Bertrand Maury, new member of the French Academy of Sciences

Awards and distinctions Education Research News
Published on 14 June 2024
Following the 2023 elections, the Académie des Sciences welcomed 18 new members, including Bertrand Maury, Professor of Mathematics at Mines Paris – PSL. Elected to the Mechanical and Computer Sciences section, he joins an assembly of 281 scientists recognized for their excellence and innovative contributions. This election illustrates the excellence of the School’s teaching.

 

His career as a teacher-researcher

Bertrand Maury graduated from École Polytechnique in 1988, and began his career with a CIFRE thesis at Saint-Gobain on flat glass forming, defended in 1995. He then completed a post-doctorate in Houston, Texas, focusing on particle flow and developing numerical simulation tools.

Returning to France in 1997, he was recruited as a lecturer at the Jacques-Louis Lions laboratory of the Université Pierre et Marie Curie, where he continued his research and taught applied mathematics.

In 2002, after obtaining his habilitation to direct research, he became a professor at the Laboratoire de Mathématiques d’Orsay, Université Paris-Saclay, in 2003.

He joined ENS-PSL as Associate Professor in 2014 in the Department of Mathematics and Applications, and is also Associate Professor at Mines Paris – PSL, where he heads the Mathematics teaching unit for the Civil Engineering Cycle.

When mathematics meets the social and life sciences

Bertrand Maury is a mathematician with a passion for interdisciplinary applications, ranging from industrial processes to social and life sciences. He values an open and exploratory scientific approach, particularly appreciating the process of mathematical modeling without prejudice as to the concepts or techniques to be used.

Bertrand Maury began his career developing methods for solving partial differential equations, notably in fluid mechanics. After an industrial thesis on the flat glass manufacturing process, he turned to academic research, while maintaining his interest in the interactions between disciplines and industrial challenges. His work, initially in industry, soon extended to the life sciences, including the study of air flow in the lungs and blood flow in veins. In particular, he focused on mathematical and numerical modeling of blood and respiratory flows, as well as the collective movements of cells, collaborating with experts in medicine, physics and biology.

This passion for applications has also led him to the social sciences, the study of crowd movements, the propagation of opinions on social networks, and recently to work in geography. Indeed, he has extended his research into the social sciences, modeling crowd movements for applications such as emergency evacuation and pedestrian flow management. As co-founder of the start-up Signactif, he continues to develop innovative solutions for tracking and managing people’s movements.

The Reception Ceremony

The ceremony for new members was held on Tuesday June 4, 2024, under the dome of the Institut de France, presided over by Alain Fischer President of the Academy.

 

« This nomination gave me a dizzy feeling when I first heard about it (as the selection process is secret, the news is not anticipated), and it’s not a place into which one spontaneously projects oneself… After a few days soaking up the news, I feel even more motivated to practice and promote open, cross-disciplinary mathematics. I take this election to the Académie des Sciences as an encouragement to pursue mathematical research that is open to other disciplines and fields of thought. »

You can relive this event by watching the online broadcast (Bertrand Maury’s speech at 1:49).

An election that illustrates the excellence of the school’s teaching

Congratulations to Bertrand on his induction into the Académie des Sciences. This election testifies to the excellence and international renown of the professors who teach at Mines Paris – PSL. It also guarantees that our students will receive top-level support, directly inspired by the cutting-edge research carried out by their teachers. By benefiting from the expertise of leading researchers, students at Mines Paris – PSL are not only immersed in the latest scientific advances, but also prepared to meet tomorrow’s scientific and technological challenges.

 


The Académie des Sciences has been rewarding “savants” since the 17th century

Created by Colbert in 1666, the Académie des Sciences is an assembly of some of the most eminent scientists in France and abroad. It provides a framework for expertise, advice and warning on the political, ethical and societal challenges of science. It works to share scientific knowledge, formulates recommendations for government authorities, and supports research and science education. To keep abreast of scientific advances, it regularly elects new members, ensuring broad and inclusive coverage of emerging scientific fields. Currently, the Academy has 281 members, 116 foreign associates and 58 correspondents, elected for life after a rigorous selection process.

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