Universite Paris Diderot Research Articles

Has the pandemic affected the motivation and job satisfaction of university researchers? A case study from France

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to determine whether the pandemic affects the motivation and job satisfaction of university researchers as a whole and by their separate groups by gender, age, academic position (career stage) and degree.Design/methodology/approachThe authors studied French universities for changes in motivation and job satisfaction among researchers under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. For this, two hypotheses were tested, using the one-way ANOVA parametric test and the Kruskal–Wallis nonparametric statistical test with the data collected during the in-depth interviews and surveys with university researchers from the Paris Diderot University and Jean Moulin University of Lyon III in 2019 and 2021.FindingsThere were found significant differences between changes in motivation and job satisfaction of respondent groups by gender, career stage and scientific degrees. All these differences in changes confirm hypothesis about the significant impact of the pandemic on certain motivators and elements of job satisfaction of various groups of university researchers. The study showed that pandemic restrictions and fears positively affect the motivation and job satisfaction of the younger generation of researchers and males, and negatively on the older generation and female researchers. During the pandemic, early-stage researchers are mostly unhappy only with the salary and the lack of teaching skills. While experienced and senior researchers do not have time to fulfill all their duties due to overload by a combination of different forms of teaching, many teaching hours, administrative duties and mastering new communication tools.Research limitations/implicationsThe results capture the selective impact of pandemic restrictions, its physical and mental effects on academic staff. Although only two universities in a single country were considered, the findings show the heterogeneity of the perception of new (pandemic) working conditions by different groups of university workers. If such heterogeneity is revealed in the example of two universities, then it is very likely to be observable also in broader studies.Practical implicationsThe results of this study can help university administrations, higher education regulators and national research agencies address the needs of all groups of researchers, alleviating the most acute restrictions and fears caused by the pandemic and providing the necessary incentives for relevant groups, e.g. higher salary, teaching school and awards for young researchers and a lower teaching loading for experienced and senior researchers.Originality/valueThis is the first study that define pandemic impact on motivation and job satisfaction of university researchers in France.

Effectiveness of academic institutional models in Europe: university instructor perception case research from Bosnia and Herzegovina and France

PurposeThe aim of this study is to explore the perception of existing academic institutional models through the lens of individual university teacher assessment scores and add knowledge base to the root causes of the effectiveness level of higher educational models between Eastern and Western European universities. The research utilizes higher education instructor performance by exploring positive and negative outcomes from both models.Design/methodology/approachThis mixed methods study is based on 195 questionnaires in conjunction with 42 in-depth interviews of early-stage university teachers, associate professors, and senior university instructors (i.e. full professors) from the University of Banja Luka (UBL), Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Paris Diderot University (UP7), Paris, France. Key performance indicators are calculated in piecing together the existing institutional models to elucidate the opportunities and challenges university instructors face at these institutions. A scoping literature review that examined an East-West European divide was also conducted to add weight to the research.FindingsResults indicate the UBL model is considered mostly ineffective while the UP7 model showed signs of ineffectiveness. An East-West divide that exists in European universities was deduced through additional literature, and cohesion-based practices may be needed to truncate model differences as a result of the East's lack of academic freedom.Originality/valueThe research demonstrated important recommendations for academic institutional models by immediately signaling a need to open up the level of creativity of their instructors (i.e. the idea that university teaching is a creative profession that requisites a certain level of academic freedom). The research examined university concern – morally and financially – and weighed in on university instructors' options of abandoning university instructors' workplace in search of working in a prosperous Western country.

Beginning gene therapy preclinical development with the end in mind: from preclinical to economic modelling

<div class="authors authors-lg"><div class="author"><div class="author-img"><img src="https://cdn.insights.bio/uploads/Negre headshot sq.jpg" data-image="1"></div><div class="author-det"> <b>Olivier Negre, PhD </b>developed his expertise in preclinical research, bioassays, and drug development through more than 20 years of experience in biotherapies. After working on recombinant vaccines with Bioprotein Technologies, he joined bluebird bio (formerly Genetix Pharmaceuticals) and contributed for 15 years to the development of the first approved gene therapy for beta-thalassemia (ZyntegloTM). From preclinical studies to marketing authorization, he served as Senior Scientist/Team Leader in France and Director translational Research in the USA. He is currently, co-founder and Partner at Biotherapy Partners, acting Chief Development Officer of a biotech company, a participant in HEC Challenge+ program, board member of the French Society of Gene and Cell Therapy, expert of the Cure Sickle Cell initiative (NIH) and active member of the think-tank Gene and Cell Therapy Institute (G&amp;CTI). Olivier graduated from ENSTBB engineering school and earned a PhD in cell and molecular biology from Paris Diderot University. He contributed to several patents and scientific publications in the field of gene and cell therapy (e.g. <i>Nature </i>2010, <i>Blood</i> 2011, <i>Stem Cells</i> 2013, <i>Current Gene Therapy</i> 2015, <i>Human Gene Therapy </i>2016, <i>The New England Journal of Medicine </i>2017, <i>The New England Journal of Medicine</i> 2018, <i>Science Translational</i> 2019, <i>Molecular Therapy Methods &amp; Clin. Dev.</i> 2020, <i>BioDrugs </i>2020, <i>T</i><i>he New England Journal of Medicine </i>2021). </div></div></div>

Michaël Roy, Marie-Jeanne Rossignol &amp; Claire Parfait (eds.), Undoing Slavery: American Abolitionism in Transnational Perspective (1776-1865)

Edited by Michael Roy, Marie-Jeanne Rossignol and Claire Parfait, Undoing Slavery: American Abolitionism in Transnational Perspective (1776-1865) is a collection of essays that grew out of contributions to a conference that was held at Universite Paris Diderot in January 2018. The text itself – a preface by Manisha Sinha (Draper Chair in American History at the University of Connecticut), an introduction and seven essays by Yohanna Alimi-Levy, Claire Bourhis-Mariotti, Sandrine Ferre-Rode, Cla...

Editorial introductions

Editorial introductions

Intérêts d’un atelier de simulation avec des patients standardisés pour la formation à l’examen du risque suicidaire

ObjectivesAssessment of suicidal risk is an essential step during the psychiatric interview. However, numerous doctors are uncomfortable or reluctant to question patients about their suicidal ideations. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the interest of teaching medical students to assess suicide risk using a standardized patient module. MethodAll students from Paris Diderot University, in the 5th year of medical training and in psychiatric internship between March 2017 and June 2019, were invited to participate in a standardized patient module in the iLumens Paris 7 platform. During this module, students (divided into groups of 3 to 5) conducted three interviews with standardized patients presenting with typical psychiatric disorders (major depressive episode, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, mania with psychotic features). All students conducted one interview and observed the others for two interviews behind a one-way window. Each interview (duration=15minutes) was followed by a debriefing (duration=15minutes) supervised by a trained psychiatrist in the presence of the standardized patient and all students of the group. Before and after the module, students completed a questionnaire assessing their perceived difficulty and ability to interview patients about their suicidal ideations (main question, objective of the training) and about their sexual dysfunctions (control question, which was not an objective of the training) (on a Likert scale ranging from 0 [no] to 10 [yes]). They also completed a questionnaire assessing their involvement, their satisfaction, and the theoretical and practical contribution of the module. ResultsOf the 323 students who were contacted, 281 participated to the module. The module significantly reduced the perceived difficulty to question patients about their suicidal ideations (Cohen's d=−0.54, P-value<0.001) and reduced to a lesser extent the perceived difficulty to question patients about sexual problems (Cohen's d=−0.32; P-value<0.001). The module did change the students’ ability towards asking questions about suicidal ideations but not sexual problems. The students were generally involved in the module and satisfied with the theoretical and practical contributions of the module as well as its organization. DiscussionThis study provides arguments for the educational value of a simulation module with standardized patients to change the perceived difficulty and ability of medical students towards asking questions about suicidal ideations.

SPE Board Announces Nominees: 2022 President and 2021 Directors

Kamel Ben-Naceur is the nominee for 2022 SPE President. He and seven others make up the new slate of nominees recommended for positions open on the SPE Board of Directors. 2022 SPE President Kamel Ben-Naceur is CEO of Nomadia Energy Consulting, where he advises on sustainable energy policies and global/regional energy economics and outlooks. He has worked as a chief economist for a major oil and gas company and oilfield services company. Ben-Naceur has also worked as a director of the International Energy Agency and as an energy minister for the Tunisian government. He is currently the chair of several SPE global committees, including Business Management and Leadership, the International Forum Series, and CO2 Capture and Storage. He has also taught several SPE courses on global energy, and strategic thinking and planning. He was technical director for Management &amp; Information on the SPE International Board of Directors from 2008–2011. Ben-Naceur was also an SPE Distinguished Lecturer from 2009–2010 and received an SPE Distinguished Member Award and SPE Distinguished Service Award in 2014. He has coauthored over 120 publications and 17 books. Ben-Naceur holds a bachelor’s degree from the Paris Diderot University and a master’s degree from Ecole Polytechnique in Paris.

First Investigation of the Inversion Rovibrational Spectrum of the 15NHD2 Molecule in the Region from 1100 to 1350 cm–1: the Fundamental ν5 Band

The high-resolution spectrum of the 15NHD2 molecule recorded in the Laboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systemes Atmospheriques (LISA), Paris Diderot University, France, is studied. An analysis is based on the method of ground state combination differences. As a result of the analysis of two inversion vibrational (v5 = 1, s) and (v5 = 1, a) states, more than 1300 rovibrational transitions have been assigned, and about 150 upper vibrational energy levels have been determined.

“Camera Memoria” – seminar on the histories of photography

“Camera Memoria”, a seminar on the histories of photography organized by Camille Rouquet and Carolin Gorgen at the LARCA (Research Laboratory on English and American Cultures, UMR 8225, University Paris-Diderot), closed its third season last summer. Based on a format of two speakers per session, whose communications in French or English were followed by a discussion, this seminar has brought together researchers (doctoral students, professors, museum professionals) from various backgrounds an...

Structural Dynamics Analysis of 3-U CubeSat

The development of CubeSats has been advanced significantly during the past two decades for both scientific research and industrial purposes. During the manufacturing process, every CubeSat must satisfy various system requirements in which the structural analysis is one of the most vital necessity in order to assure a normal operation of the CubeSat during its working time in space. In the conceptual design phase, structural dynamics is a mandatory step to determine the natural frequencies of individual bodies, the deformation and stress induced at the corresponding vibration modes to prevent structural failure. In this work, IGOSat, a 3-Unit CubeSat, which was developed at the Paris Diderot University is exanimated in term of modal, harmonic response, and random vibration analysis at the time of ground testing as well as the launching phase using ANSYS software. These numerical simulations conducted according to the CubeSat Design Specification and the system requirements of QB50 project. The minimum natural frequency of the CubSat obtained to be 363.17 (Hz), which passed the required frequency of 90 (Hz). Moreover, the Harmonic and Random vibration analyses indicate that the peak response of normal stress, as well as deformation values obtained, are far lesser compared to the yield strength of the frame structure and subsystem materials. Hence, our numerical analysis found that the CubeSat remains intact during the launch environment.

Interview with the Guest Editor – Manuel Théry

ABSTRACT Manuel Théry graduated from the Ecole Supérieure de Physique et Chimie de la ville de Paris (ESPCI-ParisTech) and the University Paris Diderot, France, with a master in physics and biology interfaces and subsequently obtained his PhD working with Michel Bornens on the control of cell polarity through adhesion at the Institut Curie, Paris. He joined the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) in Grenoble, France, where he set up the ‘CytoMorphoLab’ together with Laurent Blanchoin. Since 2014, Manuel has directed the Paris unit of this laboratory at the Hôpital Saint Louis, where he investigates the (self-)assembly of the cytoskeleton and how this orchestrates cell geometry and mechanical information in the cell. He has won numerous awards, such as the Claude Paoletti Prize and the ASCB Early Career Award, and has been named an EMBO Young Investigator and is an ERC Starting and Consolidator Grant awardee. Manuel is the Guest Editor for the 2019 Reconstituting Cell Biology Special Issue in Journal of Cell Science.

Fan Ye and the Hou Hanshu

This special issue on Fan Ye’s Hou Hanshu is the result of a workshop held in Paris in 2017, organized by Beatrice L’Haridon, Universite Paris Diderot and Anne Cheng, College de France. The idea to...

Introduction: Transformations of the Gender Regime in Turkey

This collective work is the outcome of a conference organised by the CEDREF (the organising committee was composed of Azadeh Kian and Buket Turkmen), which took place on the 22nd of March 2017 at the University Paris Diderot, with the financial support of the structuring action PluriGenre. The day was held in solidarity with our Turkish colleagues, all of them gender studies specialists, who signed the peace petition in Turkey and were discharged of their functions by the power in place. The ...

Meet the First Authors.

Meet the First Authors.

Meet the First Authors.

Meet the First Authors.

Highlights from the 9th International Workshop on Pediatrics 21–22 July 2017, Paris France

The 9th International Workshop on Pediatrics was held in Paris, France on the 21–22 July, 2017. It was co-chaired by Lynne Mofenson (EGPAF, USA), Albert Faye (University Paris Diderot, Paris, France) and Valeriane Leroy (INSERM, France). Over 300 participants attended the workshop. The abstracts included 20 oral presentations, 87 posters and 45 abstract book-only abstracts.

Iron-based catalyst reduces CO2 to CH4 photochemically

Researchers have been trying to develop efficient techniques that use electrical or sun energy to convert carbon dioxide to methane to supplement fossil-fuel sources and reduce climate-changing CO2 in the atmosphere. But few CO2-reduction catalysts have long-lasting stability and high selectivity for specific products, instead of product mixtures. And the reductions generally produce carbon monoxide, formic acid, or hydrocarbon-oxygenate mixtures. Marc Robert, Julien Bonin, and coworkers at Paris Diderot University now report that an inexpensive iron-based tetraphenylporphyrin catalyst (shown), in the presence of an iridium-phenylpyridine photosensitizer, photochemically reduces CO2 to CO and then to CH4 at ambient temperature and pressure (Nature 2017, DOI: 10.1038/nature23016). The catalyst is stable when used over several days, and its selectivity for CH4 is up to 82%, compared with 35% or less for previous catalysts. CO2 reduction expert Paul J. A. Kenis of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign...

Dedication Pierre Binétruy (1955 - 2017): A scientific biography

Pierre Binétruy, born in 1955, obtained his "state doctorate" in 1980 under the direction of Mary K. Gaillard, with a thesis on "Theoretical aspects and phenomenology of gauge theories". From 1979 to 1986, he held several positions as postdoctoral fellow at CERN and in the United States (University of California at Berkeley, University of Florida, University of Chicago). In 1986, he was recruited as a CNRS researcher at the LAPP, Annecy-le-Vieux and 4 years later as a professor at the University of Paris XI in the Laboratory of Theoretical Physics. In 2003, he was named professor at the University Paris Diderot.

Massive open online course (MOOC) sur le diagnostic des cancers : bilan et évaluation de l’impact sur la perception de l’anatomie et cytologie pathologiques

The Massive Open Online Course (or MOOC) "Diagnostic Strategies Cancers", was hosted in autumn 2016 on the platform "France Université Numérique" and had two levels of learners: students in the field of health and biology and the general public. Of the 5285 learners in 81 different countries, 1237 (23%) were successfully certified. This MOOC was also integrated into the teaching program of medical students of Paris Diderot University and Paris 13 University. Using anonymous questionnaires before and after MOOC, it has been shown that pathology is less known than other medical specialties. Participation in this MOOC led to a marked improvement in participants' knowledge of the place and role of the pathologist in the diagnosis of cancers. Regarding the students who have followed the MOOC as part of their university course, their comments were very positive, but it is necessary to make substantial adjustments in the amounts and contents of the campus-based courses.

Les savoirs-mondes: Mobilités et circulation des savoirs depuis le Moyen Âge ed. by Pilar González Bernaldo, Liliane Hilaire-Peréz

Reviewed by: Les savoirs-mondes: Mobilités et circulation des savoirs depuis le Moyen Âge ed. by Pilar González Bernaldo, Liliane Hilaire-Peréz Theresa Levitt (bio) Les savoirs-mondes: Mobilités et circulation des savoirs depuis le Moyen Âge. Edited by Pilar González Bernaldo and Liliane Hilaire-Peréz. Rennes: Presses Universitaires de Rennes, 2015. Pp. 514. €25. Les savoirs-mondes is an ambitious attempt to bring a global perspective to the question of knowledge production and circulation. It grew from a colloquium held in 2011 by the Laboratoire Identités Cultures Territoires, a [End Page 870] multidisciplinary group at Paris Diderot University that combines historians and area specialists. Founded to promote a comparative approach, here it turns that approach to the question of mobilities (including what Anglophone speakers might call modes of transportation) and the circulation of knowledge. The comparative aspect is impressive: there are thirty-eight essays whose chronology covers the medieval period to the present and whose geographical range spans five continents. A preface by Daniel Roche places the work in the context of treating the history of knowledge through the lens of exchange. The contributions are divided into six thematic sections, with each section maintaining a high degree of chronological and geographical diversity. The first, “Between Mirrors of Princes and World Vision,” examines several texts from the pre-Islamic and Islamic East that circulated widely. The second, “The Circulation of Bodies and Sexual Knowledge,” follows the itinerant travels of hermaphrodites, anatomy collections, and female military units. Then “The Metropolitan Acclimation of Knowledge of the Far-off” examines the introduction of exotic materials, such as New World medicines in the sixteenth century, into European metropolitan centers. The fourth, “Circulation of Technical Knowledge: Territoriality Put to the Test,” takes up the issue of science and technology. The fifth, “European Cultures of Translation,” follows texts from Adam Smith, Sigmund Freud, and Israel Zangwill, and racial and judicial theories as they move between languages (and cultures). Finally, “Circulation of Knowledge and Power in the Atlantic Space” examines the movement of ideas, disciplines, methods, texts, and human experts between the Americas and Europe. Historians of technology would be particularly interested in the fourth section, which treats the globalization of technology head-on. The introduction by Irina Gouzévitch places the works within the tradition, dating back thirty years, of applying the study of “circulations” to the history of technology. She categorizes the wide range of approaches that followed into four camps: diffusionist (focused on influence emanating from the center outward), center-periphery (focused on the point of reception), comparative (which examined both in parallel), and spatial (focused on networks and circulation). The spatial approach unites the essays, all of which treat circulation as a practice for constructing and normalizing technical knowledge. The topics range widely, including tanning, sericulture, medical practices, urban transportation, automobiles, telegraphy, telephones, radios, notary practices, and business management. In each case, the author emphasizes that movement was not unidirectional, but took place in the context of connected spaces. While the volume’s essays are united in their participation in the spatial turn, the comparative approach allows for an in-depth examination of fine-grained detail and a focus on the concrete and material (such as Christelle Rabier’s effort to follow the circulation of medical artifacts by [End Page 871] tracing their path from producer to consumer). The articles address both well-known paths of circulation, such as voyages of expertise, missions of promotion, professional correspondence, scientific meetings, etc. and others, such as the organization of surveys or the functioning of public services at the international level. The essays also show the importance of human actors in the movement of knowledge, bringing in not only scientists and engineers, but also less conventional actors such as tourists and missionaries, officers of the merchant marine, alumni organizations, and the representatives of international organizations. The wide variety of approaches also reveals the fault lines of certain tensions. While many essays show the important role of the movement of people across boundaries, some also show the way certain actors (such as professional groups) refused to share knowledge, while others reveal the constraining intervention of the state, including several dictatorships...