Topic 7
Space humanities / Leaving the cradle of humanity
October 19th, 2022 at 14:30 – 16:30
Egmont Palace, Brussels
Space humanities / Leaving the cradle of humanity
Up to 20th century, space has been a source of artistic inspiration, philosophical reflection and religious questions. Humans have always looked to the heavens to find meaning to their existence. With the technological advancement, space has moved from the realms of metaphysics into a practical science. It is through science, technology and space exploration that humans may finally find some answers to the age-old questions about their place in the universe.
Although Topic 7 session cannot answer all those questions or explore every technological aspect of space activity, it can examine the ethical, moral, legal, philosophical and artistic aspects of this science. It will be an opportunity to exchange ideas and engage inspiring discussions.
Speakers & Presentations
Julien Doche
Intern at European Space Agency
Stéphanie Roland
Visual artist / Filmmaker
Jean-François Mayence
Legal Advisor
Belgian Federal Office for Science Policy (BELSPO)
Marie Gueguen Multiverse Philosopher
Role and Concerns of Space in the ecological transition
The empty sphere
Space resources: humankind put to the test of wisdom?
Navigating in the dark: can computer simulations teach us something about astrophysical objects?
Speakers
Role and Concerns of Space in the ecological transition
Julien Doche
Intern at European Space Agency
I am currently doing an internship at the European Space Agency as part of my advanced master in space systems engineering at ISAE-Supaero. I am trying to actively contribute to the ecological transition of the space sector. For this, I am involved in several associations related to the theme: Aero Decarbo, For an Ecological Awakening and ESA Young.
The empty sphere
Stéphanie Roland
Visual artist / Filmmaker
Stéphanie Roland is a belgian / micronesian visual artist and filmmaker. Working between documentary and the imaginary, Roland makes films and installations exploring invisible structures, hyperobjects and deep time; from the ecological and political to the geologic and cosmic.
Space resources: humankind put to the test of wisdom?
Jean-François Mayence
Legal Advisor
Belgian Federal Office for Science Policy (BELSPO)
Jean François is in charge of the legal aspects of scientific cooperation, in particular in international areas, such as Outer Space and Antarctic. He is the author of the text of the Belgian space law (2005) and of its executive royal decree (2008 / 2022). He manages the Belgian register for space objects.
Jean François has also co-authored the Belgian Antarctic law (2017). He has been member of the Belgian Delegation to UNCOPUOS and to ESA since 1999. He has been practice-lecturer in Space Law at KU Leuven from 2008 to 2013 and he is a scientific collaborator of University of Liège. He has authored or co-authored several international publications on Outer Space Law. Jean François chairs the scientific jury of the Royal Institute of Meteorology, the Royal Observatory of Belgium and of the Royal Institute of Space Aeronomy of Belgium.
Navigating in the dark: can computer simulations teach us
something about astrophysical objects?
Marie Gueguen
Multiverse Philosopher
Marie Gueguen is a Marie Curie fellow at the Institute of Physics of
Rennes 1. She completed her PhD in Philosophy of Science in 2019 at the
University of Western Ontario. Her research focuses on the role of
numerical methods in helping to build, develop and assess the
reliability of scientific methods. Her present project aims to analyze
the main difficulties that can hinder interdisciplinary work in
astrochemistry, taking as a starting point the identification,
quantification and communication of uncertainties across different
domains - from theoretical calculations to chemical models and to
laboratory astrophysics.
Chairs & Co-chairs
Olivier Chazot
Olivier Chazot is professor and Head of the Aeronautic and Aerospace department at the Von Karman Institute. He carries out research in high enthalpy facilities and plasma wind tunnels to study laminar to turbulent transition and Gas-Surface interactions in re-entry flows. He participated in multiple ESA missions for the development of flight-testing experiments like the EXPERT probe, IXV program and QARMAN re-entry CubeSat.
He is also "scientist in residence" at Zurich University of Arts for transdisciplinary collaboration between art, science and philosophy in experimental research.
Guerric de Crombrugghe
Guerric is general partner at NukeTech, a venture capital fund focused on early-stage startups active in nuclear energy. He holds a master in electromechanical engineering from the Louvain School of Engineering, a research master in fluid dynamics from the von Karman Institute, and a doctoral degree in plasma physics from the University of Queensland. The focal point of his professional career was on the translation of deep technological concepts into commercial products, mostly in the aerospace sector. In June 2020 he created ScanWorld, a startup dedicated to the provision of value-added services to agriculture using satellite imagery.