Current reports and issues

Citation

Rudall, B.H. (1998), "Current reports and issues", Kybernetes, Vol. 27 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/k.1998.06727daa.005

Current reports and issues

Current reports and issues

Mathematics education for systemists and cyberneticians

The International Commission on Mathematical Instruction (ICMI) has recently announced a new long-term study on the teaching and learning of mathematics at university level. This will be welcomed by both systemists and cyberneticians who have seen the consequences of the current quality of teaching the subject and also the results in so many disciplines of the lack of its inclusion in university disciplines. This has resulted in the development of so-called "soft sciences" in great profusion. In contrast the "hard sciences" need the mathematical content of courses increased and, many believe, for the subject to be taught by mathematicians who are expert in their field. The resulting international debate is expected to be concerned with undergraduate mathematics embracing mathematics, education and political policy.

Details of the study can be found at: http://elib.zib.de/IMU/ICMI/bulletin/43/study.html

The previous study by the ICMI was published (Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1997) and proved to be of great use to the universities worldwide as well as to researchers in this field of mathematical education. Readers who work in this area may also be interested in the publishing initiatives of the Centre for Research in Mathematics Education of the University of Southampton (UK). Staff of the centre are publishing a new electronic journal devoted to mathematics education research and discussion. More details of their activities can be found on: http://www.soton.ac.uk/gary/Math_thought.html

Legal protection for software

The worldwide concern about the legal protection of software has led the UK Patent Office to organise a one-day meeting to discuss the problems involved. Held in March 1998 it was initially about meeting the challenges of harmonisation and development of software patents in Europe. The legal protection of some of Europe's most innovative industries moved up on the agenda at the conference, which was held in London.

Organized by the UK Patent Office, with the support of the European Commission, it had the full backing of the UKs Presidency of the European Union. The meeting was of direct importance to the European software industry, not only to management but also to software designers, researchers and other development personnel in Europe, and also throughout the world where concern about software protection has become paramount. The European software industry alone, we were told, is worth an estimated ECU 80 billion, that is some £54 billion. It has now an estimated 6-7 per cent annual growth. What worries software specialists and those who market it is how their rights can be preserved and legally safeguarded. This meeting was therefore of vital concern to intellectual property specialists, those involved with innovation, research and development and anyone concerned with the creation of sustainable employment in Europe, in the first instance. The conference organizers said that:

The primary questions addressed at the conference were whether the European patent system fully supports software development and what, if any, the measures are that should be taken to optimise the contribution that software patents could make to innovation and the competitiveness of European industry.

Organized by IBC UK Conferences Limited for the UK Patent Office, information about the meeting is available on the Web site: www.patent.gov.uk

There is little doubt that a great deal more will be heard about software protection in the future and with growth rates set to rise dramatically over the new millennium legal measures have to be devised and put into being, not only in the European Community, but worldwide. It would appear from this meeting that the contribution of software patents is but one of the many devices that should be in place to meet this challenge.

New UK interactive guide on CD-ROM

The launch has been announced of an interactive educational guide on CD-ROM which will allow London (UK) to be discovered and explored. Produced by the UK's Ordnance Surveymapping agency and developed with NRCS Ltd (National Remote Sensing Centre Ltd, UK. Tel: 01252 362000), the CD-ROM contains a huge selection of maps, photographs, video sequences and sound clips set out in a "virtual museum". The system could, of course, be used in many different applications and only emphasises the benefits of the research into interactive communication and the rapid development of technology to allow this approach to be a viable one. In this instance the CD-ROM called "Discover London" enables visitors to the capital city to receive comprehensive instruction about the city both past and present. Video films were included as well as 500 colour and black and white photographs and a range of sound clips. At the heart of the disc is a comprehensive range of Ordnance Survey maps and aerial colour photographs. The system allows them to be displayed on the whole screen or split to be viewed alongside each other. They can be viewed in a wide choice of scales, including a highly detailed 1:1250 scale which shows details as fine as the shape of individual buildings. Alongside the mapping and aerial photography there is a range of text and pictures linked to study themes. The information has hypertext links both within and between the theme areas. There is also a facility for users to draw and annotate their own sketch maps.

This development is yet another example of the range of educational and home reference CD-ROMs that have so dramatically altered the way in which we learn and teach. This was confirmed by those who visited the demonstrations of such interactive systems at the British Education, Technology and Training Show (BETT '98), held in London (UK) at Olympia in January 1998.

Information about the systems produced, and the work of the Ordnance Survey can be obtained on the World Wide Web site: http://www.ordsvy.gov.ukand also by telephone contact: (UK) 01703 792635.

CD-ROMS for education and learning applications

While the CD-ROMs described in the last section illustrate their uses and applications in almost any field of endeavour there are some 600 educational CD-ROMs that are available on-line via the Web site of the UK's National Council of Educational Technology. This is a UK Government-funded charity which promotes the use of information technology in education and in training. Intending users can search the site by topic, school level and also by computer (e.g. PC, Apple and Acorn) for reviews of the CD-ROMs. The CD-ROMs have been evaluated by professional educational institutions and bodies, and also by the subject associations against defined criteria. The reviews all have screen clips from the CD-ROM which appear with the review.

The Web site for the reviews is at: http://www.ncet.org.uk/cd-rom.html

User-friendly information society

The European Union (EU) has made available more details on the information society technologies (IST) programme. This is in the EU's fifth framework for research and technology development. It would appear that the IST programme seeks to promote a "user-friendly" European information society by increasing the usability, interoperability and take-up of information and communication technologies. Four key IST actions have been defined:

(1) services for the citizen;

(2) new methods of work and electronic commerce;

(3) multimedia content and tools; and

(4) essential technologies and infrastructure.

Other important IST objectives are the "visionary" longer-term basic research with potential industrial and social impacts, and the building of a European-wide research and education network.

Full details of the current IST proposals are contained in the diskette IST (URN97/829) which is available from the UK Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). Tel: 0345 15 2000. Readers who wish to comment on the technical or management aspects of the plan before a decision is taken by the EU ministers in June 1998 should contact the DTI: Margaret Dennis. E-mail: margaret.dennis@ciid.dti.gov.uk; Tel: 0171 215 1355.