Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-erc-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ERC : UTILE (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Products and Processes Engineering
Entité participante : Université polytechnique de Catalogne — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499924.0 €

Uncontrolled fire in the built and wild environment remains a major societal issue; climate change and an increasing elderly population suggest a worsening of fire damage within the following years. The flame spread rate (Vf) is the principal quantity to assess the danger of a fire. Accurately predicting thermal transport to the unburnt material is critical to predicting the Vf. Improved quantification of the modes by which flames spread can aid in the prevention and control of nonstationary fires. Combined simultaneous multi-dimensional temperature distributions of the gas with the condensed-phase are required to calculate heat flux to the surface. UTILE is tailored to understand flame spread (FS) by measuring heat flux with multi-dimensional ultrafast laser diagnostics. A canonical FS configuration (flat plate) with well-known boundary conditions and optical access will be built. Fs/ps Hybrid Rotational Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy (HRCARS) will be employed for the gas-phase measurements. Phosphor thermometry will be used to measure the surface temperature. No fire studies have used simultaneous multi-dimensional temperature measurements of the gas and condensed-phase to calculate heat flux. PIV will measure the airflow boundary layer, and CH or OH chemiluminescence will locate the reacting flame front. UTILE is not limited to quantifying heat flux but is a platform to advance the state-of-the-art in ultrafast laser diagnostics. Pushing limitations in 2D HRCARS and ultra-broadband HCARS will decrease experimental time and increase species sensitivity to the opposed and concurrent FS studies. Using multi-photon excitation for phosphor thermometry has the potential to improve multi-dimensional surface thermometry. Combining a modern experimental setup with tailored laser diagnostics will provide novel data quantifying heat flux leading to FS. Improving Vf models will benefit fire safety and refine the predictability of CFDs.

Mots-clés : flame spread,laser diagnostics
Projet ERC : STONE-MASTERS (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : The Study of the Human Past
Entité participante : Université de Varsovie — Pays : Pologne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499625.0 €

The STONE-MASTERS project aims at exploring one of the most startling problems in the global history of research on collective memory and commemorative practices - the transformation of Roman Imperial epigraphic traditions in the later 3rd c. AD, and the subsequent rise of the so-called epigraphic cultures of Late Antiquity. The problem has been passionately debated since the 1980s, but so far no definite conclusions have been reached. In this project, the PI argues that the main reason for the transformation is to be ascribed to the dissemination of changes in the elite's approach to epigraphy by the workshops of stonecutters and mosaicists, and that only a thorough study of workshops can provide us with a complete understanding of the processes underpinning this same transition. So far, epigraphists of the Roman period have had few instruments to draw upon for the purposes of pursuing synthetic workshop studies, and have been overwhelmingly captivated by other strands: the quantitative research, the study of the self-representation, the visibility of inscriptions, and the "viewers' culture". The PI maintains that a significant leap in our understanding is, however, attainable through the building of a highly regionalized network/stemma of workshops, which will identify workshops of origin for all the inscriptions from the 3rd-5th c., and through applying the methodologies of workshop studies developed for other craftsmanships and periods (in particular for early Greek vase painters, and for scribes and scriptoria) which the PI will adapt to the needs of the Graeco-Roman epigraphy. Assuming that these new methodological lenses will redefine the field and re-focus our attention on the actual actors behind the production of epigraphy - artisans and workshops - as primary agents of top-to-bottom cultural transfer, then we can anticipate an entire restructuring of our understanding of the way artisans disseminated elitist culture in the lower echelons of society.

Mots-clés : greek epigraphy,latin epigraphy,epigraphic habit,workshops,quarries,stonecutters,mosaicists,late antiquity,early byzantine period
Projet ERC : eMOCA (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Prevention,  Diagnosis and T reatment of Human Diseases
Entité participante : Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland — Pays : Irlande — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : RCSI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1874336.0 €

Lung cancer is a leading cause of cancer related mortality, claiming an estimated 1.8 million lives in 2020. In the EU, lung cancer accounts for 12% of all new cancer diagnoses and 20% of all cancer deaths, Although helpful in identifying early-stage lung cancer, screening programs frequently lead to false-positives and overdiagnosis. This is exacerbated by a lack of clinically useful biomarkers to accurately differentiate between lung cancer and indeterminate nodules found in the lung. Recent studies on lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) suggest that microbial and host genomic signatures could be leveraged to develop useful biomarkers in early-stage disease. However, these studies are based on systemic signatures identified, using metagenomics, in plasma rather than at the site of the disease, the lung. Very little research has been done on lung squamous cell cancer (LUSC). It is likely that both microbial and host signatures in the lungs of patients with LUSC, a more centrally located cancer, will be more specific and have stronger predictive power as biomarkers. Sampling of the lung is difficult however and involves invasive procedures such as bronchoscopy. Exhaled breath condensate (EBC) is a novel non-invasive method of collecting lower airways samples, which I will use to evaluate the lung micro-environment in LUSC. Furthermore, microbial RNA sequencing (metatranscriptome) provides broader and more detailed insight into the active function of microbes in different environments, while metabolomics provides further insight into the by-products of microbial metabolism. Applying this unbiased ‘omic approach (metagenome, metatranscriptome, metabolome & transcriptome) to multiple sample types (blood, sputum, EBC & bronchoscopy samples) will allow identification of novel microbial biomarkers capable of distinguishing between LUSC and non-malignant nodules, and predicting LUSC progression and may help guide the development of new targeted treatment approaches in LUSC.

Mots-clés : metagenomics metatranscriptome lung cancer bio informatics bio markers exhaled breath condensate squamous cell cancer multi omic genomic
Projet ERC : TEOTL (Horizon Europe, appel 2022, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : The Study of the Human Past
Entité participante : Université de Varsovie — Pays : Pologne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499925.0 €

Since the 16th century, the polymorphous and overlapping identities of Nahua (Aztec) deities have puzzled, first, the friars carrying out their evangelization project in New Spain, and later, throngs of researchers eager to better understand the pre-Hispanic Nahua system of beliefs. Despite many scholarly efforts, today, we are still far from satisfactorily apprehending the various intricacies of of the concept of teotl. Rendering of the Nahuatl term teotl as “god,” helpful as it was in the process of cultural translation, neither reflects its full semantic scope nor explains ontological and cosmological implications of this notion. Nevertheless, up to this date, no one has attempted to embrace this problem bringing together multiple yet complementary perspectives integrated by an innovative set of analytical tools.  The project TEOTL aims at unfolding the underlying notions of this pre-Hispanic Nahua key religious concept by combining its four crucial aspects. These are: 1. “Nahua pantheon”; 2. teotl in relation to other important religious categories, such as tonalli, nahualli, or ixiptla; 3. philological analysis of the term teotl in collocations, compounds, and the discourse of Nahuatl texts; 4. appropriation of the notion of teotl in colonial Nahuatl Christian discourse.  Using the heterogeneous textual and iconographic dataset derived from the well-known source base, TEOTL will employ a novel combination of research methods at the intersection of traditional (ethnohistory, religious studies, art history, philology, linguistics) and digital humanities (network analysis in historical sciences). This unexplored research path will lead to a reconceptualization of our approach towards the Nahua notion of the sacred and its decolonization. Also, the obtained results may be applicable outside of Mesoamerican studies as a model for approaching similar non-Western cultural and religious phenomena.

Mots-clés : mesoamerica,ethnohistory,nahuatl language,aztecs,culture contact,pre hispanic religion
Projet ERC : NMER (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences
Entité participante : Université de Varsovie — Pays : Pologne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

This project lifts the blindness of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to molecular chirality. First, we will observe chirality-sensitive magnetoelectric effects. Based on these effects, a new branch of molecular spectroscopy (abbreviated as NMER) is proposed, which will enable us to identify enantiomers directly without requiring chemical shift reagents or chiral solvents. Direct chiral NMR effects are very small and have not been previously detected, but this proposal will utilize several unique new strategies, such as hyperpolarization techniques and novel instrumentation, to dramatically enhance the chirality-sensitive NMR signals. This new approach is necessary to observe chirality-sensitive effects in solution at frequencies lower than 10 GHz. It permits 1) the direct discrimination of chiral molecules, 2) selective magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of chiral molecules, and 3) determination of the absolute configuration of the molecule. In contrast to standard methods used in NMR, it does not require chemical modification of the sample. Consequently, it has many potential application fields ranging from analytical chemistry (determination of enantiopurity, resolution of complex mixtures of chiral substances), biochemistry (studies of interactions between chiral molecules), pharmaceutical science (diagnostic imaging, studies of the pharmaceutical mechanism of action). At the same time, the new methodology will dramatically increase the detection sensitivity, rendering it possible to 4) record NMR spectra from molecules in the gas phase under conditions of low partial pressure. This unique form of spectroscopy will be used as an analytical tool and will permit studies of chiral molecules interactions. In combination with state of the art quantum computations it will provide valuable data on NMR tensors and allow models of fundamental interactions involving chirality to be tested on the molecular scale.

Mots-clés : nuclear magnetic resonance
Projet ERC : CHINA.EU (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : Human Mobility, Environment, and Space
Entité participante : Université de Londres — Pays : Royaume-Uni — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UoL
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

The concept of global China understands China’s influence as manifested in outward flows of capital, infrastructure, migrants, media, cultural programmes and international and civil society engagement, yet for an area of study that purports to be ‘global’ scholarship in the field of global China has focused almost exclusively on the role of Chinese citizens, Chinese institutions, and carriers of Chinese capital (hereafter, Chinese actors) and Chinese capital in developing countries and the Global South. To combat this narrow view of global China, China.EU takes an innovative approach to the study of global China that pivots scholarship on global China to the Global North. The project moves beyond a methodologically nationalist and state-led understanding of global China, to instead focus on how global China, as understood through Chinese actors and capital, is (i) urban, (ii) cultural, and (iii) digital – often simultaneously all three. In doing this, the project will answer four research questions: (1) What concepts are used to understand urbanism and urban development in China? (2) How do Chinese actors see and understand European urban space? What notions do they carry with them from China? (3) How are Chinese actors as (un)willing representatives of global China influencing urban development in Europe? (4) What insights about global China emerge when we analyse global urban China and the role of Chinese actors in European urban spaces? To answer these questions, Europe.CN uses innovative hybrid fieldwork methods to analyse the heterogenous role of Chinese actors and capital in three European contexts: Dusseldorf & the Ruhr Area, Paris, and Athens. Furthermore, the project hypothesizes that Chinese actors in urban Europe will see, understand, imagine, and conceptualize European urban space through Chinese concepts and the recent history of rapid urban development in China. To understand this, the team will produce a handbook of ‘official’ and ‘unofficial’ ur

Mots-clés : china studies digital geography cultural geography
Projet ERC : PhaBacArms (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Immunity, Infection and I mmunotherapy
Entité participante : Université de Tartu — Pays : Estonie — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499250.0 €

Bacteriophages, viruses of bacteria, are the most abundant life form on Earth. The prospect of using them in the fight against pathogenic bacteria has long been recognised, but their very high specificity and unpredictable reproduction limits their use in medicine. The mechanisms phages use to fight bacteria are attractive candidates for the development of novel antimicrobial applications, but are still very poorly understood. Indirect evidence exists of toxin antitoxin systems (TAS) and stringent response involvement in phage defence. The constant co-evolution of phages and bacteria suggests that phages have a way of overcoming all of the wide variety of bacterial defence systems, yet, no direct phage mechanisms targeting bacterial stringent response have been identified. We hypothesise that as the bacterial toxin-antitoxin systems and stringent response play a part in the arms race between bacteria and phages we can provide direct molecular evidence and identify phage proteins involved in these interactions by (1) creating and characterising, morphologically and molecularly, a novel library of phages infecting Pseudomonas putida PaW85; (2) uncovering the stringent response- and TAS-mediated phenotypic effects and their molecular mechanisms on P. putida phage tolerance; (3) discovering and characterising, functionally and structurally, the anti-TAS and anti-stringent response phage effectors; (4) determining the toxicity and specificity of the identified phage-derived toxins by testing them on different bacterial species. This study will bridge several gaps in the phage-bacteria interaction research, advance the research of phage-tolerant bioremediation strains and give crucial basic knowledge that can lead to the development of novel, efficient phage therapy solutions that target bacterial stress-mechanisms.

Mots-clés : bacteriophages,rsh ezymes,toxin antitoxin systems,ppgpp,stringent response,pseudomonas
Projet ERC : NEXUS (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences
Entité participante : Université d'Islande — Pays : Islande — Rôle : Partner
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 237987.5 €

The dynamics of charges and atoms when electrons are excited to energy levels above the ground state underpins energy conversion in photosynthesis, photocatalysis and solar cell technologies. Modelling excited electronic states remains however a major challenge. While density functional theory (DFT) has been hugely successful in predicting ground state properties of systems with several atoms and electrons, excited state extensions based on time-dependent formulations often lack the required accuracy. I have pioneered alternative approaches where the excited state orbitals are variationally optimized by converging on saddle points on the electronic energy surface. Preliminary studies show that such time-INdependent methods have similar efficiency and predictive power as ground state DFT. The central idea of NEXUS is to develop an innovative computational framework leveraging saddle point search strategies to significantly expand excited state simulations beyond their current scope.  Meanwhile, modern ultrafast X-ray techniques can achieve structural sensitivity for organic chromophores, offering a means to validate and complement the theoretical models for this important class of photoactive systems. By simulating the excited states in condensed phase rather than gas phase and directly visualizing atomic motion via ultrafast X-rays, NEXUS will provide unprecedented insights into the electronic and structural dynamics of organic molecules with application in photoswitching, singlet fission, and artificial photosynthesis. The goal is to unravel the elusive interplay between structure and function and pave the way to the rational design of photofunctional systems, enhancing the efficiency of solar energy conversion. An effective, low cost approach for modelling excited states of large systems is ground breaking and will have impact well beyond organic molecules, enabling the study of charge and atom dynamics in photochemical reactions for a wide range of applications.
Projet ERC : CMBeam (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Universe Sciences
Entité participante : Université d'Islande — Pays : Islande — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1999711.0 €

Future experiments mapping the cosmic microwave background (CMB) are designed to revolutionize our understanding of the infant universe, the standard model of particle physics, structure formation, and the nature of dark matter. A key effort involves constraining or detecting the energy scale of cosmic inflation. A detection would mark a watershed moment in cosmology and high-energy physics, but in order to push constraints significantly past current limits, we need a dramatic change in instrument characterization capabilities — the primary focus of CMBeam.  To address this challenge, we propose to construct a novel cryogenic holography facility for the purposes of testing optical systems of current and future experiments observing at microwave frequencies (40–400 GHz). We will use this facility to develop never-before-seen optical measurements that are critical for the success of next-generation experiments studying the CMB. As part of this program, we will perform warm and cryogenic (4-Kelvin) holography measurements of a complete reimaging optics tube for the Simons Observatory Large Aperture Telescope, the flagship CMB experiment of this decade. In a complementary effort, we will lead an ambitious analysis and calibration program for the Simons Observatory, which will deploy 60,000 cryogenically cooled detectors — three times the number of currently fielded detectors globally — in a site located 5,200 m above sea level in the Atacama Desert, Chile. Finally, we will develop algorithms that enable the design of novel freeform (asymmetric) optical systems that can greatly extend the scientific reach of future large-aperture telescopes such as upgraded version of the Simons Observatory and the CMB-S4 experiment.

Mots-clés : cosmic microwave background,cosmology,optics,telescope,cryogenics,holography,systematics
Projet ERC : AIRMAC (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : Individuals, Markets and Organisations
Entité participante : Université Eberhard Karl de Tübingen — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1490625.0 €

Since the Great Recession of 08/09, two interrelated economic phenomena challenge politics and research alike. First, the return of aggregate volatility marking the end of the Great Moderation. Second, the rise in inequality to levels last seen during the Gilded Age. A new literature has responded to this challenge by adding heterogeneity to business cycle models (HANK). This is a major step, but the focus on certainty-equivalent solutions in aggregates restricts the interaction of both phenomena. My research agenda aims to make ground-breaking progress by developing a new computational toolbox that allows to study the relative strength of aggregate and idiosyncratic risks and their interaction in inequality, asset returns, and business cycles.  Part I develops a sparse higher-order perturbation solution for HANK models. Smart use of the modularity of idiosyncratic and aggregate model components makes estimation feasible, which is key for quantification.  Part II measures heterogeneity in the exposure to aggregate risk and quantifies its contribution inequality. The volatility of wages, portfolio returns, and tax rates differs across the distribution, and this affects inequality via household portfolio decisions. Part III decomposes the capital premium into the parts coming from idiosyncratic and aggregate risk. Large parts of the capital stock feature trading costs that can explain part of the equity premium, which makes the equity premium puzzle less severe.  Part IV examines the cost of business cycles and novel benefits of stabilization policies. By reducing aggregate risk, policy allows households to hold less liquid portfolios and increase investment into capital.  Part II-IV contribute to fundamental questions in macroeconomics: the welfare costs of business cycles, the benefits of fiscal vs. monetary stabilization, and the drivers of inequality and asset returns. My agenda is ambitious, but the importance of the questions imply an extremely high return.

Mots-clés : heterogeneous agents,incomplete markets,business cycles,uncertainty,inequality,computational methods,monetary policy,fiscal policy,asset pricing