The Graduate School of Informatics recently held its FY2014 public seminar, "How Smartphones Work: Exploring the Technologies Inside", at Research Building No 8.
Focusing on smartphones, which are now a familiar part of everyday life for many people, this year's event presented relevant lectures by three faculty members of the school. All of the lectures given were intended primarily for junior and senior high school students.
The seminar began after Professor Toru Sato, Dean of the Graduate School, delivered an opening address, and Professor Masahiro Morikura explained the aim of the event.
The first lecture was given by Professor Morikura, who spoke on "How Are Smartphones Connected to Networks?", revealing how both wired and wireless communication networks are equipped with features for enabling smartphone communications. Next, Associate Professor Ryoichi Shinkuma spoke on the theme of "Smartphones as Companions?", exploring the question of whether smartphones could evolve into something that could be relied on in emergencies. Finally, Professor Hiroshi Harada outlined the latest trends in smartphone R&D in a lecture entitled "Where Are Smartphones Headed?"
The seminar was a great success, with many of its approximately 70 attendees -- who comprised junior and senior high school students, their guardians and teachers, university students, and other members of the public -- listening to the lectures with keen attention, taking copious notes and frequently asking questions.
A lecture scene
