An open-air site from the recent Middle Palaeolithic in the Paris Basin (France): Les Bossats at Ormesson (Seine-et-Marne).

Conference (2012, November)

Le "Design Thinking" ou comment décomplex(ifi)er l'accès à la créativité et augmenter votre efficacité

Conference given outside the academic context (2012)

La pensée créative est à l’innovation ce que les méthodes sont à la recherche scientifique: une base essentielle. Longtemps associés à une certaine part de mystère, les mécanismes intrinsèques de la ... [more ▼]

La pensée créative est à l’innovation ce que les méthodes sont à la recherche scientifique: une base essentielle. Longtemps associés à une certaine part de mystère, les mécanismes intrinsèques de la créativité sont aujourd’hui peu à peu décryptés par les communautés de chercheurs actifs en ingénierie de la conception, en sciences sociales ou en psychologie. Un consensus semble se dégager quant à l’étendue de son application: la véritable valeur ajoutée de la créativité apparaît lorsqu’elle est appliquée, telle une culture d’entreprise, à toutes les strates d’un projet et lorsqu’elle est mise en oeuvre, sans distinction, par tout un chacun. Forts de ce constat, des entrepreneurs et inventeurs tels que David Kelley (fondateur d’IDEO, directeur de la d.school, Université de Stanford) ou Tim Brown (CEO actuel d’IDEO) ont activement développé une approche appelée le "Design Thinking". Celle-ci vise à démystifier et «décomplex(ifi)er» certains procédés favorisant la créativité et ainsi parvenir à décomplexer les acteurs généralement considérés comme «non créatifs». L’intervention abordera, au travers d’une vingtaine de «success stories», les concepts de base de la démarche. Elle se voudra avant tout à la portée de ceux et celles qui désirent ré-intégrer la créativité au sein de leur pratique professionnelle et, en finalité, augmenter leur potentiel innovant. [less ▲]

Multifractality of quantum wave packets

in Physical Review. E : Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics (2012), 86

We study a version of the mathematical Ruijsenaars-Schneider model and reinterpret it physically in order to describe the spreading with time of quantum wave packets in a system where multifractality can ... [more ▼]

We study a version of the mathematical Ruijsenaars-Schneider model and reinterpret it physically in order to describe the spreading with time of quantum wave packets in a system where multifractality can be tuned by varying a parameter. We compare different methods to measure the multifractality of wave packets and identify the best one. We find the multifractality to decrease with time until it reaches an asymptotic limit, which is different from the multifractality of eigenvectors but related to it, as is the rate of the decrease. Our results could guide the study of experimental situations where multifractality is present in quantum systems. [less ▲]

Care delivery and outcomes among Belgian children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes.

in European Journal of Pediatrics (2012), 171(11), 1679-85

We aimed to investigate care processes and outcomes among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes treated in hospital-based multidisciplinary paediatric diabetes centres. Our retrospective cross ... [more ▼]

We aimed to investigate care processes and outcomes among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes treated in hospital-based multidisciplinary paediatric diabetes centres. Our retrospective cross-sectional study among 12 Belgian centres included data from 974 patients with type 1 diabetes, aged 0-18 years. Questionnaires were used to collect data on demographic and clinical characteristics, as well as process of care completion and outcomes of care in 2008. Most patients lived with both biological or adoption parents (77 %) and had at least one parent of Belgian origin (78 %). Nearly all patients (>/=95 %) underwent determination of HbA(1c) and BMI. Screening for retinopathy (55 %) and microalbuminuria (73 %) was less frequent, but rates increased with age and diabetes duration. Median HbA(1c) was 61 mmol/mol (7.7 %) [interquartile range 54-68 mmol/mol (7.1-8.4 %)] and increased with age and insulin dose. HbA(1c) was higher among patients on insulin pump therapy. Median HbA(1c) significantly differed between centres [from 56 mmol/mol (7.3 %) to 66 mmol/mol (8.2 %)]. Incidence of severe hypoglycaemia was 30 per 100 patient-years. Admissions for ketoacidosis had a rate of 3.2 per 100 patient-years. Patients not living with both biological or adoption parents had higher HbA(1c) and more admissions for ketoacidosis. Parents' country of origin was not associated with processes and outcomes of care. Conclusion: Outcomes of care ranked well compared to other European countries, while complication screening rates were intermediate. The observed centre variation in HbA(1c) remained unexplained. Outcomes were associated with family structure, highlighting the continuing need for strategies to cope with this emerging challenge. [less ▲]

Function, diversity and therapeutic potential of the N-terminal domain of human chemokine receptors

in Biochemical Pharmacology (2012)

Antarctic cyanobacterial diversity: how important are the geographical and ecological factors?

Conference (2012, October 31)

On the Antarctic continent, cyanobacteria produce conspicuous benthic microbial mats in lakes, from the coastal regions to the mountains (till 84°S). However, little is known about theirl biodiversity in ... [more ▼]

On the Antarctic continent, cyanobacteria produce conspicuous benthic microbial mats in lakes, from the coastal regions to the mountains (till 84°S). However, little is known about theirl biodiversity in comparison with other regions of the world. The BelSPO project AMBIO aimed to test whether (i) microbial communities are structured by the same factors as those shaping communities of macroorganisms, and (ii) endemism among cyanobacteria does exist. We have analyzed the cyanobacterial biodiversity in a variety of aquatic habitats from the three main biogeographical regions (Continental, Maritime Antarctica and the Sub-Antarctic) and determined the ‘baseline’ data needed to understand the contribution of various processes that are responsible for the distribution patterns. [less ▲]

Aux origines de la phénoménologie: le programme analytique de Brentano

Scientific conference (2012, October 31)

L’apparition de la méthode phénoménologique est indissociable d’un vaste programme d’analyse descriptive qui a été mis en place dans l’école de Franz Brentano. Ce programme, qui contraste fortement avec ... [more ▼]

L’apparition de la méthode phénoménologique est indissociable d’un vaste programme d’analyse descriptive qui a été mis en place dans l’école de Franz Brentano. Ce programme, qui contraste fortement avec le programme d’explication externaliste prédominant en philosophie de l’esprit, consiste à décrire les actes et les états mentaux tels qu’ils sont vécus (pour ainsi dire « de l’intérieur »), c’est-à-dire à les décomposer en leurs éléments constitutifs et à saisir leur mode de liaison. J’exposerai la contribution de Brentano sur ce point, en focalisant mon attention sur la question de l’unité du mental, puis j’avancerai quelques raisons pour lesquelles le programme analytique brentanien me semble devoir être poursuivi à l’heure actuelle. Je suggérerai notamment qu’il jette un éclairage nouveau sur le rejet des propriétés non représentationnelles de l’expérience (le rejet des « purs qualia ») et, plus généralement, sur le problème de l’individuation des états mentaux. [less ▲]

I see dead people. Les zombies au cinéma

Conference given outside the academic context (2012)

Combined Mitochondrial and Nuclear Markers Revealed a Deep Vicariant History for Leopoldamys neilli, a Cave-Dwelling Rodent of Thailand

in PLoS ONE (2012), 7(10), 47670

Background: Historical biogeography and evolutionary processes of cave taxa have been widely studied in temperate regions. However, Southeast Asian cave ecosystems remain largely unexplored despite their ... [more ▼]

Background: Historical biogeography and evolutionary processes of cave taxa have been widely studied in temperate regions. However, Southeast Asian cave ecosystems remain largely unexplored despite their high scientific interest. Here we studied the phylogeography of Leopoldamys neilli, a cave-dwelling murine rodent living in limestone karsts of Thailand, and compared the molecular signature of mitochondrial and nuclear markers. Methodology/Principal Findings: We used a large sampling (n = 225) from 28 localities in Thailand and a combination of mitochondrial and nuclear markers with various evolutionary rates (two intronic regions and 12 microsatellites). The evolutionary history of L. neilli and the relative role of vicariance and dispersal were investigated using ancestral range reconstruction analysis and Approximate Bayesian computation (ABC). Both mitochondrial and nuclear markers support a large-scale population structure of four main groups (west, centre, north and northeast) and a strong finer structure within each of these groups. A deep genealogical divergence among geographically close lineages is observed and denotes a high population fragmentation. Our findings suggest that the current phylogeographic pattern of this species results from the fragmentation of a widespread ancestral population and that vicariance has played a significant role in the evolutionary history of L. neilli. These deep vicariant events that occurred during Plio-Pleistocene are related to the formation of the Central Plain of Thailand. Consequently, the western, central, northern and northeastern groups of populations were historically isolated and should be considered as four distinct Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs). Conclusions/Significance: Our study confirms the benefit of using several independent genetic markers to obtain a comprehensive and reliable picture of L. neilli evolutionary history at different levels of resolution. The complex genetic structure of Leopoldamys neilli is supported by congruent mitochondrial and nuclear markers and has been influenced by the geological history of Thailand during Plio-Pleistocene. [less ▲]

Investigation of eighteenth-century Prussian blue pigments by PDF analysis

Poster (2012, October 30)

Prussian blue, a hydrated iron(III) hexacyanoferrate(II) complex, is a synthetic pigment discovered in Berlin in 1704. Because of both its highly intense color and its low cost, Prussian blue was widely ... [more ▼]

Prussian blue, a hydrated iron(III) hexacyanoferrate(II) complex, is a synthetic pigment discovered in Berlin in 1704. Because of both its highly intense color and its low cost, Prussian blue was widely used as a pigment in paintings until the 1970's. The early preparative methods were rapidly recognized as a contributory factor in the fading of the pigment [1], a fading already known by the mid-eighteenth century. The eighteenth-century methods are based on the calcination of dried blood to produce a potassium hexacyanoferrate complex, which is the first of two essential reactants for synthesizing Prussian blue. The second reactant is an iron salt. We successfully reproduced two typical eighteenth-century empirical recipes [2]. The resulting pigments were of variable color quality, ranging from intense blue to blue-gray or blue-green, and exhibit broadened or inexistent Bragg peaks. High-energy powder X-ray diffraction experiments were performed at the ID11 beamline at ESRF, Grenoble, France. The pair distribution function (PDF) of the pure Prussian blue pigments was refined with a three-phase model, in order to take into account the vacancy distribution in the unit cell of Prussian blue. In certain ancient Prussian blues, the PDF analysis revealed the presence of nanocrystalline ferrihydrite, Fe10O14(OH)2, and also identified the presence of alumina hydrate, Al10O14(OH)2, with a particle size of ca. 15 Å. Paint layers prepared from these ancient pigments subjected to accelerated ageing showed a tendency to turn green, a tendency that was often reported in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century books. The presence of particles of hydrous iron(III) oxides was also observed in a genuine Prussian blue sample obtained from an eighteenth-century polychrome sculpture. [1] Kirby, J.; Saunders, D. The National Gallery Technical Bulletin 2004, 25, 73. [2] Dossie, R. The Handmaid to the Arts; Nourse, J.: London, 1758; Le Pileur d'Apligny, M. Traité des couleurs matérielles et de la manière de colorer relativement aux différents arts et métiers; Saugrain et Lamy: Paris, 1779. [less ▲]