Information Science, established in 1974, the Zentrum für Interdisziplinäre Technikforschung (Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies on Technology), founded in 1987, and the Department of Materials Science, established in 1989. This department has been housed in a new building on the Lichtwiese since 1996. Renaming By the end of the 19th century, Technische Hochschule Darmstadt had been granted the legal status of a university, and had been offering a correspondingly wide range of subjects. For these reasons, and also with the objective of sharpening public awareness of the university's status at home and abroad, Technische Hochschule Darmstadt was renamed Technische Universität Darmstadt (which is also its official English name albeit often called Darmstadt University of Technology) on 1 October 1997. This name change was partly prompted by misunderstandings that had occurred in English-speaking countries, where Technische Hochschule had often been mistakenly transliterated as 'Technical High School', providing a totally misleading connotation. Autonomy and TU Darmstadt Law On 1 January 2005, the first version of the TU Darmstadt Law applied making TU Darmstadt the first German public university to be given administrative autonomy. New administrative structures were put into place, and their success is being evaluated. For instance, the university can now autonomously administer its budget and buildings. Also, the university can hire professors and negotiate their salaries by itself. Formerly this was done by the State of Hessen. The status of autonomy also allows TU Darmstadt to invest in business start-ups. The Technische Universität Darmstadt is the only German university that has legally committed itself to guarantee their students good studying conditions. The TU Darmstadt law in its current state has legal force up to 31 December 2020. The university as a pioneer In 1882, the Technische Hochschule Darmstadt was the first university in the world to set up a chair for electrical engineering and founded the first faculty for it in 1883. The first chair holder was Erasmus Kittler. In the same year the university introduced the world's first course of study in electrical engineering. In 1913, the university set up the first chair for aviation and aircraft technology in Germany. The TH Darmstadt set up the first chair for scientific policy in 1951. The first chair holder was Eugen Kogon. He is considered one of the founders of political science in Germany. The TH Darmstadt shaped the subject of corporate governance in Germany. In 1973, the university established the first