September 19, 2024 | International Conference Center, Sorbonne University, Paris

The 2024 IFM Colloquium is organized in honor of the career of Jean-Antoine Girault and will feature 12 keynote speakers. They will address different aspects of neurotransmission and signaling in striatal circuits underlying motivation and movement, both in physiological conditions and in disorders, for example those affecting dopaminergic signaling (including Parkinson's disease, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and drug addiction).

The colloquium will cover many aspects of basal ganglia involvement in action selection and procedural learning (i.e., habit formation), as well as related disorders, to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date view of this dynamic field.

Space and time will be allocated for poster presentations.

For information on the venue, program, registration and poster abstract submission, please visit our website:

Attendance is free, but registration is mandatory!

We look forward to seeing you there.

Best regards,

The Organizing Committee

METHODOLOGY IN LEGAL RESEARCH

Room : P02 (ground floor)

19 September 2024

General concept

A skills development workshop for young researchers on the topic of methodology in legal research.

Program

Welcome and opening��: 10.30 – 10.45

Jogchum Vrielink (UCLouvain Saint-Louis Bruxelles / KU Leuven)

Methodology Seminar : 10.45 – 12.45

Focus

• ��Approaches to specific methodologies
• ��Ways to develop specific methodological skills
• ���������ٲ��������/�辱�ٴڲ�������

10.45 – 11.15

Bruno De Witte (Maastricht University) –��doctrinal legal methodologies

(discussion/exchange: 11.15-11.30)

11.30 – 12.00

Joanna Mendes (University of Luxembourg) –��comparative legal methodologies

(discussion/exchange: 12.00-12.15)

12.15-12.45

Arthur Dyevre (KU Leuven) –��empirical legal methodologies

(discussion/exchange: 12.45-13.00)

Lunch : 13.15 – 14.15

Young Scholars Workshop��Roundtable��:��14.15 – 16.15

Directed by Norman Vander Putten (UCLouvain Saint-Louis Bruxelles) & Justine Richelle(Maastricht University)

Focus

• ��Sharing of experiences
• ��Debating common issues and challenges
• ��Exchanging suggestions

Discussion topics

• ��Determining which legal research methodology is most appropriate for your research topic/question
• ��Challenges in designing a robust legal research methodology
• ��Ways to acquire required methodologies skills
• ��What are challenges and benefits of incorporating perspectives from other fields, such as sociology, economics, or political science, into legal research?
• ��Issues concerning integrating qualitative and quantitative methods into legal research
• ��Ethics and integrity issues related to specific methodologies
• ��Potential impact of different methodologies on legal writing
• ��Ways to leverage��technology and digital tools to enhance legal research
• ��Emerging and future trends in legal methodologies

Closing remarks��: 16.15 – 16.30

Mariolina��Eliantonio��(Maastricht University) & Emmanuel Slautsky (ULB)

Drinks��: 16.30 –��17.30

The global imperative to reduce anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions necessitates adaptive energy transition strategies. This thesis examines uncertainty-aware energy transition pathways, focusing on the Belgian energy system. The research aims to understand how varying degrees of foresight and uncertainties in technology, resource, and policy influence transition outcomes.

The study employs a multi-faceted approach, integrating advanced energy system modeling with uncertainty quantification. The EnergyScope Pathway model optimizes energy transition pathways, analyzing how different energy sources, including renewables and electrofuels, can meet defossilization targets. Polynomial Chaos Expansion (PCE) is used to address uncertainties, offering a computationally efficient method to explore how variations in key inputs impact the model's outputs.

Additionally, the research incorporates agent-based reinforcement learning (RL) to model decision-making with limited foresight. This approach explores realistic, myopic strategies where actions are optimized based on short-term outcomes. The comparison between perfect foresight and myopic strategies reveals significant trade-offs between immediate costs and long-term sustainability.

Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is applied to reduce data complexity and highlight the most influential variables affecting energy transition outcomes. PCA enables a focused interpretation of how factors such as technology costs and energy demand contribute to overall uncertainty, aiding in more informed decision-making.

Key findings emphasize the critical role of renewable electrofuels in deep defossilization, particularly when domestic renewable energy is insufficient. The results suggest that the success of RL-based myopic strategies depends on early emissions reductions and infrastructure development for energy imports. With PCA, this work shows that massively integrating local renewables (solar and wind) thanks to a deeper electrification of the demand, enhances the robustness of the technological roadmap.

This thesis provides insights into the complexities of energy transition planning under uncertainty, offering guidance for policymakers and researchers on the importance of adaptive strategies that can respond to evolving technological, economic, and environmental conditions.

Jury’s members:

Prof. Francesco Contino (UCLouvain, Belgium), supervisor

Prof. Hervé Jeanmart (UCLouvain, Belgium), supervisor

Prof. Paul Fisette (UCLouvain, Belgium), chairperson

Prof. Christophe De Vleeschouwer (UClouvain, Belgium), secretary

Dr. Stefano Moret (ETH Zurich, Switzerland)

Prof. Sylvain Quoilin (ULiège, Belgium)

Prof. Stefan Pfenninger (TU Delft, The Netherlands)

Pay attention:

The public defense of Xavier Rixhon scheduled for��Thursday September 19 at 04:30p.m. will also take place in the form of a .

.

Room : Salle des examens

Abstract:

In a setting with skill and preference heterogeneity, we characterize a family of social welfare measures that aggregate fairness gaps, defined as the difference between the money-metric utilities that individuals have and the money-metric utilities they should have in a fair society. Each welfare measure can be decomposed into government revenues (size), excess burden (inefficiency), and unfair inequality (inequity). As a proof of concept, we evaluate four hypothetical earnings tax reforms based on two normative parameters: the degree of unfairness aversion and the degree of compensation for productive skills.

Présenté par��N. Frogneux��(Professeure à l'UCLouvain, Institut supérieur de Philosophie, Centre Europè de Philosophie Pratique)

This thesis develops and exploits computational techniques for automatically and accurately calculating the worst-case performance of decentralized optimization algorithms. These algorithms aim to minimize the average of local functions that are distributed across a network of computers (called agents), with many applications in machine learning, sensor networks, and power systems. Decentralized optimization algorithms are iterative, with agents alternating between local computations and communication steps. Despite the abundance of decentralized algorithms, accurately analyzing their worst-case performance remains challenging. This analysis is crucial for their effective application, parameter tuning, and comparison. Therefore, we propose a computer-aided methodology based on the Performance Estimation Problem (PEP) approach, which computes the worst-case performance and identifies a worst-case instance of first-order optimization algorithms by solving a semidefinite program.

In the first part of the thesis, we extend the PEP framework to decentralized optimization. For this purpose, we propose a practical description of the effects of a class of communication steps in the algorithm. The development of decentralized PEP formulations also allows us to identify conditions that ensure the independence of the worst-case performance from the total number of agents. These conditions are met by many algorithms in various settings, enabling the analysis of their performance in the basic case with just two agents.

In the second part, we use our new PEP-based techniques to analyze, tune, and compare several decentralized optimization algorithms. Our results improve on the literature, address open questions, and offer new analyses and comparisons. Additionally, we investigate the optimal communication weights to be used in decentralized optimization given a specific network topology. Our analysis reveals that current weight selection strategies are not optimal, leaving room for performance improvement.

Jury members:

Prof. Julien Hendrickx (UCLouvain), supervisor

Prof. Pierre-Antoine Absil (UCLouvain), chairperson

Prof. François Glineur (UCLouvain), secretary

Prof. Angelia Nedich (Arizona State University, USA)

Prof. Alex Olshevsky (Boston University, USA)

Prof. Bryan Van Scoy (Miami University, USA)

Pay attention:

The public defense of Sébastien Colla scheduled for Friday September 20 at 04:30 p.m. will also take place in the form of a .

.

In the current evolving distribution grid, microgrids are emerging as valuable tools that can facilitate the integration of renewable energies. In recent years, DC microgrids have garnered interest due to several advantages. These advantages include fewer conversions, the absence of reactive power and frequency, and lower line losses. As a developing technology, many aspects must be studied to facilitate their implementation. This thesis aims to contribute to a better understanding of DC microgrids.

The following work provides an overview of the current state of DC microgrids. Their advantages over AC microgrids are discussed and illustrated. The different topologies and DC bus configurations are described. Potential power quality issues are examined. The current challenges of the technology are explored. Finally, the current state of standardization and existing implementations are detailed.��

This work presents three major contributions. First, an overview and comparison of different control methods for converters in DC microgrids are provided. Both first-level controls and second-level controls are detailed and simulated. The second contribution of this work concerns a power flow algorithm tailored for DC microgrids. This power flow method is adapted for bipolar DC microgrids and further developed as a sequential power flow. This sequential power flow allows the study of the behavior of a DC microgrid over extended periods. The sequential power flow is then used to compare the performance of unipolar and bipolar DC microgrids. The final contribution of this work concerns the modeling of High-Frequency AC link three-port DC/DC/DC converters. The functioning of this type of converter is covered in detail. An averaged model and possible control schemes for this type of converter are proposed.

Jury members:

Prof. Emmanuel De Jaeger (UCLouvain, Belgium), supervisor

Prof. Hervé Jeanmart (UCLouvain, Belgium), chairperson

Prof. Bruno Dehez (UCLouvain, Belgium), secretary

Prof. Marc Bekemans (UCLouvain, Belgium)

Dr. Benoît Bidaine (CE+T Power, Belgium)

Prof. Jan Desmet (University of Ghent, Belgium)

Pay attention :

The public defense of Eduardo VASQUEZ MAYEN scheduled for Friday September 20 at 04:15p.m. will also take place in the form of a .

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Pour l'obtention du grade académique de doctorat en Sciences agronomiques et Ingénierie biologique

Every year, millions of tons of plastic enter the ocean, threatening marine wildlife. Seabirds, especially Procellariiformes are particularly prone to plastic ingestion due to their infrequent regurgitation and unique gastric physiology. While the physical damage of plastic ingestion is well documented, there is limited knowledge about the toxicological risks from plastic-associated chemicals. This thesis addresses this gap by studying the digestive fate and endocrine-disrupting potential of ingested plastics in Procellariiformes.

An in vitro Procellariiform gastric model was developed to simulate digestion and examine the leaching dynamics of chemicals (i.e., additives and sorbed POPs) from plastic. The model revealed that both lipid and aqueous components enhance chemical leaching, with dynamics influenced by the chemical properties of plastic-associated molecules, diet, and polymer type. Results indicate that plastic additives likely pose a higher risk than sorbed POPs due to their prolonged leaching (i.e., for weeks to months) at high concentrations.

The potential hormonal disruption caused by the leaching of chemicals from ingested plastic was studied in vitro by using northern fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis) estrogen receptors (ERs). Fulmar and human ER response were compared in the presence of known chemicals and showed species-specific sensitivity differences. Plastics recovered from fulmar stomachs were also incubated for 14 days in solvents mimicking stomach fluids. Over half of the fulmars exhibited ER activation and/or inhibition after one day of leaching, with more than a third showing a subsequent ER response after 5 and/or 14 days. These findings suggest that plastic ingestion may contribute to hormonal disruption in Procellariiformes. This work provides valuable insight into the toxicological risks of plastic ingestion in Procellariiformes.

Jury members :

• Prof. Cathy Debier (UCLouvain) (Supervisor)
• Prof. Myra Finkelstein (METX-UCSC, U.S.A.) (Co-supervisor)
• Prof. Michel Ghislain (UCLouvain) (Chairperson)
• Prof. Isabelle Donnay (UCLouvain)
• Prof. Jean-François Rees (UCLouvain)
• Prof. Krishna Das (ULiège, Belg.)
• Dr. Christopher Tubbs (SDSWA, U.S.A.)

Pay attention : the public defense of Liesbeth VAN HASSEL will also take place in the form of a

Pour l'obtention du grade académique de Doctorat en Sciences

Quantum topology studies the interplay between low-dimensional topology and representation theory; rewriting theory studies algebraic structures via algorithmic means. This thesis is devoted to both fields, and their surprising interconnections.

The common thread is the realization that certain commutative theories admit odd (or super) analogues, where the commutative rule only holds up to signs. In topology, the last decades have seen the emergence of powerful homology theories of knots, starting with the pioneer work of Khovanov and his celebrated Khovanov homology. Their study, together with their connections to the representation theory of quantum groups, form the field of modern quantum topology. Surprisingly, Khovanov homology admits an odd analogue, known as odd Khovanov homology. While the former builds upon polynomial algebras, the latter has anti-commutative features. This lead to the discovery of similar odd analogues in related fields. Despite these successes, a grasp on odd Khovanov homology has remained elusive.

In this thesis, we relate odd Khovanov homology to higher representation theory, leading to a natural framework for its understanding. The underlying structure is the categorical analogue of a super algebra. Unfortunately, the increased complexity of working with such structures exhausts the standard toolkit of the higher algebraist. To solve this problem, we develop the rewriting theory of diagrammatic algebras.

Jury members :

• Prof. Pedro Vaz (UCLouvain) (Supervisor)
• Prof. Marino Gran (UCLouvain) (Chairperson)
• Prof. Benjamin Elias (UCLouvain)
• Prof. Pascal Lambrechts (UCLouvain)
• Prof. Tim Van der Linden (UCLouvain)
• Prof. Louis-Hadrien Robert (Univ. Clermont Auvergne, Fr.)

Pay attention : the public defense of Léo SCHELSTRAETE will also take place in the form of a