EU : the largest research excellence award to “Graphene” and “Human Brain” Projects
In the context of the Future and emerging technologies (FET) Programme which for more than twenty years is financing and supporting european researchers to put new basis of Information and Communication Technologies, the European Union selected two winning projects for technological innovation: “Human Brain” and “Graphene”. The two projects will receive one billion euros funding each, of which, up to €54 million from the European Commission's ICT 2013 Work Programme, further funding from subsequent EU research framework programmes, private partners including universities, Member States and industry. Each flagship initiative involves researchers from at least 15 EU Member States and nearly 200 research institutes. The first winning project concerns the mapping of brain to collect and integrate experimental data identifying and filling gaps in our knowledge to facilitate better diagnosis in medicine and the second is the study of the new material of the future, the graphene, a revolutionary material made of carbon . According to the vice president of the European Commission, Neelie Kroes, to keep Europe competitive and as the home of scientific excellence, EU governments must agree an ambitious budget for the Horizon 2020 programme.