Ralph Abraham, Fulbright Trip #2 of 2005 to Japan, ReportPART I: The Future University, Hakodate (Hokkaido)ActivitiesDuring my week in Hakodate, I visited with Professor Ueda every day, gave one public lecture on the chaos revolution, discussed extensively with one graduate student, Dr. Kiyoshi Takizawa, and met three of the younger staff. My discussions with Professor Ueda included details of his new research on a periodically forced electromechanical system with novel dynamics. Dr. Takizawa reviewed his progress with an analyzer for human heart rate data.The public lecture was greatly improved over last year by the addition of occasional summaries in Japanese by Professor Numata. He did a great job with rather difficult material. Both Professor Ueda and Dr. Takizawa went out of their way to make my stay in Hakodate very enjoyable and productive. FindingsThe general ambiance of the FUN was much the same as last year. The new faculty that I met were very highly qualified in math, physics, and computation, which is an encouraging development. A rumble of discontent with the administration excited the community during my visit; this could result in some overall improvements along the lines of my recommendations last year. I was amazed to see a radical new feature: surveillance video cameras everywhere! Also, as last year, the internet access was so guarded that I was unable to connect my laptop to do my work. I wondered what country I was visiting!New RecommendationsIn addition to the four recommendations of last year, I may add:
5. Develop new communication channels between the university and the city.
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