The most important
life science innovation at Medica:
human organisms collaborating.
A few months back there was an online article listing the advantages of a virtual convention vs. an actual in-person convention. The points made were valid: added convenience, reduced time and costs, richer data, vastly improved accessibility for persons who are disabled, the option to boost learning session engagement with gamification, and others.
As you probably know, thanks to COVID, the 2020 Medica convention, like most other large business gatherings that year, was completely virtual. Yet 2021 saw the return of the traditional Medica, and this year's event could see one of the largest turnouts ever.
No surprise. Nothing beats meeting real people face-to-face. There is a tremendous advantage in seeing an entire person, hearing every nuance of their speech, consciously and unconsciously taking in information typically unavailable via Zoom: subtle variations in a person's facial expressions and inflections that are essential elements of interpersonal communication. Plus, no dogs barking, babies crying, or technical glitches.
Humans are a social species. People continuously interact with each other to achieve goals or simply to exchange states of mind. The human brain has evolved not just in cognitive processing, but in social processing.
Therefore of course, virtually all the business conducted throughout history has also been based upon social processing, all the way back to the earliest known business, in which obsidian was traded for tools, skins and food in New Guinea around 19,000 years ago.
People are going to Medica in Dusseldorf because they want to experience life science innovations with all their senses, and to try them out directly. They also want the spontaneous encounters and relaxed conversations during breaks that lead to valuable connections and perhaps even new ways of thinking.
It is undeniable: humans are social creatures. PM&P will be sending some of its own social creatures to Medica this month, in order to promote FDIs with investor companies on behalf of our clients.
