Author: administrateur

21 Oct Big Data: a change of paradigm can hide another – Opportunities and threats related to the emergence of new ecosystems

Posted at 09:05h in - Classification of publications - All, - Classification of themes - All, - Member Academies - All, Academic report, by a Commission or a Working Group, Academy’s advice and position paper, Co-studies, Communications to the Academy by its members, Information and Communication Technologies, Major French Technology Adventures, National Academy of Technologies of France (NATF), Other publications, Ten questions and answers on technology topics, Working group reports by administrateur 0 Comments
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National Academy of Technologies of France (NATF)
2015
Big Data implies a revolution in IT, reaching from technology to applications and practices, enabling the analysis of vast pools of "digital traces" to know customer intentions with unmatched precision. Data manipulation from smartphones and connected objects opens up new service opportunities and significant cost reductions of information systems.  While it is a major issue for sciences, politics and citizens, this report looks at the impact on businesses: mastering these methods permits a new immediacy in customer relationships and may leave enterprises less vulnerable to the GAFAs. Big data is: • a disruptive data-analysis methodology, in particular in marketing, replacing classic approaches by iterative loops in which detected patterns are immediately confronted with situations of implementation and judgement on operational effectiveness. • a new way of massive parallel data-centred programming and of designing algorithms, due to the: - treatment on a myriad of machines, - high-performance requirements and - need to develop algorithms through learning. • a major challenge and paradigm shift for Governments and companies, deserving strong support in terms of training and awareness. Technology and practice play key roles; new ways of working with an extremely wide scope need to be developed. Rapporteur : Yves Caseau, Director Digital Agency, Axa Group, and Fellow of NATF
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21 Oct Large Socio-Technical Systems

Posted at 09:03h in - Classification of publications - All, - Classification of themes - All, - Member Academies - All, Academic report, by a Commission or a Working Group, Academy’s advice and position paper, Co-studies, Communications to the Academy by its members, Information and Communication Technologies, Major French Technology Adventures, National Academy of Technologies of France (NATF), Other publications, Ten questions and answers on technology topics, Working group reports by administrateur 0 Comments
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National Academy of Technologies of France (NATF)
2013
Large, networked Socio-Technical Systems (or LSTSs), often continental or even global in scale, such as railroad-, air traffic-, electric-, and telecommunications systems, and the internet, have modified life-styles and society. Citizens see them as combining sciences and technologies, offering essential value-for-money services. They have common characteristics: expected safe and no-break service quality; co-operation of a myriad of component parts, including agents. Success and vulnerability through complexification (national and European regulations, multiplication for each LSTS of autonomous agents) and inter-dependence (inroads by ICTs, liberalisation) go hand-in-hand. During the past 15 years, the drafting of new regulatory texts that promote sustainable development of the LSTSs, incorporating technical trends while reconciling local aspirations and nation-wide issues, has become increasingly difficult. NATF proposes: 1) An objective analysis of the experience from the last 20 years for each LSTS, covering operations, quality, costs, jobs, risk control, governance and regulation, crises situations/incidents and the degrees of interdependence with other LSTSs. 2) Exploring possible (global) trends for the next two decades including sustainable development. 3) Teach LSTSs to young people early on for a better appreciation, including of S&T and ongoing innovations. These proposals should contribute to better informed decision processes that benefit our children. Yves BAMBERGER (WP Chair and Draft author) – Scientific counsellor to EDF CEO – Fellow of the NATF
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21 Oct National Broadband Plan Ireland – Policy Advisory

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Irish Academy of Engineering (IAE)
2016
Advisory prepared to assist in developing a national policy in providing an internationally competitive, ubiquitous, high speed broadband service based on long term planning (30yrs).
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21 Oct Autonomous Systems: Social, Legal and Ethical Issues

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Royal Academy of Engineering (UK) (RAEng)
2009
Autonomous systems are likely to emerge in a number of areas over the coming decades. These technologies can promise great benefits, replacing humans in tasks that are mundane, dangerous and dirty, or detailed and precise. They also have potential in allowing the remote performance of various functions.  However such technologies raise a number of social, legal and ethical issues.  The focus of this short document is on two emerging areas of technology – transport, in terms of autonomous road vehicles; and personal care and support, in the form of artificial companions and smart homes. It is a report of the discussion at a roundtable meeting held at The Royal Academy of Engineering. The meeting involved stakeholders from a range of areas, including medicine and healthcare, transport, defence, systems engineering, computer science, financial systems, public engagement and policy development.
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21 Oct The proper use of the Precautionary Principle

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National Academy of Technologies of France (NATF)
2011
The Precautionary Principle (PP), introduced into the French Constitution in 2004, is the epicentre of a passionate debate involving the whole of society. Is it then possible to identify the “proper use” of this principle which would allow, between irresponsibility and immobilization, the ways to construct a shared progress serving everyone? Without taking a binary position “pro” or “contra”, the NATF is making 4 main recommendations: 1. It affirms that PP is a Principle of Action, 2. Technical and scientific expertise is indispensible and should always be included in debates but the final decision belongs to the political world. 3. Legal difficulties related to applying the PP to important societal issues must be solved. 4. Application of the PP beyond the sanitary and environmental issues should be considered with a lot of caution.
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21 Oct Guidelines for a German Aerospace Policy

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National Academy of Science and Engineering (acatech)
2010
This position paper describes the guidelines for a future German aerospace policy. It is the result of the analysis conducted by a group of authors under the aegis and significant involvement of acatech members. Its predominant purpose is to serve as a decision aid and framework for orientation for the federal government for the decision on a national aerospace strategy in the near future and to present critical success factors for the further promotion of aerospace in Germany and on the international level. With this position paper, acatech joins the ranks of the expert opinions delivered by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in March 2010 and by the federal states of Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria and Bremen in October 2010. Thus acatech highlights its willingness to play an active part in the continuing process of the crafting of a national aerospace strategy and support the federal government constructively with its governmental plan.
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21 Oct Innovation plan Sweden

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Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering (IVA)
2011
– A basis for a Swedish innovation strategy INNOVATION FOR GROWTH – from talk to action The key to Sweden’s future prosperity is renewal – innovation. The objective of Innovation for Growth is to use concrete proposals and a broad-based dialogue to increase Sweden’s innovative power, enabling Sweden to become the world’s most attractive nation in which to live and thrive. Many nations today are rallying to address the issue of innovation. Innovation is an important part of the solution to the major societal challenges the world faces today; not least in a situation plagued by economic crisis and a lack of confidence in the political direction in Europe and the US. By developing innovation strategies, nations want to strengthen their comparative advantages to meet these challenges, while at the same time creating the right general conditions for growth in industry and the rest of society.
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21 Oct Strategic performance assessment for ESA’s MELiSSA Project

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Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering (IVA)
2011
The Micro Ecological Life Support System Alternative (MELiSSA) was first initiated by Claude Chipaux at Matra’s Space Branch in 1986 as a potential life support system project for the French Space Agency, CNES. An initial MELiSSA experiment was on board a Chinese Long March rocket in 1987. This two compartment flight experiment, utilising two bacterial strains producing and consuming CO2 and O2 respectively, led to MELiSSA’s first publication in 1988. MELiSSA is today tasked with creating a regenerative life support system with the following functions: black water and grey water treatment, urine treatment, other waste treatment (= overall waste recycling from astronauts), food production, oxygen production and water recycling (= overall consumption needs of astronauts). These functions are divided into engineering units, tested separately and then integrated and tested together on the ground. Individual units or parts thereof are being tested in spaceflight and there are plans to test the overall system in spaceflight in the 2030s.
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21 Oct Philosophy of Engineering (Vol II)

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Royal Academy of Engineering (UK) (RAEng)
2011
This is the second volume of a series of papers presented at The Royal Academy of Engineering, for its series on philosophy and engineering. The first part of this volume tackles some deep philosophical issues on which engineering has a bearing. These include the nature of mind and language; conceptual distinctions in science, engineering and common sense; engineering‘s influence on the fundamental categories in nature, and the nature of knowledge.
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