Archive – Science

Switzerland presents its wares at Shanghai Expo

This content was published on Apr 29, 2010 Mountains and landscape are a big theme. But the stands belonging to Switzerland and the cities of Basel, Geneva and Zurich are hoping to go beyond Heidiland and the typical Swiss clichés. The Swiss Pavilion certainly cuts a dash. It’s a huge raw concrete building, covered with a lattice work of thousands of LED cells.…

Deadline looms for dog owners to take courses

This content was published on Apr 29, 2010 The transition period for the animal protection law passed two years ago is coming to an end. Since September 2008, all first-time dog owners have had to take a written and practical course on the basics of dog ownership. Those who purchased their dogs between September 1, 2008 and August 31, 2009 were given a…

More permits released for foreign workers

This content was published on Apr 28, 2010 An extra 5,500 work permits are to be made available to workers coming from countries outside the European Union and the European Free Trade Association in the second half of 2010, the Migration Office announced on Wednesday. Acting on fears of rising unemployment, the government in December 2009 halved the number of so-called B and…

Yearly report to replace census every decade

This content was published on Apr 28, 2010 The Federal Statistics Office said on its website on Wednesday that information not included in these registers will be collected by random sampling among the population. Depending on the type of information required, up to 200,000 people will be contacted by phone or by post. The first random sample will be taken on December 31.…

SBC to use polls again after minaret debacle

This content was published on Apr 24, 2010 SRG SSR idée suisse, swissinfo.ch’s parent company, and the polling institute gfs.bern said they would take special precautions to avoid the massive miscalculations that predicted a ban on the construction of new minarets would fail by 53 per cent. Instead, the referendum passed in November 2009 with 57 per cent of the vote. An external…

Swiss fall short of ambitious biodiversity goal

This content was published on Apr 23, 2010 Dashing Swiss hopes of a turnaround by this year is a research project led by the Swiss Biodiversity Forum and involving more than 80 scientists and specialists in the field. The main conclusion: biodiversity continues to be under threat and diminishing in Switzerland. Switzerland was one of several European nations to make the commitment at…

Wind and rain to push ash cloud away

This content was published on Apr 20, 2010 “The eruption should no longer present a problem for airlines,” Herbert Puempel, head of the aeronautical meteorology division, said. “From a meteorological perspective, all indications are very positive regarding the second part of the week.” The Federal Civil Aviation Office confirmed on Tuesday evening that the cloud no longer posed a threat after studying some…

Volcano leaves stranded passengers fuming

This content was published on Apr 19, 2010 Others meander, contemplating how they will get home. For a few it’s an opportunity to snap photos of the video screens reminding them they won’t be going anywhere. Switzerland’s busiest airport has been closed since Saturday. In some parts of the country the faint haze of volcanic ash is visible. If the people waiting at…

The world’s greenest football stadium

This content was published on Apr 19, 2010 Opened in 2005, its solar panels cover a total of 12,000 square metres. Although it has since been overtaken in size by Taiwan’s World Games stadium, in 2009, it still produces more power than any other. Around 20,000 people usually descend on the Stade de Suisse for the matches of the capital city’s local team,…

Swiss lasers map volcanic ash cloud

This content was published on Apr 19, 2010 Bertrand Calpini and his team at the MeteoSwiss Aerological Station in Payerne have been using the innovative Light Detection and Ranging (Lidar) weather measurement system to map the ash cloud over Switzerland. The Federal Civil Aviation Office said on Monday morning that the cloud, which arose following the eruption of a volcano in Iceland on…

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