“The Theoretical University in the Data Age: Have the Great Theories Become Obsolete?” was a two-day conference held on November 14-15th to explore the formulation of theory and the future of theory in the age of Big Data.
Philosopher of science Nancy Cartwright (Durham/San Diego) and string theorist Robbert Dijkgraaf (Princeton) were keynote speakers. There were also four parallel panel sessions with a variety of lectures on the following topics: Theorizing Contemporary Society; Contemporary Textual Cultures; Big Data: From Machine Learning to Quantum Computing; and Interdisciplinary Models for a Complex World.
An interdisciplinary panel discussed questions relating to the formation of theory and its scope in different academic disciplines. To conclude the conference, stakeholders from academia and politics discussed the dynamic among independent research, good governance, and the increasing monetization of research in the Data Age.
Organized by: Sina Farzin, Hamburg; Julian Go, Boston; Tobias Werron, Bielefeld
Discussant: Uwe Schimank (Bremen)
Moderator: Tobias Werron (Bielefeld)
Organized by: Franz-Josef Arlinghaus, Lars Deile, Silke Schwandt, Carlos Spoerhase, Véronique Zanetti
Organized by: Dario Anselmetti, Barbara Hammer
Organized by: Martin Carrier, Armin Gölzhäuser, Marie I. Kaiser