Ribosomes are miniature factories of life. A detailed understanding of their mechanical mastery lays the foundations for all manner of applications – from manufacturing vaccines to developing new antibiotics. This is why Prof. Christian Spahn, a biophysicist at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, wants to see these nanofactories in action. And that’s no mean feat: it requires ultra-cold temperatures and a four-meter-tall microscope that has to be handled as carefully as a raw egg. However, it will enable him to observe ribosomes at higher temporal resolution than ever before. Spahn’s project has now secured an ERC Advanced Grant – one of Europe’s most prestigious research funding awards.

An international collaboration of conservation, environment, and human development experts and practitioners led by the United Nations Development Program’s Human Development Report Office (UNDP-HDRO) proposes a new way for countries to measure and improve their relationships with nature and each other.