Visitors at the 84^th Thessaloniki International Exhibition, from the 7^th to 15^thof September, had the opportunity to get acquainted with the research and achievements of FORTH at the booth of the General Secretariat for Research and Technology-Ministry of Development and Investments. In addition, on Saturday 7/9/2019, at the Ministry's event hall, the President of FORTH, Prof. Nektarios Tavernarakis gave a presentation entitled "Research and Innovation as Pillars of Regional and National Development: The Mission of the Foundation for Research and Technology". The lecture was part of the GSRT event: "The Footprint of Research in Society and Economy".

The Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences of FORTH is developing a highly innovative integrated process to address the problem of carbon dioxide emissions from PPC lignite plant sites. Novel carbon dioxide capture technologies that involve advanced materials are combined with the non-photosynthetic CO₂ biotransformation into biofuels and added-value chemicals. The process is of particular importance to the Greek economy, as it may lead to a reduction of expenses for the purchase of CO₂ emission allowances. Furthermore, the chain value of the lignite-based electricity industry will be expanded and enriched to include the parallel formation of green fuels and chemicals. The technology is developed in the context of the project BIOMEK (T1EDK-00279), Action "RESEARCH - CREATE - INNOVATE", NSRF 2014-2020.

The “AR AmI Explorer” is an Augmented Reality System, presented by the Institute of Computer Science at the 84^th International Fair of Thessaloniki. The system supports interactive space exploration and consists of an augmented reality application and a three-dimensional representation of a physical space, which represents part of the FORTH’s Ambient Intelligence building. Through this system, the visitors of the Fair had a unique virtual browsing experience of interactive systems developed at the Institute of Computer Science as part of the homonymous program, as the physical design of the building is enriched (augmented) with digital content containing information and related audiovisual material. The system employs an innovative model of interaction that, in combination with the use of images, light and sounds, transforms the exploration process of the specific space into an interactive recreational experience and highlights the important elements of that space. In general, this system can be used by cultural heritage sites and museums to allow visitors to tour inaccessible sites or explore alternative representations of existing sites. In addition, it can be applied in architectural / engineering studies, as it allows the enrichment of natural models and objects with digital content (e.g. lighting, still or moving objects, plants, textures, colors) in order to enhance their representation. Finally, in the fields of education and employment, it can be applied as a training tool, and it is also an innovative means of targeted advertising and promotion of products and services. More details can be found at: http://ami.ics.forth.gr/project/ar-ami-explorer-interactive-exploration-of-physical-spaces/?ref=commerce-marketing

Also, the Biomedical Laboratory of the Institute of Computer Science presented a robotic, wheelchair navigation system, controlled exclusively by signals of brain activity. It is an innovative system, which can be used by patients with severe paraplegia or occlusion syndrome, significantly improving their quality of life. During the exhibition, there was a real-time demonstration of the system, highlighting the possibility of virtual navigation using the robotic wheelchair. This system was developed in the framework of the i-ama project (https://i-ama.gr) which is part of the Action “RESEARCH- CREATE- INNOVATE”.

Also, on Friday, September 13th, at the Ministry of Development and Investments booth, a presentation of the Hellenic Precision Medicine Network on Cancer was held. The Network consists of 2 units in Attica, 1 in Central Macedonia and 1 in Crete, the latter with the participation of the Medical School of the University of Crete and FORTH as the coordinator. During that event, there were presented the purpose, the partners and their activities, the impact on research and society, and the development perspectives of this National Network.