Hiroyuki Yoshikawa (吉川弘之) is a Japanese engineer. He specialises in precision engineering and general design theory. He served as the 25th president of the University of Tokyo and the 20th and 21st president of the Science Council of Japan.[1] He is a member of the Japan Academy and a recipient of the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure.[2]
Hiroyuki Yoshikawa | |
|---|---|
 Yoshikawa in 2005 | |
| Born | August 5, 1933 |
| Occupation | 25th President of the University of Tokyo |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | Faculty of Engineering, University of Tokyo |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | precision engineering |
Career
editAfter graduating from the University of Tokyo (UTokyo) in 1956, he began his career as an engineer at Mitsubishi Shipbuilding. He later returned to academia, earning his PhD from UTokyo in 1964. He remained in academia and became a professor at UTokyo in 1978.[3] He is known for advocating a new perspective in design and engineering, one that does not overly focus on achieving local optima in individual fields, but rather aims to achieve a global optimum and maximise the outcome of the work. He coined the term 'modern evils' to describe the unwanted outcomes that human efforts for a better world have created.[4] He maintains that addressing this issue requires this new perspective, which bridges fragmented academic disciplines to synthesise new solutions and artificial objects.[5]
When the Second World War ended, we welcomed peace and the hope that from now on the world would use scientific knowledge to create prosperous and secure societies, and indeed we have been on that path. We have managed to live through the era of local conflicts and problems, but now that hope has been betrayed. We are now in an age of global environmental degradation and global warming, resulting in an increase in natural disasters, epidemics worldwide, intensifying conflicts and increasing inequalities, and the outbreak of horrific wars that take many lives, filling the world with countless challenges. These conundrums are diverse and their solution requires knowledge from many disciplines. To solve this situation, mankind must consider that the time has come when it is necessary to use all the knowledge it possesses. To this end, scientists must not only protect and produce knowledge in their own field, but also conduct research to use knowledge to solve difficult problems, in association with knowledge from other fields. The results of this work will provide advice to actors in society, and action to solve difficult problems will be generated, supported by many fields of study.
— Hiroyuki Yoshikawa, December 2022[6]
References
edit- ^ "東京フォーラム 2023 Shaping the Future 社会的分断とデジタル革新の時代における人間性の再興 吉川 弘之". 東京フォーラム 2023 Shaping the Future 社会的分断とデジタル革新の時代における人間性の再興 吉川 弘之 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-04-06.
- ^ "吉川弘之・元東大学長に瑞宝大綬章". 日本教育新聞電子版 NIKKYOWEB (in Japanese). 2008-05-05. Retrieved 2024-04-06.
- ^ "東大総長など歴任の重鎮が「専門職大学」の学長になったら… ニュースイッチ by 日刊工業新聞社". ニュースイッチ by 日刊工業新聞社 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-04-06.
- ^ www.takeda-foundation.jp http://www.takeda-foundation.jp/symposium2/m_13_02.html. Retrieved 2024-04-06.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ 日経クロステック（xTECH） (2019-11-01). "「現代の邪悪」に対抗する日本流の次世代ものづくりを目指す". 日経クロステック（xTECH） (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-04-06.
- ^ "「社会技術」：科学知を使用（use）するという視点～好奇心からはじまる科学知を社会につなぐ～ - RISTEX 社会技術研究開発センター".