Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-erc-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ERC : META_FUN (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Environmental B iology, Ecology  and E volution
Entité participante : Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine — Pays : Portugal — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : GIMM
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1476111.82 €

The metabolism of organisms affects the productivity of populations and communities. However, the relationship between organismal metabolism and species interactions has been scarcely explored. Hence, predicting the rates at which entire communities flux energy and resources remains difficult. My work shows that the metabolism of organisms measured in isolation does not reflect their performance in communities because species interactions alter how organisms uptake and expend resources. Understanding how such interactions affect metabolism is essential to estimate productivity and how it will change with biodiversity loss and global warming. I propose to use marine phytoplankton as a model laboratory system to determine how metabolic responses to competitors affect coexistence and community functioning. My goal is to connect metabolic theory, that studies physical constraints on the metabolism of organisms in isolation, with community ecology, that centres on species interactions and emergent community properties. Based on my preliminary data, I will map metabolic responses between species that compete for similar resources and test whether these responses stabilise coexistence. I will leverage developments in transcriptomics of non-model organisms to identify the metabolic pathways that underpin metabolic responses. From this basis, I will extend my analysis on larger temporal and biological scales – I will determine how warming modifies metabolic responses and community productivity and, finally, how metabolism evolves in communities. Altogether, this project will demonstrate how metabolic adjustments influence the diversity and functioning of communities. I will use a system that is ecologically important because phytoplankton support 50% of global oxygen production. These results will have broad implications for our understanding of biological systems because the metabolic impact of species interactions shapes the physiology and evolution of all organisms.

Mots-clés : community ecology,phytoplankton,metabolism,energy flux,competition,chemical cues,warming
Projet ERC : GeoCats (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Mathematics
Entité participante : Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Société Max Planck
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

The overarching goal of this project is to reveal and systematically study the geometry of important categories in homotopy theory, algebraic geometry, and representation theory. To this end, we will introduce and develop the framework of higher Zariski geometry in which commutative rings are replaced by ring-like categories as the fundamental objects. The resulting theory simultaneously generalizes modern algebraic geometry, derived algebraic geometry as studied by Lurie and Toën--Vezzosi, as well as Balmer's tensor triangular geometry, while introducing entirely new global objects and methods. In particular, it provides a canonical spectral decomposition of a large class of higher categories over their Balmer spectrum, which is then used to produce powerful new tools to tackle some of the most important conjectures in their respective fields: Firstly, we will construct a higher analogue of the étale topology and étale homotopy types for such categories, giving rise to refined computational tools via descent. This machinery will be applied to modular representation theory to give a complete description of the group of endotrivial modules for any finite group and any field, extending the celebrated work of Carlson--Thévenaz and completing a program that began about 50 years ago. Secondly, we will introduce a categorical analogue of the Beilinson--Parshin adèles, in particular bringing to bear techniques from the point-set topology of spectral spaces. Applications include significant progress on Greenlees' conjecture on algebraic models for G-equivariant cohomology for a general compact Lie group G, which has remained open for more than 20 years. Thirdly, building on our earlier work on higher ultraproducts, we will study compactifications of categories and plan to combine these with recent advances in arithmetic geometry to make progress on the rational part of Hopkins' chromatic splitting conjecture, one of the most important open problems in homotopy theory.

Mots-clés : tensor triangular geometry,balmer spectrum,higher algebra,derived algebraic geometry,picard spaces,chromatic splitting conjecture,rational g spectra
Projet ERC : PLANETOIDS (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Universe Sciences
Entité participante : Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Société Max Planck
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1447091.25 €

The major objective of the PLANETOIDS project is to profoundly advance our understanding of planet formation. Numerous discoveries of exoplanets in the last years proved that planet formation is a rule rather than an exception. At the same time, we made unprecedented progress in observations of the birthplaces of planets, the disks surrounding young stars, where dust growth up to pebble-sizes is detected. Despite the significant progress, the planet formation process remains a conundrum as its intermediate stages are essentially unobservable. This project aims at constructing innovative numerical models of the early stages of planet formation when the dust grows to pebbles and becomes gravitationally bound in building blocks of planets called planetesimals. Despite the critical role of this phase in the planet formation process, global models addressing planetesimal formation are scarce. With PLANETOIDS, I propose to go beyond the state-of-the-art by combining the most advanced models of circumstellar disk formation and structure, dust evolution, planetesimal formation, and planetesimal growth in one comprehensive framework. The key aspects included in PLANETOIDS are: 1) investigating how dust grows and circulates in wind-driven circumstellar disks, 2) understanding where, when, and how many planetesimals can emerge and how this result depends on the properties and environment of the host star, 3) exploring the pathways of fast planet formation required to explain the observations of young circumstellar disks. With these developments, it will become possible to self-consistently simulate the decisive early stages of planet formation for the first time. The awaited results are essential for explaining the origin of the Solar System and the diversity of exoplanets.

Mots-clés : circumstellar disks,protoplanetary disks,preplanetary dust coagulation,planetesimal formation,planet formation theory
Projet ERC : SOFTCHIRP (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System
Entité participante : Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Société Max Planck
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

The main objective of this proposal is to understand how vocal communication is used to organize social groups and in turn how brain circuits have evolved to process social information encoded in vocal cues. The naked mole-rat, as one of only two eusocial mammals, is especially well-suited to this research question. Naked mole-rats form highly cooperative social units and like bees, wasps, and ants, live in multigenerational colonies under the control of a single breeding female, queen. In addition to their extreme cooperativity, these rodents are highly vocal with a repertoire (greater than 25 distinct vocalizations) comparable to that of non-human primates. I recently identified that naked mole-rat greeting calls, soft chirps, encode information about individual identity and are modulated to create distinct colony-specific dialects. Vocal dialects can be learned early in life and are influenced by social cues (i.e., the presence or absence of the queen). These features position the naked mole-rat as a promising, yet unexplored model for investigating the evolution of neural circuits for vocal communication, sociality and language. I will employ a combination of behavioral, computational, electrophysiological, molecular and in vivo imaging tools to investigate how: (i) social identity is encoded at the earliest stages of auditory processing within the naked mole-rat brain, (ii) how neural circuits for vocal production are shaped by auditory environments during development and finally (iii) how social interactions acting through transcriptomic and molecular mechanisms influence vocal behaviors. This work has the potential to not only expand our understanding of the neural architecture underling the sensory coding and production of vocalizations, but also to provide insights into complex social behaviors such as empathy and altruism.

Mots-clés : acoustic communication,social behavior,naked mole rat,cortex,vocal behavior
Projet ERC : TOPS (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Computer Science and Informatics
Entité participante : Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Société Max Planck
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1495000.0 €

Computational thinking and problem solving skills are essential for everyone in the 21st century, both for students to excel in STEM+Computing fields and for adults to thrive in the digital economy. Consequently, educators are putting increasing emphasis on pedagogical tasks in open-ended domains such as programming, conceptual puzzles, and virtual reality environments. When learning to solve such open-ended tasks by themselves, people often struggle. The difficulties are embodied in the very nature of tasks being open-ended: (a) underspecified (multiple solutions of variable quality), (b) conceptual (no well-defined procedure), (c) sequential (series of interdependent steps needed), and (d) exploratory (multiple pathways to reach a solution). These struggling learners can benefit from individualized assistance, for instance, by receiving personalized curriculum across tasks or feedback within a task. Unfortunately, human tutoring resources are scarce, and receiving individualized human-assistance is rather a privilege. Technology empowered by artificial intelligence has the potential to tackle this scarcity challenge by providing scalable and automated machine-assisted teaching. However, the state-of-the-art technology is limited: it is designed for well-defined procedural learning, but not for open-ended conceptual problem solving. The TOPS project will develop next-generation technology for machine-assisted teaching in open-ended domains. We will design novel algorithms for assisting the learner by bridging reinforcement learning, imitation learning, cognitive science, and symbolic reasoning. Our theoretical foundations will be based on a computational framework that models the learner as a reinforcement learning agent who gains mastery with the assistance of an automated teacher. In addition to providing solid foundations, we will demonstrate the performance of our techniques in a wide range of pedagogical applications.

Mots-clés : educational technology,artificial intelligence,reinforcement learning,computational thinking,problem solving skills,open ended learning domains
Projet ERC : 2D-SMARTiES (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Synthetic Chemistry and Materials
Entité participante : Université de Valence — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499240.0 €

The final goal of 2D-SMARTiES is to develop a new generation of magnonic devices based on hybrid molecular/2D heterostructures in which a precise control of the spin dynamics can be achieved by external manipulation of stimuli-responsive molecules. With this aim in mind, the project will establish an efficient theoretical and computational framework to guide the synthetic efforts towards the creation of low power consumption and highly tunable nanodevices for information technologies using a chemical approach. The recent emergence of 2D van der Waals magnetic materials provides unprecedented building-blocks to transmit, storage and process information using spin waves, whose quanta are called magnons, at the limit of miniaturization. We will exploit the potential of switchable organic and spin crossover molecules to act as emitters, modulators and detectors of magnons at interfaces formed by this class of molecules and 2D antiferromagnets. This will open a versatile route based on smart molecules to face some of the current challenges in magnonics. In concrete, we will provide: (1) a more profound understanding of the hybridization of molecular orbitals on magnetic surfaces, as well as the effect of these hybridized states on the spin dynamics of 2D magnets; (2) a software package to model magnon dynamics in hybrid materials; (3) a deep analysis of strain-magnon coupling effects due to the thermal or light-induced spin switching in spin crossover systems deposited on 2D materials; (4) an efficient quantum transport code accounting for spin-orbit torque effects to understand the enhancement of properties in the 2D material when interfaced with a topological insulator; and (5) the creation of novel devices as a proof of concept. We envision the birth of a new interdisciplinary field, namely molecular 2D magnonics, with impact in molecular nanoscience, solid-state physics and materials science leading to promising long-term applications in information technologies.

Mots-clés : 2d materials,spin crossover,molecular nanomagnetism,molecular nanoscience,magnonics
Projet ERC : GLYCOFOLD (Horizon Europe, appel 2022, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Synthetic Chemistry and Materials
Entité participante : Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Société Max Planck
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499956.0 €

Natural biopolymers have inspired the development of synthetic analogues – i.e. foldamers – capable of adopting defined conformations and forming programmable three-dimensional architectures. These compounds are mainly based on peptides and nucleic acids, that are well understood at the molecular level. The diversity, intrinsic chirality, and ability to generate hierarchical assemblies suggest that carbohydrates hold an even larger potential for the generation of three-dimensional structures. However, the complexity of carbohydrate synthesis and structural analysis have prevented access to synthetic carbohydrates capable of adopting defined geometries. I propose the creation of carbohydrate foldamers capable of 1) adopting rigid secondary structures and 2) assembling into supramolecular architectures. To achieve these goals, we will address fundamental questions related to carbohydrate structure, design new methods to stabilize particular conformations, and we will implement protocols for systematic structural analysis. State-of-the-art synthetic platforms (i.e. automated glycan assembly) and analytical techniques (i.e. NMR spectroscopy, microED, and single molecule imaging) will be the tools to complete this ambitious project. My group has proved to be very successful at gaining a basic understanding of carbohydrate structure and aggregation. Building upon these preliminary results, I aim to develop programmable carbohydrate architectures, which have the potential to open a new field of carbohydrate and supramolecular chemistry. Analogous to the birth of a new field after the discovery of peptide-based foldamers, carbohydrate foldamers could find applications in several areas, including material science, biology, and catalysis. Moreover, carbohydrate foldamers will expand our understanding of carbohydrate structures and interactions, and new analytical protocols will standardize the characterization of carbohydrate materials.

Mots-clés : foldamers,glycan conformation,synthetic glycans,supramolecular carbohydrate materials
Projet ERC : Lo-Rig (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : The Human Mind and Its Compl exity
Entité participante : Trinity College — Pays : Irlande — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1289340.0 €

Gongduk and Mönpa are two Sino-Tibetan languages of Bhutan with no known relatives within the language family. Despite their unique morphosyntactic feature of biactantial verbal agreement, both languages have been largely overlooked in the literature. Gongduk and Mönpa are also at a high risk of extinction. Therefore, it is of absolute necessity that we write their descriptive grammars, based on a natural speech corpus, before they disappear forever. When a people lose mastery of their mother tongue, they often suffer from a loss of identity, and subsequently a plethora of emotional, mental, and social problems. Realising that the description of the world’s languages can provide indigenous communities with the basic set of materials to promote their linguistic heritage and counteract such negative developments, the United Nations has declared 2023-2032 the International Decade of Indigenous Languages. At the same time, linguistic description offers science the opportunity to conduct ground-breaking typological and historical linguistic research. The exhaustive description of Gongduk and Mönpa will enable us to compare their verbal agreement systems to those of other Sino-Tibetan languages and infer the implications for the origin and development of verbal agreement and the language family as a whole. Bhutan’s unique cultural and linguistic heritage forms one of the cornerstones of its national identity and development philosophy. Technological advances present both a risk and an opportunity for safeguarding this heritage. The Lo-Rig project team will apply and develop innovative methods that speed up and simplify the transcription of recorded texts, using technologies such as Automatic Speech Recognition, and software applications for the subsequent analysis and dissemination of under-resourced, endangered languages. They will also train Bhutanese linguists, contributing to a more sustainable future of Bhutan’s languages, and produce outputs for language promotion.

Mots-clés : bhutan biactantial agreement descriptive linguistics polypersonal agreement verbal agreement trans himalayan sino tibetan tibeto burman direct inverse marking language preservation language promotion
Projet ERC : PostPeak (Horizon Europe, appel 2025, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Earth System Science
Entité participante : Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Société Max Planck
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1495875.0 €

PostPeak tackles the pressing questions surrounding Earth's transition into a post-peak CO2 era. The carbon cycle determines how much of the anthropogenic carbon stays in the atmosphere, and warms the planet. It will also shape the trajectory of atmospheric CO2 once emissions level off, with lingering legacy and hysteresis effects. I hypothesize the land carbon cycle is the key modulator in this transition, and accurately predicting its dynamics is essential for understanding how the entire climate system will respond to declining CO2 emissions. Despite decades of research, the myriad factors underlying land carbon dynamics remain poorly understood, and uncertainty prevails.  To address this knowledge gap, the project PostPeak introduces a fundamentally new approach to global land carbon modeling, embedded in Earth system models. The approach capitalizes on the rapidly growing body of Earth observations and machine-learning algorithms, guided by process understanding. Using this hybrid model, we can explore the full range of plausible land dynamics, constrained by multi-stream observations, and provide a robust framework for addressing key questions about the post-peak era. Specifically, PostPeak's research aims to: (i) elucidate the spectrum of land dynamics adhering to global observational constraints; (ii) quantify the resulting spill-over effects into the post-peak emission era; (iii) determine how these dynamics modulate the timing and nature of falling CO2 levels; and (iv) identify where and how hysteresis effects impact ecosystems when CO2 is falling.  The liaison of AI-powered land carbon dynamics and versatile Earth system modeling in PostPeak, promises a leap forward in climate-carbon system science and provides an unique opportunity to clarify the land carbon cycle's pivotal role in shaping the rise and fall of atmospheric CO2.

Mots-clés : machine learning in earth system science fully coupled climate carbon cycle feedbacks
Projet ERC : QuantEmerge (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Condensed Matter Physics
Entité participante : Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Société Max Planck
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1387500.0 €

Understanding and controlling novel states of matter is at the heart of condensed matter research. In modern quantum materials we find a rich resource of extraordinary states which emerge from the complex interplay of quantum effects and many-body physics. They pose the fundamental challenge of describing an interacting system with many constituents in the quantum realm and hold the key for future quantum technology.  A major common trait behind the complex phase diagrams of many correlated quantum materials evades a description with conventional many-body approaches: a strange metal phase that exhibits non Fermi liquid behaviour nearby quantum phase transitions and superconductivity. QuantEmerge opens a new way to comprehend such non Fermi liquids and their intertwined phases by establishing a connection to relativistic quantum criticality and moiré materials. Relativistic quantum criticality arises at quantum phase transitions with emergent Lorentz symmetry and can be viewed as a minimal model for non Fermi liquid behaviour, while moiré materials constitute a new materials platform with unprecedented experimental control over such transitions. Their connection allows us to tune into the strongly correlated quantum regime from a controlled starting point in both experiment and theory.  Exploiting different tuning parameters such as interaction, symmetry, temperature, and density, we develop a comprehensive picture of emergent phases in a quantum critical regime with cutting-edge renormalisation group methods. We characterise novel types of quantum phase transitions in this setup and determine the corresponding quantum (critical) behaviour. We calculate thermodynamic and transport properties and study the competition of non Fermi liquid and superconductivity. Our theoretical insights will provide an improved understanding of the remarkable quantum-dominated phase structure that emerges in correlated quantum materials and pave the way for future materials design.

Mots-clés : non fermi liquids,strange metal,unconventional superconductivity,quantum criticality,quantum phase transition,dirac materials,moire materials,renormalization group,universality classes