Delta on holiday

What is a vacation without any good reads? Surely we wouldn’t leave you hanging? We have selected  some of our most read, enjoyable and impactful articles from the past six months.



Interviews

One on one conversations are a great way for people to reflect on past events and share their ideas on tough topics or decisions. These are our two favourites of last year.

• Rector: ‘Code of Conduct will foster discussion’
  
  The new TU Delft Code of Conduct is designed to help staff and students solve problems and dilemmas. What lessons does Rector Magnificus Tim van der Hagen take from it?
• Exhibiting photographer Sam Rentmeester: ‘Simple is often better’
  
  Sam Rentmeester has been taking photographs for Delta for 25 years. Prinsenkwartier is now exhibiting his best photos. A chat about a drenched professor and an architect’s toes.

^{One of Sam Rentmeester’s iconic photos: a horse show during the Lustrum of Delftsch Studenten Corps (2008).}

Articles that sparked debate

Our platform is open to well written and well argued opinion pieces by students and employees. Some write regularly, some as a one-off response to developments. These were the most impactful columns and opinion articles.

• [Column] Client model
  
  Menno Blaauw believes that it is illogical for students to assess the quality of education. After all, they are not clients of TU Delft.
• [Brief] Stop het marktdenken
  
  In response to Blaauw’s column, research fellow Martijn Lugten and TU Delft alumnus Bram Peerlings both wrote letters. (Dutch only)
• [Opinion] TU Delft needs to step up its game

According to master student Marco Delgado Schwartz, it’s not summer resits but poor organisation, quality and care that regularly cause frustration for students at TU Delft.

How corona at TU Delft triggered the racism debate

A month before the corona measures put the Netherlands in an intelligent lockdown, we spoke to Chinese students who were subject to discrimination. They called for action and urged their fellow students to speak up. 

• Chinese students in Delft want to combat discrimination
  
  The Chinese students’ association wants the TU Delft community to know why the Chinese sometimes wear masks. “Misunderstandings may lead to discrimination.”
• Asian students in Delft: ‘Asians, speak up!’
  
  A group of Asian students at TU Delft is using design to raise awareness on masks as protection against the coronavirus. They are also urging Asians to speak up.

^{(Photo: Yujie Shan)}

PhDs and postdocs are struggling

With just a small percentage obtaining their doctorates within four years, being a PhD at TU Delft seems to be difficult. Delta investigated the topic and shared the personal stories of PhDs and postdocs who are struggling with career prospects, stress and doing research during these challenging times.

• Why PhDs are not obtaining their doctorates on time
  
  They may be required to obtain their doctorates within four years, but not even 5% of PhDs at TU Delft manage this. Why?
• ‘Raise the visibility of postdoctoral researchers’
  
  Postdocs at Dutch universities struggle with uncertain career prospects, stress and depression. Alarmed researchers argue for better guidance and real job profiles.

^{Vibhas Mishra was stuck at his parents-in-law in India.}

• Doing a PhD during corona: doing research at your parents-in-law’s house
  
  Doctoral candidates and postdocs are raising the alarm because their research is being delayed by the corona crisis. These are some of the problems they are facing.
• Postdocs and doctoral candidates warn about delays
  
  TU Delft postdocs and doctoral candidates are getting into difficulties. The corona measures are causing delays which they say they cannot always make up.

Get a head start on the coming academic year

Already dreading the start of the 2020/2021 academic year? We got you covered with tips to combat your digital distraction and housing scammers.

• Start-up Unpluq wants to beat smartphone addiction
  
  In search of some focus? To combat smartphone addiction, TU Delft students Tim Smits (25) and Jorn Rigter (25) developed Unpluq, a physical barrier to digital distraction.
• New high profile housing scam affects TU Delft students
  
  New to Delft? Beware of housing scammers trying to steal your money. At the end of 2019 a new scam was doing the rounds in Delft. This time starring a landlord that actually hands out sets of keys.

Community

News, backgrounds or just a fun story. The TU Delft community consists of thousands of students, employees and alumni that have amazing stories to tell.

• [All in the family] Vuik’s five
  
  In the captivating series ‘All in the family’ we spoke to grandparents, parents, grand children and children who all studied at TU Delft. About then and now, about lectures in freezing classrooms and watching lectures online.

^{The Vuik family, from left to right: Dies, Nelleke, father Kees, Adriaan and Thea. (Photo: Sam Rentmeester)}

• TU Delft alumni go viral with their ‘burgerpuntentest’
  
  Where does your guest sleep? Do you have a Christmas decorations box? Two questions that two TU Delft alumni say something about how ordinary you are. The Delta office is averaging around 130 …
• Oldest TU building sold, Science Centre will move
  
  The oldest building owned by TU Delft has been sold. The striking Mining Engineering will become engineering company Royal HaskoningDHV’s office. The company wants to make the building the most sustainable national monument in the country.

Science

It’s not just great inventions that make up our science section. We also regularly ask TU Delft researchers to comment on pressing issues at play in society.

^{Haakse Zeedijk in cross section. (Illustration: Sija van den Beukel)}

• 5G: Who is reading over your shoulder?
  
  With several transmission masts being targeted by arsonists, Delta wondered: should you be worried about the new 5G network’s privacy and security? We discussed this issue with Professor of Cyber Security Michel van Eeten.
• TU Delft and US scientists discover ‘hallmark of coexistence’
  
  Biologists have wondered for centuries what it is that prevents extinctions in a competitive world. Now scholars have found that it involves a doughnut shape and a scorched earth strategy.
• Do we need a second coastline?
  
  ‘If we look three centuries ahead, the period in which the average temperature may not drop, we must be prepared for a five to perhaps eight metre rise in sea level’. The rise in sea level necessitates the building of an additional dam off the coast, say the inventors of the Haakse Zeedijk. What do they think about this at CiTG?

How corona affected TU Delft.

During the outbreak of the coronavirus Delta updated staff and students through a liveblog. All updates and links to corona related articles can be found here.

^{(Photo: Marjolein van der Veldt)}

• The Delta office is closed from Monday 20 July to Friday 14 August. From Friday 14 August we will provide you with the latest news on science, education and campus life at TU Delft, starting with the OWee.