On March 27, 2024, Professor Oliver Deussen, a tenured professor at the University of Konstanz in Germany, visited the School of Information Technology at Renmin University of China. He delivered a keynote lecture titled "Creativity, Critical Thinking and the Foundations of Science." More than 60 faculty members and students, including Professor Wang Yunhai from the Key Laboratory and Associate Professor Zhao Suyun from the Department of Computer Science, attended the event both online and offline.
Oliver Deussen graduated from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany and is the founder of Xfrog, a renowned plant modeling technology. He is one of the most prolific and influential scholars in the field of digital plant modeling. His research areas primarily include complex scene modeling, non-photorealistic rendering, geometric processing, and information visualization. In 2014, Professor Deussen was nominated for the Academy Award for Scientific and Technical Achievement.
Professor Oliver Deussen remarked that in recent years, computer graphics and information visualization have developed complex modeling methods and techniques. However, the latest advancements in artificial intelligence present new challenges to established image creation methods. Through a few simple examples, Professor Deussen guided students in discussing future technological developments, sparking reflections on the relationship between creativity, critical thinking, and the foundations of science. He emphasized that creativity involves doing things that have never been done before, akin to his use of biological methods for computer graphics-assisted art generation.
During the Q&A session, Professor Deussen patiently answered the students' questions. The lecture concluded in a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere.
