ECSS 2015 - Highlights
Vienna set the scene for the 11th edition of the European Computer Science Summit. Hosted at the heart of the city centre, by the Vienna University of Technology, TU Wien, this year`s edition gathered over 115 deans, department heads, research directors and senior academics from 29 countries for a full two days of presentations and lively discussions on ‘The Future of Informatics’.
On October 12, two Pre-Summit workshops were organised in parallel. At the traditional Workshop for Deans, Department Chairs and Research Directors, participants actively shared experiences and practical strategies on common challenges they face in managing their department and institutes. One issue heavily debated was how to better support women’s interest and retention in Informatics. Despite efforts being made at all levels - ranging from elementary school approaches to postdoctoral initiatives -, the number of women in the field remains very small. Other themes brought to the fore included the issue of creating a unique profile/identity for the field as we try to expand into ever-more interdisciplinary areas, and the accreditation of Informatics programs and assessing their real value, giving the dean a mandate to follow an improvement strategy in the faculty.
A Pre-Workshop on Experiences and Practices in MOOCs gathered over 30 practitioners and researchers interested in one of the current hottest topics in higher education.
Immersing participants in the city`s rich artistic life, the Summit opening at the beautiful Vienna Künstlerhaus included two Wolfgang Pauli lectures at the ARTEMATICA 2015, an interdisciplinary event linking mathematics and computer science with visual arts and music. The welcome reception afterwards created the perfect opportunity to meet both new and known faces, taste some excellent Austrian wines and enjoy typical bits and bites of the host country.
At the main Summit on October 13 and 14, the future of Informatics took centre stage, stimulating the discussion on the future role of Informatics both as a scientific discipline in itself and in its interdisciplinarity. Presentations and speaker panels provided food for thought and debate on the following themes: influence of Big Data on the nature of Informatics, European research funding, relationship with other sciences, research organisation of the future, ethics and Informatics role in society. The Informatics Europe Best Practices in Education Award Ceremony, Informatics Europe Activities session and General Assembly rounded the program.
Sharing their expert views and insights at ECSS 2015 were Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, Dirk Brockmann, Stefano Ceri, Jeroen van den Hoven, Maarja Kruusmaa, Bertrand Meyer, Dunja Mladenić, Reinhard Posch, Britta Schinzel, Matti Tedre and Moshe Vardi. For the first time the speakers contributions will be published as a volume of proceedings by Springer Verlag. “We hope it to be a discussion piece in our community on the future of our discipline and its role in the future of our society”, commented Hannes Werthner and Frank van Harmelen, Program Chairs of the ECSS 2015.
Besides the artistic experience at the Künstlerhaus, we could also enjoy the legendary Viennese conviviality at one of the ‘Heurige’ (wine taverns) for the conference dinner and learn that Vienna and wine are two concepts intrinsically linked.
The ECSS 2015 was a great success. With a high number of participants, impeccable organisation and one of the most exciting themes and programs, the conference will remain as one of the most memorable ECSSs.
ECSS 2016 will be held in Budapest, Hungary, October 24-26, hosted by the Eötvös Loránd University. Save the dates!
Below a few photos of the event:
