By Larry Bernard
The future of information technology -- from wireless communications to new imaging systems -- is the topic of the 1996 Cornell Society of Engineers annual conference April 12 and 13 on cam pus.
Called "This Is IT: Information Technology at Cornell and Beyond," the conference will highlight research in the rapidly developing field of information communications. Featured will be speakers from the Cornell faculty and from industry and a keynote address by William L. Schrader ('74, MBA '84), a Cornell alum recently featured in Time magazine as an "Internet mogul" and multimillionaire. Schrader helped run the Cornell Theory Center after graduating and founded PSINet in 1990, a firm that provides Internet access to businesses and individuals.
The conference will offer workshops on improving electronic communication skills, getting the most out of the Internet and taking advantage of the World Wide Web. Tours of Cornell engineering research centers and laboratories also will be available. The program is sponsored by the College of Engineering and the Cornell Society of Engineers and is held in conjunction with the School of Electrical Engineering Advisory Council meetings.
Proceedings begin at 9:15 a.m. Friday, April 12, in the Statler Hall Amphitheatre, with welcom ing remarks by Joe McAfee (mechanical engineering '63), president of the society, and introductions by Karl Miller (electrical engineering '64).
Cornell College of Engineering Dean John Hopcroft, a leader in the area of theoretical com puter science, will address a luncheon crowd at noon on Friday, April 12, in the Statler Hotel Ball room, in a talk entitled "Information Technology and the College of Engineering."
The keynote address is scheduled during the conference banquet, 7:15 to 9 p.m., Friday, April 12, in the Statler Ballroom, with Schrader, chief executive officer of Performance System International. His talk is on "Advances in Information Technology and the Future of the Internet."
For registration information, call Jeanne Subialka, conference registrar, at 255-9920, or e-mail her at <jms20@cornell.edu>. Information and a registration form also are available on the World Wide Web at <http://www.engr.cornell.edu/Newsline/Newsline.html>. Registration is $99 and includes all sessions and meals. The fee for Cornell faculty, staff and students is waived, but meals are extra.