Why do historians collect new sources? War Experiences in Luxembourg. The Second World War and Today

Speeches/Talks (2023)

The military offensive launched by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in the early hours of 24 February 2022 and the ensuing war on Ukrainian territory have resulted in immense human suffering, a ... [more ▼]

The military offensive launched by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in the early hours of 24 February 2022 and the ensuing war on Ukrainian territory have resulted in immense human suffering, a humanitarian tragedy and incalculable material damage. The violation of a country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty – an act in clear breach of the United Nations Charter – has shattered the shared framework of values and principles fostered by multilateralism after the Second World War in the hope of achieving world peace, while leading to an unprecedented outpouring of solidarity for Ukraine and the plight of its people from Western democracies and European and international organisations, including NATO, the UN, the European Union and the Council of Europe, and their Member States and private initiatives. As contemporary history is turned on its head, historians, driven by the duty of memory, are stepping up to explain the origins of the conflict, identify the various players, provide an objective analysis of the consequences, record the memories of eyewitnesses and victims – with oral history proving a precious tool –, preserve historical sources and, above all, reflect on the role that intellectual effort can play in paving the way for a return to peace in the new world order taking shape before our eyes. [less ▲]

Challenges in completing EMU: asymmetric competition vs fiscal harmonisation. A case study of the Benelux countries

in Journal of Contemporary European Research (2023)

This paper aims to investigate the concept, context and socio-economic consequences of fiscal competition in the integrated economic space of EMU in completion, to pinpoint the positive and negative ... [more ▼]

This paper aims to investigate the concept, context and socio-economic consequences of fiscal competition in the integrated economic space of EMU in completion, to pinpoint the positive and negative factors at work via a case study of the Benelux countries – both founder members of the EU and pioneers of EMU – and to examine the impact on European and international regulations in the field. In particular, it will endeavour to provide a comprehensive interpretation of fiscal policy in the Benelux countries via a comparative approach and from a historical perspective. It will look at the development of respective domestic fiscal policies, driven by national interests and by membership of a Community that is subject to requirements in terms of harmonisation and taxation, but also by constant contact (and frequent clashes) with the multilateral international environment. [less ▲]

I-GWAS: Privacy-Preserving Interdependent Genome-Wide Association Studies

in Proceedings on Privacy Enhancing Technologies (2023)

Genome-wide Association Studies (GWASes) identify genomic variations that are statistically associated with a trait, such as a disease, in a group of individuals. Unfortunately, careless sharing of GWAS ... [more ▼]

Genome-wide Association Studies (GWASes) identify genomic variations that are statistically associated with a trait, such as a disease, in a group of individuals. Unfortunately, careless sharing of GWAS statistics might give rise to privacy attacks. Several works attempted to reconcile secure processing with privacy-preserving releases of GWASes. However, we highlight that these approaches remain vulnerable if GWASes utilize overlapping sets of individuals and genomic variations. In such conditions, we show that even when relying on state-of-the-art techniques for protecting releases, an adversary could reconstruct the genomic variations of up to 28.6% of participants, and that the released statistics of up to 92.3% of the genomic variations would enable membership inference attacks. We introduce I-GWAS, a novel framework that securely computes and releases the results of multiple possibly interdependent GWASes. I-GWAS continuously releases privacy-preserving and noise-free GWAS results as new genomes become available. [less ▲]

Assessing the Impact of Attacks on an Automotive Ethernet Time Synchronization Testbed

in Fotouhi, Mahdi; Buscemi, Alessio; Boualouache, Abdelwahab (Eds.) et al 2023 IEEE Vehicular Networking Conference (VNC), Istanbul 26-28 April 2023 (2023, July)

Time Sensitive Network (TSN) standards are gaining traction in the scientific community and automotive Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) due their promise of deterministic Ethernet networking. Among ... [more ▼]

Time Sensitive Network (TSN) standards are gaining traction in the scientific community and automotive Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) due their promise of deterministic Ethernet networking. Among these standards, Generalized Precision Time Protocol (gPTP) - IEEE 802.1AS - allows network devices to be synchronized with a precision far higher than other synchronization standards, such as Network Time Protocol (NTP). gPTP is a profile of Precision Time Protocol (PTP) which, due to its robustness to delay variations, has been designated for automotive applications. Nonetheless, gPTP was designed without security controls, which makes it vulnerable to a number of attacks. This work reveals a critical vulnerability caused by a common implementation practice that opens the door to spoofing attacks on gPTP. To assess the impact of this vulnerability, we built two real gPTP-capable testbeds. Our results show high risks of this vulnerability destabilizing the system functionality. [less ▲]

Spatial adaptive settlement systems in archaeology. Modelling long-term settlement formation from spatial micro interactions

Doctoral thesis (2023)

Despite research history spanning more than a century, settlement patterns still hold a promise to contribute to the theories of large-scale processes in human history. Mostly they have been presented as ... [more ▼]

Despite research history spanning more than a century, settlement patterns still hold a promise to contribute to the theories of large-scale processes in human history. Mostly they have been presented as passive imprints of past human activities and spatial interactions they shape have not been studied as the driving force of historical processes. While archaeological knowledge has been used to construct geographical theories of evolution of settlement there still exist gaps in this knowledge. Currently no theoretical framework has been adopted to explore them as spatial systems emerging from micro-choices of small population units. The goal of this thesis is to propose a conceptual model of adaptive settlement systems based on complex adaptive systems framework. The model frames settlement system formation processes as an adaptive system containing spatial features, information flows, decision making population units (agents) and forming cross scale feedback loops between location choices of individuals and space modified by their aggregated choices. The goal of the model is to find new ways of interpretation of archaeological locational data as well as closer theoretical integration of micro-level choices and meso-level settlement structures. The thesis is divided into five chapters, the first chapter is dedicated to conceptualisation of the general model based on existing literature and shows that settlement systems are inherently complex adaptive systems and therefore require tools of complexity science for causal explanations. The following chapters explore both empirical and theoretical simulated settlement patterns based dedicated to studying selected information flows and feedbacks in the context of the whole system. Second and third chapters explore the case study of the Stone Age settlement in Estonia comparing residential location choice principles of different periods. In chapter 2 the relation between environmental conditions and residential choice is explored statistically. The results confirm that the relation is significant but varies between different archaeological phenomena. In the third chapter hunter-fisher-gatherer and early agrarian Corded Ware settlement systems were compared spatially using inductive models. The results indicated a large difference in their perception of landscape regarding suitability for habitation. It led to conclusions that early agrarian land use significantly extended land use potential and provided a competitive spatial benefit. In addition to spatial differences, model performance was compared and the difference was discussed in the context of proposed adaptive settlement system model. Last two chapters present theoretical agent-based simulation experiments intended to study effects discussed in relation to environmental model performance and environmental determinism in general. In the fourth chapter the central place foragingmodel was embedded in the proposed model and resource depletion, as an environmental modification mechanism, was explored. The study excluded the possibility that mobility itself would lead to modelling effects discussed in the previous chapter. The purpose of the last chapter is the disentanglement of the complex relations between social versus human-environment interactions. The study exposed non-linear spatial effects expected population density can have on the system and the general robustness of environmental inductive models in archaeology to randomness and social effect. The model indicates that social interactions between individuals lead to formation of a group agency which is determined by the environment even if individual cognitions consider the environment insignificant. It also indicates that spatial configuration of the environment has a certain influence towards population clustering therefore providing a potential pathway to population aggregation. Those empirical and theoretical results showed the new insights provided by the complex adaptive systems framework. Some of the results, including the explanation of empirical results, required the conceptual model to provide a framework of interpretation. [less ▲]

Le rapport Werner en suspens. Les débats autour de l'Union économique et monétaire en 1973

in Wilkens, Andreas (Ed.) Une année particulière: 1973 et les tourments de l'Europe (2023)

The Digital Archive and the Politics of Digitisation

Presentation (2023, April 28)

This paper will explore a key question for historians today: what are the politics of cultural heritage digitisation and its implications for historical research? What are the benefits and opportunities ... [more ▼]

This paper will explore a key question for historians today: what are the politics of cultural heritage digitisation and its implications for historical research? What are the benefits and opportunities afforded by digitisation and what challenges arise? How do digital resources shape the historical themes, topics, and debates that can be researched, and how might they influence research agendas more broadly? In what ways can they enable us to ask new research questions or open avenues of inquiry that challenge existing master narratives? Can digital resources facilitate research into transnational histories when most digitization projects are still nationally framed? In short, what biases might digital archives introduce in our work and how does that differ from issues of bias and selection in the ‘paper’ archive? To address questions such as these, I will discuss several key parameters of the politics of digitisation set within a broader historical and global context. [less ▲]

Intérêt de la participation des parents dans un modèle de Réponse à l’Intervention (RàI) ou dans un Système de Soutien à Paliers Multiples (SSPM) : une récension des écrits

Scientific Conference (2023, April 03)

Avec la démocratisation de l’enseignement et la multiplication des profils d’apprenants, l’institution scolaire a rapidement été confrontée à la nécessité d’étudier comment les besoins des élèves sont ... [more ▼]

Avec la démocratisation de l’enseignement et la multiplication des profils d’apprenants, l’institution scolaire a rapidement été confrontée à la nécessité d’étudier comment les besoins des élèves sont pris en compte par le système et comment les pratiques éducatives lui sont adaptées. C’est dans ce contexte qu’au début des années 2000, le modèle de réponse à l’intervention (RàI) a vu le jour. Il se définit comme une approche visant l’identification des élèves en difficulté et la mise en place d’une intervention ciblée sur les besoins de l’apprenant (Desrochers & Guay, 2020). Au fil des années, ce modèle RàI s’est intensifié et élargi à de nombreux domaines d’apprentissage mais aussi à la gestion du comportement des élèves. Cet élargissement du champ d’action initial a amené à renommer l’appellation de l’approche en Système de Soutien à Paliers Multiples (SSPM). Si la qualité de l’enseignement en classe et le soutien additionnel apporté aux élèves en difficulté semblent constituer le socle des interventions mobilisées dans le cadre du modèle RàI ou de l’approche en SSPM, il semble que l’engagement parental et la collaboration famille-école pourraient constituer un apport intéressant. En tant que premiers agents de socialisation de l’enfant et compte tenu de l’influence importante des familles sur la réussite développementale et éducative des enfants, la promotion de l’engagement parental et du partenariat famille-école présente un grand intérêt. Or, peu d’études ont, à ce jour, associé la facette famille à un modèle SSPM. Depuis plus de vingt années, l’engagement parental et le partenariat avec les parents constituent une thématique de recherche dont l’intérêt ne cesse de croître. Des synthèses récentes (par exemple, Axford et al., 2019 ; Englund et al., 2004 ; Kim et al., 2020, Roy & Giraldo-García, 2018 ; Huat See & Gorard, 2015), soulignent à quel point les relations école-famille ainsi que l’engagement parental peuvent avoir une influence significative et positive à la fois sur les performances scolaires mais aussi sur des variables conatives. Toutes ces études semblent converger vers le constat que la participation des parents a une influence positive sur la scolarité des élèves. Or, comme le rappellent Castro et al. (2015), ces études souffrent d’un manque d’homogénéisation des concepts à l’étude ; ce qui fait de la participation des parents un phénomène multiforme et multidimensionnel. En outre, il semble que peu d’études incluent un incitant à mettre en place une stratégie parentale particulière de soutien au cursus scolaire de l’enfant (Lawson, 2015). Cependant, il semble que l’école comme les familles se demandent quelles sont les façons les plus efficaces de collaborer pour optimiser les effets de l’engagement parental (Jeynes, 2012). Il apparait que le plus souvent les démarches et les actions sont davantage centrées sur l’école (Kanouté, 2006) qui tendent à placer les familles dans des rôles éducatifs mineurs (participation aux réunions de parents, par exemple). Toutefois, Garbacz et al. (2008) soutiennent qu’une approche d’implication parentale basée sur le partenariat favoriserait le renforcement des compétences des familles comme du personnel scolaire en identifiant et en soutenant les ressources des deux acteurs. Selon les auteurs, cette approche serait efficace car elle repose sur le principe d’une participation active des familles depuis l’identification des besoins, l’établissement de l’intervention et l’acquisition de nouvelles compétences plutôt que sur une réception passive d’une intervention externe faites par des professionnels. Ajoutons encore avec Larivée (2012) que pour renforcer l’efficacité des programmes d’implication parentale, il est important de concevoir les interventions en se référant aux données probantes de la recherche scientifique. Nous nous demandons si, par conséquent, le fait de renforcer la participation des parents dans la scolarité de leur enfant, au sein du modèle SSPM, dans le cadre d’un véritable partenariat école-famille autour d’une compétence d’apprentissage particulière, pourrait renforcer l’influence positive de ce soutien parental sur le développement scolaire de l’enfant tant au niveau des apprentissages scolaires (numératie et littératie) que de ses compétences socio-émotionnelles. C’est donc à travers une récension des écrits que nous cherchons à mettre en évidence l’intérêt de la participation des parents à un modèle de RàI ou une approche basée sur un SSPM. Pour réaliser cette synthèse, nous avons procédé de la façon suivante. Nous avons mené une recension de textes sur la participation des parents, le RàI ou le SSPM. Pour ce faire, nous avons eu recours à la base de données Education Research Complete. Nous avons utilisé les mots-clefs suivants : participation parentale, engagement parental ou investissement parental, Réponse à l’Intervention (RàI), Système de Soutien à Paliers Multiples (SSPM), numératie, littératie ou compétences socio-émotionnelles, ainsi que leur traduction en anglais : Response to intervention, Multi-tiered system of support, parental involvement ou parent engagement ou parent participation, numeracy, litteracy or Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). Les critères utilisés pour sélectionner les articles sont les suivants : 1) l’article est issu d’une revue à comité de lecture ; 2) l’article est disponible en langue française ou anglaise ; 3) l’article utilise une méthodologie qualitative et/ou quantitative étudiant l’intérêt d’une participation des parents dans un modèle RàI ou dans une approche en SSPM visant le développement de la numératie, de la littératie ou le développement socio-émotionnel chez des élèves du préscolaire et du primaire. Ce sont les résultats détaillés de cette récension d’écrits qui feront l’objet de la communication. Bibliographie Axford, N., Berry, V., Lloyd, J., Moore, D., Rogers, M., Hurst, A., Blockley, K., Durkin,H. and Minton, J. (2019) How Can Schools Support Parents’ Engagement in their Children’s Learning? Evidence from Research and Practice. London: Education Endowment Foundation. Report available from: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/evidence-summaries/evidence-reviews/parental-engagement/ (retrieved February 2022). Castro, M., Expósito-Casas, E., López-Martín, E., Lizasoain, L., Navarro-Asencio, E., & Gaviria, J. (2015). Parental involvement on student academic achievement: A meta-analysis. Educational Research Review, 14, 33-46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2015.01.002 Englund, M. M., Luckner, A. E., Whaley, G. J. L., & Egeland, B. (2004). Children's Achievement in Early Elementary School: Longitudinal Effects of Parental Involvement, Expectations, and Quality of Assistance. Journal of Educational Psychology, 96(4), 723–730. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.96.4.723 Garbacz, S. & Woods, Kathryn & Swanger-Gagné, Michelle & Taylor, Ashley & Black, Kathryn & Sheridan, Susan. (2008). The Effectiveness of a Partnership-Centered Approach in Conjoint Behavioral Consultation. School Psychology Quarterly, 23(3), 313-326. 10.1037/1045-3830.23.3.313. Huat See, B., & Gorard, S. (2015). The role of parents in young people’s education—a critical review of the causal evidence. Oxford Review of Education, 41, 346-366. [less ▲]

Personal Informatics at Work

Scientific Conference (2023, April)

An ever-increasing amount of sensor technologies surrounds our work environment, collecting data about workers? activity and wellbeing ? often without them having any say in this. This datafication of the ... [more ▼]

An ever-increasing amount of sensor technologies surrounds our work environment, collecting data about workers? activity and wellbeing ? often without them having any say in this. This datafication of the workplace can help find novel ways to stimulate healthy behaviors or increase productivity. However, the ubiquitous usage of data collectors in the workplace can also put employees in a position of power imbalance, where management is frequently aiming at ?optimizing? employees towards normative and more-than-often problematic standards of productivity and wellbeing. Yet, data-tracking practices might not only seek an optimum but also can be interpreted towards self-enhancement (Meissner, 2016). In this sense, optimization is not per se an improvement on previous goals, but rather allows ?the discovery of new opportunities?. Indeed, data can be a means of giving space for users to be curious about their own subjective work experiences. Personal Informatics research has mostly focused on leisure and health-related topics but it takes on different forms, requirements, and ethical considerations for a work context. To explore how such considerations emerge from material practices, we conducted a field study, deploying a research probe called Habilyzer at a workplace (N=5). Findings show that users explored aspects meaningful to them yet highlight discrepancies between the envisioned self-tracking goals and participants? practices. Regarding sensors? open-endedness, a balance between the burden of data collection and the value derived from it appeared critical. We contribute new insights into how open-ended sensor technologies can be designed to support self-tracking practices in the workplace. [less ▲]

EduCHI 2023 - 5th Annual Symposium on HCI Education

in CHI'23 Extended Abstracts (2023, April)