On Monday 22nd of March 2010, at the FORTH Amphitheatre in Heraklion (Crete), Dr. Peter Freeman gave the 2nd lecture in the context of «Stelios Orphanoudakis» Distinguished Lecture series. This year, the Lecture was held in the area of Computer Science, Information and Communications Technologies, and was entitled:

"The Interaction of Science and Society as Illustrated by the Internet"

Dr. P. Freeman is Dean Emeritus and was Founding Dean of the College of Computing of Georgia Tech, USA from 1990 to 2002. He continues to work with Georgia Tech on specific projects and is a Director with the Washington Advisory Group. From 2002 to 2007, he was Assistant Director of NSF, heading the Computer & Information Science & Engineering Directorate. He is widely recognised within the academic and scientific community for his contribution in the area of Computer Science and Information and Communications Technologies.

Dr. P. Freeman will be introduced by Professor Nikolaos Spyratos (Universite Paris-Sud 11, France), this year's Chairman of the Selection Committee for Computer Science.

«Stelios Orphanoudakis» Distinguished Lectures are organised every year by one of the Institutes of the Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas (FORTH), at the headquarters of FORTH in Heraklion, Crete, Greece, to honor the memory of Stelios Orphanoudakis (1948 - 2005), Professor at the Computer Science Department of the University of Crete, Director of the Institute of Computer Science of FORTH (1994 - 2004), and Chairman of FORTH from 2004 until his premature loss, on the 18th March 2005. He was a visionary pioneer in the field of Information Society Technologies. He made fundamental academic and scientific contributions at an international level in research areas such as image processing and analysis, medical and diagnostic imaging, medical informatics, computational vision and robotics. He was instrumental in enhancing the role of FORTH on the international scientific scene, promoting and supporting scientific research in Greece and in Europe, as well as in promoting the exploitation of results through the foundation of spin-off companies.

Keynote speakers of the "Stelios Orphanoudakis" Distinguished Lecture series are internationally recognised personalities nominated by a Selection Committee comprising eminent scientists from within and outside FORTH.

Abstract of Dr. P. Freeman's Lecture: Science and society are more tightly intertwined than either recognises; both need to act on this observation. The need-based interaction between them is well understood, but there are interactions more fundamental and, at the same time, less well understood. The origins, growth, and potential future of the Internet form an illuminating story in its own right, but also serve to illustrate this observation. We will comment on the context of modern research, sketch the history of the Internet, illustrate some of the crucial interactions between society and the Internet as it has developed, and speculate on some possible futures. We will close with some thoughts on increasing understanding between science and society.

For further information:
Eleftheria Katsouli
Public Relations Office
Foundation for Research and Technology - FORTH
Tel: +30 2810 391509, 391510, Fax: +30 2810 391513
E-mail: pr@admin.forth.gr