News 2023

What leads to the emergence of hypes, what fuels them, what brings them to a sudden end, or helps them gain momentum? The new TATuP issue’s Special topic aims to contribute to a better understanding of the dynamics behind technology hypes.

Global demand for lithium batteries is increasing – bottlenecks in the supply of raw materials seem unavoidable. In the EU project MUSIC, ITAS researchers analyze whether sodium-based supercapacitors could be a sustainable alternative.

The TAB report sheds light on the use of digital solutions in water and waste management. It identifies ways in which municipalities can exploit the potential of digitalization while ensuring the security of supply and disposal.

What would happen if we were rewarded for every climate protection measure in their everyday lives? What could appropriate rewards look like and would they be desirable at all? These questions were the focus of the citizens´ dialogue on 14 October 2023.

How can agriculture and forestry benefit from digitalization? For four years, the partners of the DESIRA project dealt with questions of digital transformation in rural areas across Europe. Now they have completed the project.

The German Federal Ministry for Economy wants to create a legal framework for the interaction of science and society in real world labs. Oliver Parodi, real world lab pioneer at ITAS, welcomes the endeavor, but calls for a “consistent sustainability orientation.”

For a successful mobility transition, it is important to understand the conditions under which people are willing to change their choice of mobility destinations. ITAS scientist Maike Puhe dealt with this issue in her dissertation.

In the BMBF-funded KIARA project, ITAS is working on AI-assisted robot systems for defense against radiological hazards. The researchers investigate the ethical aspects of the technology and want to develop a blueprint for practical standards.

Against much opposition, the economist Herbert Paschen established technology assessment in Karlsruhe and paved the way for TA for the German Bundestag. An appreciation of the first head of ITAS by Armin Grunwald.

The Committee for Education, Research and Technology Assessment of the German Bundestag unanimously decided in its meeting on 21 June 2023 to commission ITAS with the further operation of TAB until 2028.

As temperatures rise, so does the need for cooling and air conditioning in Germany. The TAB short study sheds light on the interaction between climate change and cooling demand and shows what sustainable innovations and cooling strategies can look like.

Since the beginning of the year, ITAS has been monitoring socio-technical developments for the Austrian parliament, alongside the Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) in Vienna. Now the researchers have presented their first joint report.

In addressing pressing policy challenges such as building resilience to disruptions and ensuring environmental sustainability, the European Parliament’s STOA Panel continues to draw on the expertise of a group of international TA institutions led by ITAS.

ITAS is investigating the conditions and reasons for trust, distrust, and reliability in science, technology, and innovation. With iRECS and IANUS, two new projects funded by the European Commission deal with the topic.

What role do computer models and AI applications play in policy decisions? And what are the consequences for the work on technology assessment? The current TATuP special topic focuses on these questions.

Experiments to develop new technologies often take place directly in the environment or society. A new TAB background paper sheds light on the governance of such real-world experiments using the examples of green genetic engineering, fracking and ocean fertilisation.

With three "FutureBowls", the Karlsruhe Real-world Lab for Sustainable Climate Protection (KARLA) has encouraged an exchange on more climate-friendly and sustainable food offerings in canteens. Other stakeholders should now benefit from the results.

Tanja Sinozic-Martinez from the Austrian Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA) is conducting research at ITAS for six months. ITAS researcher Jutta Jahnel takes the opposite route. The aim of the exchange is to deepen cooperation on digital topics.

Building long-term and Europe-wide partnerships for the development of sustainable batteries in the future – this is the goal of the “TwinVECTOR” project. ITAS contributes its expertise in the field of life cycle analysis to the EU project.

Breeding plants in a way that promotes diversity is regarded as a central element of future-proof and sustainable agriculture. However, TAB believes that the public debate does not yet do justice to the importance of this topic.

Not least due to its ecological advantages, timber construction is currently experiencing a renaissance and is increasingly finding its way into inner-city areas. The TAB Short Study deals with the status quo and the perspectives of urban timber construction.

More and more people inform themselves via search engines, social networks or video platforms that select their content with the help of algorithms. A new TAB working report examines how this practice affects opinion formation.