OSA presentations in a country,
OSA conference presence, or
funding educational materials
for K- 12.
The second challenge for OSA
is to assess information delivery
via journals and conferences.
OSA has been visionary with its
implementation of Optics Express,
and, as desktop video advances,
there are similar opportunities—
and challenges—that will face
our conferences. So strategic
planning in the areas of conferences and publications, and in
integrating the financial implications, will continue to be an
ongoing OSA challenge. Content
is king—and OSA has a long
history of high quality content in
a critical technology field, so the
opportunities are strong.
The third challenge for OSA
is common to all well-established
organizations—recruiting new
members and retaining current
members, in order to remain a
vibrant, volunteer-oriented organization. For OSA, this is also
coupled to interaction with other
sister societies. Strategic OSA
efforts in these areas will dovetail
with collaborative international
outreach, educational initiatives,
and the encouragement of underrepresented groups to science. In
these areas, OSA is again operating from a position of strength
in a vibrant field, and it is well
prepared to meet the challenges
that we face.
Eric Mazur
Harvard University, U.S.A.
I began working with lasers as an
undergraduate in Europe in 1975
and have been active in optics
ever since. The past 35 years have
provided me extensive experience
in the two main constituencies
of the OSA membership: I have
been a member of academia with
an active research career in optics
and a part-time entrepreneur in
the photonics industry. Given
optics’ increasing role in energy,
medicine, information technolo-
gy and other important economic
sectors, linking academia and
industry is more important than
ever before.
Jannick P. Rolland
Institute of Optics, University
of Rochester, U.S.A.
I have been a member of OSA
for over 25 years, during which
time I have worked at four U.S.
universities and throughout
Europe and Mexico, and I have
collaborated internationally.
In that time, the Society has
faced many challenges as well
as many opportunities. It is
interesting to observe that the
Society faces the onslaught of
technological challenges armed
with a small, dedicated, talented
staff and a talented, motivated,
and highly interconnected network of volunteers.
As a community, we are
working proactively to complete
the topography of the network, at
all scales and across all borders,
while maintaining high standards of excellence in conference
organization and journal publication. We can further capitalize
on smaller group discussions and
interactions at topical meetings,
local chapters and small workshops to balance our interactions
at large meetings. It is incredibly
exciting to experience the current tidal surge of information,
both in the pace with which
fundamental research is evolving
and, perhaps more significantly,
with how we are being given,
almost instantaneously and at
no additional expense besides
the cost of Internet access, access
to our past. How exciting it is
to call on the original works of
Thomas Young, Lord Rayleigh,
Airy, Herschel, and countless
other scientists, both obscure and
famous, who have brought us to
where we are today.
By learning about the accomplishments of these luminaries,
we can obtain a context for
our own work to advance the
field that is still in its infancy.
In integrating with this index
to the past, some previously
anonymous people also arise
to take a deserved place in the
cycle that is science. The Society
can play an active role in giving
global visibility to excellence
in science, particularly optics.
As the technology for telepresence emerges, we have a unique
opportunity to bring the live
presence of scientists and their
thoughts as key elements for the
archives of our future.
Everything is transforming
around us, driven by communications. At the 2010 OFC
meeting, we learned that the
problem of sending 100Gb/s
over installed fiber has been
solved, and the leading providers
are moving ahead with opportunities to provide services at a
rate we cannot imagine within
the next decade.
The world is becoming
instantly global. In my own
research group, I have 12 emerging scientists from 12 countries.
Our commonality is our passion
for discovery and our commitment to optics and optical
sciences. OSA enables, promotes,
interconnects and enlivens our
communications. Today, instead
of waiting for a monthly journal,
I search InfoBase daily for the
status of research in my fields of
interest. Rarely does a day go by
that I do not see a live image of
colleagues in Asia, Europe, India,
New Zealand or South America.
It is an exciting time for science
and a challenging time for the
Society to forge a path forward in
a transformational decade—the
decade of globalization.
It is my commitment that
I recognize this is a society of
volunteers, created a century ago
to serve, educate and provide
forums to disseminate the discoveries of science, and particularly
optics, throughout the world.
