GMW Congress Hamburg

The motto of this year's GMW congress, 12 - 14 September 2007 in Hamburg was : reinventing learning - rethinking university.

After two brilliant opening keynotes by Prof. Dr. Beger and Prof. Dr. Boltz aspects of - didactic imagination, creative forms of evaluation and quality development, Higher Education reforms: approaches, strategies, concepts - were being dealt with from different perspectives of learning, teaching and organization.

More in German...

One of the highlights was the Medida-Prix-Award in the categories "Digital media in academic teaching" and "Academic development with digital media".

Prof. Dr. Rolf Schulmeister was honoured for his scientific work and I just did it my way. I honoured him in acryl, 120 x 90.

Cyberscience

"Cyberscience - it is already taking place - will be different from traditional science. "

Michael Nentwich, director of the Institute of Technology Assessment at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, describes and analyses in his book the usage of ICT (Information and Communication Technology) in science.

This book not only draws a portrait of "Research in the Age of the Internet", but also assesses the various impacts of the New Media on academic activity and discusses the impacts for future research policies.

So we`ve already got some answers to the questions I posed in my previous article.
But the digital world is a rapidly changing one. Isn`t it? ;-)

Science in a Digital World

In this respect the following questions arise:

• In which ways are scientists influenced by the so-called digital world?

• How do they respond to this digital world in general? Fears and expectations?

• Do they change their modes of communication with other scientists? If so, for what reasons and how?

• Which digital techniques of communication have already become part of their daily routine? Why?

• What do they consider benefits derived from the digital world?

• Do online tools meet their expectations?
  

A world of connections

Wireless technology is progressing very rapidly. According to Kenneth Cukier, Technology Correspondent of The Economist, it will be tremendously useful that new wireless technologies will link both people and lots of objects. But: it will be tricky getting there.

Wireless communication tools will certainly cause a major change in our daily lives. Are we prepared for such changes? How can we adapt ourselves to this ongoing process?

Technical aspects of multiculturalism

Don't miss this week's issue of The Economist. A highly interesting 14-page special report on the coming wireless revolution is awaiting you.

From my personal perspective the title "When everything connects" involves the merging of cultural diversity as well.