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English versionIn the context of an international Chaire Francqui 2024-2025, the Faculty of Computer Science (UNamur) has the honor to receive Professor Arie Van Deursen (TU Delft, Netherlands ) from the 24th to the 27st of March, for a series of lectures on the theme of: “ Explainable Software Engineering ”.The inaugural lecture, entitled “Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector”, will be held on the 25th of March 2025, at 6pm at PA02 (Sentier Thomas, 5000 – Namur).French versionAs part of an international Francqui Chair 2024-2025, the Faculty of Computer Science (UNamur) will have the pleasure of welcoming Professor Arie Van Deursen (TU Delft, Netherlands) from March 24 to 27, 2025, for a series of lessons on the theme: "Explainable Software Engineering".The inaugural lesson, entitled "Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector", will take place on Tuesday March 25, 2025 at 6:00 pm at PA02 (Sentier Thomas, 5000 - Namur). Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector The field of software engineering seeks to devise theories, methods, tools, and techniques that support the development, operation, and evolution of the digital infrastructure modern society relies on. While the software engineering capabilities have advanced substantially over the past decades, it remains challenging to deliver high quality systems in a timely and cost-effective manner. Government system in particular have a weak reputation in this respect.To better understand why, we analyze 125 complex software projects in the public sector in The Netherlands. The projects are described in public reports published by the Advisory Council on IT Assessments (AcICT), which advises the Dutch parliament and cabinet on riks and chances of success in complex Information Technology (IT) projects. The projects span a time period of 10 years, represent a total budget of over 14 billion Euros, and cover such areas as tax collection, social security, pensions, health, traffic control, defense, or water management.We study these reports through the lens of "explainability", focusing on supporting decision making. Furthermore, we reflect on current advances in software engineering, including modern software testing and large language models, in addressing current software engineering challenges. Program INAUGURAL LECTURE: Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector - Tuesday 25/03 - 18:00-19:00 - PA02 SESSION 1: Architectural decision making in software engineering - Monday 24/03 - 10:30-12:30 - I33SESSION 2 : Tests as executable explanations - Tuesday 25/03 - 14:00-16:00 - I33SESSION 3: Technical debt, test smells, legacy systems - Wednesday 26/03 - 14:00-16:00 - I33SESSION 4: Artificial Intelligence for Software Engineering - Thursday 27/03 - 10:30-12:30 - I33 About the speaker Arie van Deursen is a professor at Delft University of Technology, where he leads the Software Engineering Research Group. His research interests include software testing, language models for code, trustworthy artificial intelligence, and human aspects of software engineering. He presently serves as chair of the Steering Commmittee of the ACM/IEEE International Conference on Software Engineering (ICSE).He is a member of the Dutch Advisory Council on IT Assessments (AcICT), as well as a member of the Advisory Board of ING Bank The Netherlands. In 2023, he was elected fellow of the Netherlands Academy of Engineering (NAE). Read more Register for the event

English versionIn the context of an international Chaire Francqui 2024-2025, the Faculty of Computer Science (UNamur) has the honor to receive Professor Arie Van Deursen (TU Delft, Netherlands ) from the 24th to the 27st of March, for a series of lectures on the theme of: “ Explainable Software Engineering ”.The inaugural lecture, entitled “Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector”, will be held on the 25th of March 2025, at 6pm at PA02 (Sentier Thomas, 5000 – Namur).French versionAs part of an international Francqui Chair 2024-2025, the Faculty of Computer Science (UNamur) will have the pleasure of welcoming Professor Arie Van Deursen (TU Delft, Netherlands) from March 24 to 27, 2025, for a series of lessons on the theme: "Explainable Software Engineering".The inaugural lesson, entitled "Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector", will take place on Tuesday March 25, 2025 at 6:00 pm at PA02 (Sentier Thomas, 5000 - Namur). Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector The field of software engineering seeks to devise theories, methods, tools, and techniques that support the development, operation, and evolution of the digital infrastructure modern society relies on. While the software engineering capabilities have advanced substantially over the past decades, it remains challenging to deliver high quality systems in a timely and cost-effective manner. Government system in particular have a weak reputation in this respect.To better understand why, we analyze 125 complex software projects in the public sector in The Netherlands. The projects are described in public reports published by the Advisory Council on IT Assessments (AcICT), which advises the Dutch parliament and cabinet on riks and chances of success in complex Information Technology (IT) projects. The projects span a time period of 10 years, represent a total budget of over 14 billion Euros, and cover such areas as tax collection, social security, pensions, health, traffic control, defense, or water management.We study these reports through the lens of "explainability", focusing on supporting decision making. Furthermore, we reflect on current advances in software engineering, including modern software testing and large language models, in addressing current software engineering challenges. Program INAUGURAL LECTURE: Explainable Software Engineering in the Public Sector - Tuesday 25/03 - 18:00-19:00 - PA02 SESSION 1: Architectural decision making in software engineering - Monday 24/03 - 10:30-12:30 - I33SESSION 2 : Tests as executable explanations - Tuesday 25/03 - 14:00-16:00 - I33SESSION 3: Technical debt, test smells, legacy systems - Wednesday 26/03 - 14:00-16:00 - I33SESSION 4: Artificial Intelligence for Software Engineering - Thursday 27/03 - 10:30-12:30 - I33 About the speaker Arie van Deursen is a professor at Delft University of Technology, where he leads the Software Engineering Research Group. His research interests include software testing, language models for code, trustworthy artificial intelligence, and human aspects of software engineering. He presently serves as chair of the Steering Commmittee of the ACM/IEEE International Conference on Software Engineering (ICSE).He is a member of the Dutch Advisory Council on IT Assessments (AcICT), as well as a member of the Advisory Board of ING Bank The Netherlands. In 2023, he was elected fellow of the Netherlands Academy of Engineering (NAE). Read more Register for the event

Understanding a scientific textIdentifying the characteristics of scientific textMobilizing reading strategiesSelecting and restituting informationIdentifying and ensuring the organization of a textUnderstanding the meaning of textual organizersRelating visual information to the textWriting a formal e-mailIdentifying the characteristics of formal e-mailTake into account the communication situationUse verbal tenses correctlyRespect grammatical marksProncture a text correctlyScientific writingDescribe a seen or experienced situationProblematize and analyze the situation describedUnderstand and respond to an instruction or questionDecode an instruction or questionAdapt your response to the communication context

In late November 2024, UNamur hosted the 23rd BENEVOL Congress, an annual research seminar that provides an opportunity for international researchers to meet and discuss new ideas, important issues and cutting-edge research in the field of software engineering, maintenance and evolution.

In May 2025, the Department of Physics welcomed two special visitors: Serge Mathot and François Briard from Namur, both alumni of UNamur and members of CERN. Several activities were on the program, ranging from a visit to the particle accelerator, to science popularization and thematic seminars, particularly in heritage sciences. The aim? To identify areas or activities in which UNamur and CERN could strengthen their collaboration.

Detecting a failure before it occurs: that is the goal of the research being conducted by Antoine Hubermont, a doctoral student at UNamur. This project, named Monsater, is funded by SPW Research as part of the Win4Doc program in collaboration with the space company Telespazio Belgium. It addresses a key strategic challenge: ensuring the reliability of complex systems, particularly in the space sector. 

A 24-hour live stream, about ten computers and video game consoles, around fifteen participants… and one goal: to raise as much money as possible for Télévie. Building on the success of its first event, the UNamur Computer Club embarked on the adventure once again with a new charity marathon, which took place from April 7 to 8. In total, the event raised €1,831.91 for Télévie.

The past decade has seen the release of numerous mixed reality headsets. Some are aimed at casual recreational use (for example, the Meta Quest 3), while others are marketed as next-generation computing platforms (for example, the Apple Vision Pro). As these devices become integrated into our daily lives, they are redefining the way we—as human beings—interact with them.Their nature differs significantly from traditional computing devices (e.g., computers or smartphones), introducing multiple paradigm shifts driven by several factors. On the one hand, they integrate and democratize various sensors that enable the use of gaze, hand gestures, and speech as means of interaction, thereby serving as effective vectors for the adoption of multimodal user interfaces. On the other hand, their portable nature implies continuous contextual changes that fundamentally alter interface design and redefine human-computer interaction as their use becomes ubiquitous.To better understand such systems, this research is divided into three areas. First, we immerse users in a deliberately constructed pervasive environment to explore their perceptions while examining their attitudes toward managing intrusive content through manual interventions, thereby highlighting needs emerging from such contexts. Second, we explore new communication channels by leveraging metaphors and designing interaction techniques that use multiple modalities to enable more natural communication, thereby addressing the needs arising from pervasive use. Finally, after designing multimodal interaction techniques, we examine the technical requirements and review existing tools that support the development of multimodal user interfaces, identify the limitations of some of these tools, and address them by introducing a new tool called Ummi.Through these three complementary perspectives, this thesis addresses six research questions and contributes to the fields of mixed reality and multimodal interaction.The juryProf. Vincent Englebert - University of Namur, BelgiumProf. Bruno Dumas - University of Namur, BelgiumProf. Xavier Devroey - University of Namur, BelgiumProf. Marcos Serrano - University of Toulouse, FranceProf. Denis Lalanne - University of Fribourg, SwitzerlandFree event; registration required. Sign me up

Abstract Since its emergence in 1996, the Asian H5 Goose/Guangdong (Gs/Gd) lineage has circulated widely in poultry in southern China, spilling over to wild birds by 2002. Wild bird infections facilitated global dissemination via migratory waterfowl and repeated spillback into poultry, challenging the view that HPAI primarily arises from LPAI mutation. Subclade 2.3.4.4b emerged in Asia in 2013, reached Europe in 2016, caused recurrent epizootics, diversified into multiple genotypes, became dominant in wild birds, and shows zoonotic potential.This thesis investigates critical knowledge gaps regarding H5Nx subclade 2.3.4.4b in poultry: (1) early within-flock spread after punctual introduction in chickens, particularly during the first European epizootics; (2) influence of pre-existing immunity on silent circulation; (3) limitations in diagnostic throughput during epizootic peaks; (4) potential of environmental surveillance, including air and dust sampling; and (5) impact on egg contamination and the reproductive tract, relevant for food safety and zoonotic risk.Four main objectives were addressed: (1) development of an experimental model simulating punctual introductions and spread, comparing 2017 and 2020 strains and assessing pre-existing immunity; (2) enhancement of diagnostic capacity via alternative sampling, semi-automated RNA extraction, and high-throughput processing; (3) evaluation of air and dust sampling for virus monitoring under experimental and field conditions; and (4) assessment of egg contamination risk. Alternative sampling and environmental monitoring were also applied to Newcastle disease virus as a comparative notifiable pathogen. Jury Prof. Tuci Elio - University of Namur, BelgiumProf. Anthony Cleve - University of Namur, BelgiumProf. Pierre-Yves Schobbens - University of Namur, BelgiumProf. Alvaro Gutierrez - Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, EspagneMr. Fabian Duchesne - Qualitics SPRLProf. Anders Lyhne Christensen - SDU, Denmark Evènement public et gratuit - Inscription obligatoire Je m'inscris

Since September 2023, the reform of initial teacher training (RFIE) has been profoundly transforming the teaching profession. This year, it is taking a new step forward with the replacement of the former teaching-oriented master's degrees and the agrégation by master's degrees in teaching sections 4 and 5. Led by the Faculty of Education and Training Sciences (FaSEF), in collaboration with the Faculties of Science and EMCP (Economics, Management, Communication, and Political Science), the reform is accompanied by a strengthened partnership with HENALLUX (Namur-Liège-Luxembourg University College).

To mark International Women's Day, celebrated on March 8, we invite you to discover the portraits of seven inspiring women from the university's seven faculties. Throughout March, a series of portraits of women from the university will be on display in various areas of the campus. Conceived and produced by four UNamur students and coordinated by the University Community Life Service (VéCU), this project offers an inspiring showcase for the careers, voices, and commitments of these women who bring the institution to life on a daily basis.  

Which chatbot can we really trust? A reliable answer to this question can now be provided thanks to a unique scientific tool: the AI Score. Developed by a multidisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Namur, it provides an objective, reproducible, and transparent way of measuring the reliability of educational chatbots.