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Tokyo, Japan
The Hon. Dr. Hideyasu M. R. "Hide" Sasaki is a computer scientist working in Gov't of Japan for Artificial Intelligence Initiative and Catholic lawyer admitted to practice in New York, the United States.

Friday, April 3, 2015

IEEE Intelligent Transportation Systems conference is held in Spain in autumn this year. I had dropped our manuscript just after its upload to the submission site three years before. The reason of our withdrawal was simple; we found a fault that was really critical to support our conclusion in a very fundamental element in our methodology. It was one of the most terrible experiences in my life to make such a failure in writing that I had never imagined. My co-author HFL was really helpful to let me understand which element in our paper didn't fit in our modeling. Anyhow, I was saved from making a serious mistake in my academic life thanks to his honesty.


Yesterday, I tried to write something for that conference again, but this morning I have finally understood that our topic should not fall within any areas of transportation control. Actually, many researchers put a lot of resources in vain for developing ant-inspired technology that makes transportation systems better off. However, ants are totally different from humans. First, ants have no choice rather than walk on a trail to follow some mates moving before them. Meanwhile, humans have many choices, bus, railway, bike, and vehicle. Environment-friendly people choose the formers, and drive-loving people insists on their own choice of enjoying freeway drive. The people choosing public transportation systems are very much like ants on their own attitudes. Ants follow mates in their nest, and form a trail on which they build a smooth moving path for a new nest or a place to eat. This ant swarm behavior is similar to the eco-friendly people. But, how about the drive-crazy? At least not all of them never follow anybody who drives before them. Speeding!


Second, ants are easy to stop when they find jam among them. They walk and stop at a place whenever they would decide not to move more. Meanwhile, moving objects like vehicles need some time to stop. Ants can keep distance on legs, but cars don't be designed to do so.


Many ant jam-free moving researchers have abandoned implementation of their ant-inspired methods into transportation systems. Only a successful story is found in network systems. Prof. Marco Dorigo's ACO is the typical success to apply ant-inspired technology to reality. That is the right way for making a breakthrough.


I would think a step before from transportation to networks right now. This is Good Friday. Fasting makes my mind clear to follow righteousness, thanks a God.

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