Science & Cyber
2 September 2004 - 3 September 2004
Finland
This year four focus areas have been picked to characterize the conference:
E-LEARNING,Life long learning is an expression that has become central to the information society. A company's ability to succeed is dependent on having the right knowledge at the right time and place. This is the determining factor for creating added-value for customers and thereby surviving.
The use of ICT for learning has successively increased over a large number of years. Extensive state investments have been made to introduce ICT as compulsory education in Sweden. These investments have developed, whereby schools and adult education have become interesting target groups.
Parallel with the creation of a new ICT strategy for schools, the authorities have been given new tasks with a focus on measures for creating suitable conditions, soft infrastructure and services. One declared aim with this new strategy is to create a market for e-learning with the compulsory school and adult education as two important target groups.
The market for e-learning products and services in Sweden is estimated to grow about 27% annually and is expected to have a value of roughly 2.5 billion SEK (approximately 280 million Euro) by the year 2006. Needless to say, the e-learning market is of biggest interest in the ICT area of today.
E-GOVERNMENT,The development of "24 hour authorities" in Sweden has gathered speed as a result of several government initiatives aimed at making the public administration an exemplary active user of information technology. The users' requirements are central to these initiatives. Similar work is also in progress within the EU.
Simplified routines, faster decisions, improved accessibility and increased public control are some of the expectations for the 24 hour services. Current technology makes it possible to provide interactive services for citizens in a secure enough environment. This means that public online services have developed from just being present on the internet to making interaction and transactions possible.
Transformation and integration of services between different authorities are on the agendas now. This however does not mean that already established contact routes will be phased out. Several of the Swedish government's proposals clearly express the sentiment that the entry into the information society is good, whilst it must also be safeguarded with measures that, as much as possible, do not exclude individuals or groups of citizens from information and services.
A foreseen consequence of e-democracy and the 24-hour authority is the freeing up of time and resources that can be used for job rotation, skills-development programmes, personal meetings and development issues instead.
VIRTUAL REALITY/3D,The area of Virtual Reality and 3D has had a very strong market growth during recent decades and despite the lower economic growth rates, many of its niches continue to be developed.
According to several market investigations, the area of interactive visual simulation has grown by 50% during the last decade and somewhat slower in the most recent years.
One of the most important sub-areas is training simulators, e.g. flight simulators, vehicle simulators and medical simulators, but even areas such as the visualisation of architecture, urban simulation and prototyping in engineering and design are very prominent.
The technically kindred area of digital interactive entertainment and computer games is growing at some 30-35% per year globally.
In the last five years the field of simulation intensive virtual reality (VR) has been developed very strongly in regions with vigorous growth in academic research as well as the business sector.
Examples of R&D- and educationally-oriented actors are found at, and around, Umeå University with actors such as VRlab, Umeå Center for Interaction Technology (UCIT), CERUM, Interactive Institute, Interaction Design Lab/School of Design, HUMlab, Skill Acquisition Lab, and the national super-computer center HPC2N.
TESTBEDS,A Swedish Test Network, TestNet is on its way to be developed. For this purpose, independent regional testbeds, of which Umeå is one, interplay as actors in a national network. The aim is to set up a joint infrastructure and competence accessible with the purpose
-to stimulate the development of internationally competitive applications within priority areas, and
-to create an open resource for internationally competitive testing of applications.
To increase Umeås ICT enterprises competitive edge on the global marketplace, a decision was taken to utilise local resources more efficiently. The testbed DNU was established in that context.
Sweden's assembled advantage stands in focus, owing to the fact that the various testbeds have different areas of focus and, in certain cases, collaborate between each other to test populations/objects from the needs of the customer. The testbeds will generate new products within the entire ICT sphere.
From the point of view of product and information diffusion, conferences such as Science & Cyber are of interest for the customers as well as for the suppliers of tests to present their innovations.
E-LEARNING,Life long learning is an expression that has become central to the information society. A company's ability to succeed is dependent on having the right knowledge at the right time and place. This is the determining factor for creating added-value for customers and thereby surviving.
The use of ICT for learning has successively increased over a large number of years. Extensive state investments have been made to introduce ICT as compulsory education in Sweden. These investments have developed, whereby schools and adult education have become interesting target groups.
Parallel with the creation of a new ICT strategy for schools, the authorities have been given new tasks with a focus on measures for creating suitable conditions, soft infrastructure and services. One declared aim with this new strategy is to create a market for e-learning with the compulsory school and adult education as two important target groups.
The market for e-learning products and services in Sweden is estimated to grow about 27% annually and is expected to have a value of roughly 2.5 billion SEK (approximately 280 million Euro) by the year 2006. Needless to say, the e-learning market is of biggest interest in the ICT area of today.
E-GOVERNMENT,The development of "24 hour authorities" in Sweden has gathered speed as a result of several government initiatives aimed at making the public administration an exemplary active user of information technology. The users' requirements are central to these initiatives. Similar work is also in progress within the EU.
Simplified routines, faster decisions, improved accessibility and increased public control are some of the expectations for the 24 hour services. Current technology makes it possible to provide interactive services for citizens in a secure enough environment. This means that public online services have developed from just being present on the internet to making interaction and transactions possible.
Transformation and integration of services between different authorities are on the agendas now. This however does not mean that already established contact routes will be phased out. Several of the Swedish government's proposals clearly express the sentiment that the entry into the information society is good, whilst it must also be safeguarded with measures that, as much as possible, do not exclude individuals or groups of citizens from information and services.
A foreseen consequence of e-democracy and the 24-hour authority is the freeing up of time and resources that can be used for job rotation, skills-development programmes, personal meetings and development issues instead.
VIRTUAL REALITY/3D,The area of Virtual Reality and 3D has had a very strong market growth during recent decades and despite the lower economic growth rates, many of its niches continue to be developed.
According to several market investigations, the area of interactive visual simulation has grown by 50% during the last decade and somewhat slower in the most recent years.
One of the most important sub-areas is training simulators, e.g. flight simulators, vehicle simulators and medical simulators, but even areas such as the visualisation of architecture, urban simulation and prototyping in engineering and design are very prominent.
The technically kindred area of digital interactive entertainment and computer games is growing at some 30-35% per year globally.
In the last five years the field of simulation intensive virtual reality (VR) has been developed very strongly in regions with vigorous growth in academic research as well as the business sector.
Examples of R&D- and educationally-oriented actors are found at, and around, Umeå University with actors such as VRlab, Umeå Center for Interaction Technology (UCIT), CERUM, Interactive Institute, Interaction Design Lab/School of Design, HUMlab, Skill Acquisition Lab, and the national super-computer center HPC2N.
TESTBEDS,A Swedish Test Network, TestNet is on its way to be developed. For this purpose, independent regional testbeds, of which Umeå is one, interplay as actors in a national network. The aim is to set up a joint infrastructure and competence accessible with the purpose
-to stimulate the development of internationally competitive applications within priority areas, and
-to create an open resource for internationally competitive testing of applications.
To increase Umeås ICT enterprises competitive edge on the global marketplace, a decision was taken to utilise local resources more efficiently. The testbed DNU was established in that context.
Sweden's assembled advantage stands in focus, owing to the fact that the various testbeds have different areas of focus and, in certain cases, collaborate between each other to test populations/objects from the needs of the customer. The testbeds will generate new products within the entire ICT sphere.
From the point of view of product and information diffusion, conferences such as Science & Cyber are of interest for the customers as well as for the suppliers of tests to present their innovations.
Keywords
e-Learning