Greetings! In writing this article on a recent
autumn weekend in Upstate New York, I was reminded that my term
as President of the EMC Society has nearly reached its midpoint.
I guess the shorter days that come along with the season and the
recent bout of several inches of snow (prematurely I might add!)
put me in somewhat of a pensive mood. I must say that 2006 thus
far has been a very enjoyable and rewarding year for me, both
on a professional and personal level. Speaking for myself, business
has been generally good. The economy seems to be making a turn
for the better at least in part. The unprecedented highs in gasoline
prices in the US have come down significantly. Hybrid vehicles
along with wind and solar power seem to be gaining in popularity
to alleviate our dependence on petroleum and to offset any harmful
effects on our environment. Of course, certain events of a political
nature and on an international scale are not all as positive and
present many challenges to technologists, politicians, sociologists
and economists, but that’s another story for another day.
Suffice it to say we are challenged perhaps more today than at
any other time in history and in so many different ways. Challenge
is good whether it be on a small or large scale. For example,
where would EMC be without EMI whether it is related to a small
device or a large, complex system? But forgive me, I digress…
Let’s dwell for the time being on some good things both
recent and upcoming. Over the past year, I have had many excellent
opportunities for personal outreach to our members around the
world and to engage in fruitful discussions of issues as well
as new ideas that would benefit the EMC Society. One of the best
opportunities for this exchange was at the 2006 International
IEEE Symposium on EMC in Portland, Oregon this past August.
As the cover of the Newsletter shows, this issue is devoted to
the 2006 EMC Symposium. In keeping with tradition, I would like
to largely dedicate this article to the same theme, but rather
than focus on the technical issues, the best practices, and membership
statistics, allow me to offer instead a few of my own personal
reflections about the Symposium and my brief tour of the Portland
area. I promise to address the EMC Society related issues, concerns,
and potential solutions as part of my outreach efforts in a future
article! So, more to come on that later.
I will, however, bring to your attention below some important
topics covered in this edition of the newsletter and other news
items which I hope will be of interest to you.
Another World-Class EMC Symposium!
Every IEEE EMC symposium held since our Society’s inception
has had its own special “character” and stamp of distinction.
Portland was no exception. As Henry Benitez, the Symposium Chairman
put it, “…‘Exploring EMC Frontiers’ as
we step into the future of EMC, while recognizing the 200th anniversary
of the Lewis and Clark Expedition and the 300th birthday of the
great Benjamin Franklin...” The Symposium theme very nicely
interweaved the rich history, heritage, pageantry and “local”
flavor of the Pacific Northwest with a soulful nod to the future.
The technical and social programs were excellent. Please see Henry’s
extended article in this Newsletter edition which covers the Portland
Symposium activities in greater detail. I would like to acknowledge
Henry and his steering committee, including Vita Feuerstein of
IEEE Conference Management Services and Barry Wallen, our Vice
President of Conference Services, for their efforts in making
this a successful event.
There is so much activity during the symposium week that it is
often a challenge, for me at least, to keep track of the potpourri
of technical presentations, committee meetings, social as well
as private events, and tours that are scheduled. When I reflect
on the week as a whole, a few memorable events stand out. Let
me take a moment to highlight several of these standout moments
from the Symposium and my visit to the Portland area…
Perhaps the one Symposium event that really knocked my socks off
was this year’s Children’s Program. This program was
started several years ago and really took off at our Montréal
EMC Symposium in 2001. This is an event that is geared at making
EMC engineering fun for children and young adults who may be aspiring
(EMC) engineers. The theme this year was “Calling All Young
Engineers! Boats, Boats, Boats.” The young people who participated
were tasked with building a hydroplane and then entering their
boats into a race. It was enjoyable and encouraging to see the
youngsters hard at work installing simple circuits with motors,
batteries, and wires. The finished products were then tested and
raced on the makeshift “Lake EMC” in the main Exhibit
Hall of the Oregon Convention Center. “Captain” Gayla
Burns was the inspiration for all this in front of and behind
the scenes. She capably led the youths on their quest to win the
race in team effort fashion. Along the way, the children learned
a great deal about basic EMI and how to “build” EMC
into their hydroplanes. Yours truly was extremely proud to be
part of the “skipper’s team” judging the contests
and spurring on the children during the race trials. You can read
more about this program on page 39 of this Newsletter. Thank you
Gayla for a job well done and for sparking the interest in our
future EMC engineers and technologists!
Next, on to Wednesday’s Gala event. Over the past several
years, each symposium committee has gone to great lengths to assure
us a memorable social program, in particular, the Wednesday evening
gala. Sometimes they try to outdo each other from year to year.
Competition is good. Oftentimes, arrangements are made to take
us to a special place (e.g., Smithsonian Air and Space Museum)
or offer us an entertaining show (e.g., Cirque de Soleil). This
year in Portland we sort of went back to basics and it worked
well. Instead of arranging for an outside venue and busses, the
gala was held at the Oregon Convention Center, the hub of the
main Symposium activities. Classic entertainment was provided
courtesy of Henrik Bothe aka “Neon Man” who did some
outstanding juggling, told some risqué jokes, and did a
balancing act on a unicycle in addition to the Neon Man show,
which mere words cannot adequately describe, but which nonetheless
was cool and you just had to be there. This was extra special
for me because my son Evan was enlisted as an unwitting participant
by Henrik to assist him during his unicycle juggling/balancing
trick. I’ll never forget the amusing banter between Henrik
and Evan and the plain fun in watching man and boy interact on
stage. The evening was rounded out by the Trail Band which did
a rendition of folk songs in tribute to the Lewis and Clark trek.
Local volunteers and actors were costumed in the accoutrements
of the Lewis and Clark era, which added yet another touch of class
to an already memorable event.
Thursday’s EMC Symposium Awards Luncheon offered us another
opportunity to recognize many of our Society’s leaders and
technical contributors for 2005-2006, as well as acknowledge several
of our recently deceased members. The details of the awards and
our worthy recipients are included in this Newsletter edition.
As I mentioned in my previous message and on a personal note,
we bestowed the President’s Memorial Award this year in
honor of Jose Perini who passed away on 2 June 2006. The award
was made to Vignesh Rajamani of Oklahoma State University. Many
of Jose’s family members and friends were there to share
in a tribute to honor him and Vignesh. It was a heartwarming tribute
and set the tone for what I felt was one of the best awards luncheons
I had ever attended or been part of. My compliments to Bruce Archambeault,
Awards Chairman, for his professionalism and occasional humor
sprinkled in during the luncheon.
During the latter part of the week, I had a chance to visit the
Pittock Mansion where the EMC 2007 Symposium Committee dinner
meeting was held. The mansion is a fully furnished, magnificent,
turn-of-the century, architectural treasure offering a sweeping
view of the surrounding Cascade Mountains and the city of Portland.
The mansion was home to Portland pioneers Henry and Georgiana
Pittock from 1914 to 1919. We learned some interesting history
about the original occupants. Henry Pittock, a consummate businessman,
took ownership of the Weekly Oregonian in 1860, changing its format
to the daily paper that is read today. From humble beginnings,
he went on to build an empire incorporating real estate, banking,
railroads, steamboats, sheep ranching, silver mining, and the
pulp and paper industry. His wife Georgiana dedicated herself
to improving the lives of the community’s women and children.
Together, Henry and Georgiana began a long life of work, community
service, and devotion to family, which would last 58 years. With
its eclectic architectural design and richly decorated interior,
including family artifacts, the Pittock Mansion stands today as
a living memorial of this family’s contributions to the
blossoming of Portland and its people.
Lastly, I had the opportunity amidst the busy schedule and frenetic
pace of the symposium week to take an excursion with my family
to Mount St. Helens. Needless to say, we were awe struck by the
stark beauty and grandeur of the mountain and its environs, harkening
back to the time of the last major eruption and nature’s
fury unleashed. At the risk of waxing philosophic, this encounter
with the mountain evoked contemplations on science and nature
intertwined, and put my world into the perspective of greater
things, events, and experiences. I appreciated the opportunity
and the chance to be with my family in a more relaxed mode during
an otherwise hectic week.
While there was so much more going on during symposium week in
Portland, as the song goes, …these were a few of my favorite
things…
Through the Looking Glass
Upon inspecting the Newsletter, readers will find that we have
added several new features and associate editors. We now have
a “Design Tips” column. Bruce Archambeault is our
Associate Editor for this new column and he is looking for your
inputs. Also, Bob Nelson, who is the new Chair of the Education
and Student Activities Committee (ESAC), will be providing periodic
coverage of ESAC activities starting in this issue with an overview
on student activities in Portland. Please join me in welcoming
these two fine Associate Editors! Bob replaces Maqsood Mohd who
for many years ably led the ESAC, and built up its activity recently
to an unprecedented level. Today, the ESAC is one of most vibrant
and active committees thanks to Maqsood. I would like to acknowledge
him for all he has done as ESAC Chair and for his lasting contributions
to the EMC Society and in promoting EMC education. A job well
done and a legacy to be proud of!
Also in this edition of the Newsletter, you will find a new round
of practical EMC papers. The Practical Papers column of the Newsletter
is intended to disseminate practical information to the EMC community.
Bob Olsen, who is the Technical Editor of the Practical Papers
column, will be stepping down from his position at the end of
this year. We wish him well and thank him for his past six years
of service as Technical Editor. Succeeding him will be Flavio
Canavero of the Politecnico di Torino in Italy. We also wish Flavio
a successful term as the incoming Technical Editor of the Newsletter.
Readers will also find a tribute article in the Newsletter to
the late Albert A. Smith, Jr., beloved member of the EMC Society
who recently passed away. Contributors include his daughter Denise
Wynters and other family members as well as Don Heirman, Barry
Pate, and Bob German. We will miss him, but he will never be forgotten
for his selfless pioneer work and leadership on behalf of the
EMC Society.
Next, as part of a new tradition, Vice President of Member Services,
Elya Joffe, recognizes new EMC Society Members and newly-elevated
IEEE Senior Members who were sponsored by the Society. Elya has
taken important steps towards promoting active and personal outreach
to our membership at large. This type of personalized approach
is part of a conscious effort to facilitate access and direct
contact between our members and the Society leadership for the
exchange of ideas and best practices on behalf of ongoing membership
and chapter development efforts.
You will also find an article on the EMC Europe Symposium in this
Newsletter, which was held in Barcelona, Spain during September
2006. This was one of the events that the EMC Society technically
co-sponsored in 2006. I had the privilege and distinct honor to
be part of the opening ceremonies held at the campus of the Technical
University of Catelonia in Barcelona. Joining me as part of a
delegation of EMC Society Board representatives was Kimball Williams,
Elya Joffe, Barry Wallen, and John Norgard. I was impressed by
the quality and diversity of the technical program. It was also
very well attended (nearly 500 registered I am told!). I wish
to recognize Ferran Silva, Chairman of the EMC Europe 2006 Local
Organizing Committee, and Johan Catrysse, Chairman of the EMC
Europe International Steering Committee, for their efforts in
assuring a successful symposium and for the hospitality they extended
to our visiting delegation.
Also on the news front, several standing committee positions were
filled by new officers since the Portland EMC Symposium. As mentioned
above, Bob Nelson succeeded Maqsood Mohd as ESAC Chair. Also,
Bob Scully succeeded Bill Strauss as Chairman of the Technical
Advisory Committee (TAC) and Bruce Archambeault has accepted the
position of TAC Secretary. Additionally, Jim Drewniak has taken
over as the Distinguished Lecturer Program Chair succeeding Lee
Hill. Of course, many other personnel changes have occurred recently
which will be covered in more detail in upcoming columns by our
Vice Presidents of Technical Services and Conference Services.
Our thanks and appreciation go out to Bill, Lee, and the other
individuals who have served the Society well and dutifully executed
their responsibilities in their various capacities over the years.
Chapter 64
If we’re not there yet, we’re very close to getting
there; that is, the total number of EMC and joint EMC Chapters
worldwide is at/near 64 to date. This is a tremendous accomplishment
in view of the fact that as recent as the year 2000, we had only
some 45 active chapters. Over the past year or so, we have seen
the formation of new EMC Chapters in Pittsburgh, Australia, Czech
Republic, Poland, and Hong Kong, in addition to others. This is
once again due to the hard work of people such as Elya Joffe and
EMC Society Board Member and Chapter Coordinator Francesca Maradei.
New chapters are developing in Mexico (Region 9) and elsewhere
throughout parts of Regions 8 and 10. I am hoping to report on
the formation of at least two more chapters in the coming few
months. This is really great news! We should be proud of our accomplishments
here and in further spreading the EMC word, but this is an ongoing
process and efforts continue.
More on Blending New Technologies and EMC
– Talking the Talk and Walking the Walk
Each time I give a talk about the State of the EMC Society or
solicit feedback from our members, they all seem to respond with
one affirmative voice when it comes to the idea of embracing new
technologies – Go for it!! I am encouraged that we all share
a common vision for our Society that is built upon an adaptive
model and a forward looking philosophy in order to strengthen
our relevance in the future. That is how we will grow and continue
to thrive as an organization. Take for example the last issue
of the Newsletter, which ran a cover story on the role of EMC
in Waveform Diversity and Design. This is a new technology area,
but not a problem that hasn’t surfaced before. The responses
I received to date on this have been very positive. This represents
one of the technical directions that I hope and expect our Society
to follow as part of a long-range strategy for embracing new technologies
and applications on the horizon that include EMC. So I will continue
along with the other leaders of our Society, in particular, our
Vice President of Technical Services, to pave the way and keep
vigilant of new and evolving technologies where EMC may play a
crucial role.
Anticipation
Looking ahead to 2007, I am in anticipation of the many wonderful
and exciting things to come especially as we get closer to our
50th anniversary celebration in Hawaii. This past year has given
me, along with the Board of Directors, many opportunities to develop
new plans and strategies for taking us into the next fifty years
and beyond. I am very honored to be your President at this most
exciting time in the Society’s history and we (the Board
and Officers) will do our best to keep the EMC Society vibrant
and responsive to the needs of our members!
Beyond 2007, we have symposia scheduled in Detroit, MI (2008),
Austin, TX (2009), and Ft. Lauderdale, FL (2010). We will soon
announce the venue to be selected for 2011. We are also embarking
on a plan to hold more than one symposium in a given year, where
you may recall we would hold one symposium within the North American
continent and a second in Region 8, 9 or 10. The latter could
be done on a rotational basis; for instance, an international
symposium would be held in Region 8 one year, Region 9 the next,
and so forth. The options are presently being studied and discussed
to identify the various pros and cons. In any case, the idea will
be to further expand our presence globally in this or some similar
way in the next few years. This plan is expected to assist in
achieving our goals for accelerated Society growth and expansion
in new areas, both technically and regionally.
As usual, I invite your feedback. Please feel free to contact
me at a.l.drozd@ieee.org.
I always look forward to hearing from you. Until the next time…EMC
President’s
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