Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Foundations of Algebraic and Dynamic Data Management Systems (ALGILE)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Computer science and informatics
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2012-01-01
End date: 2016-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1480548.4
EU funding (EUR): 1480548.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Contemporary database query languages are ultimately founded on logic and feature an additive operation – usually a form of (multi)set union or disjunction – that is asymmetric in that additions or updates do not always have an inverse. This asymmetry puts a greater part of the machinery of abstract algebra for equation solving outside the reach of databases. However, such equation solving would be a key functionality that problems such as query equivalence testing and data integration could be reduced to: In the current scenario of the presence of an asymmetric additive operation they are undecidable. Moreover, query languages with a symmetric additive operation (i.e., which has an inverse and is thus based on ring theory) would open up databases for a large range of new scientific and mathematical applications. The goal of the proposed project is to reinvent database management systems with a foundation in abstract algebra and specifically in ring theory. The presence of an additive inverse allows to cleanly define differences between queries. This gives rise to a database analog of differential calculus that leads to radically new incremental and adaptive query evaluation algorithms that substantially outperform the state of the art techniques. These algorithms enable a new class of systems which I call Dynamic Data Management Systems. Such systems can maintain continuously fresh query views at extremely high update rates and have important applications in interactive Large-scale Data Analysis. There is a natural connection between differences and updates, motivating the group theoretic study of updates that will lead to better ways of creating out-of-core data processing algorithms for new storage devices. Basing queries on ring theory leads to a new class of systems, Algebraic Data Management Systems, which herald a convergence of database systems and computer algebra systems.

Keywords: database theory,algebra,query languages,incremental view maintenance,dynamic complexity,data integration
Towards compressive information processing systems (CRISP)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Systems and communication engineering
Countries involved: Italy
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2011-11-01
End date: 2017-06-30
Duration (months): 68.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1390000.0
EU funding (EUR): 1390000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

This proposal targets the emerging frontier research field of compressive sampling (CS), and particularly its application in the framework of complex information processing systems, including several related innovative and unconventional aspects. Future systems will have to handle unprecedented amounts of information such as those generated in multiview video, medical and hyperspectral imaging applications, increasingly suffering from limited communication and computational resources. CS is a breakthrough technology that will have a profound impact on how these systems are conceived. It offers a viable and elegant solution, acquiring and representing an information signal through a small set of linear projections of it, allowing to dramatically reduce communication, storage and processing requirements, and is one of the topics that will dominate signal processing research in the next years. At the core of this research proposal is the concept of employing CS not only as a standalone tool, but inside an information processing system. The main challenge is to develop theory and algorithms that will allow to perform all signal manipulations typical of conventional systems directly on the linear measurements, as reconstructing the signal samples would be unfeasible due to excessive complexity. Such operations include compression, encryption, communication, reconstruction, signal analysis, information extraction and decision, and distributed signal processing, leading to a very multidisciplinary and technically challenging research agenda. Ultimately, our research aims at developing and demonstrating the fundamental tools that will fuel next-generation information processing systems with an order-of-magnitude better performance at a lower cost than today. Europe has several successful industries active in communications and signal processing. The future success of these sectors critically depends on the ability to innovate and integrate new technology.

Keywords: compressive sampling
Dynamics of Lie group actions on parameter spaces (DLGAPS)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Mathematical foundations
Countries involved: Israel
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2011-10-01
End date: 2016-09-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 850000.0
EU funding (EUR): 850000.0
Participants: 2
Project status: CLOSED

There are many parallels between Lie group actions on homogeneous spaces and the action of $\SL_2(\R)$ and its subgroups on strata of translation or half-translation surfaces. I propose to investigate these two spaces in parallel, focusing on the dynamical behavior, and more specifically, the description of orbit-closures. I intend to utilize existing and emerging measure rigidity results, and to develop new topological approaches. These should also shed light on the geometry and topology of the spaces. I propose to apply results concerning these spaces to the study of diophantine approximations (approximation on fractals), geometry of numbers (Minkowski's conjecture), interval exchanges, and rational billiards.

Keywords: dynamics of subgroup actions on homogeneous spaces and strata of translation surfaces. topology of moduli spaces. applications to geometry of numbers,diophantine approximation,and flat surfaces.
Statistical machine learning for complex biological data (SMAC)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Computer science and informatics
Countries involved: France
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2012-02-01
End date: 2018-01-31
Duration (months): 72.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1496004.0
EU funding (EUR): 1496004.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

This interdisciplinary project aims to develop new statistical and machine learning approaches to analyze high-dimensional, structured and heterogeneous biological data. We focus on the cases where a relatively small number of samples are characterized by huge quantities of quantitative features, a common situation in large-scale genomic projects, but particularly challenging for statistical inference. In order to overcome the curse of dimension we propose to exploit the particular structures of the data, and encode prior biological knowledge in a unified, mathematically sound, and computationally efficient framework. These methodological development, both theoretical and practical, will be guided by and applied to the inference of predictive models and the detection of predictive factors for prognosis and drug response prediction in cancer.

Keywords: statistical machine learning,kernel methods,convex optimization,sparsity,graphs,cancer genomics,prognosis,diagnosis,microarray
Quantifying CO2 emissions from tropical deforestation to ‘close’ the global carbon budget (DE-CO2)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Earth system science
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2011-11-01
End date: 2016-10-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1500000.0
EU funding (EUR): 1500000.0
Participants: 2
Project status: CLOSED

The land and oceans have mitigated climate change by taking up about half of the anthropogenic CO2 emitted since the industrial revolution. However, these ‘sinks’ are predicted to lose their efficiency. Globally, the combined sink strength of the land and ocean can be calculated indirectly as the difference between anthropogenic emissions – from fossil fuel burning and deforestation – and the atmospheric CO2 increase. However, large uncertainty in the deforestation term masks out potential changes in sink strength contained in the better-constrained fossil fuel and atmospheric terms. This creates the need for a new accurate approach to quantify emissions from deforestation and its variability over the past decades. I propose to quantify deforestation emissions from the novel fire perspective. A substantial share of deforestation emissions stems from burning vegetation, and this focus enables validation of emissions by comparing atmospheric enhancements of fire-emitted carbon monoxide (CO) with satellite-derived concentrations of CO. The proposed multidisciplinary work will follow three steps: 1) quantify net emissions from fires and decomposition in deforestation and degradation regions, combining satellite data with biogeochemical modelling, 2) validate these emissions by combining newly measured CO:CO2 ratios and the isotopic signature of CO2 downwind of deforestation regions, atmospheric chemistry transport modelling, and satellite-derived CO concentrations, and 3) use relations between fire emissions and visibility reported at airports as a novel way to extend the new deforestation emissions estimates back in time before high-quality satellite observations were available. The new approach will lead to the first constrained, monthly resolved estimate of deforestation emissions. Applying the global CO2 mass balance equation will then provide a better quantitative understanding of the (changing) sink capacity of the Earth's oceans and land surface.

Keywords: carbon sink,climate change,forest,biomass
Simulation of droplets in complex microchannels (SIMCOMICS)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Products and process engineering
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2012-01-01
End date: 2016-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1405796.0
EU funding (EUR): 1405796.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

In droplet-based microfluidics, the elementary units transporting reagents from one functional site to another (mixer, sensor or analyzer) are droplets, which are carried by an inert wetting fluid. This research project aims at the development of numerical models of flowing droplets in thin spatially extended microchannels, designed at avoiding the exponential complexity of parallelized 1-D networks. We aim at simulating the trajectory of droplets transported by a pressure-driven carrier fluid, as they evolve in a surface energy gradient, generated by channel depth variations or surface tension inhomogeneities. To this end, we exploit the remarkable aspect ratio of these microfluidic devices to propose a depth-averaged description of the pancake shaped droplets. The resulting equations, called Brinkman's equations, combine the 2D Stokes equations with 2D Darcy potential-flow-like equations. Their diphasic simulation relies on the adaptation of existing algorithms to this particular free interface problem. Pressure corrections due to the thickness variations of the lubricating thin films will also be included. Surfactant and heat dynamics will then be added to model thermo- and soluto-capillary forcing. The depth-averaged model will be finally generalized to account for arbitrary depth variations, so as to add dynamics to the quasi-static description of droplets moving along successive minimal surface energy locations. A specific part of the project is also devoted to the development of an experimental expertise: it is indeed essential to the success of the project to conduct fundamental microfluidic experiments in order to validate our new models. While SIMCOMICS aims at shrinking the gap between present computations of droplets flowing in microchannels and the increasing number of application-oriented experimental studies, it both raises fundamental questions and opens promising perspectives for the engineering design of new microcarved microchannels.

Keywords: microfluidics,droplet flows
Graphene Quantum Electromechanical Systems (GQEMS)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Condensed matter physics
Countries involved: Germany
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2012-01-01
End date: 2016-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1797200.0
EU funding (EUR): 1797200.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The aim of this project is to develop a new class of mechanically tunable quantum devices based on graphene. Adopting an innovative and interdisciplinary approach grounded on both engineering-based microsystem technology and low-temperature solid-state physics, we aim at gaining control over the mechanical and electromechanical properties of graphene nano-membranes and suspended graphene nanostructures, in the low and high strain regime. The main motivation for going in this direction is the expectation that being able to access both the electronic and the mechanical degrees of freedom of graphene will allow to explore new regimes of quantum physics, and lead to potentially important technological applications. Graphene is in fact a unique platform for the development of a new generation of quantum electromechanical systems, not only because of its high carrier mobility, high elasticity and unrivaled material strength, but also because its electronic properties depend sensitively on local strain and mechanical deformations, allowing to envision revolutionary device concepts. This is a timely and highly explorative high-gain/high-risk research project. Its successful accomplishment will set the basis of a novel graphene-based microsystem technology. The project is expected to have an important and far-reaching impact in the fields of nanosystems and graphene physics, not only in terms of potential applications, but also giving an important contribution to the investigation of the fundamental properties of this unique material.

Keywords: graphene,mems,nano electromechanical systems
CRyptographic Algorithms and Secure Hardware (CRASH)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Computer science and informatics
Countries involved: Belgium
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2011-10-01
End date: 2016-09-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1498873.5
EU funding (EUR): 1498873.5
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Side-channel attacks are an important threat against cryptographic implementations in which an adversary takes advantage of physical leakages, such as the power consumption of a smart card, in order to recover secret information. By circumventing the models in which standard security proofs are obtained, they can lead to powerful attacks against a large class of devices. As a consequence, formalizing implementation security and efficiently preventing side-channel attacks is one of the most challenging open problems in modern cryptography. Physical attacks imply new optimization criteria, with potential impact on the way we conceive algorithms and the way we design circuits. By putting together mathematical and electrical engineering problems, just as they are raised in reality, the CRASH project is expected to develop concrete basements for the next generation of cryptographic algorithms and their implementation. For this purpose, three main directions will be considered. First, we will investigate sound evaluation tools for side-channel attacks and validate them on different prototype chips. Second, we will consider the impact of physical attacks on the mathematical aspects of cryptography, both destructively (i.e. by developing new attacks and advanced cryptanalysis tools) and constructively (i.e. by investigating new cipher designs and security proof techniques). Third, we will evaluate the possibility to integrate physical security analysis into the design tools of integrated circuits (e.g. in order to obtain “physical security aware” compilers). Summarizing, this project aims to break the barrier between the abstractions of mathematical cryptography and the concrete peculiarities of physical security in present microelectronic devices. By considering the system and algorithmic issues in a unified way, it is expected to get rid of the incompatibilities between the separate formalisms that are usually considered in order to explain these concurrent realities.

Keywords: cryptographic implementations,side-channel attacks and countermeasures,leakage-resilient cryptography,block cipher design
Modal analysis of atmospheric balance, predictability and climate (MODES)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Earth system science
Countries involved: Slovenia
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2011-12-01
End date: 2016-11-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 495482.0
EU funding (EUR): 495482.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Despite large progress in modelling of atmospheric processes and computing capabilities and concentrated efforts to increase complexity of the atmospheric models, the assessment of accuracy of natural atmospheric climate variability, its predictability and interaction with anthropogenic influences is far from well understood. This project aims to advance scientific understanding of dynamical properties of the atmosphere and climate systems over many spatial and temporal scales. It is proposed to study atmospheric balance and predictability in terms of the energy percentage which is associated with various types of motions, balanced or Rossby-type of motions and unbalanced or inertio-gravity motions. This representation of the atmosphere is called the normal-mode function representation and it is a heart of methodology proposed in this project. The projects is built on theoretical foundation set in 1970s at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in USA and with the support of original developers it will apply normal-mode function representation tool to issues for which it could not have been reliably applied earlier. The project relies on accomplishments of the proposal’s PI in weather and data assimilation modeling which this project will extend to new research areas. The project will quantify balance in analysis datasets and ensemble forecasting systems and use the results as a starting point for climate model assessment for their ability to represent the present climate and possible changes of balance in model simulations of future climate scenarios. Results will allow dynamical classification of climate models based on their balance properties. Predictability issues will be studied by comparing temporal variability of balance in the forecasts in terms of various spatial scales. An important project outcome will be a free-access, user-friendly tool for carrying out a physically-based analysis of weather and climate model outputs.

Keywords: atmosphere,climate,balance,predictability,normal modes
Quantum Hamiltonian Complexity (QHC)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Computer science and informatics
Countries involved: Israel
Call:  (ERC-2011-StG_20101014, 2011)
Start date: 2012-03-01
End date: 2017-11-30
Duration (months): 69.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1499900.0
EU funding (EUR): 1499900.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Quantum computation suggests a revolution in technology and in cryptography, a completely new perspective on the foundations of theoretical computer science, and a different approach to the study of physical systems. One of the major new developments in quantum computation over the last few years has been the emergence of a new field called ``Quantum Hamiltonian complexity (QHC)'', which sits on the boundary between computational complexity theory and condensed matter physics. This direction investigates computational aspects of physical objects such as ground states and Hamiltonians, using techniques from both physics and theoretical computer science. This direction has already had an immense impact on both quantum computation and condensed matter physics. This project aims not only to investigate fundamental questions in quantum Hamiltonian complexity as it exists today, such as quantum states generation, tensor network descriptions of quantum states, area laws, and the complexity of Hamiltonians, but also to greatly broaden the scope of this new paradigm, into the study of quantum PCP; into new frontiers in quantum algorithms such as quantum walks, adiabatic algorithms and topology and tensor networks related algorithms; as well as into the study of quantum protocols such as coin flipping, quantum interactive proofs and quantum cryptography and their implications on our understanding of quantum entanglement.

Keywords: quantum computational complexity,algorithms,cryptography,entanglement,hamiltonian,adiabatic,coin flipping,tensor networks,markov chains,spectral gaps,area law,pcp