“Education is the strongest weapon that can change the world,” said Nelson Mandela. Following his footsteps, Professor Joseph Sifakis insists that knowledge can really change the world. The award-winning professor will explain to the audience of the Athens Science Festival how knowledge is defined through acquiring and analysing information, and highlight its inconspicuous limits in the modern world.

In this fascinating journey where man tries to understand the world, the basic vehicle he uses is computer science and informatics, which, according to Joseph Sifakis, is constantly opening new ways for further development and use of knowledge. Equally exciting, Joseph Sifakis’ own journey began in Heraklion, Crete, in the 1940s.

Sifakis is considered one of the leading IT scientists. He has been appointed professor at the Lausanne University of Technology (EPFL) and he is the founder of Verimag, an internationally recognised laboratory specialising in the design of critical integrated systems. These are specially designed systems that incorporate hardware and software to provide advanced applications in telecommunication, transport and space travel.

The Greek professor has received countless awards and distinctions, among which the extremely prestigious Turing Award – also known as the “Nobel Prize of Computing”. He was granted this great honour for his contribution to the theory and application of model checking, which is widely used to validate and improve informatics systems by technology giants such as Google, Intel and Microsoft.

At the Athens Science Festival 2018, Joseph Sifakis will outline how modern and emerging technologies can contribute to improving the quality of life and protecting the environment. On the other hand, he will comment on the need for effective machine control, so that these can serve our needs in a harmonious way. In short, he will give us a sneak-preview of our digital future.

Title: Understanding and changing the world || Date & Time: 25 April, 19.00-19.50