Newsmakers at KTH

Professor writes a book about the climate

Nina Wormbs , Professor in the History of Technology, has been awarded a popular science grant by publishing company Natur & Kultur. As one of the recipients this year, she is going to write a book that looks at human development and our capacity to survive. In her book, Klimatsorg (Climate Sorrow), Wormbs combines her own research in the area with literature within environmental humanities. Her focus is on humans, our role, feelings, knowledge and responsibilities, in a world we have created without understanding the consequences.

Award winning thesis in robotics

Christos Verginis’ thesis on robotics has won the European PhD Award, that is awarded for the best doctoral thesis in Europe within “control of complex and heterogeneous systems”. Verginis, a postdoc researcher at the University of Austin, presented his thesis at KTH last spring.

Fewer work-related injuries with new concrete

Mikael Forsman , Professor in Ergonomics, is going to investigate risks of concrete casting related injuries to construction and concrete workers. In a field study, two different types of concrete, traditional and so-called self- consolidating concrete, will be compared. The researchers will investigate how these different types of concrete affect the physical load on worker and production costs with the aim of reducing the risk of work-related injuries, plus the socio-economic benefits. The research is being financed by insurance company AFA Försäkringar.

Electronics researchers rewarded for small sensors

Ana Rusu , Professor of Electronics and Embedded Systems, and Dagur Ingi Albertsson , a doctoral student in the same division, have won the 2020 Best Paper of the Year Award by T-NANO. In the paper, they propose a new system for sensing magnetic fields. The system is based on spintronic oscillators, nanoscale voltage controlled high frequency oscillators, that react to changes in a magnetic field.

Water researcher joins WaterAid

David Nilsson , Docent and Centre Director of the KTH WaterCentre, has been elected to the board of WaterAid Sweden. WaterAid is an international organisation whose vision is a world where everyone has access to clean water and sanitation. The organisation works in 27 countries today all round the world with aid and advocacy for lasting change on a massive scale. Nilsson has been working with water issues and global sustainable development for over 25 years.

Text: Christer Gummeson