The Johannes Kepler University Linz is the largest research and teaching institution in Upper Austria, and thus as a centre of knowledge transfer, the university contributes to the maintenance and the development of the region. It participates in centres of competence and develops spin-off programs supporting business start-ups. JKU has also close links with business and industry and an international network of partner and cooperations. Since 2000 it hosts the Excellence Initiative “Pervasive Computing”, headed by Prof. Ferscha.

The Department of Pervasive Computing has a strong tradition in identifying and addressing basic research problems and strategic research fields emerging from the evolution of a globalising information and knowledge society – as done in various consultations for the European Commission like for the BEYOND-THE-HORIZON (Ferscha was heading WP1 “Pervasive Computing and Communications”) or InterLink. In the recent FP7 project PANORAMA, Ferscha is responsible for the WP Research Agenda. Aside this, Ferscha has a strong background in simulation, interactive simulation and parallel and distributed simulation techniques (General Chairs of PADS’97, Program Chair of PADS’98, Program Chair of MASCOTS’99 and Program Chair of DS-RT 2008). This expertise in formal methods and algorithms for distributed and interactive simulation, as well as the engagement in the pervasive and ubiquitous computing domain will also drive the challenge of developing the SOCIONICAL Technical Systems, Parameterization, Agent Based Models and Data Driven Simulation Work Packages.