On October 29, 2016, four speakers associated with systems science gave presentations as international guests of the Tsien Hsue-shen Forum, in Beijing, China. The forum was part of
the 19th National Academic Conference of Society of System Engineering of China. This year, the theme was focused on the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Chinese space program, and on its founder Tsien Hsue-shen. (Prior to his return to China in 1955, Tsien had also helped to found the space program in the US.)
The four invited speakers were Brian Arthur, External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute; Heinz Stoewer, INCOSE Past President; Karl H. Muller, IASCYS Fellow; and Gary Metcalf, IFSR Vice President. The presentations were given to an audience of 1000 systems engineers, using synchronous professional translators.
On Sunday afternoon, the speakers were invited to the home of Tsien Hsue-shen, where his son greeted them and talked about his father’s legacy. The home was in a modest set of apartments which had first been constructed for Soviet scientists who helped with the early stages of the Chinese space program. When they left, the Chinese scientists moved in. Despite his fame, Tsien lived with his family in the same apartment from 1960 until his death in 2009. Tsien had accepted very few foreign visitors into his home, during his life, so it was a generous invitation.
On Monday morning, Brian Arthur and Gary Metcalf gave talks at the Institute of Systems Science, Academy of Mathematics & Systems Science, in the Chinese Academy of Sciences. This was at the invitation of Professor Xijin Tang. The ISS is the only Chinese member of the IFSR, and Prof. Tang was extremely helpful in all of the arrangements for the Beijing trip. Our many thanks to her.
Gary S. Metcalf
