UPDATED CALENDAR & NEWS

Dear colleagues,

Summer holidays are coming and we need a pause in the ongoing virtual
conference ("FIS 98").

- DURING NEXT WEEK or so, any interested parties could send their closing
comments about the current Neuro/consciousness discussion, although the net
will be kept open so that any kind of news, opinions, spontaneous
discussions, etc. may circulate.

- AT THE MIDDLE OF SEPTEMBER we could re-start the virtual conference
formally. The socio-info discussion first, followed by the global
philosophical debate on the nature of info proposed by several colleagues
months ago. The title for the socioinfo discussion was:

"THE INFORMATION REVOLUTION AND THE PROBLEMS OF OUR TIME"

(Contributors willing!) it will include three interconnected parts:

- the immaterial info bases of societies, by BOB ARTIGUIANI (dealing with
values, ethics and the changing nature of social bonds), and ANDREAS
GOPPOLD (analyzing from an historical perspective the complexity costs of
diffeerent social infostructures)

- followed by the debate on how the current info explosion has
revolutionized economic activities: TED GORANSON (the mass of info flows in
the ecosystem of science, technoloy and entrepreneurs) and VICENTE SALAS
(from the perspective of internal information processes in firms and
companies)

- And finally we could ressume THE GLOBAL BRAIN discussion started in the
Vienna conference: WOLFANG H.& PETER F. (socio-political perspective), TOM
STONIER & RALP ABRAHAM (the future of Mankind and the role of this new
global Nervous System)

-----------------------------OTHER FIS-RELATED NEWS------------------------

- THE REVAMPED FIS Web site, designed by a member of Wolfang & Peter4s
group, BORIS LEBEDINSKI, is active. Indeed they have done a very elegant
work: the site is clear, concise, and very well organized. The info about
the ongoing virtual conference has to be appreciated--the hundreds of
messages exchanged are perfectly linked and form an impressive whole. It
will have an impact.(later on we could discuss on how to extract further
profit from the conceptual-wealth produced by this conference). The www
address is http://fis.iguw.tuwien.ac.at/igw/fis/fis.htm

- THE BIOSYSTEMS FIS SPECIAL ISSUE (Vol. 46- 1.2, 1998) has finally
appeared. (The delay was caused by a last minute production-glitch
affecting a part of the copies. These have been retired, but inadvertently
a few of them could have been shipped away (??). If so, anyone detecting
the circulation of any misprinted copy should warn immediately either to
Elsevier directly, or to Kevin Kirby, Michael Conrad or myself in order to
substitute it).

- There are quite a few other items: Soeren Brier's project on another
fis-oriented issue; the Haifa meeting; the prospects for a fis 99 or fis
2000 (non-virtual!) venue; and also the official approbal by University of
Zaragoza of a BIONINFORMATION DISCIPLINE to be teached by me next course
(suggestions about Programme contents will be very appreciated). In this
regard, personal thanks to several fis colleagues for their support during
my protracted conflict with the local bureaucracy. Finally the problems
might be over.

We can chat about all these points during Summer time. Do not forget the
visit to the elegant fis site built by BORIS LEBEDISNKI & WOLFANG and
colleagues!

                 http://fis.iguw.tuwien.ac.at/igw/fis/fis.htm

Hasta la vista

Pedro

---------------------------------------------------------------
Pedro C. Marijuan. FAX 34 976 761861 and / 762111. TEL / 761927
Dept. Ingenieria Electronica y Comunicaciones
CPS, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza 50015, SPAIN
email: marijuan@posta.unizar.es
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Received on Fri Jun 26 13:59:37 1998