Explore life – shape the future

Outside the two specialist areas “biotechnology and medicine”, related topics are also dealt with under the core theme. This would include, for example, health, nutrition, agriculture or environmental protection, i.e. topics that impact on everyday life of each individual. These areas of research are highly dynamic. They often correlate with society, the economy and politics.

New products, methods and processes

The “health market” is huge – new products and processes are constantly being developed. In anti-ageing medicine, for instance, these are medications, food supplements or medical interventions. New techniques are producing new findings, as in the case of in-vitro fertilisation or ultrasound scanning. The use of imaging techniques to examine the brain provides a more detailed view of how it works.

Knowledge in the system of social values

Researchers are always creating new knowledge; this leads to new possibilities. In what way research should be restricted depends on a basic understanding of ethics, the system of social values and personal attitudes. A binding legal standard can often only be established by political means, as was the case, for example, with research on embryonic stem cells. A popular vote was held on this.

Focus

TA-SWISS tackles controversial topics in its projects, and with selected medical and biotechnical topics promotes the forming of opinion by presenting them in as balanced a way as possible.