Mutations in the genome of an organism give rise to variations in its form and function—its phenotype. However, phenotypic variations can also arise in other ways. The random collisions of molecules constituting an organism—including its DNA and the proteins that transcribe the DNA to RNA—result…
By Microsoft Research Human-engineered systems, from ancient irrigation networks to modern semiconductor circuitry, rely on spatial organization to guide the flow of materials and information. Living cells also use spatial organization to control and accelerate the transmission of molecular signals, for example by co-localizing the…
By Jim Pinkelman, Senior Director, Microsoft Research Since 2004, the Microsoft Research PhD Scholarship Programme in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) has supported groundbreaking PhD projects. This year we have 17 projects that span six countries, and include research areas such as computational biology,…
By Scarlet Schwiderski-Grosche, Senior Research Program Manager Pivoting from the Old World charm of High Tea to contemplating a dystopian AI-dominated future was among the many experiences facing more than 80 doctoral students at the PhD Summer School, held July 4–8 in Cambridge, England. Each year…
By Daron Green, Deputy Director, Microsoft Research Shellfish farmer Bill Dewey remembers the first year he heard of ocean acidification, a phrase that means a change in chemistry for ocean water. It was around 2008, and Dewey worked for Taylor Shellfish, a company that farms oysters…
While we know that climate change will likely affect every aspect of the food system—from our ability to grow food, to the reliability of food transportation and food safety, to the dynamics of international trade in agricultural goods—we don’t yet know how to anticipate and…
Posted by Rob Knies People love to watch animals. That’s why zoos exist. That’s why photographic safaris command princely sums. That’s why cat videos have become an unstoppable force. Lucas Joppa loves to watch animals, too, but his motivation includes an additional dimension. A scientist…
Springtime in Paris this year sees the Association for Computing Machinery’s 31st Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI) in full swing from April 27 through May 2, welcoming experts and students from more than 60 countries. A large contingent of researchers from Microsoft…
By Douglas Gantenbein, Senior Writer, Microsoft News Center Pioneering research into programming biology has earned a Microsoft Research scientist a prestigious TR35 award, presented by Technology Review. Andrew Phillips, a 34-year-old scientist who leads the Biological Computation group at Microsoft Research Cambridge, received the award,…
By Suzanne Ross, Writer, Microsoft Research If you want to go to another country, it would behoove you to learn the language of the land. Luca Cardelli, an Italian researcher working in England, knows this lesson well. He wants to help scientists travel to an…
