News archive 2017

DKK 4.5 million for research into new rechargeable batteries

Associate Professor Dorthe Bomholdt Ravnsbæk from the Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy has received DKK 4,490,359 from the Carlsberg Foundation for the development of cheaper and more energy efficient batteries.

Murres serving research

SDU has started collaborating with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the USA on researching marine birds’ hearing. The goal is to spare marine birds the noise from navy vessels, among other things.

Return from the deepest parts of the Kermadec Trench in The Pacific Ocean

Scientists exploring the Kermadec Trench believe they have retrieved the deepest ever sediment sample from the bottom of the ocean using a wire-deployed corer. The sample was obtained a week ago at 9994m deep in a mission that took six hours to complete.

How does it look when Earth is bombarded with dark matter?

A whole lot of zig-zagging: Perhaps that is what happens when the universe’s mysterious dark matter particles hit the Earth. SDU researchers can now show through simulations how it might look.

Sebastian Hofferberth receives prestigious ERC Consolidator Grant

The speed limit of muscles

When birds sing their elaborate songs, bats echolocate, rattlesnakes rattle and toadfish hum they use so-called superfast muscles, the fastest vertebrate muscles known. New research shows that these muscles have reached a maximum speed attainable in any vertebrate muscle.

Male trout are now real males again

The media has been telling us about feminised male fish for decades, but now researchers at SDU announce that this feminisation has completely disappeared in certain parts of Denmark.

ATLAS has opened

In April 2017, Susanne Mandrup received a grant of DKK 65 million from the Danish National Research Foundation to establish a Centre of Excellence. The Centre officially opened on Monday 6 November with a symposium held in auditorium O100 at SDU.

Surprising monkey study: Bad times do not cause group members to change behavior

Researchers have observed an unexpected behavioral pattern in monkeys in Puerto Rico. As the population density in the group rises, the group as a whole produces fewer babies – this is no surprise. But, to the surprise of researchers, it turned out that the group's individual members did not change behavior. How does this add up?

The sea turtle that refused to be beaten by the storm

When Eleanor the sea turtle was caught in a tropical storm off the coast of Florida, she coped surprisingly well. In fact, she hardly needed to use any extra energy during the four days the storm raged - and neither was she injured. ​

When he calls, she can’t hear him

Tiny Brazilian frogs are deaf to their own calls.

700 years old saint myth has been proven (almost) true

Scientists confirm that the age and content of an old sack is in accordance with a medieval myth about Saint Francis of Assisi.

We are Nordic champions in physics and geoscience

SDU is at the very top when it comes to research in physics and geoscience in the Nordic countries, according to a new report that compares research performance of the Nordic universities.

Poisonings went hand in hand with the drinking water in Pompeii

The ancient Romans were famous for their advanced water supply. But the drinking water in the pipelines was probably poisoned on a scale that may have led to daily problems with vomiting, diarrhoea, and liver and kidney damage. This is the finding of analyses of water pipe from Pompeii.

Bird with super senses inspires researchers

Not much surprises the oilbird. Its senses are super sharp and when combined, may function in a way that can inspire researchers to construct better drones and more advanced technology.

Anyone for crispy jellyfish?

The world needs new foods, and we are gradually getting used to the idea of having to eat seaweed and insects. So jellyfish on our plates would not put us off. Right?

New invention could save the lives of many laboratory animals

Mice, rats, pigs and dogs are just some of the animals used for testing new drugs which could potentially become medicine. SDU researchers have invented a new method that could make many animal experiments redundant.

New discovery: Cormorants can hear under water

For the first time, researchers have shown that a marine birds can hear under water. This offers new possibilities for the protection of marine birds in trafficked waters.

Fat can neutralise listeria

Certain fatty acids are not just part of a healthy diet. They can also neutralise the harmful listeria bacterium, a new study shows. This discovery could eventually lead to improved methods to combat dangerous and drug-resistant bacteria.

New way to detect ecstasy discovered

While building molecular machines, researchers stumbled upon a new method to detect ecstasy. The discovery can lead to more reliable drug tests.

The key to long female lives may be heterogeneity

In sparrowhawks diversity in frailty and robustness helps females live longer

New centre of excellence in obesity

Professor Susanne Mandrup from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology receives DKK 65 million to establish a centre of excellence to investigate obesity at the cellular level.

Melting sea ice may lead to more life in the sea

Every year an increasing amount of sea ice is melting in the Arctic. This can start a chain reaction, which leads to increased production of algae and hence more food for creatures in the sea.

Newborn harbour porpoises have the fastest hearing development among mammals

All mammals can hear – but it is not an ability that is fully developed at birth. Some mammals like humans take years to fully develop their hearing abilities, but for a newborn harbour porpoise it takes less than 30 hours. This is the fastest in any studied mammal.

Did seaweed make us who we are today?

Millions of years ago something happened, allowing early Homo sapiens to branch out from the primitive hominoid family tree. Was this crucial turn in human evolution partly driven by seaweed and its particular content of essential nutrients?

This bay in Scandinavia holds world record in carbon storing

Forests are potent carbon sinks, but also the oceans’ seagrasses can store enormous amounts of carbon. A little bay in Denmark stores a record amount of carbon. Here is the secret.

Better the devil you know

Common terns stay with the same partner for life even though they have poor breeding success

Into the abyss

Deep sea expedition leaves to explore the bottom of one of the deepest places in the ocean: The Kermadec Trench.