ASTRONOMY

Researchers at the institute will investigate two key areas of computing and science. The first area is the application of mathematics to improve software and systems security, which will extend ongoing, collaborative work between Microsoft Research and INRIA in the foundation of programming languages and proving of theorems. The second issue is the acceleration of scientific advancement through the development of new software tools for the management and analysis of highly complex scientific data. “The international stature of French research in computer science is confirmed by the decision by Microsoft to enter a partnership with INRIA and develop a joint laboratory in France. We value the opportunity for INRIA to work closely and openly with Microsoft,” said Gilles Kahn, chairman and managing director of INRIA. “An open and collaborative approach exists at the heart of the research we’re conducting with Microsoft Research. Developing this laboratory in France will fuel the exchange of new ideas and support the achievement of our shared goals while adhering to the levels of scientific excellence INRIA is renowned for.” “By working with internationally leading organisations such as INRIA, Microsoft is able to drive momentum in new kinds of science and computing, building on strong foundations,” said Andrew Herbert, managing director of Microsoft Research Cambridge. “Coming together more closely through the new kinds of partnership enabled by the Microsoft European Science Initiative offers the possibility of making fundamentally new breakthroughs that will have significant benefits for science and society.” Scientists will have the freedom to conduct research in an open, collaborative environment, and have the results made publicly available through scientific publications and free availability of software tools and prototypes to the community. Any commercial exploitation of the results will be agreed by Microsoft and INRIA jointly. Stimulating European Innovation The Microsoft-INRIA Institute for Computational Science is the second centre to be formed as part of the Microsoft European Science Initiative, announced in February by Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates. The initiative is focused on accelerating fundamental innovation and advances in new kinds of science and computing that can generate long-term benefits to science and society. The Microsoft European Science Initiative is a key part of Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to research and innovation in Europe, in particular supporting science-based innovation in Europe. Through new types of public-private partnerships with the scientific community and European governments, the initiative will focus on creating fundamental technologies to stimulate the emerging science-based innovation era, and help address some of the key challenges and opportunities for society and science in the 21st century. Background: INRIA, the national institute for research in computer science and control, operating under the dual authority of the Ministry of Research and the Ministry of Industry, is dedicated to fundamental and applied research in information and communication science and technology (ICST). The Institute also plays a major role in technology transfer by fostering training through research, diffusion of scientific and technical information, development, as well as providing expert advice and participating in international programs. By playing a leading role in the scientific community in the field and being in close contact with industry, INRIA is a major participant in the development of ICST in France. Throughout its six research units in Rocquencourt, Rennes, Sophia Antipolis, Grenoble, Nancy and Bordeaux-Lille-Saclay, INRIA has a workforce of 3,500, 2,700 of whom are scientists from INRIA’s partner organizations such as CNRS (the French National Center for Scientific Research), universities and leading engineering schools. They work in 120 joint research projects. Many INRIA researchers are also professors whose approximately 950 doctoral students work on theses as part of INRIA research projects. Founded in 1991, Microsoft Research is dedicated to conducting both basic and applied research in computer science and software engineering. Its goals are to enhance the user experience on computing devices, reduce the cost of writing and maintaining software, and invent novel computing technologies. Researchers focus on more than 55 areas of computing and collaborate with leading academic, government and industry researchers to advance the state of the art in such areas as graphics, speech recognition, user-interface research, natural language processing, programming tools and methodologies, operating systems and networking, and the mathematical sciences. Microsoft Research employs more than 700 people in six labs located in Redmond, Wash.; San Francisco; Silicon Valley, Calif.; Cambridge, England; Beijing; and Bangalore, India. More information can be found at http://www.research.microsoft.com.