La convocatoria ha contado con un presupuesto total de 258 millones de euros, de los cuales España ha obtenido 32,4 millones, lo que supone una tasa de retorno del 19,3% de los países de la Unión Europea (UE27). Las cinco propuestas de la UCM que han sido invitadas a firmar el acuerdo de subvención por la Comisión Europea suponen casi 900.000 € de financiación para desarrollar actividades de investigación.
Esta convocatoria permite a la universidad seguir atrayendo talento internacional joven para desarrollar proyectos de investigación. En esta ocasión los candidatos seleccionados son de cinco nacionalidades diferentes: chileno-francesa, española, italiana, iraní y danesa.
Los fellows desarrollarán proyectos de investigación innovadores a través de la transferencia de conocimiento bidireccional con sus supervisores científicos y entorno inmediato de acogida con el fin de mejorar sus perspectivas de carrera profesional en el sector económico de la I+D. Por este motivo cada memoria técnica contiene un plan formativo diseñado a medida que contempla tanto aspectos académicos como no-académicos.
Propuestas seleccionadas en la convocatoria MSCA-PF-2023 en las que la Complutense figura como Host Institution:
QUANTHUM
Supervisor Científico:
Mauricio Suárez Aller está especializado en filosofía de la ciencia e historia de las ciencias naturales en la Departamento de Lógica y Filosofía Teórica de la Facultad de Filosofía.
Fellow:
Cristian Larroulet Philippi está especializado en filosofía de la ciencia, en concreto en ciencias sociales. Tanto su tesis doctoral como su proyecto de investigación se centran en los desafíos de la medición cuantitativa en las ciencias sociales.
Acrónimo:
QUANTHUM
Título:
Quantifying The Human
Abstract:
Human science measurement remains controversial. Whether widely used measures—intelligence tests, depression scales, etc.—deliver quantitative information or not, what it would take to design measurements that do so, and what do we mean by “amounts” of intelligence or depression, are questions that have been debated for decades by scientists, statisticians, and philosophers. The project Quantifying The Human (QUANTHUM) will articulate a novel philosophical framework for understanding quantification in the human sciences. It addresses how can theoretical attributes in the human sciences be defined and measured in a quantitative way, while considering the special circumstances faced by these disciplines—namely, apparently multidimensional attributes, high levels of causal complexity, and a minimal degree of experimental control. The framework will defend a pluralism regarding quantitative concept construction, distinguishing two distinct approaches: one defines the theoretical quantity at stake in terms of a causal relation with an already quantified attribute; the other defines it in terms of a probabilistic measure. This framework will be informed by, and in turn will illuminate, two historical cases of quantification in non-human sciences that resemble the circumstances faced by the human sciences and that instantiate the causal and the probabilistic approach: the quantification of “earthquake size” in seismology and that of “fitness” in biology, respectively. The two interrelated goals of the project are to articulate these two approaches to quantification (causal and probabilistic) and to offer a rich philosophical analysis of the two historical cases of quantification. This has the potential to shape the currently active philosophical and methodological debates on human measurement. With the support of tailored-made training and mentoring activities, the project will expand the applicant’s expertise in crucial ways and help him reach his professional maturity.
Medi_Zawiya
Supervisor Científico:
Susana Calvo Capilla, dirige el grupo de investigación de Arquitectura e integración de las artes en la Edad Media del Departamento de Historia del Arte de la Facultad de Geografía e Historia.
Fellow:
Íñigo Almela Legorburu es doctor en Historia y Artes con mención internacional por la Universidad de Granada (2020) y arquitecto por la Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (2013). Su línea de investigación integra estudios de arquitectura y urbanismo en el Occidente islámico.
Acrónimo:
Medi_Zawiya
Título:
Philanthropy, Sufism and Legitimacy in the Medieval Islamic West: The Study of Zawiyas as a Socio-Religious Institution
Abstract:
This proposal aims to approach the social, political and architectural dimension of the zawiya. This is to say an Islamic institution linked to Sufism that has largely determined the religious life of the Islamic West since the Middle Ages. However, its study has not been sufficiently developed so far and it has only been approached on a few occasions from stagnant perspectives, which has limited the potential to advance in the knowledge of the medieval Muslim society. In this respect, after some previous attempts, I have observed two relevant issues that require special attention. On the one hand, the concept of zawiya, unlike other institutions, has undergone an evolution throughout history and its current meaning cannot be extrapolated to past times. On the other hand, it seems to me that there is no single idea of zawiya and thereby we can reckon at least two different types that coexisted in the same space-time and whose purposes differ significantly from each other due to their sponsor (ruler/shaykh). Nevertheless, there are several inconveniences that may have limited the visibility of both issues up to now, representing thus a research challenge. In the first place, the semantic permeability of the term zawiya; secondly, the disappearance of the oldest examples; thirdly, the lack of coordination between documentary and material sources; and, finally, the absence of accurate planimetric documentation. In short, this project suggests an interdisciplinary study on a group of examples that have been strategically selected to shed light on the above questions. To this end, after an in-depth architectural survey, various types of analysis and a confrontation with similar models and phenomena in the Middle East will be implemented. As host institutions, the UCM (Spain), the INSAP (Morocco) and the OUI (Israel) will provide an excellent framework. Likewise, it is expected a positive impact on the future conservation of some zawiyas of great historical-artistic value.
REPAIR
Supervisor Científico:
Miguel Berdugo Vega, especializado en Ecosistemas Áridos, es un investigador Ramón y Cajal del Departamento de Biodiversidad, Ecología y Evolución de la Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas.
Fellow:
Christin Abel está especializada en el análisis y comprensión los cambios en la vegetación y la cobertura del suelo en las tierras áridas globales. En concreto, en la zona del Sahel.
Acrónimo:
REPAIR
Título:
Characterizing dynamics and drivers of resilience across scales in Patagonian rangelands
Abstract:
Increasing aridity due to climate change is a major factor that has dramatically altered the structure of Patagonian drylands, which has resulted in changes in ecosystem structure and functioning, e.g., a loss of vegetation, biodiversity, and soil erosion. Such changes ultimately lead to a loss of resilience, the system's ability to resist and recover from external disturbances while retaining the same function and structure. Although our ability to monitor resilience at large scales has been accelerated by remote sensing data and techniques, greater insights into the role of certain biotic and abiotic variables (e.g., species richness or soil carbon) on resilience at the local scale, would create new opportunities to support sustainable management to increase resilience across Patagonia. In this project, I will bridge these scales, by linking remote sensing time series data and a unique database (MARAS) of continuous field observations across Patagonian rangelands (managed by Argentinian partners). Specifically, I will 1) characterize changes in resilience in response to increasing aridity based on remote sensing between 2000 - 2025, 2) collect and analyze ground observations, and 3) investigate drivers of resilience dynamics across Patagonian rangelands integrating the remote sensing-based resilience and field data. To achieve this, I will use state-of-the-art methods in ecology and data science (e.g., time series analysis and machine learning) to deliver a better understanding of which environmental variables impact resilience in what way. I will carry out the research at the Complutense University of Madrid (Spain) at the Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, under the guidance of Dr. Miguel Berdugo; and I will undertake a secondment with the Soil Conservation research group at the National University of Luján (Argentina) under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Juan José Gaitán.
PHOTOCATH
Supervisor Científico:
Mohammed Khayet Souhaimi, director del grupo membranas y energías renovables y catedrático de física aplicada, en el Departamento de Estructura de la Materia, Física Térmica y Electrónica de la Facultad de Ciencias Físicas.
Fellow:
Mehrzad Arjmandi es ingeniero químico iraní, con experiencia en proyectos industriales, está especializado en el estudio de membranas, proceso de filtración y absorción.
Acrónimo:
PHOTOWAT
Título:
Photoactive Metal-Organic Framework for Solar-Driven Atmospheric Water Harvesting in Arid Climates
Abstract:
Atmospheric water harvesting (AWH) using solar energy has gained significant attention; however, its application in arid climates poses challenges due to low relative humidity (RH) and reduced efficiency of conventional sorbents. metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a class of porous materials with an engineerable structure that have the ability to capture water even at very low RH. Usually, the combination of photothermal materials with MOFs is used to desorb water sorbed by MOFs. One of the challenges of this method is the reduction of MOF sorption capacity, which is very unfavorable, especially in arid climates. Reducing the performance of sorbents in arid climates due to the blocking of sorption sites by dust is another challenge that has received little attention so far. To address these challenges, this study evaluates the synthesis of a unique water-stable MOF with photothermal and photocatalytic (photoactive) properties (PAMOF), in addition to high water affinity. Phthalocyanine and porphyrin ligands decorated with Ti and Cu ions, along with Yttrium (Y) and Erbium (Er) clusters, are considered as promising candidates. Molecular modeling using density functional theory (DFT) will be conducted to guide the synthesis process, followed by experimental synthesis and characterization. Subsequently, the samples will be evaluated in an AWH device to assess short-term efficiency and long-term maintenance in real conditions. In addition to harnessing natural solar energy, the AWH experiments will involve the utilization of a custom-made solar simulator. The SAWH device will be evaluated across a range of RHs, spanning from 10% to 90%, while considering the presence of artificial dust. Through comparative analysis of existing research and with the aim of enhancing previously studied systems, this project endeavors to attain a daily water evaporation rate surpassing 4 kgwater/kgPAMOF under 1 sun and RH<30.
FUTURE
Supervisor Científico:
Fernando Gascón Inchausti, director del grupo problemas actuales de la justicia y del proceso y catedrático de derecho procesal, en el Departamento de Derecho Procesal y Derecho Penal de la Facultad de Derecho.
Fellow:
Giulia Cascon, proveniente de la Libera Università Internazionale degli Studi Sociali Guido Carli, desarrollará su proyecto en el ámbito de la legislación sobre el uso de Inteligencia Artificial en el procedimiento penal.
Acrónimo:
FUTURE
Título:
Fostering a common approach for the regulation of Artificial Intelligence in procedural criminal systems
Abstract:
Artificial intelligence is rapidly permeating diverse domains. In the criminal procedural field, AI is enhancing the efficiency of law enforcement authorities and criminal justice systems in both preventing and prosecuting crimes, through the streamlining of tasks like data analysis, evidence assessment, and crime prediction. Despite this accelerating trend, a conspicuous gap persists due to the lack of a clear and comprehensive legal framework at both national and supranational levels. An additional factor hindering a responsible and beneficial implementation of AI in the criminal procedural sector is that some technical characteristics of the AI prototypes developed so far (e.g. opacity) interfere with some criminal procedural principles and standards. The lack of dialogue between legal scholarship and scientific community prevents the identification of suitable technical solutions. Given this scenario, managing the legal and ethical implications of AI in the criminal justice system proves to be a prohibitive challenge. The aim of FUTURE is twofold: to support national legislators across the EU in the regulation of artificial intelligence in criminal procedure, while fostering a harmonized approach to the subject; to bridge the gap between the technical and the legal community, ensuring the compliance of AI systems implemented in the criminal procedural field with its principles and safeguards. To achieve these objectives, FUTURE will firstly employ the legal comparison method in a groundbreaking manner: it will be applied on a comprehensive legal and empirical data set, covering all EU Member States’ jurisdictions. Secondly, it will bridge the expertise of legal and computer science professionals, giving them the first tangible chance to investigate the technical issues obstructing the use of AI in criminal proceedings and to assess the feasibility of technical solutions.
