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IFISC News - IFISC People: Michael Moskalets
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 16 Sep '22

16 Sep '22

IFISC People: Michael Moskalets We are glad to introduce Michael Moskalets to the other IFISC members. Moskalets graduated from the National Technical University "Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute", where he is a Leading research fellow. At IFISC he will be working for the next two years on the project entitled “Floquet quantum information processing devices” with IFISC researchers Sungguen Ryu, Rosa López, Llorenç Serra, and David Sánchez. This project is devoted to the development of a theoretical approach based on the Floquet scattering matrix to describe the generation and propagation of single- to few-electron current pulses in phase-coherent, including superconducting, nanostructures that are promising for the next generation of quantum information processing devices. Such studies are desirable and timely with large potential for applications in European quantum technologies (FET-Flagship). The systems under consideration (quantum emitters, chiral conductors) will maintain strong connections with today’s experiments. http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/ifisc-people-michael-moskalets/

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IFISC News - Modelling the deadly noble pen shell (Pinna nobilis) epidemic
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 14 Sep '22

14 Sep '22

Modelling the deadly noble pen shell (Pinna nobilis) epidemic A model designed by researchers from IFISC (UIB-CSIC), in collaboration with IMEDEA (UIB-CSIC), LIMIA (IRFAP) and INAGEA, develops an epidemiological model to comprehend marine epizooticsIn a new article written by IFISC and the University of Buenos Aires, the researchers analyse the spatial effects of this type of epidemic affecting immobile hosts. Their findings include that the more mobile the parasites transmitting the pathogen, the more severe the epidemiological outbreaks. A joint IFISC (UIB-CSIC) and University of Buenos Aires project analyses how spatial distribution affects underwater epidemics involving immobile hosts. Published in the Royal Society Open Science journal, the study builds on a previous epidemiological model developed by an interdisciplinary collaboration between IFISC (UIB-CSIC), IMEDEA (UIB-CSIC), LIMIA (IRFAP) and INAGEA, as published in Ecological Modelling. This new model reproduces epizootics: epidemics that simultaneously attack a large number of individuals of one or several animal species, factoring in the state of the parasites acting as infectious agents. The authors validate the model with data from the noble pen shell (Pinna nobilis) epidemic, transmitted between individuals by the parasite Haplosporidium pinnae, which has decimated this particular mollusc population in the Mediterranean Sea. The new article explores the model’s properties in a more realistic scenario where pathogen transmission is conditioned by host spatial distribution and parasite mobility, as well as the stochastic effects that occur in small systems. When studying transmission in epidemics (such as Covid-19), the so-called SIR model is the most widely used. In this approach, all individuals in the population are divided into three categories that give the model its name: S- Susceptible to infection, I- Infected and R- Removed (those who cannot be reinfected either because they have acquired immunity or died). These three elements suffice to describe many epidemics of contact diseases, where infected individuals cannot be reinfected (such as chickenpox). Marine epidemics, however, involve subtler processes, especially when the host is unable to move because it is a sessile organism and the disease needs the assistance of another organism or mechanism to infect new individuals. The authors of the study propose an evolution of the classical SIR model by adding a new state—P— to represent parasitic concentration in marine environments. The SIRP model, alongside similar recently published models, is a new development since previous models only considered the host state. Infection in sessile hosts (such as noble pen shells) does not occur by direct contact but, rather, by production and excretion of parasites by infected individuals that healthy (Susceptible) hosts absorb through filtration. Parasites are produced and excreted into the marine environment, where they remain infectious until they die or are absorbed by hosts. In other words, in parasite-borne marine diseases, parasites have a dual role: not only are they agents that induce infection but also act as vectors that transmit the disease from an infected immobile host to a susceptible one. Including an additional parameter makes the model more complex in terms of analytical processing, although the authors demonstrate that the SIRP model can be simplified to an SIR model under certain conditions, representing an original contribution of the study. The model was validated with available experimental data for the recent noble pen shell (Pinna nobilis) epidemic caused by the Haplosporidium pinnae parasite, and demonstrated that the reduced SIR model is able to fit the data. Thus, even if species suffering epidemics cannot move (such as the noble pen shell) and contagion is due to parasites, under certain conditions it is possible to study transmission as if by direct contact. Once the model was validated with experimental data, the researchers analysed the impact of spatial transmission. They found that parasite mobility affects epidemiological conditions: greater mobility facilitates transmission between specimens and leads to more severe epidemics with more rapid extinctions. A future goal will be to analyse the actual spatial distributions of noble pen shells. The authors conclude that this novel approach may be useful for understanding emerging diseases in shellfish species with a high economic and ecological value. Parasite-borne pathogens are responsible for some of the most significant and consistent marine disease epizootics on record, and are considered to be the main epidemics of concern for the global seafood industry. Photo: Arnaud Abadie Àlex Giménez-Romero, Amalia Grau, Iris E. Hendriks, Manuel A. Matías (2021). Modelling parasite-produced marine diseases: The case of the mass mortality event of Pinna nobilis, Ecological Modelling, 459. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2021.109705 Àlex Giménez-Romero, Federico Vázquez, Cristóbal López, Manuel A. Matías (2022). Spatial effects in parasite-induced marine diseases of immobile hosts. R. Soc. Open Sci., 9, 212023. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.212023Photo: Arnaud AbadieUIBÚltima Hora http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/modelling-deadly-noble-pen-shell-pinna-nob…

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IFISC News - Identifying the acidification trend of the Balearic Sea using artificial intelligence
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 09 Sep '22

09 Sep '22

Identifying the acidification trend of the Balearic Sea using artificial intelligence An interdisciplinary team from CSIC centers in the Balearic Islands has presented the first acidification rate in the coastal area of the Balearic Sea to elucidate the consequences of climate change in coastal areas of the archipelago. The aim of the study has focused on reconstructing incomplete time series of relevant pH through the use of artificial intelligence techniques. The results, published in the journal Scientific Reports, indicate that these coastal areas show a trend of pH decrease (acidification) of 0.0020±0.00054 pH units per year. This trend is similar to the one observed in other basins of the global ocean and is mainly due to the incorporation of atmospheric carbon dioxide into the seawater and the increase in temperature. "This work is a valuable contribution to understanding the role of coastal zones and the effects of climate change on the ecosystems present here," says Dr. Hendriks, the project's lead researcher, "The decrease in seawater pH is due to the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and results in major alterations that have a major impact on marine ecosystems. For example, ocean acidification leads to reduced saturation levels of carbonate minerals, which increases difficulties in shell formation for calcifying marine organisms (plankton, molluscs, echinoderms and corals). So measuring how pH is changing in these areas is key to characterizing the problem," Hendriks explains. The Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies (IMEDEA, CSIC-UIB), the Andalusian Institute of Marine Sciences (ICMAN, CSIC), the Institute of Interdisciplinary Physics and Complex Systems (IFISC, CSIC-UIB), the Balearic Islands Coastal Observation and Forecasting System (ICTS SOCIB), and the Institute of Marine Sciences (IIM, CSIC) have participated in the study. The management team of the Cabrera Archipelago Maritime-Terrestrial National Park and the Regional Ministry of the Environment and Territory have collaborated in the project. It has also been funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation, the Govern de les Illes Balears and the BBVA Foundation. The study has constituted a major operational effort that began in 2018 with the collection of pH data, along with other variables (water temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen levels), at the monitoring stations of the Balearic Ocean Acidification Time Series (BOATS) network in the Bay of Palma and in the Maritime-Terrestrial National Park of the Cabrera archipelago, within the CSIC Water:iOS Interdisciplinary Thematic Platform. However, the maintenance of this type of stations involves several difficulties - financial costs, meteorological risks, deployment in areas with high shipping traffic, instrumental failures, etc. - which implies the appearance of gaps in the data and, therefore, a loss of quality when it comes to preparing global studies. In order to fill these gaps and estimate the pH series over a wide time interval prior to monitoring, the team applied Deep Learning techniques, an emerging area of Machine Learning that has recently made substantial advances in the field of Artificial Intelligence. Specifically, several models of recurrent neural networks were developed which, when trained, allowed the pH series to be related to the set of environmental variables obtained, predicting the pH value when it is not available. Thanks, therefore, to the work of obtaining a large amount of data and the subsequent application of these techniques, it has been possible to reconstruct the decadal trend of acidification of the Balearic Sea, which is the main result of the work. Flecha, S., Giménez-Romero, À., Tintoré, J., Pérez, F. F., Alou-Font, E., Matías, M. A., & Hendriks, I. E. (2022). pH trends and seasonal cycle in the coastal Balearic Sea reconstructed through machine learning. Scientific Reports, 12(1), 1-11. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-17253-5CSIC http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/identifying-acidification-trend-balearic-s…

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IFISC News - Voces, CSIC Balears: Quantum Reservoir Computing, quantum networks and outreach
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 29 Jun '22

29 Jun '22

Voces, CSIC Balears: Quantum Reservoir Computing, quantum networks and outreach IFISC (UIB-CSIC) and the Institutional Representation of CSIC in the Balearic Islands join forces and create "Voces, CSIC Balears", a bimonthly podcast for the dissemination of science. Through interviews with scientists working at CSIC's centres in the Balearic Islands, it aims to increase the visibility of the science carried out in the region. The 26th episode of "Voices, CSIC Balears" features Roberta Zambrini. Roberta Zambrini graduated from the Università degli Studi di Milano (1999) and holds a PhD from the UIB with the thesis "Quantum fluctuations in nonlinear optical patterns". She then did a postdoc at the University of Strathclyde (Glasgow, UK), where she studied the mechanical properties of light. She then obtained a Ramón y Cajal contract and joined IFISC (UIB-CSIC). Since 2008 Roberta is a CSIC Senior Scientist at IFISC, where she has led research on Complex and Open Quantum Systems, synchronization, quantum networks, quantum optics and more recently Quantum Machine Learning. In 2019-20 she coordinated the CSIC's White Paper on Digital and Complex Information.Quantum Reservoir Computing, redes cuánticas y divulgación | VOCES, CSIC BALEARS #26 http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/voces-csic-balears-quantum-reservoir-compu…

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IFISC News - IFISC collaborator Dr. Jan Danckaert is elected rector of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 27 Jun '22

27 Jun '22

IFISC collaborator Dr. Jan Danckaert is elected rector of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel On June 21, Professor Jan Danckaert was elected as the new rector of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. He is expected to take up his new duties next September.Jan Danckaert graduated in physics at the University of Antwerp and received his PhD in the field of nonlinear optics.His relationship with IFISC started with a postdoctoral stay at the Department of Cross-Disciplinary Physics of the Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies (now IFISC) in the periods February-August 2001 and 2002, in the framework of the FWO-Flanders postdoctoral mobility program and the European RTN VISTA network. Since then, he has made several shorter stays at our institute. Prof. Danckaert has coauthored 22 papers with IFISC researchers, many of them on nonlinear photonics. He has also co-directed with them 6 PhD theses and participated in three common research projects. IFISC (UIB-CSIC) wishes the new rector the greatest success in his new mission.Photo: VUB Today http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/ifisc-collaborator-dr-jan-danckaert-electe…

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IFISC News - Conference on Complex Systems CCS 2022
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 31 May '22

31 May '22

Conference on Complex Systems CCS 2022 After suffering several delays due to the global health situation, IFISC will organize in Mallorca the Conference on Complex Systems, CCS 2022. The conference will take place next October, 17-21 at the Palma Auditorium. The CCS is the largest and most important annual meeting of the international complex systems community and it comes under the auspices of the Complex Systems Society. This edition, organized by IFISC (UIB-CSIC), takes place after previous events held in Lyon, Online, Singapore, Thessaloniki and Cancun. Keynote speakers (more TBA):Elsa Arcaute, University College London UCL, UKJean-Philippe Bouchaud, CFM & Académie des Sciences, FranceJesús Gómez Gardeñes, Universidad de Zaragoza, SpainPaula Hidalgo, UN Pulse, USA-UgandaMarton Karsai, Central European University, AustriaFilippo Menczer, Indiana University, USAAnxo Sanchez, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain.Wolf Singer, FIAS, FrankfurtAnna Traveset, IMEDEA (CSIC-UIB), Spain The call for abstracts will be open until May 31 on the conference website: https://www.ccs2022.org/index.php/calls/call-for-abstracts For further information, please visit: https://ccs2022.org/ http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/conference-complex-systems-ccs-2022/

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IFISC News - Physics to understand the Ukrainian conflict
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 25 May '22

25 May '22

Physics to understand the Ukrainian conflict Two researchers from IFISC (UIB-CSIC) have analyzed the existence of "the two Ukranias" using statistical physics tools: the data-based evidence does not support this hypothesis.Massimiliano Zanin and Johann Martinez, researchers at IFISC (UIB-CSIC), have analyzed the Ukrainian conflict from the perspective of statistical physics. In the article, published in Chaos (AIP Publishing), the authors analyzed a dataset of violent events occurring inside Ukraine between January 2021 and before the armed conflict of February 24, 2022.The "two-Ukraine theory" asserts the existence of clearly defined pro-Western and pro-Russian regions within the country. This hypothesis, however, does not seem to be aligned with the united response of Ukrainians against the Russian invasion. To analyze this problem, they used tools from statistical physics and complex systems. Thanks to the growing number of open intelligence communities, such as the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), more relevant data are available to address studies focused on real conflicts that support or reject these theories.In the case of the "two Ukrainias", the researchers used two techniques of statistical physics to analyze whether the occurrence of violent events is a consequence of the existence of these two distinct regions within the country itself. They developed this idea on two axes: time and space. In the temporal dimension, they calculated the entropy of the sequence of violent events in the country, which makes it possible to see if the events are random (each event is independent of the others), or on the other hand if there is a regular structure in the events reported in the data.This makes it possible to determine whether a violent event is correlated with a previous one. On the other hand, in the spatial dimension they reconstructed functional complex networks, where each node represents a region of Ukraine, and pairs of them are connected when they detect that events in one region potentially depend on events occurring in the other. Both analyses, applied to the same data set, allow determining how independent an event is from the rest, both spatially and temporally.The results obtained do not provide evidence of the existence of the "two Ukranias", nor that the eastern part is being exploited by the western half. According to the authors, this result should be taken into account for a possible resolution of the conflict, as the data suggest that any proposal involving the division of the country would be artificial and would possibly not guarantee long-term stability and peace.The authors conclude that, with the data used and the techniques employed, the two-Ukraine theory is not supported. While there are internal conflicts within the country, they lack defined geographical boundaries: these conflicts form a complex web of interactions hardly reducible to differences between East and West. Although the article results in a first approximation of the concept, a deeper and more detailed analysis with a larger volume of data is necessary to confirm the result.M. Zanin and J. H. Martínez. Analyzing international events through the lens of statistical physics: The case of Ukraine, Chaos 32, 051103 (2022). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0091628Yahoo! EspañaRepúblicaLa Vanguardiahttps://www.lavanguardia.com/vida/20220524/8290642/fisica-estadis… http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/physics-understand-ukrainian-conflict/

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IFISC News - IFISC publishes its annual report 2021
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 17 May '22

17 May '22

IFISC publishes its annual report 2021 IFISC (UIB-CSIC) publishes its annual report. This document summarizes in detail all the activity carried out by IFISC researchers inside and outside the centre during the year 2021. In addition to a complete list of published articles, the report highlights some of the most representative results of the year for the different lines of research of the IFISC. Other metrics that appear in the report are changes in staff, new research projects and funding, number of conferences and seminars held by IFISC staff, media appearances, outreach activities organized, etc. The 2021 Annual Report can be found, alongside past reports, on the Annual Reports website. http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/ifisc-publishes-its-annual-report-2021/

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IFISC News - IFISC Master's Degree in Physics of Complex Systems renews its program
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 16 May '22

16 May '22

IFISC Master's Degree in Physics of Complex Systems renews its program In the academic year 2022/23 the Master's Degree in Physics of Complex Systems that IFISC (UIB-CSIC) offers at the University of the Balearic Islands will offer a completely renewed curriculum. The Master's Degree in Physics of Complex Systems was created in 2012 with unique characteristics based on interdisciplinarity, modernity and rigor. More than one hundred students have since been trained in its classrooms, achieving high levels of excellence and satisfaction. Our postgraduate training is backed by the teaching and research experience of IFISC faculty members (half of them is UIB staff while the other half works for CSIC) and provides students with the necessary tools to tackle complex problems in a wide range of disciplines, built on a solid mathematical basis. Last year the IFISC Faculty Council decided to renew the Master’s contents and competences. The next academic year will strengthen, within the block of core subjects, Data Science, Machine Learning and Information Theory, since these fields are consolidating within Complex Systems research and are increasingly important for complex science practitioners. On the other hand, the number of elective courses are increased, allowing students to specialize in the branch of Complex Systems science of their interest. The new program syllabus includes optional courses in Econophysics, Climate Dynamics or Ecology, disciplines that have recently gained much relevance, as shown by the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics. The pre-registration period for the Master's degree began on May 2 and will run until July 8 through the postgraduate portal of the University of the Balearic Islands. IFISC also offers mobility grants, one of which is sponsored by the Sicomoro Foundation. More information about the Master's degree, as well as pre-enrollment deadlines, can be found on this web page. http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/ifisc-masters-degree-physics-complex-syste…

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IFISC News - IFISC will host the X GEFENOL Summer School on Statistical Physics of Complex Systems and the II Summer School on Complex Socio-Technical Systems
by ifisc＠ifisc.uib-csic.es 10 May '22

10 May '22

IFISC will host the X GEFENOL Summer School on Statistical Physics of Complex Systems and the II Summer School on Complex Socio-Technical Systems IFISC (Institute of Interdisciplinary Physics and Complex Systems, UIB-CSIC) will host two summer schools this year: the X GEFENOL Summer Schoolon Statistical Physics of Complex Systems and the II Summer School on Complex Socio-Technical Systems. First, promoted by the Specialized Group in Statistical and Nonlinear Physics (GEFENOL) of the Real Sociedad Española de Física (RSEF), IFISC will organize the X GEFENOL Summer School, focused on statistical physics applied to complex systems, from August 29 to September 2. This will be followed by the II Summer School on Complex Socio-TechnicalSystems, from September 5 to 9. Organized by IFISC (UIB-CSIC) together with the Asociación para el estudio de Sistemas Complejos Sociotecnológicos (COMSOTEC), the school will focus on four main blocks within socio-technical systems: Experimental economics, urban systems, epidemic modeling and computational social sciences. Both schools are aimed at doctoral and postdocs students from all over the world who will learn new tools for a week that will allow them to face new problems in the context of complex systems from the perspective of statistical physics and socio-technical systems. Interested students can apply to either school or to both at a discounted registration fee. The number of participants is limited. Applications received by May 31 will be given priority. The call for applications will remain open until July 18 subject to availability. http://ifisc.uib-csic.es/en/news/ifisc-will-host-x-gefenol-summer-school-st…

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