Chapter 216
I gave a talk at SPAIN Barcelona. I aim to give talks once every six months as a milestone in my research, but this time it was a long one-hour session and a keynote speech, so I was nervous. Since it was co-hosted with Wave equations, a theoretical physics (almost mathematics) event, I brought out the periodic table to make it easier for the audience to understand, and explained that compound semiconductors are composed of a combination of group III and V atoms, and that the shortening of LED wavelengths has progressed by elucidating unconventional behavior such as the struggle with crystal defects and composition fluctuations. I then used many illustrations and images to explain the progress of research on photonic crystals in the microchip and nano-size processing that we are currently working on. The Wave equations speaker's materials were only mathematical formulas, and a blackboard full of mathematical formulas from the movie "Oppenheimer," known as the father of the atomic bomb, was displayed in front of me, and I was impressed that such research exists. When I told him that theoretical physics is very far from applied physics, he said that it is very closely related. He explained that research to elucidate a theory and research to reproduce the theory in actual phenomena are like two wheels of a car. The research on blue LEDs that won Japan the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2014 demonstrated the high level of Japan's scientific and technological capabilities, but the current situation is that Japan's scientific and technological capabilities are in an unimaginable state. The opportunities to give lectures abroad and meet Japanese researchers have drastically decreased. Most of the lectures are by Chinese researchers, with a few Western researchers here and there. The Trump administration is expected to drastically cut research budgets at American universities, so this trend is likely to intensify, but to win economically, we need to win through research. The fact that the debt-to-GDP ratio has risen to over 100% is a cause for concern, but it would be better to curb spending in areas other than research. Japan is an abnormal country with a debt-to-GDP ratio of over 300%, but it is the largest holder of US bonds with 1 trillion US dollars. In other words, Japan is borrowing money to help the US finances. Taiwan has sold its US bonds early, but Japan should sell them soon too. A lack of survival skills could be fatal. The US, which goes too far, and Japan, which does nothing, are seen as polar opposites. Japan's lost 30 years are clearly the result of the Japanese government's mismanagement, which succumbed to US pressure, but only Automotive industry that survived through self-help efforts such as US production is about to become President Trump's prey. If the Japanese government will not stop this, Japan will be finished. At the beginning of his term, there were high hopes for his shrewdness, but in the end, he was unable to stop the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, and now the Palestinian issue has been added, and disappointment is spreading. The source of America's economic power is venture companies. I don't think that CEO Musk and the GAFAm who switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party will continue to support President Trump in the future. I'm looking forward to seeing what the geniuses who have given up on "a bag of bricks is better" will do in the future. We are surrounded by unexplained phenomena. The new coronavirus that struck humanity five years ago and the Spanish flu that killed one-third of the world's population 107 years ago. After a century, humanity's countermeasure was the lack of a plan to isolate. Advances in science and technology still cannot stop wars and epidemics. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle said, "I consider those who overcome their own desires braver than those who overcome their enemies, because overcoming oneself is the most difficult victory." I would like to send these words to President Trump.
Construction began during the Spanish Flu pandemic, and the Sagrada Familia is still under construction after more than 100 years
May 8, 2025
Self-first (the age of ego)
