/Voorpagina /Mensen /Nieuws /Opinie /Cultuur /Studentenleven /Achtergrond /English page /Onderzoek /Reportage /Bestuur /Ruis /Ranzigt /Colofon

/Faculteits Berichten /Vacatures /Mensa /Oude cursors /pdf formaat /TUE /Zoeken:

jaargang 43, 21 juni 2001 English page

Takeover takes terabytes The Surfnet network processed 4.5 terabytes of music, film, demos and software during Takeover last weekend. 650 people visited the final edition of this demo party. "The atmosphere was really great," said Pim van Pelt, one of the organisers. "Surfnet worked perfectly. It came through this endurance test with flying colours. Last year, we used 1.3 terabytes, this time we needed more than three times as much. A record." The demo party was held in the Auditorium from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon. The participants sat at their PCs almost without a break throughout. This was supposed to be the final edition of Takeover, but Van Pelt said afterwards that a new version might still be set up. "Not by the current organisation and not under the same name, but we may see a demo party at TU/e again." Photo: Bram Saeys.

Proposals Board Blown out of Water The University Council binned three important proposals by the Executive Board during a meeting earlier this week. The Instellingsplan (institute plan), the Mub (modernisation university management) evaluation and the 2002 budget plans were found wanting. The three proposals were sent back to the Executive Board, who immediately drafted a written reaction. The Board plans to submit a definite version of this to the University Council in September. The meeting started off with the Instellingsplan for 2001-2006, which has been discussed by the U-Council on other occasions. Jelle de Jong of the Progressieve Fractie (PF) succinctly interpreted the Council's feelings on the document: "This in no way meets our needs or expectations." De Jong said the Council needs more context and reasoning for future policy, especially considering TU/e's difficult financial situation. Increasing the secondary flow of funds from government backed research organisations and the tertiary flow from contract research, as propagated by the Executive Board, may not be easy, says the University Council. "You're making yourselves very vulnerable. This kind of increase has not been seen in the past three years, what makes you think it will suddenly happen now?" The Council also stated that TU/e's primary processes ­ education and research ­ should be the most important goals. The selective way in which positions for scientific staff have been filled lately was seen to be worrying. Surprise The Executive Board said the University Council's reaction was hard to understand. "This proposal has already been discussed on four other occasions by the Council. I think two things are getting mixed up here, the plan for the coming five years and our current financial difficulties. It's hard to see what's really bothering the Council and I'm surprised by their strong language," said chairman dr.ir. Henk de Wilt. "Education and research remain TU/e's first priority. This is why we started with services in the Added Value Analysis." The money this reorganisation saves will be put back into TU/e's primary process. In a letter to the Council on Tuesday, the Executive Board said they are not planning to change the methods described in their Instellingsplan. For context, the Board refers the Council to the chapters on policy between 1996 and 2001. The financial and Instellingsplan committees of the Council are to receive more information about TU/e's financial position in August. They may then propose changes in the plan. Modernisation The university management modernisation (MUB) evaluation was also unacceptable to the Council, said Dimitri Gilissen of Group one. "The evaluation is incomplete and based on insufficient information. A questionnaire is quoted that does not represent student opinion, as hardly anyone filled it out. The plenary meeting on the MUB was not much publicised and was itself a farce. This is total garbage." Joris Bierkens asked the Executive Board whether they would tell the minister (to whom the evaluation must be sent) about the Council's reaction to their modernisation evaluation. De Wilt answered: "I'll tell him that many of you were absent during the plenary meeting, that you did not oppose the evaluation then, and that you now suddenly want substantial changes."/.

Come Alive on the Grid Studium Generale is organising an excursion to a spectacular virtual reality project simultaneously active on networked locations in Amsterdam, Chicago, Linz and Budapest. The trip to the theatre-style virtual reality environment in Amsterdam is planned for September 5 for students and September 6 for staff. Each visitor will influence the project by his or her participation. Ars Electronica LinzAlive on the Grid is comprised of many virtual worlds and features varying elements of sound, interactivity and navigation. It will be displayed on a so-called CAVE, a spectacular four-walled, theater-styled virtual reality environment. On-site visitors access the worlds through a virtual atrium, where they encounter and interact with other networked visitors. A common feature of the network-enabled worlds is 'persistence', as the environments do not end once the visitors leave the CAVE. Rather, the worlds continue to collect information and a kind of life through the traces left by past visitors for future visitors to enjoy. Ghosts Visitors will be able to select their own virtual representation, or avatar, complete with a photo-realistic 3D face, and manipulate it in real time. Visitors from all locations will communicate and interact through their avatars. They will be able to create and alter the virtual worlds they visit, leaving 'ghosts' of themselves for others to view. Alive on the Grid is a project by Dan Sandin of the Electronic Visualization Laboratory of the University of Illinois at Chicago, for the Ars Electronica Festival in Linz, Austria. The project was organised in collaboration with the V2 Lab at the Institute for the Unstable Media, Rotterdam, C3 Center for Culture & Communication Foundation, Budapest, Hungary, SARA of the Universiteit van Amsterdam and Studium Generale (TU/e). TU/e students can take part in an exclusive visit to Alive on the Grid at the CAVE in Amsterdam on September 5, from 18.00-19.00h (departure Eindhoven 4 p.m.), maximum 12 pp. Fee f 15.-. University staff members can visit Alive on the Grid and a demonstration of scientific applications of the CAVE on September 6 (same schedule). Register and pay at the Studium Generale office (Aud 2.02)./.