A l'UM la science [S01-ep26]: From Semaxone to virtual reality

This week in A l'UM la science Stéphane Perrey, neurophysiology researcher at Euromov digital health in motion, and Guilhem Belda, engineer and founder of start-up Semaxone, talk about an innovation designed to monitor pilots' operational status in real time. In the second half of the show, Nicolas Floquet takes us on a virtual reality tour of the Spike protein.

Do you know the Native American legend of the hummingbird? No ? Then here it is: "While an immense fire ravaged the forest, leaving the animals haggard and petrified before the unfolding catastrophe, the hummingbird was busy between the pond and the flames. Each time it passed, the courageous bird emptied a few drops of water from its tiny beak, a paltry gesture given the intensity of the fire.
- "What are you doing? the other animals asked, annoyed. "
- "No," replied the hummingbird, " but I'm doing my bit."

While the university does not claim to change the world on its own, it does have the ambition to contribute to it by putting its discoveries and results at the service of society. It's this innovative approach, this public service mission, that we invite you to discover in the pages of the new issue of LUM, the University's science and society magazine. An enriched paper version, with access to videos and podcasts of our program. From eco-friendly chemistry to cutting-edge surgery, from ocean preservation to the development of new drugs, from crypto-security to the "blockchainization" of legal registers, this issue gives you a glimpse of the positive impact of university research at the service of society.

And to continue the magazine, today we welcome two guests at the cutting edge of aviation innovation. Their aim? To improve safety and performance in civil and military aviation. How do they do this? By monitoring the operational status of aircraft pilots, thanks to a sensor capable of measuring their brain activity in real time. An innovation developed by start-up Semaxone and tested on the pilots of the French aerobatics team. Nothing less!

Stéphane Perrey is a neurophysiology researcher at Euromov digital health in motion, while Guilhem Belda is an engineer and founder of start-up Semaxone.

In the second half of the show, we take you to theEcole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie, where Nicolas Floquet is a researcher in molecular pharmacology at theMax Mousseron Institute of Biomolecules and head of the virtual reality room at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie in Montpellier. Today, he brings us up close and personal with the famous Spike protein involved in the dreaded Covid-19.

At UM la science you've got the program, here we go!

Production: Université de Montpellier/Divergence FM
Animation : Lucie Lecherbonnier
Interviews: Aline Périault/Lucie Lecherbonnier
Reporting and editing: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Production: Adeline Floch'

Listen to the "A LUM LA SCIENCE" program on Divergence FM 93.9