Our society faces a wide range of global challenges in different areas such as sociology, economy, ecology and technology. Solving the most vital problems in these fields often requires the analysis of a huge amount of data, and the utilization of appropriate methods and facilities for ample computations. In HiDALGO we develop a computational and data analytics environment, which enables systematic collaboration between scientists with different background and facilitates a profound understanding of several major global challenges. This will allow the decision makers to predict possible outcomes of certain social processes and act accordingly.
A key challenge is the management of migration flows, for which it is essential to understand the reasons and the dynamics behind refugee movements. A thorough analysis of the current situation -- as well as of alternative scenarios -- would be highly beneficial for decision makers and responsible institutions.
Air pollution is also one of the most urgent problems of our modern society. According to WHO, more than 500.000 people in Europe, and around seven million around the world die per year prematurely due of bad air quality. Thus, air pollution is one of the world's major health risks. Through the proper use of sensors located in urban areas and dedicated computational models it will be possible to identify main pollution sources, and to propose solutions to mitigate the effect of air pollution.
Both challenges described above are strongly driven by human behaviour. In the contemporary world the easiest way to analyse human behaviour is to investigate the "information aorta" of modern societies, the social media. However, there are commonly known recent cases, when false/malicious information influenced important processes in our society. By understanding the dynamics behind the spread of messages in social networks, it will be possible to identify false/malicious messages, and adopt possible countermeasures.
In HiDALGO, we develop a simulation framework for several highly complex processes that arise in connection with the global challenges mentioned above, and integrate different approaches in order to establish a sustainable Centre of Excellence. Furthermore, HiDALGO will address a number of multidisciplinary scientific objectives to advance innovation in HPC and big data technologies.
