Thursday April 26th

19:45 live music
20:15 speakers
Café Loburg

We are more connected to the digital world than ever before. Whatever we do nowadays, be it work related or social, dealing with banks or with the government, even jogging, chances are we’ll use the internet. All the devices we use are becoming increasingly connected to each other, forming the Internet of Things, although we don’t always realise the implication of this in our life and specially in our online safety and privacy. Cyber security is about more than just online privacy. What about hacking of planes, digital warfare between countries or meddling with elections? This Science Café will bring you the ins and outs of a life connected to the internet. Particularly cyber security, the major threats we face, and how we are kept safe. Join us in the discussion on the importance of cyber security and the extent to which we are willing to go to reduce the risks inherent to our digital lives. Speakers: Prof. BedirTekinerdogan (WUR) and Jan Rochat (AET Europe).

Our first speaker is Professor Bedir Tekinerdogan from the chair group Information Technology here at Wageningen University. Expert in information technology, software engineering and the Internet of Things, he got his MSc and Phd in Computer Science at the University of Twente. He was faculty member at the same university until 2008 when he the joined the staff of Bilkent University in Turkey before taking up a professorship in Wageningen in 2015. He has more than 25 years of experience in information technology and software engineering research and education. He has been active in dozens of national and international research and consultancy projects with various large software companies whereby he has worked as a principal researcher and leading software/system architect. In this Science cafe, he will talk to us about the Internet of Things, our connection to the digital world, and how one of its main challenges is cybersecurity.

Our second speaker is Jan Rochat, Cofounder and Chief Technology Officer of AET Europe, which is a global leader in the area of digital security solutions. He directly oversees several strong security tools developed using military grade technology. He is a strong believer in the key role of security and privacy in our current digital world. He also works as an independent security and cryptography expert for various security projects. He helps businesses protect their networks, applications, and information assets from malicious or careless employees, criminal hackers and unforeseen events. Jan Rochat has extensive knowledge on a variety of fields directly related to information security such as Identity and Access Management, Physical Access Control Security, cyber security and security management policies and procedures. Before cofounding AET Europe his career started in the Dutch Ministry of Defence as Chief Architect and later as security consultant at Capgemini. In this Science cafe, he will talk to us about the main challenges in cybersecurity and how our security and privacy is and will be kept safe, now and in the future.

Thursday March 8th

14:00 Registration
14:30 Speakers
17:45 Drinks
Aula
Wageningen University & Research
Generaal Foulkesweg 1, Wageningen

FREE
Online registration required here
Registration full. A livestream will be available on WURtv

Ten years ago major discoveries at the level of comparative genomics and molecular microbiology have demonstrated that CRISPR-Cas is a heritable adaptive immune system in bacteria and archaea. Initial biochemical analysis revealed that the mechanism of CRISPR-Cas systems is generally based on RNA-guided DNA interference. Moreover, CRISPR guides have successfully been designed to alter their specificity, meaning that any DNA sequence can be targeted by CRISPR-associated (Cas) nucleases. These key findings have initiated a revolution in both fundamental and applied research. Basic discoveries include the exploration of the natural diversity of CRISPR-Cas systems and the characterization of structure-function relations of CRISPR-associated proteins and RNA guides. Repurposing of the Cas proteins has led to the spectacular development of a range of applications in biotechnology and medicine. In this Symposium, four speakers will address different aspects of the CRISPR-Cas research: evolution, mechanism, genome editing, and ethics.

Keynote speaker, Eugene Koonin, Professor of Evolutionary and Computational Biology, National Center for Biotechnology Information and National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States – On the origin of CRISPR‐Cas

John van der Oost, Professor of Microbiology & Biochemistry, Wageningen University & Research – CRISPR‐Cas – from RNA to R&D

Niels Geijsen, Professor of Regenerative Medicine, Hubrecht Institute KNAW, Utrecht – Gene editing with a pinch of salt

Annelien Bredenoord, Professor of Ethics of Biomedical Innovation, University Medical Center Utrecht – Why we should (not) modify the human germline…

Moderated by prof. John van der Oost and prof. Willem M. de Vos from the Laboratory of Microbiology, Wageningen University & Research.

This symposium is organized in collaboration with the KNAW and the Laboratory of Microbiology.

More information here.