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June 2022 ESRFnews

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As a young postgraduate in the late 1970s, Michel Spiro was a member of the UA1 experiment on CERN s Proton Antiproton Collider. Famously, UA1 discovered the W and Z bosons, which govern the weak interaction. Yet the experiment also hosted one of the first instances of something else: a touch screen, the forerunner of today s smartphone displays. It is a clear example of how curiosity-driven science can surprise us with offshoot applications that radically change our daily lives. Basic sciences change our fundamental representation of the world, says the French physicist and president of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics. But they can also be disruptive to society in ways that are only possible if we are led by speculative discussions and arguments. These days, says Spiro, basic sciences

have been neglected in favour of application-driven research, which attracts decision-makers with its short- term benefits and competitive slant. This, he insists, is dangerous in light of the great environmental challenges currently facing society challenges which demand deeper fixes and more collaboration. For this reason, in 2017 he petitioned the scientific board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for an international year to promote the basic sciences. The board were enthusiastic about the idea, he says. Last year, it was finally approved by the UN General Assembly. This year, on 8 July, the

International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development launches at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris. The scheme has won the support of 40 international unions and partners, including the ESRF, not to mention 93 scientific academies, 30 Nobel laureates and Fields medalists, and various international organisations.

Spiro has many examples of the long-term benefits of basic science to inspire. The other-worldly physics of quantum mechanics led to the transistors inside our computers, while the cosmological upheaval of general relativity gave us the global positioning system. Without particle physics there would be no PET scans in medicine or the World Wide Web, and without fundamental statistics there would be no artificial intelligence. During the global pandemic, we can also thank the 20th-century pioneers of DNA and RNA research, without whom there would be no COVID-19 vaccines. With the international year yet to

begin, many of its partners are still working out how best to contribute. As the world s most brilliant synchrotron, the ESRF not only sets the energy frontier for X-ray research, but is also a guiding light for the construction of many synchrotron X-ray facilities around the world, says Spiro. Spiro does not want to put a stop

to application-driven research, which he believes has an important complementary role. Nor does he want to diminish the role of basic science purely for enriching our culture as a keen birdwatcher in his spare time, he thinks the beauty of nature is worth exploring for its own sake. But beauty, he believes, can also deliver. We scientists have not been sensitive enough to the needs of sustainability, he says. This is the right time to act. 

Jon Cartwright

The last print edition stated incorrectly that Gema Martínez- Criado and Annalisa Pastore are the first female ESRF directors of research. In fact, between 2003 and 2009, Sine Larsen was the first female director of research for the life sciences.

Michel Spiro, chair of the steering committee for the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development, believes basic sciences are the most disruptive .

Back to basics

MICHEL SPIRO IN BRIEF BORN: 1946, Roanne, France. EDUCATION: Degree in theoretical physics, École Polytechnique, Palaiseau, France (1969); PhD in particle physics, University of Paris Sud, Orsay, France (1976). CAREER: Engineer, French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) (1970); particle- physics director, Department of Astrophysics, Particle Physics, Nuclear Physics and Associated Instrumentation (DAPNIA), CEA (1991 1999); chargé de mission, CEA, and assistant scientific director, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) (1999 2002); head of DAPNIA (2002 2003); director, French National Institute of Nuclear and Particle Physics, CNRS (2003 2010); president, CERN Council (2010 2013); president, French Physical Society (2016 2017); president-elect, International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) (2018); president, IUPAP (2019 ); chair of steering committee, UN International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development.

We need scientists to be sensitive to the needs of sustainable development, to consider their own footprints and how their basic science might help