On January 30 and 31, 2018 in Nantes, the aLIFE symposium focused on the software industry’s contribution to the industry of the future. It was being organized by IMT Atlantique, and aimed to bring together manufacturers and researchers in order to target shared problems, and respond to national and European calls for projects in the future: cloud manufacturing, data protection, smart factories, etc. Hélène Coullon, Guillaume Massonnet and Hugo Bruneliere, researchers at IMT Atlantique and co-organizers of the symposium, answered our questions about this event and the issues surrounding the industry of the future.
What were the objectives of the aLIFE symposium?
Hélène Coullon – The objective of this symposium were to hold a meeting bringing together researchers from IMT Atlantique, other academic players such as the Technical University of Munich or Polytechnique Montreal, and manufacturers like Dassault Systems and Airbus, to focus on the theme of the industry of the future, and more specifically on the contribution of the software industry to the industry of the future.
Guillaume Massonnet – We were also seeking to adopt a coherent and constructive approach to connecting the research we are conducting with the needs of industry, and to determine which challenges we should respond to today. Finally, we wanted to form a consortium of stakeholders from the industrial and academic worlds to respond to European and national calls for projects.
What themes have been addressed?
HC – The main themes included smart factories, cloud manufacturing, which is related to cloud computing, the modeling of processes, resources and data (physical and software), and the related optimization issues.
Hugo Bruneliere – On the one hand, we are inspired by software approaches that can be applied to the context of industrial systems, which include a significant physical aspect, and on the other hand, there is the question of how to position and use the software within these new industrial processes. These two aspects are complementary, but they can be addressed independently. This is a relatively new area. A great deal of research has been carried out on the topic, and initiatives are beginning to emerge, but there is still much work to do.
What is cloud manufacturing?
HC – Cloud computing allows IT resources to be rented “on demand”, for example: processors, data storage, software resources, etc. Cloud manufacturing is the application of cloud computing concepts aimed at transferring IT resources to industrial resources. In other words, cloud manufacturing makes it possible to move towards “on-demand” production.
For example, we can imagine a user making a production request using an online platform. Via the cloud, this platform would distribute the tasks to be performed using different means of production, located in different geographical places.
What can cloud manufacturing offer manufacturers?
HB – It allows them to render their production units more profitable. Large companies have machines they have invested in, and they want to operate them as much as possible to make them profitable. If they do not use them continuously, they can make the unused production capabilities available to startups that do not have the means to invest in these machines. This allows large companies to have a better return on investment and prevents smaller companies from having to invest in expensive equipment.
We can also imagine a new way of producing for individuals, no longer by mass, but on demand, with the possibility of greater product customization.
How can this software contribute to data security?
HC -Industrial data is sensitive by definition. Of course, in the context of the industry of the future, with distributed production, the data will travel through external networks and be stored on remote servers. They will therefore potentially be exposed to attacks. We must secure the entire path taken by the data by using cryptography, for example, among many other techniques.
What are smart factories?
GM – A smart factory is an industry in which the various means of production are automated, intelligent, and able to communicate with each other. This raises issues related to the size of the data flow: issues of big data. We must therefore take this information into account to integrate it into the production decisions and their optimization.
The new modes of production break with traditional practices, in which production chains were dedicated to specific, mass-produced products. Today, new machines have become reconfigurable, and the same production lines are used for several types of products. Therefore, there is a move towards an industry that increasingly seeks to customize its production.
And these changes will take place through the development of specific software architectures?
HB – Through the aLIFE symposium, we wish to show that the contribution of software is necessary in responding to the problems facing the industry of the future. We have significant experience in software in our laboratory, and we intend to build on this expertise to show that we can provide the industry with solutions.
https://imtech-test.imt.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Visuel_Une-5.jpg8501275I'MTechI'MTech2018-04-11 16:42:582018-04-11 16:44:51Software: A key to the industry of the future
How can European startups be encouraged to reach beyond their countries’ borders to develop internationally? How can they come together to form new collaborations? The Soft Landing project, in which business incubator IMT Starter is participating, allows growing startups and SMEs to discover the ecosystems of different European incubators. The goal is to offer them support in developing their business internationally.
“Europe certainly acknowledges the importance of each country developing its own ecosystem of startups and SMEs, yet each ecosystem is developing independently,” explains Augustin Rads, business manager at IMT Starter. The Soft Landing project, which receives funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 program, seeks to find a solution to this problem. “The objective is, on the one hand to promote exchanges between the different startup and SME ecosystems, and on the other hand to provide these companies with a more global vision of the European market beyond their borders,” he explains.
Soft Landing resulted from collaboration between five European incubators: Startup Division in Lithuania, Crosspring Lab in the Netherlands, GTEC in Germany, F6S Network in the UK, and IMT Starter, the incubator run by Télécom SudParis and Télécom École de Management in Évry, France. As part of the project, each of these stakeholders must first discover the startup and SME ecosystems developing in their partners’ countries. Next, interested startups that see a need for this support will be able to temporarily join an incubator abroad, for a limited period.
Discovering each country’s unique characteristics
Over the course of the two-year project, representatives from each country will visit partner incubators to discover and learn about the startup ecosystem that is developing there. The representatives are also seeking to identify specific characteristics, skills, and potential markets in each country that could interest startups in their own country. “Each country has its specific areas of interest: the Germans work a lot on the theme of the industry, whereas in the Netherlands and Lithuania, the projects are more focused on FinTech, “Augustin Radu adds. “At IMT Starter, we are more focused on information technologies.”
Once they have completed these discovery missions, the representatives will return to their countries’ startups to present the potential opportunities. “At IMT Starter, we have planned a mission in Germany in March, another in the Netherlands in April, in May we will host a foreign representative, and in June we will go to Lithuania,” Augustin Radu explains. “There may be other missions outside the European Union as well, in the Silicon Valley and in India.”
Hosting foreign startups in the incubators
Once each incubator’s specific characteristics and possibilities have been defined, the startups can request to be hosted by a partner ecosystem for a limited period. “As an incubator, we will host startups that will benefit from our customized support.” says Augustin Radu. “They will be able to move into our offices, take advantage of our network of industrial partners, and work with our researchers and laboratories. The goal is to help them find talent to help grow their businesses.”
“Of course, there is a selection process for startups that want to join an incubator,” the business manager adds. “What are their specific needs? Does this match the host country’s areas of specialization?” In addition, the startup or SME should ideally have an advanced level of maturity, be well rooted in its country of origin and have a product that is already finalized. According to Augustin Radu, these are the prerequisites for a company to benefit from this opportunity to continue its development abroad.
Remove barriers that separate startups and research development
“While all four of the partner structures are radically different, they are all very well-rooted in their respective countries,” the business manager explains. IMT Starter is in fact the only incubator participating in this project that is connected to a higher education and research institution, IMT. A factor that Augustin Radu believes will greatly enhance the French incubator’s visibility.
In addition to fostering the development of startups abroad, the Soft Landing project also removes barriers between companies and the research community by proposing that researchers at schools associated with IMT Starter form partnerships with the young foreign companies. “Before this initiative, it was difficult to imagine a French researcher working with a German startup! Whereas today, if a young European startup joins our incubator because it needs our expertise, it can easily work with our laboratories.”
The project therefore represents a means of accelerating the development of innovation, both by building bridges between the research community and the startup ecosystem, as well as by pushing young European companies to seek an international presence. “For those of us in the field of information technology, if we don’t think globally we won’t get anywhere!” Augustin Radu exclaims. “When I see that in San Francisco, companies immediately think about exporting outside the USA, I know our French and European startups need to do the same thing!” This is a need the Soft Landing project seeks to fulfill by broadening the spectrum of possibilities for European startups. This could allow innovations produced in the Old World to receive the international attention they deserve.
https://imtech-test.imt.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/dose-media-368248.jpg13782000I'MTechI'MTech2018-04-09 17:50:512018-04-12 14:46:58Soft Landing: A partnership between European incubators for developing international innovation
From the ancient gnomon that measured the sun’s height, to the Compton gamma ray observatory, the microscope, and large-scale accelerators, scientific instruments are researchers’ allies, enabling them to make observations at the smallest and largest scales. Used for both basic and applied research, they help test hypotheses and push back the boundaries of human knowledge. At IMT Atlantique, researcher Dominique Thers, motivated by the development of instruments, has become a leading expert on xenon technologies, which are used in the search for dark matter as well as in the medical field.
The search for observable matter
Detecting dark matter for the first time is currently one of science’s major challenges. “It would be a little like radioactivity at the end of the 19th century, which disrupted the Maxwell-Boltzmann equations,” Dominique Thers explains. Based on the velocity measurements of seven galaxies carried out by Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwicky in 1933, which contradicted the known mass of these galaxies, a hypothesis was made that a type of matter existed that is unobservable using the currently available means and that represents 27% of the matter in the universe. “Unobservable” means that the particles that form this matter interact with traditional baryonic particles (protons, neutrons, etc.) in a very unusual manner. To detect them, the probability of this type of interaction occurring must be radically increased, and there must be a way of fully ensuring that no false event can trigger the alert.
In this race to be the first to detect dark matter, developing more powerful instruments is paramount. “The physics of particle detectors is a discipline that has become increasingly complex,” he explains, “it is not sufficiently developed in France and around the world, and it currently requires significant financial resources, which are difficult to obtain.” China and the United States have greatly invested in this area, and Germany is the most generous contributor, but there are currently few French teams: “It is a very tense context.” Currently, the most sensitive detector for hunting down dark matter is located in Italy, where it was built under the mountain of Gran Sasso for the XENON1T experiment. Detection is based on the hope of an interaction between a particle of dark matter and one of the xenon atoms, which in this experiment are liquid. The energy deposited from this type of interaction generates two different phenomena – scintillation and ionization – which are observable and can be used to distinguish the background. 150 people from 25 international teams are working together on this experiment at the largest underground laboratory in the world.
This research that has spanned generations must be justified. “Society asks, what is the purpose is of observing the nature of dark matter? We may only find the answer 25 years from now,” the researcher explains. Dark matter represents enormous potential: five times more prevalent than ordinary matter, it is a colossal reservoir of energy. The field has greatly developed in 30 years, and xenon has opened a new area of research, with prospects for the next 20 years. Dominique Thers is participating in European reflection for experiments in 2025, with the goal of achieving precise observations at lower ranges.
Xenon, a rare, expensive and precious gas
While the xenon used for this experiment possesses remarkable properties (density, no radioactive isotopes), it is unfortunately a raw material that is rare and cannot be manufactured. It is extracted by distilling air in its liquid phase, using a very costly process. Xenon is indeed present in the air at 0.1 ppm (parts per million), or “a tennis ball of xenon gas in the volume of a hot air balloon,” Dominique Thers explains, or “one ton of xenon from 2,000,000 tons of liquid oxygen“.
The French company Air Liquide is the global leader in the distribution of xenon. The gas is used to create high-intensity lights, as a propellant for space travel and as an anesthetic. It is their diamond “in a luxury market subject to speculation.” And luxury products require luxury instruments. For those created by the researcher’s team, xenon is used in its purest form possible. “The objective is to have less than one ppb (part per billion) of oxygen in the liquid xenon,” the scientist explains. This is made possible due to a closed-circuit purification system that continuously cleans the equipment, particularly from all the impurities from the walls.
The technology of xenon in the form of cryogenic liquid is reserved for the experts. Dominique Thers’ team has patented expertise in storing, distributing and recovering ultra-pure liquid xenon.
In a measurement experiment like the one for dark matter, there is zero toleration for radioactive background noise. “Krypton is one of xenon’s natural contaminants, and it is the original source of xenon after cryogenic distillation produces 94% krypton and 6% xenon,” the researcher explains. However, the isotope krypton-85 is created by human activities. In the XENON1T experiment, we start with a few ppm (parts per million) of natural krypton present in the xenon, which is far too much. “All the types of steel used in the instrument are selected and measured before they come in contact with the liquid xenon,” the researcher adds, explaining that in this instance they obtained the lowest measurement of background noise using an experimental device.
The first promising results will be published in early 2018, and the next stages are already taking shape. The experiment that will start in 2019, XENONnT, which will use 60% of the equipment from XENON1T, aims to achieve even greater precision. Competition is fierce with the LZ teams in the USA and PandaX teams in China. “We can’t let anyone get ahead of us in this complicated quest in which, for the first time, we want to observe something new,” Dominique Thers emphasizes. He estimates that, all told, 50 to 100 tons of extra-pure xenon will be needed to refute the possible presence of observable dark matter or, on the contrary, measure its mass, describe its properties and identify possible applications.
Xenon cameras in oncology
When working with this type of trans-generational research, parallel research within shorter time frames must be carried out. This is especially true in France, where the research structure makes it difficult to fully commit to instrumentation activities. Budgets for funding applied research are hard to come by, and researchers also devote time to teaching activities. It would be a shame if so much expertise developed over time failed to make a groundbreaking discovery due to a lack of funds or time.
To avoid this fate, Dominique Thers and his team have succeeded in creating a virtuous circle. “We’ve been quite lucky,” the researcher says with a smile. “We have been able to develop local activities with a community that also needs to make advancements that could be made possible through medical imaging using liquid xenon.” At the university hospital (CHU) in Nantes there is a leading team of specialists in cancer therapy and engineering who understand the advantages xenon cameras represent. The cancer specialists’ objective is to provide patients with better support, and better understand each patient’s response to treatment. In the context of an ongoing State-Regional Planning Contract (CPER), the scientist convinced them to invest in this technology, “because with a new instrument, anything is possible.”
The current PET (Positron-emission tomography) imaging techniques use solid-state cameras that require rare-earth elements, and only a dozen patients a day are effectively screened using this technology. Xenon cameras, which use Compton imaging, the only technique that can trace the trajectory of a single photon, uses triangulation methods to ensure the 3D localization of the areas where the medicine has been applied. The level of precision is therefore improved and opens the way to possible benefits to treat more patients daily or monitor the progress of the treatment more regularly. The installation at the CHU in Nantes is scheduled for 2018, initially for tests on animals before 2020. This should convince manufacturers to make a camera adapted to producing an image of the entire human body, which would also undoubtedly require several million euros of investments, but this time with a potential market of several billion euros.
Just like the wave–particle duality so treasured by physicists, Dominque Thers and his team have two simultaneous facets. “They could have a short-term impact on society, while at the same time opening new perspectives in our understanding of the universe,” the scientist explains.
[author title=”Pushing the limits of nature” image=”https://imtech-test.imt.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Portrait_réduit.jpg”]Dominique Thers believes he “fell into research accidentally”. As someone who enjoyed the hard sciences and mathematics, he met researchers during an internship in astronomy and particle physics. “The human side convinced me to give it a try,” and he began working on a thesis with Georges Charpak, which they defended in 2000. He joined IMT Atlantique (formerly Mines Nantes) in 2001, and since 2009 he has been in charge of the Xenon team which is part of the Subatech department, a Mixed Research Unit (UMR) with the University of Nantes and the CNRS. This mixed aspect is also present in the cultural diversity of the PhD and post doctorate students that come from all over the globe. The researcher’s motivation is whole-hearted: “It’s wonderful to be exposed to the limits of nature. Nature prevented us from going any further, and our instruments are going to allow us to cross this border. “The young researchers, who are exposed to scientific culture, perceive these limits and are drawn to the leading teams in this field. Dominique Thers is also an entrepreneur; in 2012, with three PhD students, he founded the AI4R startup specialized in medical instrumentation.[/author]
https://imtech-test.imt.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Visuem_Une_3.jpg9601358I'MTechI'MTech2018-04-05 11:02:062022-03-18 16:50:49Xenon instruments for long-term experiments
What if robotics and machine learning could help ease your back pain? The KERAAL project, led by IMT Atlantique, is working to design a humanoid robot that could help patients with lower back pain do their rehabilitation exercises at home. Thanks to supervised learning algorithms, the robot can show the patient the right movements and correct their errors in real time.
Lower back pain, a pathology primarily caused by aging and a lack of physical activity, affects a large majority of the population. To treat this pain, patients need rehabilitation from a physical therapist, and they must perform the prescribed exercises on their own on a daily basis. For most patients, this second step is not carried out very diligently, leading to real consequences for their health. How can they receive personalized assistance and stay motivated to perform the rehabilitation exercises long-term?
The KERAAL project, funded by the European Union under the Echord++ project, led by IMT Atlantique in partnership with Génération Robot and CHRU de Brest, has developed a humanoid robot capable of showing physical therapy exercises to a patient and correcting the patient’s errors in real time. The researchers have used a co-design approach, working with physical therapists and psychologists to define the most relevant exercises to be implemented, and be as specific as possible in defining the robot’s gestures and verbal instructions, and study how the robot is received by patients and therapists.
“With a coach at home, patients have a physical presence and moral and emotional support that encourages them to correctly pursue their rehabilitation,” explains Mai Nguyen, project coordinator and researcher at the Computer Science Department at IMT Atlantique. “The robot offers a way to monitor the patient’s performance of daily repetitive exercises, a task that is tiresome for therapists. At the same time, it prevents patients from having to make daily trips to the rehabilitation center.”
A supervised learning algorithm that corrects the patient’s movements in real time
In 2014, the researchers began tests with the Nao robot, developed by SoftBank Robotics. “We found that Nao did not have enough joints to allow him to reproduce the rehabilitation exercises,” Mai Nguyen explains. “This is why we finally chose to work with the Poppy robot, which has a backbone. Therefore, he can move his back, which is better adapted to the treatment of lower back pain.”
The small humanoid robot is equipped with a 3D camera and algorithms capable of extracting the “skeleton” of the person being filmed and detect their movements. The IMT Atlantique team worked on a supervised learning algorithm capable of analyzing the movement of the patient’s “skeleton” by comparing it to the demonstrations of the exercises previously shown to the robot by the health professional. “The algorithm we are working on will determine the common features between the physical therapist’s different demonstrations, and will identify which variations he must reject,” Mai Nguyen explains. “There are some differences in execution that are acceptable. For example, if the exercise focuses on the arm muscles, the position of the feet is not important, whereas in the movement of the shoulders, every detail counts. The same level of precision is not required for every body part at all times.”
The robot has a list of common errors in the physical therapy movements that have been previously identified and are associated with specific instructions for the patient. If the robot detects an error in the execution of the exercise, it will be able to verbally communicate with the patient while performing the correct movement. “Our goal was to create an interactive system that could respond to the patient in real time, without requesting the physical therapist’s assistance,” Mai Nguyen explains. “The data from the robot could then be used by the caregivers for more thorough follow-up.”
A friendly and motivating presence
“For the time being, what we have observed is that the system is functional. The initial tests show that the robot is able to perform the ongoing monitoring of patients, but we are awaiting the end of the clinical tests to come to a conclusion on the robot’s effectiveness in terms of motivation and rehabilitation as well as on the patients’ and physical therapists’ experiences,” Mai Nguyen explains.
As part of the co-design approach, Poppy was subject to a pre-experiment phase during the initial development of the project with five senior citizens who seldom use technology. Following the robot-mediated physical exercise sessions, the psychologists interviewed the participants. The goal was to understand how they perceived the machine, and if they had correctly understood its movements. “Before the session, the subjects were very apprehensive about the idea of working with a robot, but Poppy was perceived very positively, and provided a friendly dimension that was very appreciated,” Mai Nguyen explains. “The subjects were very motivated to do their exercises right!” Tests have been carried out with six patients suffering from lower back pain at the CHRU in Brest and at the rehabilitation center in Perharidy.
For the time being, all experiments have been carried out in a hospital setting. But the researchers’ long-term goal is to propose a robot that the patient can take home, with a program of personalized exercises implemented by the physical therapist. “We are trying to develop a system that is as lightweight as possible, with only one camera as a sensor,” Mai Nguyen explains. The researchers have also launched a study of the business model with the perspective of the potential industrial production of this physical therapist robot.
“The project had very theoretical roots, but its completion is becoming more and more concrete!” Mai Nguyen explains. “We believe that, in a few years, this solution may be available on the market, bringing real advances in patient care.”
The work presented here was partially funded by the European project EU FP-7 ECHORD++ KERAAL, by the CPER VITAAL project funded by FEDER, and by the RoKINter project by UBO.
https://imtech-test.imt.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Experiment.png869948I'MTechI'MTech2018-04-04 11:30:352018-04-04 11:45:48A robot and supervised learning algorithms for physical rehabilitation
Everyone who wears glasses knows: finding the best pair for your face can be a daunting task… The VESPA project, led by researchers at IMT Lille Douai and hosted by the Teralab platform, is working with Cape Trylive to develop machine learning algorithms that can determine users’ facial characteristics during virtual online fittings and recommend products based on their morphology.
Do you have a round face? Then the best glasses for you would be angular and narrow designs. Do you have a square face? Then try butterfly-shaped glasses! Based on your face shape, certain types of frames will look better on you than others. For a few years now, plug-ins on opticians’ websites have allowed users to try on glasses virtually. However, they do not offer features to help users find the best frames for their face.
The VESPA project, led by Jacques Boonaert and Stéphane Lecoeuche at the IMT Lille Douai Computer and Control Sciences Research Unit, in collaboration with Pascal Mobuchon of Acep Trylive, a virtual fitting plug-in supplier, aims to develop a machine learning algorithm capable of identifying users’ face shapes and recommending glasses based on their morphological characteristics. “Acep Trylive has developed technology for establishing the key points on users’ faces while they are filmed via webcam during virtual fittings,” Stéphane Lecoeuche explains. “The goal of the VESPA project is to develop algorithms capable of analyzing the position of key elements on faces to determine the user’s morphology.” All the data used in the context of this project are anonymized and hosted on the secure, neutral and sovereign Teralab platform. TeraLab also provides researchers with tools for processing these data sets.
The algorithms developed by the researchers follow a supervised learning logic. “This means that we submit a set of images labeled by human experts to the algorithms, which determine if the person’s face is round, square, oval…” Jacques Boonaert explains.
In addition, the key points that Acep Trylive’s software automatically establishes on the user’s face provide the algorithm with a set of descriptors. For example, a descriptor could be a measurement of the key points on the face: this could be the height of the forehead, the shape of the chin, the width of the face or the jaw, etc. Based on the data labelled by human experts, the algorithm will determine which descriptors are most relevant in recognizing the user’s morphology. “We have tested sub-sets of descriptors. In all, there are over 20,” says Stéphane Lecoeuche. “The algorithms then ascertain the influence of the descriptors on their own to define the best morphological characterization.”
There are three of these morphological classification algorithms. One focuses on the shape of the jaw, the second on the face shape, and the third on the width of the forehead. Digital descriptors of the user’s hair, eye and skin color are also used to propose the most suitable colors for the frames. All of this data is then merged to create recommendations for glasses adapted to the user based on these characteristics.
The Acep Trylive software highlights the key points on users’ faces (in blue)
Recommending products based on users’ morphology
Based on the monitoring of behavior and consumers’ history, the researchers were able to determine which glasses each internet user preferred: “Someone tries on a first pair of glasses, then a second, comes back to the first, tries a third pair, then again comes back to the first… In observing this sequence, we can determine which product the person prefers!” Jacques Boonaert explains.
The learning algorithm takes this fitting history into account and statistically consolidates the glasses the user preferred by morphology type. “Thanks to the data from thousands or even hundreds of thousands of fitting sessions, the algorithm makes the connection between the face shape and the products that were tried on,” says Stéphane Lecoeuche. Therefore, for each new user who tries the application, the morphological analysis algorithms will determine their face shape and, depending on the choices of users with a similar morphology, and the recommendation engine will propose a set of products most likely to please them.
Seeking a partner company for further development
“We also had to work on the product’s geometric classification. The problem is that we have not been able to access the data from opticians’ catalogs, which classify glasses by shape, style, color…” Stéphane Lecoeuche explains. The researchers had planned to work on the association between the customer’s morphological characteristics and the products’ geometrical characteristics. While the algorithmic analysis of the facial morphology provided good results, the lack of data on the frames has limited their objectives.
“The other difficulty is that we do not have access to users’ final purchase decisions,” Jacques Boonaert adds. “We are aware that this is sensitive data for businesses. This is why we would like to create a strong partnership with an optician in order to further develop this project.” The researchers wish to implement a second phase of experimentation with a partner company, in which the algorithm could integrate the users’ buying decision and the products’ geometric classification. In the meantime, while waiting to find a company that would like to integrate the project consortium, the research team is continuing its work in machine learning geared towards industry and trade.
https://imtech-test.imt.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/scott-van-daalen-202643.jpg27304096I'MTechI'MTech2018-03-30 17:20:542018-03-30 17:31:43Facial morphology analysis algorithms for choosing glasses
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he climate is warming and changing: we must act. On the French version of the website The Conversation, climate change specialist Christian de Perthuis recently applauded the introduction of the carbon tax in France in 2014 and its gradual increase.
Referring to the “Quinet value” (around 90 euros), the author suggests that reaching this price would “guarantee” that greenhouse gas emissions would decrease four-fold. When they accumulate in the atmosphere, these emissions disrupt the climate’s balance.
France therefore would appear to be on the right path, seemingly part of the “narrow circle” of model students. Sweden, with its carbon tax of 110 euros, is cited as an example. Inequalities in terms of access to energy are offset by the energy voucher benefit. There’s only one hitch: the carbon tax is very unpopular.
Dependence on fossil fuels
This is an appealing example, but in fact it is deceiving.
First, we must remember that Sweden depends less on fossil fuels than France, representing approximately 30% of its primary energy balance against 50% in France. And France is much more dependent than the figures show.
We must keep in mind that “primary energy” refers to the energy produced within a country, to which we must add imported energy. This amount is different from the “final energy”, which refers to the energy charged to the consumer. Between these two categories is where the losses are hidden. However, there is a 70% difference between primary and final energy for nuclear energy, which is crucial in the French energy mix.
In the light of these figures, we understand why it is easier for Sweden to combat these greenhouse gas emissions.
Also, the transition Sweden has achieved over the past decades did not only rely solely on the carbon tax. While it is true that the country went from 70% of fossils in the 1970s to approximately 30% in its primary energy balance, this was due to a set of combined measures, including grants and the development of local channels; but also due to a serious economic crisis in the 1990s.
This led to devaluation, which resulted in a considerable increase in the price of fossil fuels, which brought about significant and lasting changes in the local market conditions. Finally, Sweden developed electricity production primarily based on hydropower and nuclear energy. And the “decarbonization” was also brought about by the strong development of district heating networks and significant incentive policies for renewable energies.
The tax is must therefore be understood as part of a clear and comprehensive strategy, based on strong political support, which is not the case in France. On June 10, 2016, the five main political parties in Sweden concluded an agreement on the country’s energy policy.
One of the specific objectives was that Sweden would no longer emit greenhouse gases by 2045, and that the national electrical production would rely entirely on renewable energies as early as 2040. Measured in primary energy, Sweden already relies on 36% renewable energy: this is much more than France, which has stagnated in this area for the past 30 years (13 Mtoe in 1970 on a balance of 170 Mtoe, 24 on a balance of 260 Mtoe in 2016).
There is nothing to show that the tax played the role attributed to it by Christian de Perthuis, quite the contrary. We can also note that energy policy is a topic that is regularly absent from French public debate.
Outsourced emissions
Yet in Sweden, things are not as rosy (or green!) as they seem. A significant part of the country’s economy is now devoted to the tertiary (services) sector, and the share of the industrial sector has declined, as in France. Services account for 72% of GDP and 80% of the labor force. These figures are comparable to those in France (80% and 76% respectively).
This means that Stockholm is increasingly buying the goods consumed on its territory, like its electronic products, elsewhere. Therefore, Sweden outsources the greenhouse gas emissions related to the manufacturing of these products. In 2008, WWF estimated that 17% of emissions should be added to Sweden’s balance to obtain the net total of its emissions. This is still better than France, which must add 40%.
For all its talk, France is not a leader in climate issues.
Paris and much of French media prefer to criticize German coal for its harmful emissions, despite Germany having reduced these emissions by 25% since 1990. While many commentators are focusing on Germany’s failures (perhaps to better excuse our own failures?), we must remember that German emissions have dropped from 1041 MtCO₂ in 2000 to 901 in 2015.
Germany, with its less service-based economy, draws its fuels from its own soil; therefore, it does not outsource its emissions. Although German emissions stopped declining in 2009, their decarbonization policy remains unchanged; it has simply introduced the additional constraint of phasing out nuclear power. And it is doubtful that Germany will succeed in doing what also appears impossible in France (and elsewhere): reconciling infinite growth with respect for the planet.
French companies have bad report cards
All the countries in the world cannot continue to pass their emissions on to their neighbors. Therefore, the decoupling of economic growth from greenhouse gas emissions mentioned by Christian de Perthuis in his article certainly appears to be an illusion.
In reality, France is the 7th largest global contributor to climate change. This is explained by the mass of cumulative emissions over a long period of time, keeping in mind that what causes global warming is not the annual emissions of greenhouse gas, but rather their gradual accumulation over the past 150 years.
The warming is a function of the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and thus of the overall carbon stock there. Although France now emits relatively little in comparison, it has emitted large amounts in the past. We would expect France to set an example, as it committed to do under the Kyoto Protocol.
We must emphasize that the policies of French multinationals are very far from respecting the recent commitments of the Paris Agreement to combat climate change: these policies lead to a rise of 5.5 °C. Finally, Sweden and France are taking risks in committing to nuclear energy, despite the statistical certainty of an accident revealed by the revised calculation methods following the Fukushima disaster.
A political issue
Distributing a voucher for 150 or 200 euros to help the poorest individuals cope with their dependency on fossil fuels is indecent in a context of increased wealth among the wealthiest individuals and the stagnation of low wages in developed countries. The most affluent will continue to consume more and more, thus emitting more and more greenhouse gases.
Finally, there is the question of how Christian de Perthuis’ article can define a “good policy” based solely on economic analysis, without including a multi-disciplinary perspective and a public consultation process.
The wealthiest individuals and high-value added activities, which “drive” growth, will pay the tax without even noticing, and will continue to feed the machine, consuming more and more; while those with the lowest incomes, or those for whom fuel represents a significant portion of their budgets, will be greatly impacted. None of this makes any political sense.
In budgets, the priority continues to be given to roads and cars (+16% in 1990-2014 compared to -14% for rail tracks). And yet we want to penalize those who use them? Do we really want to save the climate?
The right approach lies in popular mobilization and creative energies; this is a political problem, not only an economic one. By ignoring this, we avoid putting the real obstacles on the table, such as market balances between major operators (who want to keep their shares, arguing that they need time to change) and innovators that are struggling to make a name for themselves.
In November 2017, IMT became an associate partner of EIT Health, a European program for improving research on new technologies in e-health. Bernadette Dorizzi, director of research and the doctoral program at Télécom SudParis, explains the objectives of this partnership, and how it will contribute to developing IMT projects on e-health topics.
What is EIT health and what are its objectives?
Bernadette Dorizzi – EIT Health is a consortium of 50 core partners and 90 associated partners from 14 different EU countries. It brings together companies such as Air Liquide, Sanofi-Aventis, Siemens Healthineer, research organizations including CEA and INRIA and universities like Imperial College in London, the University of Copenhagen and the Technical University of Munich. EIT Health is arranged in national “nodes” with European governance. The French node is extremely active and won the most projects last year!
This consortium offers funding and connections within an ecosystem of startups, manufacturers and academics to develop and enhance projects in the area of e-health. For example, a researcher who is developing a concept can work with a startup to develop a prototype, and then with a larger company that will enhance and distribute the device. Other projects, of larger financial amounts, are aimed at addressing societal problems, such as the autonomy of dependent persons at their homes. They are carried out by large companies in association with SMES, whose participation is highly valued. The overall objective is to take research out of the laboratories, so it can make a more significant impact on society.
In addition to events and meetings for sharing ideas and projects, EIT Health proposes training sessions on major issues related to innovation and entrepreneurship. For example, Sanofi is currently developing a training program on the GDPR, the General Data Protection Regulation, which will come into effect in Europe as early as April of next year. It is an interesting symbiotic relationship: the academics are not the only ones receiving training, manufacturers are too!
Our goal within EIT Health is of course to promote our research projects. At IMT, we have a cross-cutting program on “Health, autonomy and well-being”, and we are looking for partners for developing projects.
What areas is EIT Health involved in?
B.D. – EIT Health is involved in new technologies and big data in the e-health sector, and particularly issues such as preventive care, home support for the elderly, improving the employability and autonomy of dependent persons, and the care provided to patients with chronic diseases.
A new call for proposals focuses on “wild card” projects, which are very innovative and high risk, on very precise subjects. In 2018, they focus on resistance to antibiotics and the use of data in personalized medicine.
What added benefit does IMT bring to these issues?
B.D. – IMT is offering EIT Health its ecosystem, which represents a wealth of research and innovation in health technologies and services, in a field where it is a national player and is internationally recognized. For example, a number of our researchers are working on connected objects in health, for the quality of life and independence of vulnerable individuals. We are currently conducting a project called Solsens, financed by the “Health, autonomy and well-being” seed fund in 2017. This inter-school project looks at flooring technology that could detect walking movements and falls and could send this information to a smartphone or computer. These products are manufactured by the German company Future Shape. Our researchers have worked on this concept to develop serious games that reproduce the walking path that was taken and want to develop new applications for this connected flooring. They would like to find a partnership with a manufacturer to develop this device on a larger scale.
The spin-off companies and incubated companies at the different IMT campuses also represent a significant contribution to the EIT Health dynamic. As part of a project on anonymizing personal health data, a team of researchers from IMT Atlantique created a small startup and are seeking to further establish themselves in order to offer their services to e-health stakeholders. This is exactly the type of situation in which our collaboration with EIT Health could be beneficial.
In addition, various technological platforms, such as Teralab, a big data and artificial intelligence platform featuring an authorized system hosting health data, clearly illustrate the added benefit IMT brings to EIT’s activities.
For the time being, IMT is an associate partner. If the partnership goes well, and we obtain good results from the current projects, we will consider becoming a core partner in order to carry out projects on a larger scale.
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[dropcap]D[/dropcap]igital social innovations (DSI) are booming in Europe, empowering people to solve problems in areas as diverse as social inclusion, health, democracy, education, migration and sustainability. Examples include civic tech, neighbourhood-regeneration platforms, collaborative map-making, civic crowdfunding, peer-to-peer education and online time banks. A wide range of organisations support DSIs, through offering consultancy services, network access, funding, resources and skills.
The UK-based NESTA is one of the central think tanks in the field, as well as the coordinator of the EU-funded project DSI4EU. At the European level, different schemes exist to support social innovations and also DSIs, such as the Social Innovation Competition, whose 6th round took place in Paris on March 20 this year. Many events, festivals and conferences are also being organised, such as the Social Good Week in Paris or the Ouishare Fest, which was born in France and is now an international event.
While significant time, effort, and resources are spent on these activities, there are some obstacles to their development and efficacy in tackling the big challenges of our times, which seem necessary to address.
1. Questioning openness
Many DSIs emphasise participation and transparency, but the use of open-source software remains limited, at least in France. The openness of a platform is an important indicators about its capacity to encourage participation, by decentralising power, enabling others to access, replicate, and build upon the source code. Proprietary software, on the other hand, raises questions about the extent to which it is being manipulated by the innovator. Valentin Chaput, the editor of the site Open Source Politics states: “When we do not master its code, it is the authors of this code who control us”.
2. What happens to user data?
Social entrepreneurs often struggle to build sustainable business models that will ensure their autonomy and independence. There exist different business models through which DSIs generate income. One of these is the commercialisation of user data. Here, the main problem is not commercialisation per se (although to prevent it would be preferred), but how the background business model is communicated with the users.
To have information, users need to read in detail the platform’s “terms of use”, which are often not communicated by an attractive design. As a consequence, users can easily skip this part, due to ignorance or lack of interest. Platforms should be more transparent about their business models, and communicate these with the audience in a user-friendly way. This will also reduce some users’ hesitations in involvement, caused by a lack of trust.
3. Systemic change or short-term relief?
There is also a deeper concern about the sharing economy. Evgeny Morozov, author of Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom, wrote, “it’s like handing everybody earplugs to deal with intolerable street noise instead of doing something about the noise itself”. Sometimes this is also valid for DSI. How can innovations that can bring a systemic change be distinguished from system-enhancing ones? It is not meaningful to categorise platforms as systemic ones and others, as there are different shades of grey between purely black or white.
But there is some scope for thinking deeper, by observing the activities of platforms. For example, Humaid is a crowdfunding platform in which people with disabilities or their caregivers can raise money to purchase necessary assistive technologies. In so doing, Humaid in a sense reproduces exclusionary practices in the society by taking people with disabilities as objects of charity, rather than as individuals with rights and freedoms, as outlined in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Another example is from the sharing economy. Karos, a car-sharing platform launched a year ago, provides the option of “ladies only” car sharing. In doing so, doesn’t Karos reproduce existing practices that give rise to inequalities in the first place? Rather than using information and communication technologies (ICTs) to alleviate inequalities embedded in societies, such initiatives enhance existing norms and exclusionary barriers. Addressing big challenges require awareness raising and educational activities around rights and freedoms.
4. The struggle of traditional civil-society organisations
Established civil-society organisations that have field-specific experience with targeted populations, and who are involved in social movements and awareness raising activities can have an important role in systemic change, but most of them find themselves in a vulnerable position faced with digital platforms. For example, some are facing competition from start-ups that build resources and finances from the digital sector. Digital competences of the new economy and traditional associations’ field-specific experiences should find spaces of synergy building. But there are barriers to the successful building-up of such spaces, sometimes due to polarised ideological worlds between non-profits and organisations of the digital economy.
5. Under-engagement of users
There is also the important issue of attracting users to these platforms. Most DSI platforms rely on civic engagement, which could be for volunteering, providing skills, information, services, goods, opinions. At the same time, the online world is likely to reflect the economic, social and cultural relationships in the offline world – a research paper by Alexander Van Deursen and Jan Van Dijk of the University of Twente sheds light on this question.
This suggests that the DSI users could be those who are already active in civic life in the offline world, as indicated by the research of Marta Cantijoch, Silvia Galandini, and Rachel Gibson. If this is the case, DSIs can strengthen existing divides instead of alleviating them. To be able to develop effective and informed policies, more research about the nature of users, their engagement patterns in different platforms are needed, but there are obstacles on the way; most important is the lack of data.
6. Lack of data in a world of ‘big data’
The lack of data on users and the ecosystem are serious barriers to carry out research on DSIs and their potential to address big challenges. Platforms do not share data due to privacy and confidentiality reasons. Or, as in the case of France, regulations about data collection can prevent research about the users of DSI. At the national and EU levels, initiatives to collect and standardise data are much needed, so that researchers can have access to essential data about the use of and participation in DSI. This is also important to carry out research on the specific capabilities of different EU countries on DSI and develop means to transfer good practices and make use of potential synergies.
7. Fascination with (rapid) impact measurement
For investors, funders, and social entrepreneurs, social impact measurement is essential. But this can be problematic, complex and difficult issue. What’s more, it is important to remember a quote from William Bruce Cameron: “Not everything that can be counted counts. Not everything that counts can be counted”. In addition, sometimes time pressures result in employing vague and ineffective means to measure impact that lack a deep understanding of the returns. Amount of funds raised, growth in the number of participants, number of supported projects, and so on, are often used as indicators of success, but such statistics are problematic.
For instance, participants of a platform are often “dormant”, meaning they register but do not use the platform later on. It is necessary to change the way “social impact” is understood by policy makers and investors to distinguish what needs to be measured and what not, and if measurement is a must the focus should be on tangible changes that the platform brings. For example, which regulations have changed as a result of platform activities? Which medical research results are obtained by patient-doctor platforms? Which civic projects are realised, and what are potential benefits? Social indicators should focus on a deeper understanding of how the actual social practices that give rise to social problems are tackled, and what the role of platforms are in this process.
8. Innovation (un)readiness of population
While most of the policy focus is on supporting the generation of innovations, the innovation readiness of the user population is not given enough attention. Investments in developing Internet skills are of crucial importance, which include operational, formal and strategic skills. The research of Alexander Van Deursen and Jan Van Dijk provides insight on this question.
In addition, potential users can be unaware, uninterested, or unconnected even if they have a benefit to gain. Paradoxically, those who are most likely to benefit from DSI are more likely to be unaware, uninterested, or unconnected. Instead of being confined to the online sphere, social entrepreneurs should work actively with target populations in the field, in developing solutions and encouraging participation. As Tom Saunders of NESTA states, it is important to “remember that there’s a world beyond the Internet”. For example, the city of Amsterdam is remarkable in efforts to integrate the people in the collaborative economy.
9. Duplication, duplication, duplication
Most digital platforms operate according to the logic of network externalities, also called as multi-sided platforms. This means that the existence of one group of users in a platform makes it more attractive for other groups to join. In this way, certain digital platforms build up their user base rapidly and become dominant players. While this can be problematic in terms of building up of monopolistic power, too many start-ups in the same field is also problematic, which is the case today in some areas of DSI.
For example, there are more than 20 civic-tech platforms with similar functions in France. The potential gains and losses in terms of social welfare and efficiency should be understood and evaluated better in the case of DSI. Many of these platforms struggle to grow, their user base is divided, and finally they close down within a few years of launching. One solution can be to allow for sharing reputation, or other information about users between platforms, which helps in sustaining diversity, while avoiding centralisation of power.
10. Lack of cross-fertilisation
The importance of the above problems also depends on the field of activity and type of DSI considered, as there are many different types of DSIs. Aggregating all DSIs in a single group may be misleading. At the same time it is precisely this diversity that gives this emerging ecosystem its dynamism and resilience. Unfortunately, this diversity is not made use of in an effective way. Instead, field-specific bubbles have formed with weak interactions between them. Cross-fertilisation and synergies between these are potentially important to increase resilience, but networks rest weak. A recent initiative in France is Plateformes en Communs, which aims to form a common platform of cooperatives and associations in diverse domains of activity, so as to leverage synergies between them.
Given the high level of penetration of digital technologies in our lives, digital social innovations promise to address big challenges, yet for there to be better outcomes, more needs to be done. Participation to civic life – online or offline – is always valuable in an increasingly problematic world. Digital platforms make this participation much easier. As the saying goes, little drops of water make a mighty ocean.
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DSI4EU, Muge Ozman and Cedric Gossart are organising a special stream on digital social innovations in the 10th International Social Innovation Conference, which will take place in Heidelberg, in September 2018.
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The second edition of the IMT–Académie des Sciences Awards is now open for applications. These awards strive to reward exceptional scientific contributions at the European level in three areas: science and technology relating to digital transformation in industry, science and technology relating to energy transition, and environmental engineering. The deadline for applications is April 24, 2018.
Two scientists honored
2017 Awards Ceremony at the Académie des Sciences
The IMT–Académie des Sciences Awards comprise two awards:
– a Grand Prix awarded to a scientist who has made an exceptional contribution to the fields mentioned above through an outstanding body of work;
– a Young Scientist Prize awarded to a scientist who is under 40 years old on January 1 of the year the prize is awarded, and who has contributed to these same fields with a major innovation.
These prizes will be awarded jointly by IMT, with support from Fondation Mines-Télécom, and the Académie des Sciences. They will include the following prize amounts:
– Grand Prix: €30,000
– Young Scientist prize: €15,000
Each prize will be awarded to a scientist of any nationality working in France, or in Europe in close collaboration with French team.
Applications must include:
1) the form provided by the Académie des Sciences
2) a letter of support providing a personal opinion of the candidate
3) a short curriculum vitae
4) the candidate’s main scientific results
5) a list of the main publications
Official awards ceremony
The formal awards ceremony will be held in the dome of the Academy in Autumn 2018. It will be accompanied by a ceremony for the winners to present their work to the Academy.
https://imtech-test.imt.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Institut_France_2.jpg8901309I'MTechI'MTech2018-03-22 14:34:582019-01-09 10:18:572018 Edition of the IMT–Académie des Sciences Awards
The startup Vizity, incubating at ParisTech Entrepreneurs, seeks to reinvent how content is shared online. It has developed a mapping solution that combines online resources related to a place, making them more easily accessible for users.
Timothée Lairet, Co-founder of Vizity
“To talk about places, nothing beats a map,” Timothée Lairet assures us. By reminding us of this often-forgotten truth, the young entrepreneur sums up the purpose behind Vizity, the startup he cofounded. Because what better way to combine resources about cities from blogs, online travel guides, city hall and tourist offices than with a map? This is exactly what the startup proposes to do, “We gather these different types of content and combine them on a map to make them more accessible,” Timothée Lairet explains.
For now, the startup incubated at ParisTech Entrepreneurs works with each stakeholder independently. When working with the tourist office for a city or region, for example, it first creates a map of the geographical area, which will be added to the organization’s website. Then, Vizity can dynamically link an article from the tourist office’s website to an area on the map. A blogpost about an exhibition at a museum, or the history of a castle will be displayed when a site visitor explores these areas on the map.
The solution addresses a problem faced by tourists who do are not familiar with an area. “They know the information is out there, but don’t know how to look for it,” the co-founder explains. It is hard to find information about a village market, for example, if you don’t even know the market exists. But with the map, the site user sees the event on the map as a point of interest. By clicking on the linked content, the tourist can find opening hours for the market and what vendors will be there, and then decide whether or not to go.
Besides tourists, residents of big cities can also benefit from this solution. In a city inhabited by hundreds of thousands or even millions of people, it’s easy to miss out on an event we’re interested in that took place just a few minutes from home. Blogs that offer ideas for outings would benefit from having their latest updates included on a map that would be open to users. This would ensure we never miss the information added to our neighborhood map.
Thanks to Vizity maps, the different producers of content about a place, whether it be bloggers, companies or administration services, can offer their own view of the city’s places of interest and share it with others. By combining informational content for each site, they offer unique content curation and can recommend original tour ideas to their customers and users.
Towards a new form of map media?
The startup’s long-term goal is to offer a comprehensive map that would be open to users and bring together different types of content for the same location. Information on an exhibition at a prestigious museum, historical information about the museum’s building, and a review for the associated gourmet restaurant would all be available on the same map, even though the content would be from different websites.
Tanguy Abel, Co-founder of Vizity
And while the idea of combining a map and reviews could make you think of Google Maps, the comparison stops there. For Timothée Lairet, the goal is not to produce another review aggregator, but to focus on content with a high added value for users, written by professionals or a circle of close friends. The map must allow users to access a wealth of valid and valuable information.
By pairing this solution with the geolocation of users, Vizity also hopes to offer new services. For a start, tourist offices could better understand their visitors’ behaviors and better meet their needs, making their stay more enjoyable. More importantly, based on past visits, users could determine options for their next visit, and save their preferences. When travelling abroad, we would just need to tell the Vizity app what we’re looking for, and it would propose a visit that matches the experience we want. In short, a new way to explore locations off the beaten track.
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DSI4EU, Muge Ozman and Cedric Gossart are organising a special stream on digital social innovations in the 
