[Excerption from T-time Vol.13 / 2006.6]

Interview with Professor Yoichiro Matsumoto,
newly appointed Dean of the Faculty of Engineering
and the School of Engineering


We interviewed Professor Yoichiro Matsumoto, who has assumed the office of Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and the School of Engineering, about his aspirations and objectives.

Professor Yoichiro Matsumoto Newly appointed Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and the School of Engineering

Q: Could you tell us your aspirations as Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and the School of Engineering?
As Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and the School of Engineering, I would like to create an environment where people in the organization including students, faculty, office clerks and technical staff can enjoy working. My task is to give consideration to and make necessary arrangements for the smooth operation of the entire organization.
My ultimate objective is to ensure that “engineering for society” is practiced in this faculty.

Q: What do you think is the attractiveness and role of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Tokyo?
In general, people working at the Faculty of Engineering are highly capable. Having those talented people around is a major feature of the Faculty. From an engineering point of view, how one solves problems is important. At the same time, one can explore one’s specialty through the problem solving process and that leads to its usefulness for society, which is a very attractive aspect of the engineering department. In order to realize “engineering for society”, the people involved need to develop and maximize their ability. For the development of their ability, it is necessary to figure out how engineering can contribute to society prior to deepening their interest and specialty. The aim of the University of Tokyo is to become a world leader. Being a world leader means to have a broader view beyond one’s specialty, to think how one can contribute to global society, and to keep yielding solid results continuously from the Faculty of Engineering and the University of Tokyo.

Q: How would you like to improve the Faculty?
The conversion of national universities into independent administrative entities was the starting point from which the University of Tokyo needed to become independent. The University of Tokyo has conducted research and educational activities with high self-disciplined academic freedom so far and this policy will remain unchanged. Meanwhile, overall institutional design and direction setting which used to be done by the government is now our own responsibility and depends on our decisions. This system does not yet seem to be working effectively. We need to adjust it to let it operate smoothly. For some time after World War�U, Japan could only follow Western countries. Now that Japan has become one of the world’s leading nations, the University of Tokyo has the responsibility to develop unique and emerging technologies. Being expected to bring out something new from chaos instead of from a defined area as before requires us to have some kind of diversity. Creating an organization adjustable to diversity demands that both faculty and office clerks do what they are unfamiliar with. Therefore, all the people involved should have a voluntary attitude towards innovation. In order to facilitate this approach, we need to create opportunities for discussion, because it is quite a new way of living for a university. This is a major improvement, which requires fundamental reform of the organization. We shouldn’t rush, but constantly reflect on what we have done, and discuss what we need to change.

Q: What do you think is the academic attractiveness of engineering?
Essential elements for human life are to live healthily, with human rights protected and as a member of a sound society. Engineering directly serves to form a sound society. Because engineering is closely connected to human life, one’s research has significant impact and a direct influence on society. This is the biggest attraction of engineering. Furthermore, engineering makes practical use of the most advanced scientific knowledge for society. Utilizing its wide-ranging conception, engineering makes remarkable contributions also in the field of science. People in the Department
of Applied Physics, School of Engineering, for example, have been doing excellent jobs in fundamental areas, competitive with the ones at the Department of Physics, School of Science. Besides, they have a broader range of applications from precise instrumentation to practical applications. This is also an attractive feature of engineering.

Q: Could you tell us about your research?
My research field is Fluid Mechanics/ Fluids Engineering, a study of the working principles of gases and liquids. When I conduct my research, I try to have a view to making use of fluid mechanics for people. One of my recent research areas is medical applications [Professor Matsumoto is a member of the Center for NanoBio Integration].

Q: What do you hope to do in the future?
Structuring and transforming one’s knowledge to be useful for society is a dream of engineers. Basically, I like this process and I will continue to do what I am interested in. An important thing is to consider what society seeks for and what we engineers can do for it, not only to satisfy oneself. My goal is to utilize my knowledge for the benefit of society and to cooperate with other researchers exchanging in-depth knowledge in order to achieve what not everyone can do.
As Dean, I hope to see the School of Engineering work dynamically and make continued invention both at a research level and an educational level. For this purpose, I would like our students and researchers to master their specialty and cooperate with each other, not to confine themselves within their specific fields.

Q: Could you give a message to students aiming for engineering?
The first advice that I would like to give is: “Study hard and sincerely.” It would be valuable for you to experience the lesson that if you work hard on something, you will be interested in it. That experience will be an asset for your future. The second one is: “It is important to make efforts to understand other people.” Through such efforts, you will be able to view yourself objectively and to have better understanding of other people. If you achieve these two, you will get to see society and to consider what you can do for the society. Considering what you can do for society is more important than wondering what society will do for you. Engineering is very powerful. In order to make full use of engineering knowledge, you need to establish theoretical thinking. This is engineering and it is a very fundamental thinking process for human activities. I would like many people to join the Faculty of Engineering, work together and study together.

Contact：
Global Ware Project
Center for Innovation in Engineering Education
School of Engineering, the University of Tokyo
e-mail:
morimura ＠ t-adm.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp
Tel: +81-3-5841-6044; +81-3-5841-7549