25 September 2008
Dr. Sumit Ghosh
Chairman, Computer Science Department, The University of Texas at Tyler
Dear SDPS Transdisciplinarians, A very, very warm welcome to all of you. Special greetings to all our well-wishers, supporters, and benefactors. I preface this brief note by expressing my deep gratitude to all of you for electing me to serve you.
Let me take a moment to highlight what is so unique about SDPS and to review how our society has all the exceptional elements to become recognized in the future as the visionary leader among all professional societies. First, to the best of my knowledge, among all technical societies, SDPS’s membership is the most diverse. Thus, SDPS’ claim as the first professional society for transdisciplinary research and education is on solid footing. Our society includes world-renowned professors from the top international universities, Nobel laureates, Nobel prize nominees, inventors, authors, presidents and academic leaders of international universities, industry leaders, social scientists, leaders of social movements, policy makers and officials from international governments and non-profit organizations, and, most notable, a cadre of young professionals who are dedicated and motivated to lead SDPS into the future. Second, of greatest importance, SDPS has and continues to attract individuals to whom furthering their career through SDPS is less important; they have reached a stage in their lives, age notwithstanding, where promoting the good of the world through their knowledge and experience has become their principal driving force. Our extended family includes accountants, astronomers, biologists, chemists, computer scientists, economists, educators, all branches of engineering, geneticists, industrial and business visionaries, mathematicians, medical and health professionals, pharmaceutical researchers, physicists, philosophers and spiritual leaders, sociologists, software architects, transportation specialists, and others. We fondly like to call ourselves transdisciplinarians, i.e., our interests and foci have transcended our formal education, background, and training. All of us share a common passion, namely, combine knowledge in all its glorious dimensions to yield something incredibly original that promises to bring great technology-based benefits to the world. We all sincerely believe in our hearts that knowledge is a continuum and does not come to us compartmentalized. Third, SDPS is extraordinarily lucky to have been co-founded by a rare group of pioneering visionaries, namely, Profs. Ramamoorthy, Yeh, Ertas, and Tanik, and late Prof. George Kozmetsky. Their nurturing guidance, timeless wisdom, benevolence, and experience will provide lasting wind beneath the wings of SDPS.
While it is an honor beyond description to serve as President of SDPS, words fail to capture my indescribable excitement about the future role of SDPS. It is my firm belief that SDPS has already laid the concrete foundation for transdisciplinary thinking. The time has come for all of us to build upon that foundation and provide a showcase to the international community -- a working model and practical examples of how to engage in transdisciplinary collaboration. We expect amazing outcomes in research and education. Toward this goal, I have sought advice and suggestions from many society members, integrated them with my own vision, and compiled the following list of SDPS’ major aspirations:
1. First and foremost, we need to undertake an all-out effort to identify one or two real-world problems, that are challenging, promise amazing benefits to the citizens of the world, and, most important, require synergistic expertise across multiple disciplines to synthesize a solution. Problems such as world hunger and global water crisis threaten our very existence today. Pollution, energy shortage, transportation, humanitarian needs, security, natural disasters, health, international development, ethnic violence and terrorism, and military conflict are a few of the global complex problems facing humankind in the 21st century. By defining, articulating, and addressing these ill structured global problems, SDPS aspires to create an "Open Laboratory" for the world.
2. Second, we will work with industry, universities, public organizations, and private institutions and continuously engage ourselves in identifying and addressing highly useful problems that cut across two or more of the traditional disciplines. Through our initiatives and dedicated efforts, SDPS will emerge as a shining beacon to all transdisciplinary research efforts, today and into the future.
3. Third, throughout history and even to this day, researchers and scientists who are devoted to the transdisciplinary approach have faced great obstacles. Not only did they lack support from the established institutions; often, they faced severe and bitter opposition. Over the years, SDPS has served as a champion, seeking out outstanding pioneers and recognizing them with gold medals, awards, invited membership in SDPS, and other honors. We must continue this great tradition with an even greater zeal. As the next step, we must all make a strong effort to identify and recognize young researchers who have begun to demonstrate their talent and passion. SDPS must solemnly stand by them in solidarity so that they realize they are not alone. This may also serve as a strategic model to grow the SDPS membership. Prof. Ertas’ NGLC initiative has already sparked this effort and it has been embraced with great enthusiasm.
4. Fourth, by its very mission and vision, SDPS is built on the foundation of openness. Members have been encouraged to take initiatives with a broad scope. In the coming years and decades, we must stress on this unique attribute and ask the members, especially the NGLC, to undertake even more ambitious initiatives to foster growth. One initiative that has already been floated is to introduce new technical sessions in our annual SDPS conferences, representing a collaboration between the Software Engineering Society (SES) and SDPS.
5. Fifth, by nature, transdisciplinary research results are visionary, imaginative, encapsulate very high-quality thinking, and, therefore, unusual. They often transcend the contemporary mathematical and scientific thinking and, as a result, they lack the expected rigor, set by the current standards. Consequently, throughout history and even as we speak, archival publications of such radically new findings have met with debilitating resistance. SDPS’s peer-reviewed journal is unlike the refereed publications of virtually all other professional, technical societies in that our charter does not prescribe any self-imposed limits on the scope of our search for knowledge, both in depth and breadth. We must not only treasure this uniqueness but pursue our mission aggressively so that we will be recognized as the bold pioneers of the future. By establishing original review criteria for such unusual research papers and through other initiatives, we must elevate our journal to a point, where we will attract the publication of a majority of the far-reaching, cross-disciplinary inventions and discoveries. Effort has already been under way and we must strengthen it further.
These aspirations require open discussions, thorough review, constructive criticisms, and must be continuously refined as we journey forward. I enthusiastically invite your feedback and comments. There are three more, highly ambitious, long-term proposals/initiatives in the area of higher education for which SDPS would serve as a natural leader. I will bring them to you in due course of time.
Although SDPS may appear too broad and diverse, it is highly focused when viewed from the higher, meta-level. The SDPS membership is committed to sharing, adapt, combining, and evolving their knowledge to approach the ideals of transdisciplinary research and education. We transdisciplinarians are so richly endowed in our combined breadth and depth of knowledge that we genuinely have the wherewithal to pursue new paradigms in the absolute sense. We have also developed an unprecedented mindset, through which we can bring unique talents together and forge real collaborations. We are in a fortuitous position to pursue difficult scientific/engineering problems such as counteracting plate tectonics that cause devastating earthquakes, designing a whole new propulsion drive for deep space exploration, developing entirely new memory models for computers, enhancing hearing and sight in human beings qualitatively, knowledge sharing through social networking, and employing spirituality and ethics to induce creativity and insights in our students. In a previous SDPS conference, we began exploring the idea of a high-tech cottage industry that offers a novel living and working environment that promises to qualitatively exceed the current urbanization that is poisoning the world. Some of our members have inspired the idea of photon-based computing engines, innovative medical imaging techniques beyond monitoring and into therapeutic use, and cultivating future academic and industry leaders who can forge new economic regions. SDPS has limitless potential and we must make every effort to help unfold those potentials, thereby leaving our footprints on the sands of time. I will be consulting with the NGLC, senior members, and founding members to develop new initiatives and bring them to you in the coming months.
Thank you again for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to serve you and, together, I eagerly look forward to SDPS’ greatest achievements.
Sincerely,
Sumit Ghosh
