—Why did you choose to pursue platform studies?
In order to research the optimal transport problem, I consider it important to address various processes and issues. This is based on my sense that achieving a firm grasp of a wide range of approaches is vital in resolving the hurdles in this area. When it comes to logistics, energy transport, and other practical issues, engineering know-how alone is not sufficient, with the need also existing for smooth integration with economic and sociological approaches. By definition, the emerging new academic field of platform studies comprises an interdisciplinary endeavor to combine field areas and information communications technology. It also furnishes opportunities for encounters with experts from numerous different fields. I am truly fond of the city of Kyoto, with the students here highly motivated and absorbed in their own studies. Personally speaking, I am able to advance my research in the midst of an extremely upbeat atmosphere.
—What research themes are you currently working on?
Within the field of the mathematics of optimization, I am tackling the optimal transport problem. This area involves envisioning methods for optimization of the costs and time when shipping products from supply points to demand points, and the maximization of profits.
—What have you gained through the School of Platforms program?
Thanks to contacts with experts from various different fields, I am able to obtain hints for problem-solving from a truly diversified range of perspectives. Working through interaction with students and faculty members, I have encountered a vast scope of knowledge and thinking and greatly expanded my horizons.
—What is the platform to you (ideal situations, desirable future, etc.)?
While I have a long way to go to build an actual platform, my aim is to rise to the challenge of designing a digital platform for use in working through mathematical predictions to resolve problems, with the goal of elevating logistical efficiency and determining optimal transport routes pursuant to cost. If various conditions can be marshalled as the foundation for simulating transport and computing expected costs, it will prove effective in corporate decision-making and lowering product costs. I am confident this will help build a brighter future.
—If the goal is to improve the world just a little from where it stands today, what do you think is needed, or what would you like to do?
Contemporary society is burdened with numerous complex issues, making it difficult to realize solutions in any single specialty field. This creates the need to share your own knowledge with those around you, as well as input their know-how. I consider it increasingly important to engage in mutual exchanges of specialized knowledge with those in different fields of expertise.
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