2026-10-08, 09:30–10:00 (Europe/Madrid), Aula Magna
GIS&T has accumulated enormous scientific and technological energy, producing an explosion of data, sensors, models, formats, standards, software and research initiatives. But is this a controlled explosion? Are we constructing a rigorous and interconnected representation of the Earth, or a universe of disconnected “solar systems” in which interoperability conceals losses of geometry, topology, semantics, metadata and time? Using examples from Earth observation, cartography, multiscale modelling and 3D representation, this talk invites the community to look beyond immediate technological achievements and reconsider the foundations on which a global digital representation of the Earth should be built.