Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Child directed demonstration across cultures (DEMONSTRATION DESIGN)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-09-01
End date: 2014-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 183805.8
EU funding (EUR): 183805.8
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Since the seminal work of Grice (1957), speaking is considered an intentional activity in the sense that it serves achieving goals: one of them, specific of humans, is to teach other humans to use new tools and knowledge (Tomasello 1999; Csibra & Gergely 2009). This context of interaction involves often children and this requires a specific type of recipient design mostly studied under the rubric of Child Directed Speech or Motherese. Even so in order for the message being effective, the adult has to employ a combination of strategies involving not only speech but also bodily movements with or without the objects involved (i.e., gesticulation, Kendon 1982). This project aims to conduct a fine-grained analysis of such communicative actions, namely demonstrations (Clark 1996), directed to children. In detail it proposes to investigate how demonstrations (with and without objects), with the speech they accompany, are sensitive to 1) the age of the addressee 2) the presence of the object 3) the culture of the speaker. The aim is to set up a study in which Italian and Dutch adults in their respective countries demonstrate the properties of a new object to a school age child and to another adult in two conditions: with and without the object. We predict significant differences between the child and the adult conditions as previous studies on ‘Motionese’ and ‘Gesturese’ shows. However despite the fact that Child-directed speech seems to have some universal features, we predict significant differences in terms of demonstrative acts between the two cultures, due to different gestural repertoires (i.e. Italy being a gesture rich culture). In general we will gain as the first time novel insights about culture specific demonstrative acts with and without objects-which are essential in developing new teaching tools in educational contexts. As such the study will offer to bring together areas of child development, teaching, gesture, grounded cognition and cross cultural studies.

Keywords: psycholinguistics,developmental psychology,pragmatics,gesture,demonstration,children,recipient design,cross-cultural differences
Machine learning approaches to epigenomic research (EPIGENE INFORMATICS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: United Kingdom
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-05-16
End date: 2015-04-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 209033.4
EU funding (EUR): 209033.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Epigenomic research has become one the fastest evolving fields in molecular biology. Epigenetic effects control the packaging of DNA in the nucleus thereby deeply influencing gene expression. They also play crucial roles in cell differentiation and aberrant patterns are associated with cancer, mental disorders and autoimmune diseases. However, our understanding of the epigenomic code is still limited. A main obstacle to its decoding is the requirement for immensely data-intense experiments, as epigenomic configurations embrace multiple different marks which form an intricate interplay that varies between cell types. Advances in high-throughput sequencing resulted in a plethora of complex data sets and computational methods are called upon to solve pressing questions for their analysis and modeling. In this project, we will develop machine learning tools to combine epigenomic measurements with computational sequence analysis. This will provide us with a better understanding of the extent to which DNA sequence controls the establishment of epigenomic marks. It will also serve as a credible basis for data integration. We will next combine data from different cell lines and analyze them simultaneously. In particular, we will examine the effect of a certain transfactor, by comparing histone marks in wild type ES cells with mutants that lack the DNA-binding protein Cfp-1, which is known to play a role in the formation of epigenomic marks at active promoters. To shed light on the epigenomic impact on the transcriptome the framework will eventually be complemented by adding expression data. The proposed research will doubly benefit the applicant by introducing her to a new field of application, as well as a wider class of computational techniques. We believe this work to be of scientific importance, as the employed machine learning approaches are likely to lead to new insights in epigenome research with immense potential consequences in addressing key biomedical issues.

Keywords: natural sciences,biological sciences,cell biology,biology,genetics,molecular biology,computational epigenomics,chip-seq,chromatin,machine learning,histone modifications
Optical real-time imaging of inhibitory GABAA receptors activity using chimeric GABA channel subunit (IMAGINGGABA)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: International Incoming Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: France
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IIF, 2011)
Start date: 2013-06-01
End date: 2015-05-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 269096.4
EU funding (EUR): 269096.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

In mammalian brain the main inhibitory drive is determined by GABAergic synaptic transmission. Released from presynaptic terminals GABA activate postsynaptic Cl-selective GABAA receptors, which results in hyperpolarization of cells and inhibition of neuronal network. Dysfunction of GABAA receptors may lead to a number of pathologies, including epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, sleep disorders and schizophrenia. The main approach for functional analysis of GABAA receptors is represented by electrophysiological methods. An alternative approach would be to use non-invasive fluorescent analysis of GABAA receptors activation, which requires creation of new probes. We propose to design genetically encoded Cl-sensitive sensors capable to monitor activation of Cl-selective GABAA receptors. We will develop the probe “BioSensor-GABAR”: a chimeric GABAA receptor subunit with Cl-Sensor inserted to cytoplasmic domain. Development of “GABAR-Sensors” would allow us (i) to monitor activation of the GABAA receptors (ii) to estimate [Cl-]i in the local areas in close vicinity of the GABAA receptor clusters and (iii) to visualize GABAergic synaptic networks during different patterns of neuronal activity. Given the diverse roles of GABAergic signaling in the brain including; hyperpolarisation, decreasing excitability, shunting inhibition, tonic inhibition, disinhibition, and modulation of oscillatory activity it is not clear a priori what the effects of the change in GABAA receptor activity will be on a particular neuronal network. Creation of BioSensor-GABAR will make an important step to the understanding of the physiology of inhibitory neurons and neuronal networks functioning. Results to be obtained in this project will shed light on the functional role of particular classes of GABAergic interneurons. These data will have important clinical implications as they provide an assay for fast screening of neuroleptics and other modulators of GABAergic neurotransmission.

Keywords: real-time imaging,intracellular chloride,gentic probes,gabaa receptors,inhibitory circuits,neurons
An Efficient Optical Interface between Quantum Dots and Ultracold Atoms (HYBRIDQUANTSYS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: International Incoming Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IIF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-03-01
End date: 2014-02-28
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 192622.2
EU funding (EUR): 192622.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Quantum information science is a new branch of physics that promises to develop information technologies and measurement systems beyond the limits of classical physics. Physical implementations of quantum information schemes vary widely and include systems as disparate as superconducting circuits and trapped ions. While significant progress has been made in each platform, each has its own advantages and disadvantages. A new paradigm is emerging which aims to combine disparate systems to take advantage of each system's strengths while mitigating their weaknesses. An example of a hybrid quantum system could use single photons to efficiently transfer information and stationary systems (quantum memories) like atoms to store and manipulate it. Independently, semiconductor quantum dots have emerged as near-ideal sources of single photons while dense gases of neutral atoms have emerged as a leading candidate for quantum memories. As of yet, these leading technologies have not been integrated, a necessary step towards the development of a distributed quantum network. Here, we propose to develop an efficient atomic quantum memory specifically designed for use with a quantum dot single photon source. The experienced researcher, Matthew Rakher, has extensive experience developing quantum dot single photon sources as a graduate student and postdoc in the United States. The project manager, Philipp Treutlein, has many years of experience with ultracold atomic systems and in particular, the integration of atomic systems with solid-state systems. The inability to integrate quantum dots and neutral atoms to date is due to the fact that each system requires experimental expertise and a substantial knowledge base that do not strongly overlap. Given the unique combination of expertise described here, we believe that our proposal will yield significant results expediently and certainly meets the criteria and spirit of the Marie Curie Incoming International Fellowship program

Keywords: quantum optics,atomic physics,applied optics,optical and dielectric properties
Ambiguous Figures of Desire (AFD)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Sweden
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-08-01
End date: 2014-07-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 181418.4
EU funding (EUR): 181418.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

This project will challenge existing perceptions through a significant reappraisal of the role of classical mythology as a figuration of desire in late renaissance and baroque poetry — concentrating mainly on Spanish and Italian texts, but also including excursions to English, French, German, and Scandinavian literature. The working hypothesis of my project is 1) that late renaissance and baroque literature reflects an ambiguous preoccupation with an issue that we today tend to see in a more unequivocally positive light — eroticism; and 2) that this preoccupation shows most explicitly in what may be termed the mythological poetry of the period. The outcome of my project will be a re-contextualization of the investigated late renaissance and baroque erotic-mythological masterpieces and anticipated conclusions include 1) the affirmation that late renaissance and baroque poets’ representation of human desire through the stories and figures of ancient mythology, in its striking audacity and even frankness, in many respects recalls modern attitudes to eroticism, yet is also significantly more self-conscious, self-relativizing or reflective; 2) the assertion that this ambivalence does have to do with the historical moment, and should be seen as an expression of the complex interaction of various epistemological paradigms particularly characteristic of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century. The research objectives will be achieved through a combination of empirical research and theoretical reflexions, and results will be published, during the project period, in the form of journal articles (a empirical and a theoretical essay), and gathered into a coherent whole at the end of the project period. The subject, classical mythology (pan-European heritage and a field of strong transnational impact), is obviously relevant to the Work Programme, and the proposal will significantly contribute to the long overdue re-historicization of premodern erotic literature.

Keywords: humanities,figurations of eroticism and the body,renaissance and baroque literature,classical mythology,spain and italy,challenging modern interpretation and reappraisal
Novel Analysis Toward UndeRstAnding the moLecular complexity in the InterStellar Medium. (NATURALISM)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-10-01
End date: 2015-02-07
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 191675.4
EU funding (EUR): 191675.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

NATURALISM is a philosophical viewpoint according to which everything arises from natural properties, and supernatural explanations are just excluded. This proposal is a by-product of this definition. It will contribute to the understanding of the origin of life in the universe by unravelling experimentally the chemical reaction schemes leading to large and complex molecules in interstellar ice analogues. Interstellar chemistry is governed by a complex interaction between gas phase and solid-state processes. These provide a universal starting point for a prebiotic chemistry. Several observational facilities have become operational recently, and more will in the near future, probing this chemistry through the detection of spectral rotational lines related to a large diversity of new and complex species. The availability of detailed laboratory data is a prerequisite for a proper interpretation of these observational data. This proposal addresses both the characterisation and the formation of large complex species in interstellar ice analogues. Laboratory studies will be carried out at the Leiden Observatory, using MATRIICES, a worldwide unique and highly sensitive setup capable to address the question of molecular complexity in processed interstellar ice analogues. Large complex species relevant to the field of astrobiology are expected to be detected in situ during irradiation of N-bearing and O-bearing interstellar ice analogues. In a second step, millimeter and submillimeter data of complex or transient species will be analysed. The results will be included in databases within a collaborative work in the Cologne Laboratory Astrophysics Group. The outcome of this proposal will provide qualitative and quantitative data for astrochemical solid-state processes, a key to assist in developing astrochemical models, and give spectroscopic data that are strongly needed to steer and interpret astronomical observations and to predict abundances of complex species in space.

Keywords: laboratory astrophysics,astrochemistry,interstellar ices,molecular complexity,matriices,high-resolution rotational spectroscopy,ion trapping,spectral database.
Boosting the performance of Quantum Chemistry for nanocatalysts, biomolecules and graphene layers by solving the fundamental drawback of van der Waals interactions in Density Functional Theory (BOOSTQUANTUMCHEM)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Germany
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-10-01
End date: 2014-11-09
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 174475.2
EU funding (EUR): 174475.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The goal of the proposed IEF project is to develop a novel Density Functional Theory (DFT) method, which will facilitate the very efficient investigation of large macromolecules. DFT is the most used quantum chemical method today, as it allows, at a low computational cost, to perform research at a quantum chemical level on systems containing up to thousands of atoms. However, standard DFT only includes a poor description of dispersion interactions, which occur in systems such as peptides, DNA base-pairs, graphene layers and heterogeneous catalysts. To overcome this great disadvantage the IEF will: a) transform a model for evaluation of dispersion energies at DFT level into a pragmatic and accurate methodology. b) implement the methodology, through design and application of advanced computational chemistry techniques into an efficient and user-friendly software. c) apply this novel DFT method on high-profile problems (nanocatalysts, biomolecules, graphene layers) The results will directly impact research in biochemistry, material science, catalysis and supramolecular chemistry boosting fast and accurate studies on numerous macromolecular systems. The applicant is an expert in DFT, who will complement her skills in Computational Chemistry and design of methods within the Theoretical Chemistry Group at the University of Kaiserslautern (Germany), who are leading scientists in the field. These investigations will allow the fellow to acquire excellent expertise in a pioneering research topic, which is of crucial importance for the worldwide efforts for using macromolecules in innovative technologies. In combination with the complementary training, this IEF project will help the applicant to obtain scientific maturity and actively participate in shaping future research regarding DFT methodologies for large systems, which is a rapidly emerging field. Consequently, the IEF perfectly consolidates the fellow’s long-term aim to reach an independent research position in Europe

Keywords: computational chemistry,quantum chemistry,density functional theory,dispersion interactions
The cerebellar control of motor tuning during sensory discrimination. (CBTOUCH)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: France
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-06-01
End date: 2014-05-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 193594.8
EU funding (EUR): 193594.8
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The CBTOUCH project focuses on the cerebellum as a crucial component of the circuit involved in the precise tuning of motor control during tactile discrimination. A large fraction of the tactile information is acquired in a motor context.The nervous system must thus combine the sensory and motor informations to optimize movements aimed at collecting information and ultimately correctly interpret the sensations. My project aims at exploring the neurobiological basis of these operations, and particularly to identify the contribution of the cerebellum. Specifically, I will study the whisker sensory system in the rodent. The aims of my project are to: 1.identify the connections of the cerebellum with the whisker sensory-motor cortices thanks to a combination of functional imaging optogenetic and electrophysiological experiments. 2.demonstrate the functional recruitment of the cerebellum in relation with the whiskers movements during tactile exploration of known and unknown stimuli configurations, using electrophysiological recordings and fast video recordings in awake animals. 3.establish the contribution of the cerebellum to the sense of touch by perturbing the cerebellar function during sensory discrimination, using optogenetic stimulations during a behavioral task This project should help to understand how the body movements are precisely tuned to optimize the sense of touch.

Keywords: cerebellum,motor control,whiskers,sensorimotor integration,neurobiology,neurophysiology
Formation mechanisms of Early Triassic microbialites in the aftermath of the greatest mass extinction (Permian-Triassic-Boundary) (ET MICROBIALITES)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Austria
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF, 2011)
Start date: 2012-04-01
End date: 2015-10-24
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 180191.4
EU funding (EUR): 180191.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The goal of this project is to understand the causes and modes of microbialite formation in critical periods of Earth history, typified by changing environments using the example of the Permian-Triassic-Boundary mass extinction event, the most fatal ever. In the aftermath of this mass extinction, microbialite-forming microbes became major components of the marine ecosystem, whereas >90% of marine species went extinct. Despite of considerable efforts in recent years, microbialite formation and its environmental significance remain poorly understood. Moreover, understanding processes that controlled the environment in Earth history will help solving environmental problems of today and tomorrow. Research objectives: (1) identify benthic microbial communities and unravel formation mechanisms (2) determine role of EPS-related mineralization (3) answer whether the occurrence of microbialites reflects a change in sea-water chemistry, or extinction of grazing organisms, or a combination of these Complementary objectives: (1) widen the scientific scope of the fellow by training in cutting-edge techniques (2) increase the international reputation of the fellow and all involved scientists (3) boosting the European science community To achieve the project goals, a multiple proxy study will be pursued on well-preserved Early Triassic microbialites from Iran, which includes the analysis of (1) lipid biomarkers and compound-specific carbon isotopes, (2) spatial relationships of organic compounds and carbonate (ToF-SIMS), (3) sulphur isotopes of carbonate-bound sulphate and of sulphide minerals, and (4) petrographic characterization (microscopy, FIB-SEM, TEM). Having confidence in the fellow, in the expertise and experience of mentor Prof. Peckmann, and in the excellent lab facilities at the host institute, the EU will engage in this international highly competitive hot topic, in which scientists from China and the USA are currently at the forefront.

Keywords: microbialites,permian-triassic-boundary mass extinction,environmental change,natural sciences,organic geochemistry,geobiology,microscopy,lipid biomarkers,stable isotopes,organomineralization