| Summary: | During the last twenty years the lifestyle of a large portion of the inhabitants of our planet has changed dramatically. This would never have been possible without the massive use of electronic and photonic technology, telecommuni cations, and computers. These disciplines are designed to code, transmit, detect, decode, and process signals and related information, and can be broadly addressed as information science and technology. In the sophisticated society in which we live and operate, this science is diffused transversely and plays a major role in almost every human activity. Information science and technology is the basis of a powerful industry that does not suffer the shortcomings of more traditional human enterprises. Information is a renewable source and its control and processing rely on software codes, which are a creation of the mind, and on related hardware, incredibly sophisticated but made out of simple, abundant materials. The rate of change and transformation of this industry is the highest mankind has ever experienced, and it requires not only the replacement of technologies but also a continuous updating of expertise to keep up with the rapid transformation. There is no doubt that this calls for a change in university training, to avoid students graduating at an already obsolete level.
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