IT and Communications in the New Millenium
AIT partnered industrial agents and leading educational and research institutions at an international forum cum conference held on 1-4 August. It was sponsored by Siemens AG and co-organized by AIT with the National Science and Technology Agency of Thailand. The prestigious Milton E. Bender lecture, held annually by AIT in honor of the Institute's first President, was delivered by Prof. Cham Tao Soon, President of Nanyang Technological University. He spoke on the impact of IT on university education. Prof. Cham emphasized the importance of continuous learning and how IT can assist with this process. However, IT in pursuit of learning is not a panacea. 'Educational change is not, and should not be, technologically driven - but it is, and always has been technologically enabled. For this reason, we coin the word 'teachnology, technology with an 'a''.
In his keynote lecture, entitled, 'Knowledge-based Economies: Issues and Directions for the New Millenium', Dr. Ockert Van Zyl, President and CEO of Siemens Ltd., Thailand, said, 'Just as with globalization, the knowledge evolution is creating dislocating clashes between the global market on the one hand and the economies at the different stage of evolution on the other. What distinguishes knowledge-rich and knowledge-poor societies are not only access to knowledge but also the creation of wealth associated with the knowledge-based economy.'
Above: From left: Dr. Ockert Van Zyle; Prof. Cham Tao Soon; Prof. Pairash Thajchayapong, NSTDA Director; Dr. Thanat Khoman, AIT Chair Emeritus; Prof. Mario Tabucanon, Provost; and Dr. T. Nakahara from Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd.