Editorial

It was only a few years ago that all the international researchers at NTT could simply walk up or down a flight of stairs and meet over coffee in a single room. Now we have researchers in a number of divisions at different locations in Japan. If we include the research alumni of NTT, then we are literally spread out all over the world. How will we ever recapture the community spirit of those earlier times when face-to face communication was so easy?

The answer may be found in the new computer and communication technologies finding their way to our offices and homes. At this moment, worldwide, there are over 15 million people computer-connected together in the "network of networks" known as Internet. This electronic meeting place and information resource has begun to change the way we think about communication and interaction. It breaks down all geographical barriers.

For example, at NTT we have established an electronic meeting place called "global-list" where researchers anywhere can read about what is happening at NTT. It is this new type of virtual community made possible by silicon circuits, optical fibers, and semiconductor lasers that is drastically changing and expanding our sense of research community. Although we are still experimenting with how to use this medium of communication, it is already influencing our working and socializing habits. In the future, people with common interests in a certain topic will simply log in to an expanding cyberuniverse of information.

However, before all this can happen, we must find creative ways to interact electronically. It is clear that face-to-face communication conveys much more information than simply words. Facial gestures and tone of voice are often essential to impart meaning. Although future teleconference systems will capture these, it will not make us immediately capable of harnessing the full potential of advanced communications. Technology changes very rapidly, but people's habits and human cultures do not.

The real challenge for us now is to explore truly novel ways to enhance our social links through the use of advanced communications capabilities. Greater knowledge of our own social behaviour is a first step to design "socially friendly" communications technologies. Ultimately, this type of technology will allow us to enrich our professional and social activities as well as enhance our community spirit.

Global News
The NTT International Researcher's Newsletter

Editorial Board: Arturo Chavez-Pirson, Stephen Friberg, Wayne Lui, Eduardo Vera

Global News is published independently by the International Researchers of the NTT Research and Development Centers with the support of NTT Basic Research Laboratories and Interdisciplinary Research Laboratories. This newsletter is not intended for general distribution, but for the private use of current and former NTT researchers in support of their activities. The editorial board is not responsible for the accuracy of the information that appears in this newsletter.

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