What would the world look like if we could access documents from the past just as easily as we can access data from the present? Could we use it to make better forecasts for the future? Would it be possible to shape climate change and development more consciously on the basis of comprehensively documented records? Can historical 4D simulations improve our knowledge of European history? Which innovative business models promote tourism, transport, and planning?

The FET flagship project Time Machine, of which TU Dresden is a founding member, investigates these questions. Dr. Sander Münster and Stephan Schwartzkopff from the Media Centre of TU Dresden will organise the development of the German support community. The next step is to apply for EU funding for the preliminary phase of the flagship project, in which the main proposal will then be jointly developed.

The FET Flagship Time Machine is a network of scientists from more than 160 international institutions in more than 30 countries who together want to build a virtual time machine. This large scale simulator maps 2,000 years of European history, transforming miles and miles of archives and large museum collections into a digital information system. The Time Machine is more than just a collection of documents and abstract models. It makes the past accessible as a new space of experience, as simulation and virtual reality technologies enable the complete immersion also in vanished places. Furthermore, the researchers hope that in the course of the Time Machine project digital tools and instruments will be developed that will facilitate future decision-making and planning processes in the 21st century. The possibility of incorporating the historical depth into forecasts will have a lasting influence on the societal areas of education, health, economy, justice, industry, the environment, etc.

The Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Flagships are ambitious, agenda-based research initiatives with a ten-year timeframe. The aim is to attract the best scientists and to establish permanent European Centres of Excellence, which are world leaders in their field.

Information for Journalists
Dr. Sander Münster
Mail:
Phone: +49 (0)351 463 32530