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Coordinators' General Report


Coordinators' General Report

David Pearce and Jorg Siekmann

New Networks, New Challenges

A few years ago Compulog Net was merely a small-scale pilot project set-up to try out the new idea of a Network of Excellence that would link-up the major European players in a specific field of information technology. Now, as we look towards the Fifth Framework, the ESPRIT Programme boasts more than 16 networks of excellence covering most of the main areas of IT. Compulog Net itself has grown to over 100 nodes and several other NoEs are of similar size. Recently, the concept of NoE has been positively reviewed in an official EU Report, more demands have been placed on individual networks, particularly in terms of their strategic planning and self-assessment requirements, and collectively they have been given greater responsibility and a higher profile in coordinating discussions about future technology policy in Europe.

When Compulog Net started there were virtually no guidelines as to precisely what a network should do and how it should do it. This was in accordance with homespun ESPRIT philosophy which holds that good ideas should be allowed to percolate 'bottom-up' without undue outside interference. In fact, at the time no one really knew what a network was, and NoE coordinators and participant nodes struggled to find out. By comparison, new NoEs entering the club today are spoon-fed with documents, reports and guidelines concerning the nature and structure of NoEs. It is interesting to trace the origins of some of these ideas. In many cases one can detect a remarkable similarity between policies and structures that emerged long ago within NoEs such as Compulog Net and Elsnet ,who pioneered the field, and guidelines and frameworks that are now firmly recommended, or even formally imposed on new networks, by the European Commission. The similarities just alluded to cannot be just a matter of coincidence.

Still, there are new tasks and challenges for the old networks that go beyond providing input for the next issues of those "how to write a network application" booklets. The founding networks have been taking a lead in coordinating activities that cross the borders and exceed the mandates of individual NoEs and may help in the long run to place the concept of NoE on an even firmer footing. Cabernet (Distributed Computing), who has long led the challenge to provide joint electronic infrastructure support for all NoEs, hosted in 1997 an inter-NoE workshop which brought together almost all the NoE coordinators and a significant number of CEC representatives to discuss a wide range of issues of common concern (see report elsewhere in this newsletter). One result was that the NoE coordinators have themselves now formed an informal network to help manage and promote joint activities. Again the older networks are taking a lead, with Elsnet (Language and Speech) and Compulog Net providing respectively the first President/Spokesman (Steven Krauwer) and Vice-President/Spokesman (David Pearce) for the new association. Its first main activity has been to set-up the Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Forum, an on-line discussion forum for European Research and Technology Policy for the Fifth Framework Programme and beyond. The FET Forum is jointly organised with the CEC and is divided into thematic sections that are moderated by different NoE representatives. It is also intended to provide an on-line source of official documents, reports and policy statements.

Another task of the network of NoE coordinators is perhaps even more ambitious: to set-up a WWW-database for all networks. This should provide an on-line directory of 'who's who' in European IT, with entries for every node of every network. Nodes will have passwords for automatic updating of their profiles and the database will have various search and query-answering facilities. Compulog Net has been awarded the task of designing and implementing the system, which will later be replicated with Cabernet's help around various European WWW-sites. The job has been delegated to UPM Madrid who are providing original software for the database pro grammed in their logic programming system and using their own web programming library, PiLLoW. A first version should be ready in the New Year. If the database becomes as widely used as is expected, it should act as a useful vehicle for promoting the use of computational logic for internet and WWW programming.

If the growth in networks has helped to increase their collective influence on Euro R&TD policy, at the same time it clearly diminishes the impact that any one individual NoE can expect to have on future decision-making. The chances that, say, Compulog Net alone could secure a sizeable chunk of 5FP funding for future projects in computational logic are clearly negligible. But several different networks acting in unison and supporting a common cause can certainly make a substantial impact.This is all the more reason for creating strategic alliances and cross-network bonds. In one of the FET thematic areas, Intelligent Perception and Reasoning Technologies, it seems increasingly clear that one of the main challenges for the future will be the successful integration of such functions as language, speech, vision, learning and reasoning within a single 'intelligent system'. Some NoEs in these fields are already discussing common strategies and drafting proposals for future 'pro-active' LTR initiatives. It is vital that Compulog Net be an active partner in such discussions and all nodes of the network are encouraged to participate, by proposing initiatives, promoting joint activities with other NoEs, and in particular by contributing to the on-line FET discussion, and to this newsletter. There are opportunities to be grasped - don't miss them.

Other News

We continue with an overview of other events and activities that have taken place over the past year.

Executive Council The Compulog Net project is now ably steered by our new Project Officier (PO) in Brussels, Norman Sadeh, who joins the Executive Council and has already participated in two EC meetings. We are also pleased to welcome on the EC Thomas Sjoland (SICS), who strengthens our industrial relations, and two new Area Coordinators: Philippe Codognet (INRIA) has taken over the Constraint Programming Area from Gert Smolka, and Danny De Schreye (KU Leuven) replaces Maurice Bruynooghe as coordinator for Program Development. We thank the outgoing coordinators and our former PO, David Cornwell, for their valuable contributions to the network's success.

Those EC members attending PAP 97 in London in April met for a brief business meeting during the conference. A full meeting of the entire EC took place in the form of a two-day strategic planning workshop, held in Rome in July (full report can be found below in this section). This was in preparation for the network to draw-up a technological roadmap for computational logic and its own Strategic Action Plan, a requirement that is now being imposed on all the NoEs. It is expected that this workshop will become a regular event on the calendar, with thematic sessions and invited speakers.

A General Meeting of Compulog Net took place during ICLP 97 in Leuven. The meeting was devoted mainly to a report (given by the coordinator) and discussion on the Strategic Planning workshop held in Rome.

Research

This has been an active year in all the network's Research Areas, and much of the newsletter is given over to Area news and reports. Two Areas are represented for the first time in this issue: Automated Deduction (Manfred Kerber) and Machine Learning (Nada Lavrac). Besides the special workshops and area meetings, the network has continued to support and sponsor a wide variety of related workshops and conferences.

Industrial Relations

Several industrially related activities have been co-organised by the network including the Practical Applications Conferences in London and an industrial seminar on Biomedical Applications of Computaitional logic in Bled, Slovenia. For details of these and other activities see the Industrial News section of this issue.

Infrastructure

Earlier this year the future of our newsletter appeared to be in doubt following a firming-up of the Commission's policy towards spending outside the EU countries. However, an elegant solution was found in the form of an INCO grant to the network that will enable us to continue newsletter production in Cyprus. There will be sufficient resources for twice-yearly electronic and annual hardcopy versions of the newsletter. To compensate partly for the additional funds provided by the INCO grant, the network plans to organise and sponsor (EU spending constraints permitting) activities and events in the Mediterranean countries.

As mentioned earlier, the network is preparing a WWW database to store key information about each node. There will be two versions of the database, one designed for all NoEs, that should provide a gateway into European IT as a whole, and one specific for Compulog Net. Once these systems are up and running in the New Year, we hope to extend the use of Prolog and PiLLoW to drive other parts of the website, so that eg. project descriptions and the events calendar can also be presented in a searchable format.

The network has organised its first live internet lecture ("webcast"). The lecture, on Computational Logic and the Law, was delivered by Bob Kowalski on September 19th. The 30 min lecture was broadcast live over the Internet by the Knowledge Media Institute (KMI) of the Open University, UK, and was also beamed to several live audiences, including the participants of two international conferences, in Dresden and Prague. There was a further 15 min of discussion in response to questions that were sent in by e-mail. The Prague conference was ILP 97, while the Dresden audience comprised delegates to the Conference of Rectors and Presidents of European Technical Univiersities. The lecture was timed to coincide with the official presentation of a new International Masters Programme in Computational Logic at the TU Dresden (see below). The webcast is stored in replay form at a new Compulog Net Multi-Media and Education website (http://kmi.open.ac.uk/compulog/ ) maintained at the OU by the KMI. It can be viewed with a standard browser at any time. Visitors can check their equipment and, if needed, download the audio-enabling software.

Education

There have been two significant developments over the past year. In December 1996 in Lisbon the network held its first workshop on distributed graduate programmes (full report elsewhere in this newsletter). Network representatives from different countries joined-up with invited experts to discuss the feasibility of a network supported European-wide graduate programme in computational logic. It was decided in the first instance to concentrate on developing Masters-level course modules, suitable for distance-learning eg. with WWW or CSCW support. Such courses could be individually recognised by different universities and could provide in many cases a useful addition to their home-taught curricula. When enough courses are available, the network would then try to amalgamate them to form a distributed Masters Programme. Accreditation by suitable educational organisations with international standing would be sought. Nodes of the network can apply to design all or part of a course module. A Call for Proposals appears on the network's new Multi-media and Education website listed above.

In the meantime, a more traditional style of graduate programme has emerged in cooperation with Compulog Net. The Technical University of Dresden has received German government funding to launch an International Masters Programme in Computational Logic. The two-year programme will provide graduates with a Masters qualification and at the same time a German Computer Science 'Diplom'. It will be truly international, with courses taught in Dresden by local and visiting lecturers, as well as at participating institutions around Europe. Some free places are still available on the course, and interested nodes should contact Steffen Holldobler <sh@inf.tu-dresden.de >.The programme is supported by the creation of a new professorship in Computational Logic that has attracted more than 40 applicants from all over Europe. The network's role is primarily to provide through its nodes suitable hosts for parts of the programme, experts willing to give courses in Dresden, general advice on course structure and materials, and of course to help promote the programme world-wide. For more details, see http://pikas.inf.tu-dresden.de/compulog/index.html.

Node Questionnaire

Earlier in the year a questionnaire was sent out to all nodes asking them to rank the importance of different network functions and to judge the actual performance of the network in various areas. About a quarter of all nodes responded. Opinons varied greatly, though there was fair agreement that the network provides a valuable addition to the scientific community and performs well in several key areas.

Asked to rank ten different network functions in order of importance, nodes replied as follows: -

1. information dissemination (4)

2. organising industrial seminars (2)

3. promoting cooperation in Europe (3)

organising workshops (1)

5. promoting technology transfer (8)

6. promoting exchanges of researchers (6) integrating the scientific community (5)

8. cooperation between Europe & non-European groups (10)

9. promoting training (7)

10. coordinating research (9)

The numbers in brackets rank the actual performance of the network as perceived in the category in question, ie. we were held to be best at organising workshops and worst at promoting cooperation between European and non-European groups. While the results suggest that we need to work harder in some areas such as info dissemination and technology transfer, on average we are perceived to be performing better in the relatively more important categories.

Food for Thought

Let us, finally, return to the general topic of networks with which we began. Many of us have become accustomed to the idea that innovations in IT start in the US and only later, if at all, filter through to Europe and elsewhere. Moreover the structure and organisation of cooperation in R&TD among EU member states is seldom displayed as an exemplary approach to international Science and Technology Policy. Compulog Net, it seems, is the exception that proves the rule. For the network has provided the model for a new organisation, Compulog Americas, that our colleagues in the US have begun to set-up this year (see http://www.cs.nmsu.edu/~complog/). They do not hide the fact that they aim at establishing a network in precisely the Compulog Net mould and, since mimicry is the best form of flattery, we do not complain about that. In fact we hope to keep the dialogue open and look forward to active cooperation with them in the future.

Saarbrucken, December 1997.


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