France

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25 February 2008: A conference entitled '25 years of HIV' will be held in Paris, France, from 19 to 21 May. Read more

20 February 2008: The 2008 edition of Nutrigenomics will take place in Paris, France, on 13 & 14 March. The aim of the event is to bring face to face the scientific vision and the Industrial vision of Nutrigenomics field, gathering specialists from academic and industrial world involved in this emerging field. Read more

14 February 2008: The Australian Academy of the Humanities and the Embassy of France in Australia are offering four fellowships for scholars who need to travel to France in 2009 to undertake research. This grant is available to scholars resident in Australia and working in the field of the Humanities who require access to resources held in France. Read more

14 February 2008: An EU-funded researcher at the French national centre for scientific research (CNRS) has been selected as one of three winners of the prestigious Turing award. Dr Josef Sifakis is the first French citizen to be awarded the prize that is often described as the Nobel Prize for computing since its creation in 1966. Read more

14 February 2008: Institute for Neuroscience of Montpellier, France is looking for teams and researchers. Investigators holding a temporary or a permanent position in a French institution or foreign candidates are equally encouraged to apply. Read more

14 February 2008: Giving birth to a boy can lead to higher levels of severe post-natal depression (PND) and reduced quality of life than having a girl, according to research published in the February issue of Journal of Clinical Nursing. Read more

13 February 2008: The City of Paris is inviting applications to its international fellowship programme. This grant will be dedicated to a research stay from 3 to 11 months in a Parisian laboratory. Read more

11 February 2008: The French government on Saturday suspended the use of genetically modified corn crops in France while it awaits EU approval for a full ban. Read more

11 February 2008: It's the French paradox redux: Why don't the French get as fat as Americans, considering all the baguettes, wine, cheese, pate and pastries they eat? Read more

25 January 2008: Optics and photonics in Europe will be the focus of an OPERA2015 summit meeting taking place in Strasbourg, France on 9 April. The meeting will take place during the Photonics Europe conference. Read more

14 January 2008:  French government moves to ban the country's only genetically modified (GMO) crop drew fire on Sunday from the speaker of the country's parliament, farmers and biotechnology industry groups. Read more

14 December 2007: The Techinnov innovation and development forum will be held in Paris, France, on 7 February. Read more

11 December 2007: A Memorandum of Understanding on closer collaboration has been signed by two European standardisation bodies in the field of information and communication technologies (ICT) research. Read more

11 December 2007: A conference on driving innovation from science to business will be held in Aix en Provence, France, on 6 March. The event, which is organised by the EU-funded Trans2Tech project, will investigate topics related to the marketing of research in response to the industry and business' needs and requirements. Read more  

10 December 2007: The first international symposium on human embryonic stem cell research will be held in Evry, France, from 31 January to 2 February. Read more

5 December 2007: A five-day workshop addressing 'Imaging of nano-objects' will be taking place from 4 to 8 February 2008 in Les Houches, France. Read more

4 December 2007: With NASA’s announcement today of the launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis on 6 December, ESA astronauts Hans Schlegel, from Germany, and Leopold Eyharts, from France, are set to carry ESA’s Columbus laboratory to the International Space Station. Read more.

30 November 2007: The final seminar of the EU-funded EUROPAC ('European optimised pantograph catenary interface') project will be held in Paris, France, on 14 December. Read more

28 November 2007: A conference on new migration dynamics: regular and irregular activities on the European labour market, will be held in Nice, France, from 6 to 8 December. Read more

27 November 2007: The first ever event devoted to French competition poles and Italian technology districts and parks will take place in Milan, Italy on 28 November. Read more

21 November 2007: A collaboration between researchers in Switzerland, the UK and France has led to the solution of the first crystal structure of a member of the Rhesus protein family and thereby shed new light on a group of proteins of great importance in human transfusion medicine. Read more

7 November 2007: Researchers from France, the UK and Austria have modelled the SNARE protein complex that acts as a catalyst in the fusion of two membranes, using the processing power of the Distributed European Infrastructure for Supercomputing Applications (DEISA). They hope to open up new opportunities for pharmaceutical development. Read more

1 November 2007: The European Molecular Imaging Laboratories (EMIL) Network of Excellence (NoE) and the Diagnostic Molecular Imaging NoE are organising a winter school on molecular imaging. The course will take place from 4 to 8 February in Les Houches, France. Read more

30 October 2007: The third International ICT21 Forum on sustainable development, new technologies and information society will take place on 30 and 31 October in Valenciennes, France. Read more

30 October 2007: The first-ever attempt at a climate neutral vineyard in France is underway in Bordeaux's Medoc region, where winemaker Remi Lacombe plans to offset his own carbon emissions by investing in a carbon-reducing project elsewhere. Read more

19 October 2007: Australia and other owners of the Antarctic territories may be ill-prepared to face a major environmental challenge to the continent. Read more

17 October 2007: France has come out on top following a survey on the technology assistance provided by industrialised nations to developing countries. Read more

11 October 2007: Integrating the three pillars of the knowledge triangle - research, education and innovation - is often cited as key in a knowledge-based society. Industry plays an important part in this process. The Swiss Finance Institute (SFI) has managed to implement close cooperation between universities and the financial industry in the area of finance research. Read more

26 September 2007: Biocitech, a life science technology park in Paris, France, is celebrating after having raised around EUR 90 million in 12 months. Achievements to date include 20 patents, more than 25 partnerships between resident companies, two clinical trials, nine 'major scientific advances' and 25 publications in peer-review journals. Read more

26 September 2007: The Institute of Advanced Studies in Human and Social Sciences, to be known as the Lyon Collegium, has opened its doors to applications with the aim of launching pioneering research and participating in the creation of a community of scientific excellence recognised internationally. The first researchers will arrive in September 2008. Read more

26 September 2007: Nuclear energy has won a place in the EU's low-carbon energy mix following the launch of a new forum for nuclear energy research by the European Commission and the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). Read more

20 September 2007: EuroBio, an international congress bringing together biotechnology and the bio-industries, will take place in Lille, France, from 26 to 28 September. Read more

18 September 2007: An international seminar on dismantling nuclear facilities will take place from 19 to 23 November in Saclay, France. Read more

17 September: An international conference on women in engineering and technology research will be held in Paris, France, on 26 and 27 October. Read more

17 September: The European Commission has authorised state aid worth EUR119 million that the French government intends to provide to two research and development (R&D) projects. Read more

14 September 2007: 'The adventure of working on an EU-funded project completely changed my professional life,' says Professor Jean-François Boulicaut from the National Institute for Applied Sciences (INSA) in Lyon, France. Read more

14 September 2007: An international seminar on nuclear waste management will take place from 22 to 26 October in Saclay, France. Read more

14 September 2007: A conference on incubators and entrepreneurship will take place in Bordeaux, France, on 12 October. Read more

11 September 2007:The first symposium on research, internet and knowledge networks will be held in Bordeaux, France on 27-28 September. Read more

7 September 2007: A seminar on fourth generation nuclear reactor systems will take place in Saclay, France, from 8 to 12 October.  Read more

21 August 2007: A one-day seminar on the theme of 'ecological intensification' will take place in Montpellier, France, on 30 August. Read more

10 August 2007: The French non-governmental organisation (NGO) 'Médecins sans Frontières' (MSF) is to join forces with public sector research institutes around the world to develop drugs for diseases which they believe are neglected by the pharmaceutical industry. Read more .

10 August 2007: The European awards for innovation will take place during the annual Innovact event, from 30 September to 2 October in Reims, France. Read more

6 August 2007: Legislation aimed at providing more autonomy to France's universities has been adopted by the National Assembly and Senate, the country's two houses of parliament. Read more

31 July 2007: The seventh edition of the EURAFRIC-PARTNERS forum, 'European partnership meetings with Africa', will be held in Lyon, France from 23 to 26 October.  The theme of this year's event is water and energy in Africa, with a focus on finance and technology transfer as well as partnerships with small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).  Read more

31 July 2007: A workshop to prepare a new agenda for science communication will be held in Strasbourg, France from 8 to 10 November. The event is organised by the EU-funded EARTHWAKE project, which aims to use the appeal of popular strands of European TV to create a new awareness and interest in science. Read more

31 July 2007: An international conference entitled 'Sustainable development 20 years on: new theoretical interpretations, methodological innovations, and fields of further exploration' will take place from 20 to 22 November in Lille, France. Read more

18 July 2007: An international symposium on animal genomics for animal health will take place in Paris, France, from 23 to 25 October. Read more

13 July 2007: A conference entitled 'communities building knowledge: innovation through citizens' science and university engagement' will take place from 30 August to 1 September in Paris, France. Read more

12 July 2007: The 2007 International science film festival, PARISCIENCE, will be held from the 10 to 14 October in Paris, France. The festival will include short, featurette and feature-length, documentaries, fictions, documentary-fiction films for the general public. Read more

5 July 2007: The French National Institute for Applied Sciences (INSA) has signed the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers, committing itself to applying their principles to its human resources management.  Read more

22 June 2007: Researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Plasma Physics have developed a special code to calculate kinks in the test reactor of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project. This should ensure the stability of the reactor. The experimental fusion reactor, which is to be located in Cadarache, southern France, will attempt to reproduce on Earth the nuclear reactions that power the Sun and other stars. read more

22 June 2007: New research from a Franco-American team of researchers has shown that while the brains of mice affected by Alzheimer's disease are able to produce new brain cells, the survival time of these cells is extremely short. read more

21 June 2007: An intelligent system that can tell mechanics which parts of a car need servicing was unveiled on 18 June at a European technology show in Strasbourg, France. read more

19 June 2007: The main target of the Jerome Lejeune Foundation is research into intelligence disability. The foundation supports both fundamental and clinical research projects (neurosciences, behaviour, genetics, molecular biology, therapeutics, adult or cord blood stem cells) aimed at leading to the discovery of treatments for genetic intelligence diseases, in particular, trisomy 21 (Down syndrome). read more

19 June 2007: One of the core aims of the European Research Area (ERA) is to address the fragmentation of research efforts, which continues to afflict Europe's competitiveness. Reducing fragmentation is also among the goals of the NIS-NEST project, which is looking eastwards to the countries of the former Soviet Union, where some of the 'crème-de-la-crème' of European frontier research resides. Funded under the 'New and emerging technologies' (NEST) section of Sixth Framework Programme (FP6), the project brings together partners from the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Belarus and Republic of Moldova. The aim is to strengthen cooperation between researchers in these countries and their colleagues in the West. Greece and France are also partners in the project. read more

18 June 2007: The FAST Programme promotes and supports scientific and technological cooperation between Australian and French researchers in both public and private sectors. Applications will be accepted from French and Australian researchers, project managers, private companies and organisations. All fields (excluding social sciences and humanities) are eligible. Financial assistance is provided for small, strategically-focussed workshops and for collaborative research projects in leading edge areas of research. read more

14 June 2007: A conference on education and research in Europe - new opportunities and new challenges - will take place in Lyon, France, on 3 July. read more

12 June 2007: The French Minister for Higher Education and Research opened the third edition of the European Research and Innovation Exhibition by urging universities and the private sector to strengthen their cooperation. read more

12 June 2007: French President Nicolas Sarkozy has renewed his electoral promise to reform the country's research and higher education system. Priorities will include providing universities with greater autonomy and improving research funding structures. read more

31 May 2007: 'The Paris Observatory can, and in fact should do better, in improving the technology transfer of its research results in astronomy and astrophysics,' said Daniel Egret, President of the Observatory, at an event in Brussels organised by the Club of Associated Research Organisations (CLORA). read more

28 May 2007: The first edition of a conference on regional innovation in High Normandy will take place on 20 June in Rouen, France. read more

23 May 2007: A conference entitled 'Hearing and seeing: joined European efforts for fighting sensory disabilities' will take place in Paris, France, on 2 and 3 July. read more

22 May 2007: Research and innovation are crucial to competitiveness and have a vital role to play in addressing major global challenges such as climate change and sustainable development, according to the participants at the recent OECD Ministerial Level Council meeting on innovation, growth and equity in Paris. read more

17 May 2007: Polish and French researchers have developed a new, simplified patch test capable of detecting the most common allergies in children within a EUREKA project. read more

17 May 2007: A meeting entitled 'Hearing and seeing: Joined European efforts for fighting sensory disabilities' will take place on 2 and 3 July in Paris, France. read more

16 May 2007: The European Network of Excellence HUMANIST (Human Centred Design for Information Society Technologies) will hold a tutorial on 'Safety and design of new transport technologies' in Lyon, France, on 21 and 22 June 2007. read more

15 May 2007: The third edition of the European Research and Innovation Exhibition will be held in Paris, France, from 7 to 9 June. read more

9 May 2007: An international conference on therapeutic nano-objects will take place on 12 June in Evry, France. read more

8 May 2007: French scientists are feeling the winds of change after yesterday's election of conservative leader Nicolas Sarkozy as the country's new president. Sarkozy has announced reform plans--including a shake-up of the higher education system as early as this summer--which are opposed by trade unions and other groups. But some researchers say Sarkozy's recipe is just what French science needs. read more

7 May 2007: TER@TEC 2007, a conference on high performance computing, will take place on 20 June in Versailles, France. read more

4 May 2007: The French-led Corot mission has spied its first planet - a very hot world bigger than Jupiter - passing in front of a far-off star. read more

30 April 2007: MEDEA+, the European industry-led initiative for advanced cooperative research and development (R&D) in microelectronics, will host a conference on design automation in Grenoble, France, from 22 to 24 May. read more

30 April 2007: The further development of a single economic zone in Europe inevitably led to a spate of cross border mergers in the 1990s. The mergers were seen as a way of trimming the fat off large firms by combining complementary expertise to give shareholders a better return on their investment. The EU-funded EMEP project (European mergers and employee’s participation: Industrial economic and anthropological study of Franco-German cases) decided to take a closer look at what such mergers meant for the work force of each original company. They wondered to what degree the success of such mergers was impacted by the employees’ willingness to accept the work model imposed not only by a different company, but by a different country. Prior to EMEP, comparative studies usually involved investigation of the Anglo-Saxon and ‘Continental European’ models. So to better understand the dynamic in an era of unprecedented cooperation between former rivals, the EMEP consortium chose to focus their sights solely on French and German companies. read more

27 April 2007: Researchers have shed new light on how iron in the oceans works to boost the uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) by phytoplankton. The work, which brought together researchers from France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Australia, is published in the latest edition of the journal Nature. read more

24 April 2007: A Jacques Monod conference on environmental genomics will take place from 9 to 11 June in Roscoff, France. read more

24 April 2007: A conference on technologies and services related to the environment will take place on 12 and 13 June in Lyon, France. read more

20 April 2007: France's leading presidential candidates go head to head on research in an election special published in the latest edition of the journal Nature. read more

18 April 2007: China has signed a series of collaborative agreements with the Netherlands and France aimed at strengthening ties in several areas of research. read more

18 April 2007: Increasing our understanding of how much carbon dioxide Europe's terrestrial ecosystems absorb from the atmosphere is the goal of a huge, EU-funded experiment taking place in south-west France throughout April. read more

16 April 2007: The French Embassy in Australia and the Academy of the Social Sciences provide a funded grant to initiate and enhance joint research activity in social sciences through an annual joint call for proposals. read more

16 April 2007: The Embassy of France in Australia, the Tasmanian Government and the University of Tasmania have jointly created an Award in the field of Marine and Antarctic Sciences. read more

16 April 2007: The Institute for Neurosciences of Montpellier (INM) is a new Inserm Research Center located in the Saint-Eloi University Hospital campus, nearby clinical departments. The research conducted in this 4000 m² building is dedicated to pathophysiological studies and therapeutic innovation in Neurosciences, with a particular emphasis on diseases impairing sensory (audition, vision, proprioception, nociception) and motor functions. A wide variety of equipment and scientific competences is available to develop a multidisciplinary approach. read more

12 April 2007: The «n + i» program regroups more than 60 French engineering schools and offers a complete package of personalized services. The application is made online and the selected students participate to a two years program which includes a transition semester and a full master program leading to the prestigious Diplôme d’ingénieur. The Embassy of France in Australia offers to an Australian national one scholarship for the full program. This scholarship includes a monthly living allowance or €750 and a full health insurance. The cost of travel between Australia and France and the tuition fees for the program are not covered by the scholarship. read more

10 April 2007: The «charcot» scholarships are open to young researchers and academics in the field of medical studies. They have been created to enable foreign applicants to come for one year in France to conduct a medical research. read more

30 March 2007: The French Government has established a new agency to assess research activities carried out in higher education institutions and public research organisations. Created within the framework of France's Pact for Research, the Agency of Evaluation of Research and Higher Education (AERES) will bring together the scattered elements of the country's research evaluation system. In order to avoid overlapping, some current evaluation bodies are expected to close, including the National Evaluation Council (CNE), the National Committee for Research Evaluation (CNER) and Scientific, Technical and Educational Mission (MSTP). read more

30 March 2007: The Science on Stage festival will be held in Grenoble, France from 2 to 6 April. Around 500 science teachers from some 27 countries are expected to take part in the event, which will showcase the very best of today's science education. read more

29 March 2007: The third annual congress of the European Cardiac Arrhythmia Society (ECAS) will take place in Marseille, France, from 3 to 5 June. read more

28 March 2007: Human commercial activities, and not migratory birds, are the driving force behind the global spread of bird flu, a team of French researchers argues in the British Ornithologists' Journal, Ibis. While acknowledging that wild birds contribute to the local spread of the disease in the wild, human activities, particularly the trade in poultry and poultry-related products, are the 'major factors' that have caused the disease to spread around the world, the scientists say. read more

27 March 2007: A total of EUR 5.5 million was raised for HIV/AIDs during France's annual 'Sidaction' telethon, which took place from 23 to 25 March. read more

27 March 2007: The Franco-German axis is regarded by many as being at the heart of the European Union, and the two countries were certainly instrumental in the establishment of the EU's predecessor, the European Economic Community (EEC). read more

21 March 2007:  The State and the Ile-de-France Region are establishing new International Research Chairs to accommodate highly qualified, internationally acclaimed, foreign research scientists in Exact or Applicated sciences, Natural, health and ageing sciences, Environmental sciences, New technologies, human and social sciences.  The applications must be received before 25 April 2007.  read more

16 March 2007: The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has revealed that it will review the new data presented by French scientists that revealed toxicity concerns in rats fed the MON863 variety of GM maize from Monsanto. read more

15 March 2007: Homo sapiens living 160,000 years ago had life spans much like our own, a team of international scientists has revealed. Thanks to the tooth of an ancient homo sapien child found in the Jebel Irhoud caves in Morocco, and the technology supplied by the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in France, scientists found that childhood in the Old Stone Age lasted for the same amount of time as that of children living today. read more

15 March 2007: Monsanto's genetically modified maize MON863, authorised for human consumption since 2006, showed signs of liver and kidney toxicity in a rat study, raising concerns about its safety. read more

14 March 2007: China announces plans for astronomy satellite, space cooperation. An outline of the joint projects planned with Russia and France. read more

13 March 2007: The aim of the Fondation Fyssen is to encourage all forms of scientific inquiry into cognitive mechanisms, including thought and reasoning, that underlie animal and human behavior, their biological and cultural bases, and phylogenetic and ontogenetic development. The foundation awards grants for the training and support of postdoctoral researchers working on topics in keeping with the foundation’s goals. The grants are intended to assist French research scientists who wish to work in laboratories abroad, and foreign research scientists who wish to work in French laboratories. read more

9 March 2007: The World Life Sciences Forum BioVision will take place from 11 to 14 March in Lyon, France. The forum provides an international platform for dialogue, debates and proposals concerning major issues in life sciences. BioVision's mission is also to provide objective information to the public on questions raised by progress in life sciences and their applications. read more

6 March 2007: The Institut National de le Santé et de la Recherche Médicale is the French public institute devoted to biomedical research. Over 10,000 people work in Inserm’s 350 laboratories throughout France. Inserm’s Avenir program aims to support young scientists, PhDs or MDs, who have exciting and creative research projects. Applications may be submitted in the various disciplines of biomedical research: basic, clinical and therapeutic research as well as public health research (evaluation of the health care system, health policies, evaluation of professional and environmental risk factors). A special consideration will be given to public health, psychiatry, surgery as well as to emerging infectious diseases projects. read more

2 March 2007: The French Government has announced plans to draw up a roadmap for national research infrastructures. It will call on the scientific community and other relevant stakeholders to contribute to the process, identifying existing infrastructure projects and future needs. The country's High Council for Science and Technology will also provide input. read more

28 February 2007: Danone, the French food and beverage giant, is taking part in a research project into nanotechnology that could result in stronger plastic packing that also reduces waste. read more

26 February 2007: A seminar to discuss the research needs for the sustainable production of palm oil will take place on 5 March in Paris, France. read more

26 February 2007: A ball dropped into water can make a tiny plop or a huge splash, depending on what it's coated with. Physicists in France watched and listened as two small glass balls a few centimetres in diameter were dropped into water from a height of 1.25 metres. One ball was coated in a thin layer of water-repellent silane. The other was very smooth and clean, so that the sphere became completely wet when it hit the water. read more

22 February 2007: A conference on the latest agrifood technologies will take place on 22 and 23 March in Montpellier, France. read more

19 February 2007: Disrupting the brain's stress response mechanism worsens drug withdrawal symptoms in mice, while a hormone called corticosterone alleviates them, according to new French-led research. read more

12 February 2007: The French Government and pharmaceutical industry have pledged to do what is necessary to increase spending on medical research and development (R&D) by 10% over the next three years. read more

12 February 2007: A French satellite designed to hunt out new planets has started work after a series of successful tests, the European Space Agency said on Friday.

8 February 2007: Two days of training courses on writing a competitive proposal under the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) will take place on 27 and 28 March in Paris, France. read more

7 February 2007: Chirac calls for new, tougher UN environment body. Plan does not appear to have broad international support. read more

01 February 2007: The exploitation of research results has remained stagnant in France, despite measures introduced to boost the country's innovation and research base, according to a report published by the French Ministry for Higher Education and Research. read more

30 January 2007: Clinatec, an experimental clinic specialising in nanotechnologies-based treatment, will be established within the next three years in Grenoble, France. read more

29 January 2007: Clinatec, an experimental clinic specialising in nanotechnologies-based treatment, will be established within the next three years in Grenoble, France. read more

24 January 2007: A 27-year-old man with a disfiguring disease has become the second person to have a partial face transplant in France in just over a year. read more

23 January 2007: Two of France's presidential hopefuls have listed increasing research investment as a top priority to be tackled when in office, the French daily newspaper, Le Monde, reports. read more

16 January 2007: A three-day series of workshops on how to participate successfully in the Seventh Framework Programme will be held in Paris, France, between 14 and 16 February 2007. read more

15 January 2007: Finnish and French researchers working on an EU funded project have developed a nano-imprinting device for the mass production of solar cells and nano-scale bio-analysis platforms. read more

22 December 2006: Michèl Cosnard, Chairman and CEO of INRIA, the French national institute for research in computer science and control, has signed the European Charter and Code of Conduct for Researchers with EU Information Society and Media Commissioner Viviane Reding. The signing took place at a conference entitled 'Information and communication sciences, a driving force for European development', organised by the French public institute devoted to research in information and communication sciences and technology (ICST). read more

21 December 2006: A team of French and American researchers have demonstrated how genes expressed by the mother affect the development of the growing embryo. read more

19 December 2006: The second edition of IPTEC will be held in Cannes, France from 28 February to 2 March 2007. IPTEC is an international marketplace designed to help companies and organisations develop their technology transfer business. read more

13 December 2006: More should be done to make scientific careers more attractive to French women, and to remove the 'glass ceiling' preventing them from attaining senior positions in research and high education institutes. These are just some of the issues highlighted in a recently published report by a ministerial committee for professional gender equality in research and higher education.

12 December 2006: A total of €101.5 million was raised for medical research into muscle-wasting diseases during France's annual telethon, which took place on 8 and 9 December. Organised by the French Muscular Dystrophy Association (AFM), the fund-raising event, which is now in its 20th year, combines a 30-hour televised show along with tens of thousands local events to raise awareness of rare genetic disorders. read more

7 December 2006: Registration is now open for candidates interested in applying for the 'Prix Excellencia 2007', which honours female engineers in the high tech sector. In its third edition, the 'Prix Excellencia 2007 - Trophée de la Femme Ingenieur High-Tech' recognises women leading a successful career in the traditionally male high tech sector. Open to women working in France, the organisers are now working on extending the boundaries of the prize to encompass women working throughout Europe. read more

5 December 2006: Two training sessions on the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) will be held in Paris, France, on 23 and 24 January 2007. read more

30 November 2006: The Franco-British Nuclear Forum was launched in Paris on 29 November. The Forum is intended to further existing relationships between scientists, policy-makers, regulators and industry. read more

27 November 2006: The SYSTEM@TIC PARIS-REGION Competitiveness Cluster is organising its first forum, to take place on 8 December in Paris, France. A forum entitled 'Discover the Stakes Involved in the Digital Economy - Focusing on innovation at national and European levels' will take place at La Sorbonne in Paris, France on 8 December. read more

20 November 2006: An interview with Bertrand Monthubert, President of Sauvons La Recherche (SLR), discusses the pressure group's campaign to improve the profile of science research in France. SLR is hosting debates with the main presidential candidates, to discuss improved pay and conditions for PhD students and concerns about the degree of government control over research. Research Europe http://www.researchresearch.com/ 221 16 November 2006 p.6

20 November 2006: A workshop on nanotechnology transfer in Europe will take place in Paris, France, on 13 December. read more

20 November 2006: IPTEC - Business Development through Technology Transfer from 28th February - 2nd March 2007 in Palais des Festivals, Cannes, France. IPTEC is an international marketplace and conference designed to assist companies and organizations in business creation through the transfer of technology. Multinationals, SME s, Universities, Research Institutions and Venture Capitalists meet over 3 days to explore possible joint business ventures based on the latest patent protected technologies. IPTEC is an extremely cost effective and time efficient way of identifying and meeting future business partners. Organisations that participated in  IPTEC 2006 included: 3M, Alcatel, AstraZeneca, Bouygues Telecom, BT, BTG, California Institute of Technology, China Business Solutions, CEA, DSM, Enterprise Ireland, Ericsson, European Space Agency, France Telecom, GAZ de France, GE, Honeywell, IBM, Imperial College London, The IRC Network, ISIS Innovation, Kimberly-Clark, Max-Planck-Innovation, Microsoft, NEC Corporation, Nokia, Northrop Grumman, Philips, P & G, SAP, Sony Ericsson, Stanford University, Symbian, Unilever, Unipath, Xerox, plus many SME s and Universities. IPTEC is open to all tech transfer professionals and entrepreneurs interested in business development from new technology. For further details please contact:       robert.elliott@mackbrooks.co.uk. Website: www.iptec-cannes.com

15 November 2006: Two workshops entitled 'FP7: Get fully prepared before the first calls - Sharpen your skills to write a highly competitive proposal' will take place on 12 and 13 December in Paris, France. read more

10 November 2006: SYSTEM@TIC, the Paris region competitiveness cluster, will host its first forum on innovation on 8 December in Paris, France.

1 November 2006: Researchers in France have recreated a 5-million-year-old virus whose remains are now found littered across the human genome. The ancient virus could help us to understand how these genetic remnants contribute to cancer. read more

1 November 2006: Following a call for proposals, the French Government has selected a total of 13 Advanced Thematic Research Networks (RTRAs), which together will receive € 200 million in funding. The creation of RTRAs is one in a series of recent structural measures undertaken by the Government to consolidate the country's public research sector and ensure its leading position in the global research field. read more

1 November 2006: A workshop entitled 'Interactive Learning Environments (ILEs) for arithmetic and algebra education: the TELMA approach will' take place on 14 November in Grenoble, France. read more

31 October 2006: A workshop on how to successfully manage projects funded under the EU research framework programme will take place on 4 December in Paris, France. read more

31 October 2006: The second annual forum on competitiveness clusters will take place on 17 November in Sophia-Antipolis, France. The theme this year will be 'worldwide clusters and French pôles de compétitivité: time for international development'. read more

31 October 2006: Eiffel PhD Excellence Programme offering higher education scholarships (programme launched in 2005). Training of PhD candidates under joint thesis supervision or direction selected in partnership with higher education establishments implementing a dynamic international policy. Students in cotutelle PhD are encouraged to apply. read more

27 October 2006: The Center for Research in Plasma Physics (CRPP) of the EPFL is seeking applications for a tenure track assistant professor position in the field of plasma theory. We seek applicants with a strong record of scientific accomplishments, a keen interest in teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and a strong potential for becoming a leader in the field. Experienced candidates seeking a higher-level position may be considered. read more

25 October 2006: The European Construction Technology Platform (ECTP) will hold its second conference in Versailles, France on 21-22 November 2006. This event will give all stakeholders of the construction sector willing to contribute through research and Innovation activities the opportunity to build up projects in view of the forthcoming Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) as well as for trans-national programmes. read more

24 October 2006: Since 2003, the French Embassy in Australia, on behalf of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has been associated with the Australian Academy of Science (AAS) to jointly operate the French-Australian Cotutelle Call for proposals. The objective of this call for proposals is to support the development of the double doctoral degree “Cotutelle” between Australia and France. read more

19 October 2006: To mark the start of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), a launch event comprising nine information days will be held in France from 14 to 28 November 2006. The events, which will take place at different sites in the Ile-de-France region, will be transmitted by video to the event's partner regions across the country. The aim of the event is to provide information on the content and rules of participation of FP7 in advance of the first calls for proposals, which are expected at the end of 2006. read more

19 October 2006: The Ethics Committee of the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) has published an opinion including eight recommendations on the ethical implications of nanosciences and nanotechnologies. read more

16 October 2006: French universities want to play an active role in the creation of the European Research and Higher Education Area and are doing all that they can to support this process, says Yannick Vallée, First Vice-President of the French Conference of University Presidents (CPU). read more

13 October 2006: The Human Frontier Science Program (HFSPO) supports basic research focused on elucidating the complex mechanisms of living organisms. Emphasis is placed on novel, innovative, and interdisciplinary approaches to basic research that involve scientific exchanges across national boundaries. HFSP encourages research into biological problems involving approaches and knowledge from different disciplines such as chemistry, physics, mathematics, computer science, engineering, or material sciences because significant new ideas, techniques and discoveries often arise at the boundaries between disciplines. read more

11 October 2006: The Camargo Foundation maintains a study center in Cassis, France, for the benefit of fellows who wish to pursue projects in the humanities and social sciences related to French and Francophone cultures, as well as creative projects by visual artists, photographers, video artists, filmmakers, media artists, composers, and writers. For scholarly projects, research should be at an advanced stage and not require resources unavailable in the Marseilles-Cassis-Aix region. The Camargo Foundation offers, at no cost, thirteen furnished apartments as well as a reference library, a darkroom, an artist’s studio, and a music composition studio. The residential fellowship is accompanied by a $3,500 stipend, which is awarded automatically to each recipient of the grant. read more

11 October 2006: The EU-funded GoodFood Project will hold the open day in Grenoble, France on 15 November. This second edition will be devoted to the presentation of the results achieved in the project for the milk and dairy food chain regarding the applicability of micro&nano technologies. External experts from the field will also present other relevant initiatives, projects and future European research related topics. read more

9 October 2006: France is to ban smoking in all public places from next February, the prime minister has announced. read more

6 October 2006: A conference on competitive knowledge management and collective efficiency will take place on 19 and 20 October in Paris, France. read more

2 October 2006: Cigarette smoke in restaurants, bars and even hospitals makes France's public spaces among the unhealthiest in the world, according to new research released. read more

29 September 2006: EuroBiO, an international congress bringing together biotechnology and the bio-industries, will take place in Paris, France, from 25 to 27 October. read more

28 September 2006: French surgeons first to operate on human in zero-gravity. Attempting to remove a fatty tumour from the forearm of a volunteer aboard an Airbus modified to simulate weightlessness. read more

28 September 2006: The EURITRACK project will host a technology workshop on 9 November in Gif-sur-Yvette, France. read more

27 September 2006: The world e-gov forum will take place in Paris, France, between 18 and 20 October. The conference aims to address the question, 'What impact does e-gov have on the political life?' read more

26 September 2006: Three projects drawing on the expertise of researchers in both the UK and France could translate into practical improvements in crop and agronomic science. read more

25 September 2006: The UK-based Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) have awarded three new crop science awards, worth some €3 million to three new collaborative projects. read more

25 September 2006: A ban on the sale of France's famous Arcachon oysters this August provoked angry demonstrations by oyster farmers, who say that there's no way of proving the shellfish were actually toxic. The controversy has thrown a spotlight on the shortcomings of current safety testing. read more

22 September 2006: A ban on the sale of France's famous Arcachon oysters this August provoked angry demonstrations by oyster farmers, who say that there's no way of proving the shellfish were actually toxic. The controversy has thrown a spotlight on the shortcomings of current safety testing. Read more

19 September 2006: A European 'BioAlpine' convention on neuroscience with take place on 6 October 2006 in Grenoble, France. read more

18 September 2006: The European Commission has given France the all-clear to grant ⒔100 million in state aid to a Franco-Chinese research and development (R&D) project at Eurocopter, a subsidiary of European Aeronautics Defense and Space (EADS). If commercially successful, the grant will be refunded. read more

15 September 2006: The ITEA 2 (Information Technology for European Advancement) symposium will take place on 5 and 6 October 2006 in Paris, France. read more

11 September 2006: Conference organisers initially turned away 15 Iranian researchers from the Trends in Nanotechnology conference held this week in France. The temporary ban has raised concerns about the international isolation that Iranian scientists could face over their country's uranium enrichment programme. read more

11 September 2006: With the Beyond Beauty expo opening its doors in Paris this Monday, September 11, one of the key focuses will be innovation. And with nanotechnology proving to be one of the driving forces behind this trend, it is fitting that a series of conferences will highlight the importance of this technology in cosmetics formulation. read more

11 September 2006: Innovact, the European forum for innovative growth companies, will take place on 18 and 19 October in Reims, France. read more

7 September 2006: In the framework of the International Year of Deserts and Desertification, civil society organisations have come together to organise an international 'Desertif'actions' forum from 21-23 September in Montpelier, France. read more

6 September 2006: International Conference on Epigenetic Robotics, 20-22 September 2006 in Paris, France. Organised by the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Japan, this event brings together researchers from a range of fields, including developmental sciences, neuroscience, biology, and cognitive robotics and artificial intelligence. read more

5 September 2006: The French government has produced the first annual review of its regional clusters of competitiveness initiative, finding that results so far would suggest that the clusters are succeeding in their objective of creating innovative and competitive public-private partnerships. read more

4 September 2006: On 26-27 October the ASK-IT international conference will take place in Nice, France. The conference marks the two year point of this EU funded research project which aims to develop services based on Information Communication Technologies (ICT) that will allow mobility impaired people to live more independently. read more

28 August 2006: Greenpeace and angry French fishermen ended a confrontation outside the French port of Marseille on Thursday that had disrupted shipping and threatened to cut off an important oil terminal. Read more

24 August 2006: French wildlife officials released a fifth bear in the Pyrenees, the final step in a program to repopulate the region in south western France. Read more

23 August 2006: The Australian Government in conjunction with the Government of the Republic of France has established the French-Australian S&T (FAST) Programme. The Programme is jointly managed by the Department of Education Science and Training (DEST) and its French counterparts, the Ministry of National Education, Universities and Research (MENESR) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE).The objective of FAST is to promote and support scientific and technological cooperation between Australian and French researchers in both public and private sectors. The 2007 call-for-proposals round will open on Monday 4 September 2006 and close on Friday 13 October 2006.

For more information, please visit:
http://www.ambafrance-au.org/article.php3?id_article=1851>http://www.ambafrance-au.org/article.php3?id_article=1851

21 August 2006: French food giant Danone has built up a war chest of up to €1bn to spend on acquisitions over the next three to five years, according to a report. read more

31 May 2006: Trees are both reservoirs for oxygen and protectors of natural habitats, and therefore biodiversity. A programme operated by CIRAD, the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development, has extended a forest management scheme operating in the Central African Republic to cover 90 per cent of managed forests. read more

30 May 2006: The European Association of Research Managers and Administrators (EARMA) will host a conference on international research collaboration, from18 to 20 June in Paris, France. The event will bring together representatives from European research and higher education institutions to discuss issues relating to research management. The forthcoming Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) and its objectives will also be discussed during the event. A message pre-recorded by the European Commissioner for Science and Research, Janez Potocnik, will open the conference. Members of the European Parliament's Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) committee will be among the participants attending the event. read more

29 May 2006: French researchers have discovered that RNA, cousin of the more familiar DNA, has a role in the transfer of genetic information, completely changing the way in which we think about genetic inheritance. read more 

29 May 2006: The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) partners ended years of negotiation on 24 May, agreeing to start construction on the fusion reactor at Cadarache, France in 2007. read more

17 May 2006: The Institute of Neuroscience in Montpellier has organised an information day to take place in Montpellier, France, on 22 May. The day will be used as a platform to disseminate recent breakthroughs in the field of neuroscience. Experts from INM, and institutes in Strasbourg, Paris, Toulouse and Geneva will speak about their research on the development of new therapies and aetiology. read more

16 May 2006: The Minatec Crossroads event will take place in Grenoble, France, from 29 May until 1 June. The event will host ten conferences examining micro and nanotechnologies research with industrial applications. The event will explore both public and academic research, and will celebrate the opening of the largest centre in micro-nanotechnologies in Europe - Minatec - which will be inaugurated on 2 June. read more

15 May 2006: As an indication of its slipping status in the science stakes, sub-Saharan Africa accounts for less than 1% of scientific publications produced each year. France’s Académie des Sciences has published a 365-page report which seeks ways of addressing this precarious situation in Africa, as well as other parts of the developing world. read more

5 May 2006: The French National Institute for Health and Medical Research (INSERM) has officially announced its backing of the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers, committing itself to applying their principles to its human resources management for researchers and scientific employment. read more 

12 April 2006: A forum on financing innovation and competitiveness will take place on 11 May in Marseilles, France. The event will have something for a variety of players. Innovative small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) will be able to find potential financial and commercial partners, investors will be able to identify innovative solutions and projects, and large companies will be able to develop partnerships with innovative SMEs. read more

11 April 2006: The EU-funded project Genostem will hold a workshop on 'Preclinical models of bone repair: clinical relevance and applicability with adult mesenchymal stem cell-mediated therapy' in Paris, France, on 29 May. Speakers will include several experts from the EU, Switzerland and Israel, addressing clinical needs for bone repair, preclinical models of bone repair and regulatory guidance. One key objective is to identify the best animal models for clinical bone repair trials. Participation is free, funded under the European Commission's Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). read more

10 April 2006: A colloquium on cyber security and control systems will take place in Nice, France, on 10 and 11 May. The event will include sessions on the challenges of cyber security, cyber criminality and economic intelligence, secured action to production machines, secure communications solutions, and cyber security in the context of transport infrastructure and large electronic networks. The event is organised with the support of the French Ministry for Industry. read more 

6 April 2006: ULTIMATE, a joint Dutch, French and UK project funded by EUREKA has developed a sophisticated driving simulator that the developers hope will cut the costs of increased road safety. Driving simulators have traditionally been both expensive to build and operate, and unrealistic to use. The ULTIMATE project has developed a lightweight, accurate system for testing modifications to car design and how these modifications will influence safety. read more

3 April 2006: The first international conference on avian influenza in humans, 'Latest advances in prevention, therapies and protective measures', will take place on 29 and 30 June in Paris, France. The event will feature presentations from leading experts in the field from Europe, North America and Asia. Among the topics that will be covered are:
- economic impact of avian influenza propagation;
- risks of H5N1 mutations and human-to-human transmission;
- strategies to prevent avian influenza in humans in a non pandemic frame;
- prevention through immunisation: latest advances in vaccination. read more

31 March 2006: INPI, the European Patent Academy of the European Patent Office has organised a symposium on 'Intellectual property and value creation: valuation and exploitation of corporate intangible assets,' to be held in Paris on 18 and 19 May. read more

29 March 2006: A manifesto to support breast cancer research and improve standards of patient care has been presented to doctors, nurses, patients and advocacy groups at the European breast cancer conference in Nice, France. The Nice manifesto represents a commitment by all stakeholders to improve the treatment of breast cancer, which remains the most common cancer affecting women in Europe. read more

29 March 2006: A technical seminar on economic intelligence -advanced methods for monitoring on the Internet, will take place in Paris, France, on 6 Apr