How do artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms learn to predict and make decisions? Can we entrust them with decisions that affect our lives and societies? Are they neutral and as immune to societal imperfections as commonly thought? Nello Cristianini at the University of Bristol investigated challenges emerging from data-driven AI, addressing issues such as gender biases in AI algorithms, and shifts in people’s emotions reflected in social media content.
ERC grantee Martin Vechev, originally from Bulgaria, is a computer science professor at ETH Zurich and the leader of its research lab working in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). His ERC-funded project was the first to combine advanced programming languages with machine learning technics, aiming to fundamentally change how developers build software. Based on the results of his ERC project, he co-founded a start-up that was recently acquired by a leading cybersecurity company. In this interview, Vechev talks about his ERC-funded work, AI breakthroughs, and Europe’s future in the field of AI.
ERC grantee Konstantinos Nikolopoulos at the University of Birmingham recently won the first ERC Public Engagement with Research Award in the category of public outreach. His ExclusiveHiggs project looks at the origin of mass by exploring the interactions of the elementary matter particles with the Higgs boson. In this interview, he describes his efforts to make the public understand this field of physics through art and dance.
Three-time ERC grantee and four-time panel member in the ERC evaluations (the last three as panel chair), Maciej Lewenstein is not only one of the key physicists of the 21st century, but also a jazz expert. In this interview, he talks about his passion for free-improvised music and explains the intrinsic connections between quantum physics and jazz.
Quantum computers are the Holy Grail of information theorists. For years, scientists have been trying to crack their mysteries, to harvest their interesting applications. They are predicted to have tremendous computational power, exponentially larger than the computers available today. However, so far, they have been difficult to actually build. Prof. Ashley Montanaro will investigate the path from the theoretical foundations of quantum computing their applications to real-life problems.
ELECTION SERIES #3
The traditional pencil-and-paper method to mark your vote in the polling booth has been gradually replaced by electronic voting machines in many countries, in Europe and beyond. Ensuring the security of electronic voting machines and quelling fears of vote-rigging have become ever more important. One ERC-funded researcher has been working tirelessly to develop such an e-voting system through two projects, SEEVS and its follow-up SEEVCA.
This 8 March, the ERC celebrates the achievements of grantee Dr Mariana Graña, a determined researcher in a branch of physics where women are still noticeably underrepresented. She reflects on how far women have come in Theoretical Physics and what is still needed to overcome the gender-role stereotypes associated with this appealing but abstract field of science.
The increasing development of wearable technology sparks the need for new, innovative ways to interact with our shiny gadgets. Deviating from the conventional approach based on touch-sensitive devices, Prof. Jürgen Steimle aims at producing body-worn user interfaces that can be applied directly on the skin. Highly personalised, biocompatible and ultrathin, these devices will seamlessly blend with the human skin to create a technological extension of our body.
The amount of currently available biomedical data is overwhelming. Large databases exist at different scales, from genes, to proteins, to patients' histories. But what do scientists do with all this information? Serbian-born Professor Nataša Pržulj, from University College London, works with Big Data to establish patterns and gain knowledge that could revolutionise how we treat diseases.
Travellers already benefit from applications harnessing data from sensor networks and smartphone users. They calculate alternative routes, help plan carpooling routes, or support the optimisation of public transport. With her ERC grant, Prof. Vana Kalogeraki works on a comprehensive software framework that will simplify the development of such mobile human-centred systems and make them more predictable and reliable.
