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How Occupations are changing due to Digitality

Digitalgespräch Folge 59 mit Britta Matthes
Digitalgespräch Folge 59 mit Britta Matthes

The way we work is changing in the digital age and through digitality. New tasks and professions are emerging, others are changing radically or disappearing, both simple and complex tasks can be or are being transferred to machines. We are all affected, whether we are reluctant to embrace new technological opportunities or curious to integrate them into our working lives – assuming we have a choice. Whether companies value the needs and skills of the people who work for them and involve them in change processes, or whether they view anonymous employees as labourers who must follow instructions, not only makes a big difference to the acceptance of change in the workplace, but also determines how digital working environments are shaped. And in our society, where younger generations are few in number and career starters generally have many options, the question of how we want to work and where our strengths lie takes on new significance.

Dr Britta Matthes, a sociologist and biologist, is head of the department “Occupations in the Transformation” at the Institute for Employment Research at the Federal Employment Agency. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, the expert explains the mechanisms at work in the transformation of job profiles and labour market structures, and how the digital transformation of the world of work can be researched. She explains the new conditions and requirements that will shape our working lives in the future, how different professional fields are integrating digitality into their processes, whose expertise is important, what hurdles stand in the way and what room for manoeuvre there is. Together with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring, Matthes discusses the special features of the German labour market in the implementation of digitalisation, what constitutes the core of a profession in the face of constant change, how we as individuals can shape our professional lives – and whether the ideal of working in “one’s” profession all of one’s life is still appropriate.

Episode 59 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Britta Matthes of the Institute for Employment Research at the Federal Employment Agency, 26 November 2024
Further informationen:

To the Job Futuromat of the Institute for Employment Research: https://job-futuromat.iab.de/en/

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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‘Digitalchecking’ Laws and what follows: Getting Administration ready for Digitisation

Cover
Cover

The digitalisation of government and administration will continue at a rapid pace – and high demands are being placed on digital solutions to fulfil public tasks. Digital government is not an end in itself, but should make processes more efficient, clearer and more accessible. In addition to a multitude of specific, demand-driven software solutions based on the analogue status quo, strategies are needed to establish digitality as the new default in the long term. This also means developing methods to ensure that regulations, laws and processes are compatible with the needs of the digital society and the requirements of the digital state from the outset. One organisation that will help to tackle this major task is the German government’s DigitalService GmbH, which was established in 2020.

IT manager Stephanie Kaiser is chief product officer at DigitalService, the German government’s central digitisation office. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, the expert in software development and IT projects describes the tasks of this unusual department, how it works and what innovations are created in the process. She explains what it means to make rules or processes ready for the digital age, who is involved and how citizens and civil servants benefit. Together with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring, Kaiser discusses how working methods from the private sector can be applied in the public sector, which mediation work is helpful in this process – and how it is possible to provide high-quality digital solutions for the interfaces between the state and citizens on a long-term and large-scale basis.

Episode 58 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Stephanie Kaiser of DigitalService GmbH, 5 November 2024
Further informationen:

The blog post mentioned in the interview with a practical example of a “Digitalcheck” on electricity tax law: https://digitalservice.bund.de/en/blog/current-example-of-digital-ready-legislation-the-german-electricity-duty-act

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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Dynamic Digital Strategies for the European Broadcaster ARTE

The ARTE television channel is a project that aims to promote understanding and cultural exchange between the countries of Europe. The channel, and in particular its media library, is renowned for its carefully curated programme of art, entertainment, information and education. Not only the so-called linear television, i.e. the classic programme broadcast according to a fixed schedule, but also the presentation of content in the digital world is carefully put together by experts to meet the needs of a European audience. ARTE has fans who specifically seek out and appreciate its carefully prepared programming, but just like all public broadcasters, the Franco-German channel faces challenges: the highly dynamic nature of digitality requires clever strategies and a willingness to take different paths to reach target audiences. Technological innovations offer great opportunities – as long as they can be used in line with the public mandate and the broadcaster’s own self-image.

Kemal Görgülü is Chief Technology Officer at the ARTE GEIE headquarters in Strasbourg, where he is responsible for the development and implementation of digital strategies, in particular the use of artificial intelligence. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, the expert in technological innovation in the field of editorial work describes the strategies ARTE is pursuing, the considerations and values that are decisive in this regard, and what it means that the broadcaster arte sees itself as an explicitly European ‘content boutique’. It shows where there is great potential for the use of AI systems – both visible to the audience and behind the scenes – and where they are already being used as a matter of course. Together with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring, Görgülü discusses how public broadcasters can respond to new media habits in the interest of the general public, which cooperation partners are available for this task, where the limits lie in terms of what individual broadcasters and media organisations can achieve – and where decision-makers and politicians should also rethink in the face of digital realities.

Episode 57 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Kemal Görgülü of ARTE GEIE, 15 October 2024
Further informationen:

Link to the ARTE website: https://www.arte.tv/en/

Link to the Beyond Platforms Initiative website: https://beyond-platforms.org/

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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Tokenisation of Carbon Credits: Blockchain for Climate Action?

Cover des Digitalgesprächs Nr. 56
Cover des Digitalgesprächs Nr. 56

Major efforts are needed to protect the climate, both to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. And even if the urgency of action is recognised in principle, targeted guidelines and incentives are needed to motivate companies to participate. One instrument that has been used for a number of years is CO2 certificates. This new construct has created a complex field of obligations and rules, voluntary commitments and international cooperation. Both public and private actors are involved. Not only is it difficult to keep track of, but the possibility of issuing, buying and selling certificates has created its own markets in which these certificates almost fulfil the function of securities. Whether they should be treated as such in the eyes of the law – i.e. regulated – has not yet been conclusively clarified.

One idea to make carbon trading easier and more trustworthy would be to use a blockchain. This step is possible, perhaps even obvious – in any case, it would make carbon trading cheap, fast and, presumably, transparent. The first examples of ‘tokenised carbon credits’ already exist. This new development is of interest not only to computer scientists, economists and companies, but also to the world of Law. What decisions are important here and why are international experts looking with interest at the European legal area and its efforts to regulate markets for crypto assets?

Dominik Skauradszun is a professor of civil law, civil procedure and corporate law at the University of Applied Sciences in Fulda and a judge at the Oberlandesgericht Frankfurt am Main. He also researches and teaches at the University of Bielefeld and Nottingham Trent University, and advises on procedures and institutions at national and EU level. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, the expert on the legal aspects of tokenisation explains what CO2 certificates are, what the differences are, what the markets for trading these certificates look like and which participants fulfil important functions. He will explain why blockchain is a suitable technical environment for this and what the consequences of this digitalisation step will be. Skauradszun discusses with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring which problems can be solved, which will remain, whether the high level of transparency in the transactions is an advantage or a disadvantage from a corporate perspective – and why it is necessary for lawyers to research the tokenisation of CO2 certificates.

Episode 56 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Dominik Skauradszun of Hochschule Fulda
Further informationen:

Link to Dominik Skauradszun’s profile on the Fulda University of Applied Sciences website: https://www.hs-fulda.de/wirtschaft/ueber-uns/professuren/details/person/prof-dr-dominik-skauradszun-llm-2-483/contactBox

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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IT Giants and Software Monopolies: The Universities’ Struggle for Digital Sovereignty

Cover des Digitalgesprächs Folge 55
Cover des Digitalgesprächs Folge 55

The dependency of companies and administrations on non-European technology providers has become very apparent in recent years. Large companies, which provide virtually indispensable software and hardware for everyday academic life with little or no competition, also appear to be deliberately exploiting their position vis-à-vis universities: They raise prices, impose complicated licensing models, force new product types into existing systems – and stabilise their presence in the everyday lives of users, almost automatically training students to become permanent customers of Google, Microsoft, Adobe & Co. Finding a way out of this dilemma is difficult because universities have little bargaining power. Their mission is ‘research and teaching’, and there is no provision for additional investment in expensive change processes. As a result, more and more of their limited budgets are being used to provide much-needed technology. Money for IT is starting to be scarce elsewhere, and the privacy standards and terms of use under which the IT giants offer their products are questionable in many places – a danger to free research and teaching. There are alternatives, such as open source solutions or European products that could be used on more favourable terms, but switching all staff and systems to previously untested innovations would be complex, almost impossible to implement in day-to-day operations, and not without risk for individual institutions. Does joining forces help? Do politicians need to act – in a different way? And do all those involved understand what is at stake?

Ramin Yahyapour is Professor of E-Science and Practical Computer Science at the Georg-August Universität in Göttingen and Director of the Gesellschaft für wissenschaftliche Datenverarbeitung mbH Göttingen, which serves the university and the Max Planck Society as a computing centre and IT competence centre. A renowned expert in high-performance computing, cloud applications and data management, he has been an advocate of digital sovereignty for many years. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, Yahyapour describes the current situation of universities as customers of technology providers, categorises developments and explains the importance of digital sovereignty for universities. He also outlines the measures that can be taken to break the dependency and the obstacles that stand in the way. Together with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring, Yahyapour discusses who needs to take action and which strategies could gradually create some room for manoeuvre as awareness of the problem grows and courageous steps are taken.

Episode 55 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Ramin Yahyapour of Georg-August Universität Göttingen and Gesellschaft für wissenschaftliche Datenverarbeitung mbH Göttingen, 3 September 2024
Further informationen:

To the profile of Ramin Yahyapour on the website of the University of Göttingen: https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/635175.html

To the website of the Gesellschaft für Wissenschaftliche Datenverarbeitung mbH Göttingen (GWDG): https://gwdg.de/

To the brochure ‘Sicherstellung der digitalen Souveränität und Bildungsgerechtigkeit. Empfehlungen zur Ausgestaltung von Rahmenbedingungen für die Nutzung von Cloud-basierten Angeboten im Bildungsbereich’ by ZKI: https://www.zki.de/fileadmin/user_upload/ZKI-Digitale_Souveraenitaet-2022-V2.pdf

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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Infrastructures in Space for Digitality on Earth

We use space for our lives on Earth. The expansion of digital infrastructures on the earth’s surface also means that more and more technical objects are being transported into space. Navigation without GPS is nowadays almost unimaginable. Telephone services and weather apps also use space technology – and the data streams in an internet of the future will probably no longer be routed mainly through long cables, but by means of constellations of thousands of satellites arranged around the globe. In the meantime, however, our planet is being orbited mainly by remnants of broken space technology, which are massively obstructing the increasingly dense traffic of important probes and satellites. It is an unintended consequence of human space travel that space debris actually jeopardises the future use of space. Added to this is the “weather” in space: digital infrastructures that ensure the security of systems on Earth are also increasingly affected by this. Who takes care of these problems? And how can we ensure that space flight can continue to supply the digital society with satellites?

Dr Holger Krag heads the ESA Space Safety Programme at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), which also deals with space debris and space weather. In this episode of “Digitalgespräch“, the expert describes the scene around our globe and describes how the challenges facing space travel have changed in recent decades, particularly as a result of the digital transformation. He names strategies for dealing with new safety risks and regulatory requirements, describes technical solutions and open research questions. Together with hosts Petra Gehring and Marlene Görger, Krag discusses whether the global political situation also poses a threat to space travel safety, what influence private players have on the development of space travel and what is at stake if the current problems cannot be solved.

Episode 54 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Holger Krag of the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), 13 August 2024
Further informationen:

Link to the website of the European Space Agency ESA with reports and background information on space debris: https://www.esa.int/Space_Safety/Space_Debris
Link to the website of the European Space Agency ESA with reports and background information on space weather: https://www.esa.int/Space_Safety/Space_weather

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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Information and Disinformation – the State of the Online Public Sphere

The media transformation has long been complete. This has created a complicated situation when it comes to news: The internet has become a marketplace of attention and, in principle, anyone can disseminate “content” via social media, websites or chat channels. Sources of news and information about public life are therefore no longer limited to newspaper offices and broadcasting organisations that do legitimate journalistic work – on the contrary, such established media are increasingly driven out by alternative providers. Some of these are more or less openly pursuing economic or political interests that are incompatible with adherence to journalistic standards, and some within the multitude of voices on the internet are deliberately spreading false or misleading reports. Such disinformation is a problem for democratic discourse, leads to uncertainty and polarisation and has direct effects in reality that are sometimes difficult or even impossible to capture. Such impacts are intended by the institutions that spread disinformation and are already widely visible; they are amplified by automated processes, algorithms and generative AI. How can we as a society respond to this development, and what role do journalists and media professionals have in this?

Christian Stöcker is a journalist, author and Professor of Digital Communication at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW Hamburg), where he heads the MA programme in Digital Communication. He was previously responsible for the “Netzwelt” section at SPIEGEL ONLINE. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, the expert on digital media and their social impact explains the transformation of the media landscape that we have undergone in recent decades, provides insights into the functioning and background of key online platforms and highlights links with current political and social developments. He describes the impact that the presence of disinformation has on the profession of journalism and how young media professionals are being prepared for it. Together with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring, Stöcker discusses the scenario that awaits us if disinformation strategies continue to be successful, what measures could be taken against them – and rules everyone who wants to preserve the possibilities of democratic discourse and contain the damage should submit to.

Episode 53 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Christian Stöcker of HAW Hamburg, 18 June 2024
Further informationen:

Link to the study by Soroush Vosoughi et. al (2016) on the spread of disinformation in online media mentioned in this interview: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aap9559
Link to the “Klickwinkel” initiative mentioned in this interview: https://klickwinkel.de/
Link to the “Use the News” initiative mentioned in this interview: https://www.usethenews.de/de

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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Bonus episode »Shifting Perspectives«: In conversation with the makers of the Digitalgespräch

The first Digitalgespräch was broadcasted on May 26, 2021. Three years and 50 episodes later, the podcast has established itself as a space for open and scientifically informed discourse on topics relating to “digitality”. To mark this small anniversary, we would like to pause for a moment and reflect – which is why the two hosts of Digitalgespräch, Petra Gehring and Marlene Görger, have switched sides for this episode.

The aim of the Digitalgespräch is to shine a spotlight on complex fields of action so that “the fog of big buzzwords clears”. The method: Gathering specific knowledge from various fields of work and research perspectives in discussions with experts and slowly putting the pieces together. In this way, many diverse facets of the digital came onto the agenda: smart contracts, digital forensics, the restoration of digital works of art, the handling of sensitive research data or mourning and dying in the digital age.

Considering the complex field of the “digital”, is a picture beginning to emerge, a connection, a coherent insight? Or is the number of pieces growing faster than it is possible to put them together? In the bonus episode, the two makers talk to the two ZEVEDI science editors Eneia Dragomir and Konstantin Schönfelder in the small recording studio in Darmstadt. After 50 episodes of Digitalgespräch, where has the fog lifted and where did we hear about things that may only come to the attention of a wider public in the future? What went well, what didn’t go so well and what can we expect from the next 50 episodes?

Marlene Görger is a physicist and philosopher of technology and has been working at the Centre Responsible Digitality since 2020. Petra Gehring is Professor of Philosophy at the Technical University of Darmstadt and Scientific Director of the Center.

Bonus episode: Digitalgespräch with Petra Gehring and Marlene Görger, April 24, 2024.

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A “Virtual Human Twin” made from Personal Data? On the Way to the Future of Healthcare

The term “virtual twin” originates from engineering. There, it describes digital models that are used to map, optimise and simulate real technical systems or processes in what is known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Such models are widely used today. What has not yet been realised is the idea that, in addition to technical systems, individual people or groups could also have such virtual representations from which their “system states” can be read. Such a holistic model could be used to optimise the overall state of “health”, for example. A large amount of data and complex software would be required to create such a “twin”, maybe even including “behaviour”. Corresponding ideas exist, and some of the visions go so far as to imagine the digital image of an entire person with body data and mental characteristics. The hope is that it will be possible to predict the development of a person’s state of health or plan individualised treatment in the event of illness. A “virtual human twin” would also be able to provide behavioural advice for optimal bodily functions and performance. It would potentially accompany its human counterpart throughout its life, measure it and also shape it through its influence. Until now, such ideas have been regarded as mere pipe dreams by experts. However, the EU is now actually planning to introduce “European Virtual Human Twins” for the medical care of its citizens – in any case, the path for this opening up. Is such a vision compatible with our current data protection laws? And what does this mean for a socially just and democratic healthcare system if it is to respect different lifestyles and values?

Malte Gruber is Professor of Civil Law and Philosophy of Law at Justus Liebig Universität Gießen and specialises in information law and the law of the digital economy, as well as technology law and the law of life sciences. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, the expert describes which concepts of “virtual human twins” play a role in current debates and developments, what motivates the EU Commission’s initiative and which legal and social questions arise if corresponding visions are to be realised. Together with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring, Gruber discusses realistic scenarios between hype and dystopia, which aspects are still receiving little attention in the current debate and what the vision of the future medical product “virtual human twin” reveals about our current relation to our bodies.

Episode 50 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Malte Gruber of Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen, 16 April 2024
Further informationen:

Zur Ankündigung der “European Virtual Human Twins Initiative” der EU Kommission: https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/virtual-human-twins

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.

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Tax Investigation with Artificial Intelligence: Panama, Pandora and more

Using artificial intelligence methods, it is now possible to compare, systemise and analyse large and large collections of files in very different formats. This is also a milestone for investigating authorities: IT experts can filter out relevant information and establish connections from data sets that would be impossible for investigators to sift through and process without technical aids. A famous example of such a gigantic data set and its successful handling are the so-called Panama Papers: a data leak that contained around 11.5 million documents or 2.6 terabytes of data in 2016 and documented cases of tax fraud and money laundering worldwide. Since then, several more such leaks have emerged, such as the even more extensive Pandora Papers in 2021. For investigators and authorities, this meant the need to identify those emails, databases, PDFs, images and other files that were relevant to their own jurisdiction from millions. AI is arguably what ultimately made the prosecution of the offences uncovered in the data possible in the first place, and the underlying technologies have been developing in leaps and bounds ever since. AI is clearly a powerful tool for state action, which can easily be used to find a needle in a haystack. In a democracy governed by the rule of law, it is all the more important to determine the purposes for which AI may be used.

Christian Voß is Head of the Forschungsstelle Künstliche Intelligenz (FSKI), which was set up at the Kassel tax office in 2019. In this episode of Digitalgespräch, the computer scientist and AI expert explains how this institution came about, what its tasks are and how AI supports tax investigations. He describes the measures required to analyse leaks such as the Panama Papers, how software solutions are developed for specific problems, what knowledge specialists need and how his interdisciplinary team works together with other agencies and also the university. Together with hosts Marlene Görger and Petra Gehring, Voß discusses conflicting priorities between data protection and criminal prosecution, the value that open source solutions bring and whether not only crime but also the rule of law is being challenged by technical progress in the IT sector.

Episode 49 of Digitalgespräch, feat. Christian Voß of Forschungsstelle Künstliche Intelligenz (FSKI), 26 March 2024
Further informationen:

Link to information on the dual study programme in computer science with a practical focus on tax investigation and IT forensics at the Kassel tax office: https://finanzverwaltung-mein-job.hessen.de/duales-studium/informatik-it-forensik-bsc

Link to the website IT HESSEN: https://it.hessen.de/

all episodes of Digitalgespräch

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The podcast is in German. At the moment there is no English version or transcript available.