ultra-thin layer. The chemical composition of the polymer spray coating can be altered so that even the invisible range of...
Researchers explain 'hydration repulsion' between biomembranes Biomembranes enclose biological cells like a skin. They also surround organelles that carry out important functions in metabolism and cell division. Scientists have long known in principle how biomembranes are built up, and also that water molecules play a role in maintaining the optimal distance between neighboring membranes—otherwise they could not fulfill their vital functions. Now, with the help of computer simulations,...
Macrophages play a key role in the immune response, protecting organisms against infection and regulating the development of inflammation in tissue. Macrophages differ depending on where they are located and which tasks they perform. A scientist at TUM has been investigating whether these different types of cells have the same origin – and has come up with some surprising results. His findings reveal that there are two distinct macrophage cell lines that continue into adult life and that...
Simulator computes evacuation scenarios for major events Predicting how large numbers of visitors to major events will behave is difficult, even using evidence based on past experience. To prevent disasters, however, the police, rescue services and event organizers have to be able to identify dangerous bottlenecks, hidden obstacles and unexpected escape routes in advance. A research group with engineers and computer scientists at Technische Universität München (TUM) has developed a...
Is obesity in infants “programmed” in the womb? Previously, researchers assumed that consumption of “bad” fats during pregnancy contribute to excessive infant adipose tissue growth and that “good” Omega 3 fatty acids prevent expansive adipose tissue development. An intervention study run by the Technische Universität München (TUM) showed no evidence to support this “perinatal programming” theory. Expectant mothers increased their intake of Omega 3 fatty acids with fish oil...
The protein p53 plays an essential role in the prevention of cancer by initiating the controlled death of a cell with damaged genes which is in danger to transform into a cancerous cell. The heat shock protein Hsp90, in turn, activates and stabilizes p53. Now scientists of the Technische Universität München (TUM) have discovered both the site where the two proteins interact and the interaction mechanism. The results of their work are reported in the current edition of the publication Nature...
