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Lecture: Tracking Megatrends

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Under the title “Tracking Megatrends” Prof. Franz Josef Radermacher gave a lecture in Langenau on November 15, 2018. The SWP reports the following:

Globalization, digitalization, sustainability, world population growth, urbanization, and the role of women beyond the household – according to the Ulm-based professor, these are the forces shaping our world.

On Thursday evening, 180 visitors attended the lecture at the Pfleghof in Langenau to hear the 68-year-old head of the Research Institute for Applied Knowledge Processing speak live. Harald Ostermeir from the organizing Trade and Business Association (GHV) described him as “one of the most distinguished speakers in the German-speaking world”.

For around an hour and a half, Radermacher offered a lively yet sobering lecture titled “Germany as a Business Location Amid Powerful Megatrends.” He warned, “Something truly alarming is happening that could affect us all”. He highlighted the explosive growth of the world population – projected to reach ten billion by 2050, especially in Africa. While many people there face food insecurity, they have access to smartphones and the internet, opening up “a world full of possibilities”. Many, he predicted, will seek opportunities in Europe.

The full SWP article is available here.

Photo (c) Thomas Klink

Impacts of “Big Data and Analytics” on Employment and Fair Participation

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Dr. Dirk Solte spoke at the OECD Global Forum on the Knowledge Economy in Tokyo about the impacts of Big Data & Analytics on employment and fair participation.

According to Dr. Solte, defining Big Data and Analytics is by no means simple, which is why he began his talk with a humorous analogy: “Trying to find a correct answer to a question through Big Data and Analytics,” he said, “is like trying to learn about the behavior of a pig by analyzing many potluck dinners using mathematical methods.”

In the first part of his presentation, Dr. Solte explained what Big Data and Analytics are about and what they are used for. The key difference from conventional data and analytics, he noted, lies in the emphasis on correlation rather than causality in the traditional sense. He then provided an overview of several results from his analysis. Big Data, he said, has significant potential to promote green and inclusive growth, but it also carries the risk of technology-induced unemployment. The number of currently 26.75 million unemployed people could, according to Dr. Solte, rise to 53.5 million. However, it would primarily be middle-class jobs that are affected, while the number of highly qualified positions is expected to increase. The major question for the future, therefore, is how to close the emerging gap in the labor market.

Following Dr. Solte’s 15-minute lecture, a discussion took place with both the audience and the other invited speakers. You can find the full presentation as a video recording here.

Image source: Christina Morillo (Pexels)