On Tuesday, December 22, 2020, the 9th “Creation of Industrial Infrastructure” Technical Meeting to report research findings was held online.

At this meeting, the findings of fifteen researchers selected under the “Creation of Industrial Infrastructure” Research Grant Program whose studies concluded in March 2020 were reported. The meeting was a first in that involved parties previewed presentation videos that were submitted in advance, with the actual day of the meeting centered on an associated Q&A. The research presenters, the Chief of the Screening Committee who chaired the meeting and Screening Committee members who participated remotely all convened online to assess and give advice on the wonderful findings of those researchers and engage in the fruitful Q&A that followed.

At the end of the meeting, Chief of the Screening Committee Yoshihito Osada offered the following general comments, voicing his expectations for the future and offering words of encouragement: “This year, I imagine that it was hard to pursue your studies according to plan given how difficult the environment was with the spreading of COVID-19. Yet, you pursed your studies with passion and came up with some impressive findings. For that, you have my deepest respect. Remember, this marks not the end, but rather the beginning of your further efforts to create new science going forward. Please use your findings as a foundation for making even more dramatic strides.”