Archive for 2014

GMBs (genetically modified bodies) are defined in a European directive as being bodies other than human beings, the genetic material of which has been modified in a way that cannot be achieved naturally by multiplication and/or combinatory techniques.

These living bodies are obtained by “transgenesis”.According to advice issued by national and international expert committees, these GMPs do not present any specific danger to health or the environment given that they are cultivated in 29 countries now and authorized for human or animal consumption in 58 countries, including the European Union.

Large scale Socio-Technical Systems (LSTSs) operating over networks (such as the electricity system , the railways , the airspace system , Internet…) have radically changed our daily lives over the past few decades and also transformed the way our Societies work . They represent a phenomenon that is conducive to enthusiasm , which contributes to the democratization process of societies everywhere, offering new features and services over the coming years , consequences and sources of new techniques and technologies : in this light , LSTSs appeared as a natural field for investigation by our Academy .
They have undergone considerable development already (and continue to do so) not only in terms of technological progress in their on area (photovoltaic arrays to produce electricity commercially , high speed trains (TGVs in France) for rail transport , mobile phones for inter-personal communications…) but also thanks to new ICTs , themselves being sources of change in the way they work and the scope of services they offer.

Production and utilisation of energy round the world are changing, due to a combination of forces. Some of these changes are imposed (redistribution of energy needs and the Earth’s resources, measures that anticipate the depletion of fossil fuel sources); others are vountarily implemented (the search for energy autonomy, the fight against global warming and climate change, industrial competition).
France has launched a nation-wide debate on possible future policies in these areas. The National Academy of Technologies of France (NATF) — in its endeavours to gain the widest consensus possible on these thematics — sets out the technical data that will hopefully modulate the Government’s strategies up to a horizon 15 to 20 years ahead. This document is not as such a formal academic Advice Note and does not propose to make particular choices among the scenarios studied.