University of Twente

𝐇𝐞𝐭 𝐓𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐣𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐃𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫

Wim T. Schippers, artist, television maker and cultural provocateur, passed away last week at the age of 83.

Many will know him as the voice of Ernie and Kermit the Frog in Sesamstraat. Others from his absurdist VPRO programmes, or the peanut butter floor. But at the University of Twente, we know him for something else: het Torentje van Drienerlo.

Since 1979, a church spire has been sticking out just above the surface of the pond in front of the Vrijhof Schippers predicted what would happen at its unveiling: "At first there will be resistance and people will complain about the cost. But if I were to tear it down a year from now, they would stop me, because they had grown used to it." He was right.

The tower has outlasted the controversy, the complaints and the kale, his original proposal was to dump a truckload of it into the pond, which the university politely declined. What remained is a quiet, stubborn, slightly absurd piece of campus life. Exactly as he intended.

Rust zacht, Wim

📷 Marcel Douwe Dekker

⚽ Yesterday, the FIFA World Cup officially started. And that means thousands of screaming and jumping fans in arenas all over the three host countries.

If you've ever been in such an arena, you may have noticed the vibrations or even swaying of the venue as people start to jump. But how much of these forces can a stadium actually hold? And when does it become unsafe? Professor Roland Kromanis, part of the Construction Management and Engineering Department, gladly explains! 👇

🇬🇧 https://ut.onl/gfffevf
🇳🇱 https://ut.onl/rfbf7p2

World Cup questions: can a stadium collapse from jumping fans? - Stories You are surrounded by 80,000 jumping and chanting fans in New York New Jersey Stadium. Whole sections of the grandstand are swaying in rhythm with the crowd. For some spectators, that movement is thrilling, for others it is unsettling, but the question is: how safe is it? “Such motion is generally...

🤩 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗠𝗲𝗱 𝗠𝗮𝗴𝗮𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲: 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘄!

How can biosensor chips help detect cervical cancer? How can we better understand symptoms of the menopause by tracking hormone levels? And what is the best way for upcoming surgeons to train their surgical skills?

At our TechMed Centre, researchers, medical experts and students work together to answer questions like these: from groundbreaking medical innovation projects to collaboration initiatives with local hospitals to improve day-to-day care.

In this edition of the TechMed Magazine, you'll discover the stories, achievements and impact of our research, bringing the future of healthcare closer.

Read it here 👉 https://magsite.nl/6334795/

Over the past few years, AI has brought about significant changes in academia and research. On the one hand, AI tools can help conduct research more efficiently, but simultaneously, they raise important questions about neutrality, responsibility and authorship: what does it mean to use AI in an ethical way? 🤔

That question is specifically what Maren Behrensen, assistant professor of philosophy, is working on. "The consequences of AI go way further than just what happens when you use a tool. The AI footprint starts with all other choices that have been made before you even open your laptop, from data training, data centres and accountability policies."

Want to read more about the ethics of AI in research? Find the full article via the link below. 👇

🇬🇧 https://ut.onl/9xumvdw
🇳🇱 https://ut.onl/lr9e70w

What ethical AI in research really means - Stories As AI tools become inseparable from student essays, scientific writing, and data analysis, universities across the globe are scrambling to decide what counts as “ethical use.” Some draw the line at letting tools such as ChatGPT write for you; others simply ask that you be transparent and honest.

Last week, we shared how current students experience studying at UT. But that's not where your university experience stops!

When you're in the middle of your studies, it's not always clear what certain skills or experiences will mean later on in your career. Usually, that comes with time.

That's why we're happy that the National Alumni Survey 2025 shows that most UT graduates look back positively on their studies. They tend to find work quickly after graduation, value the skills they developed and consider their education as a good foundation for what came after. A great illustration of what our education can mean even after obtaining a degree! 🙏

Want to read more about the results from the survey? Read the full article on our website. 👇
https://ut.onl/gwzteat

Alumni Universiteit Twente

Hoe was het om aan de UT te studeren, zo'n 33 jaar geleden? In de jaren negentig kwam het televisieprogramma TV Nomaden naar onze campus om het studentenleven in Enschede vast te leggen: van de labs bij Technische Natuurkunde en campusflat Huize Alcatraz tot studentenhuis Huize 't Pott en studentenvereniging Cheiron. Deze aflevering is online te bekijken via de Schatkamer van Beeld & Geluid.

Enjoy the trip down memory lane! 🤩

TV-NOMADEN - Geen afleveringstitel | De Schatkamer Deze aflevering is geheel gewijd aan studeren in Enschede. Met:

E-bikes: step outside at any random street in the Netherlands, and you will see them everywhere. Great, one may think; those people now biking may have otherwise taken the car. However, although this seems to be true for countries in which cycling is not a part of daily life, for a bike-centred country like the Netherlands, e-bikes can greatly reduce fitness levels when they replace the traditional bike.

So, how (un)healthy are e-bikes really? And how do we measure these health benefits? That's exactly what movement scientist Jasper Reenalda and biomedical engineer Erik Maartens are working on. In the article below, they explain how and when electric biking is beneficial, and what the future of biking may look like. 👇

🇬🇧 https://ut.onl/i9qcdpu
🇳🇱 https://ut.onl/vrlmusw

How healthy is an e-bike? - Stories Electric bikes have made cycling easier. You are still outside. Your legs are still moving. But how healthy is riding an e-bike really? The answer is more nuanced than you might think.

𝐕𝐚𝐧 𝐤𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐣𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐭 𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐧 𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐝𝐚𝐠𝐣𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐢𝐭!

Kay uit groep 8 van CBS De Haven in Doetinchem had een probleem: het lampje dat aangaf of het toilet bezet was, lag kapot op de grond. Zijn reactie? "Daar moet ik iets op verzinnen. Iets wat technisch is en niet iets wat je voor twee euro bij de Action haalt.” Wat volgde was een zelfgebouwd systeem met batterij, moederboard en rode en groene kabels, en een foto van zijn directeur die viral ging met bijna 1800 likes. Het bedrijfsleven stond in de rij. En wij ook!

Onze collega's Thomas Hoen en Cora Salm stuurden Kay een doos met nieuwe onderdelen en nodigden zijn hele klas uit om langs te komen op de UT. Gisteren was het zover. 40 leerlingen kwamen naar het LEARN-X DesignLab voor een ochtend vol electrical engineering activiteiten van ons Pre-University programma zoals;

• Een batterij maken van een aardappel
• Een schakelaar in elkaar zetten
• De Van der Graaff-generator in actie zien
• Met VR door een chip reizen

Want nieuwsgierigheid zoals die van Kay mag je nooit afremmen. Die moet je juist voeden.

Wil jij dit ook een keer met jouw klas doen? Bekijk hier het aanbod van Pre-U Junior / University of Twente voor basisschool klassen: https://www.utwente.nl/onderwijs/pre-university/pre-u-junior/met-de-klas/

DesignLab UTwente