Psychosocial support and quantum theory: two ERC grants at the University of Milan

Two lecturers from the University of Milan, Paola Cavaliere, a researcher in Japanese Language and Literature and Korean Language and Literature at the Department of Languages, Literatures, Cultures and Mediations, and Alessandro Vicini, a lecturer in Theoretical Physics of Fundamental Interactions, Models, Mathematical Methods and Applications at the 'Aldo Pontremoli' Department of Physics, have been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant, one of the European Research Council's most prestigious funding awards.

Professor Cavaliere received the grant for the project INCLUDE-MHPSS – Intersectionality-Informed MHPSS for Equitable Disaster Mitigation, Professor Vicini for QuantumFronTiers – Precision Tests of the Standard Model at Colliders: Quantum Field Theory at Work.

'These two ERC Advanced Grants are a testament to the scientific excellence of the University of Milan. It is particularly significant that one of the grants has, for the first time, been awarded to the Department of Languages, Literatures, Cultures and Mediations, while the other recognises excellence in cutting-edge research in the strategic field of quantum physics. Although they differ in discipline and approach, both projects exemplify the quality, originality and innovation of research carried out at our multidisciplinary University,' said Rector Marina Brambilla.

The INCLUDE-MHPSS project, which received €1,946,516 in funding, is the first ERC grant awarded to the Department of Languages, Literatures, Cultures and Mediations, and stems from the growing recognition that disasters linked to hydrological, meteorological and geological phenomena have consequences that go far beyond material damage and immediate losses, with profound and lasting effects on people’s mental health and psychosocial well-being. These impacts particularly affect those who are already in vulnerable situations and at greater risk, such as people with disabilities, migrants, older people, children and members of ethnic, gender and cultural minorities.

The project aims to understand the extent to which current Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) systems can reach high-risk populations, develop more equitable and effective intervention models, and design tools that respond to diverse cultural and social contexts.

'Research will adopt a comparative perspective focused on Japan, Italy and Australia, as well as a participatory approach in which all participants will actively collaborate throughout every stage of the project, from the development of research instruments to the collection and interpretation of data. The initiative will also lead to the development of the INCLUDE-MHPSS platform, designed to enhance preparedness, response and psychosocial intervention strategies in disaster settings, while informing more inclusive public policies that are better equipped to address inequalities,' notes Paola Cavaliere.

Receiving €1,955,680 in funding, the QuantumFronTiers project addresses one of the major challenges in contemporary physics: investigating the fundamental interactions of nature and their quantum behaviour with a level of precision never before achieved at particle accelerators such as CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC) or the proposed Future Circular Collider (FCC), a next-generation collider designed to accelerate and collide electrons and positrons.

The project proposes an innovative approach to Quantum Field Theory, the mathematical framework used to describe elementary particles.

'Building on a new computational algorithm that has been successfully applied in recent years, we will develop advanced mathematical and computational techniques to encode quantum effects using easily interpretable formulas. This will enable us to tackle theoretical calculations previously considered technically impossible and to determine the fundamental properties of the W and Z bosons and the Higgs boson. The expected results will provide an important test for the Standard Model – the theory that describes the electroweak and strong interactions – and may offer new insights into unresolved questions, such as the origin of the asymmetry between matter and antimatter and the nature of dark matter and dark energy in the Universe,' explained Alessandro Vicini.

Each year, the ERC Advanced Grant scheme awards funding of up to €2.5 million to around 250 research projects across all disciplines. Projects are led by researchers with at least 10 years’ experience at the highest international level, and the sole evaluation criterion is excellence.