fbpx ERC: a showcase of excellence | Science in the net

ERC: a showcase of excellence

Primary tabs

Read time: 1 min

The European Research Council (ERC) is a key element in the EU's research funding programme. "Our main aim is to push researchers to be ambitious," told us Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, president of the ERC.

We reached Bourguignon in Genoa, at the Festival della Scienza, where he explained the ERC programme and introduced three researchers who have won an ERC grants. These scientists showed the results they have obtained with their studies: from the mechanisms of time's perception in the human brain to the investigation of Earth's formation through the analysis of diamonds, till the development of touchless, floating displays. We asked them some questions about their work and the ERC grants.


Scienza in rete è un giornale senza pubblicità e aperto a tutti per garantire l’indipendenza dell’informazione e il diritto universale alla cittadinanza scientifica. Contribuisci a dar voce alla ricerca sostenendo Scienza in rete. In questo modo, potrai entrare a far parte della nostra comunità e condividere il nostro percorso. Clicca sul pulsante e scegli liberamente quanto donare! Anche una piccola somma è importante. Se vuoi fare una donazione ricorrente, ci consenti di programmare meglio il nostro lavoro e resti comunque libero di interromperla quando credi.


prossimo articolo

Why science cannot prove the existence of God

The demonstration of God's existence on scientific and mathematical grounds is a topic that, after captivating thinkers like Anselm and Gödel, reappears in the recent book by Bolloré and Bonnassies. However, the book makes a completely inadequate use of science and falls into the logical error common to all arguments in support of so-called "intelligent design."

In the image: detail from *The Creation of Adam* by Michelangelo. Credits: Wikimedia Commons. License: public domain

The demonstration of God's existence on rational grounds is a subject tackled by intellectual giants, from Anselm of Canterbury to Gödel, including Thomas Aquinas, Descartes, Leibniz, and Kant. However, as is well known, these arguments are not conclusive. It is not surprising, then, that this old problem, evidently poorly posed, periodically resurfaces.