Introduction

     As a summary of my personal experiences and impressions from the UCAR field trip to Japan and Taiwan, I will be less formal, and maybe more verbose, than for the summary of the scientific meetings.

     In order to understand some of my impressions in context, I will describe some of my educational, travel, and work experience, which, it is safe to say, probably differs considerably from that of the younger students or other junior scientists. I will try to be brief. My rather diverse experience has meant that I have concentrated on the atmospheric sciences only recently, but it has also made me open to other cultures. My experience has also made me realize the limits of understanding another culture.

     I was born and raised in a small town in Vermont. My parents raised me to value education, and though they were not rich, there was never any question of me not attending university. My father's stories about his travels during World War II also encouraged my "wanderlust". In 1973, I enrolled at the University of Arizona (UA) studying astronomy. My father's Slavic heritage caused me to become thoroughly immersed in the study of the Russian language. Not wanting to abandon science completely, I changed my majors to Mathematics and Russian language. I was certainly interested in physics and the atmospheric sciences, but felt that I could only do so much. During my undergraduate studies, I was fortunate to study Russian at Leningrad State University twice (for a summer and a subsequent semester program). I graduated with a B.A. in Mathematics and Russian language in 1977.

     Knowing that I would probably continue graduate studies in Russian, I decided to use (at least once) my mathematics abilities as a teacher in the Peace Corps in Malaysia. My first "visit" to Japan consisted of a two-hour stay in the transit lounge at Narita airport on the way to Malaysia. The first experience of "China" was a several day stay in Hong Kong. Malaysia was and is a fascinating country, with a mix of Malay, Indonesian, Chinese and Indian cultures, along with the influences from the British and Portuguese former colonial powers. This multicultural country has experienced turmoil, due to the clash of religions (Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, etc.), politics and cultures, but has also benefited from this cultural interaction to become, among other things, a highly technologically developed country. Development has benefits, but also creates social stresses; Malaysia is, to this day, working through these societal problems. That work was a unique opportunity to experience many cultures simultaneously and how they interact (or sometimes not).

     After Peace Corps duty, I returned to Tucson to complete an M.A. in Russian language and literature. Not wanting to leave Arizona, I next started working as a scientific computer programmer at the Lunar and Planetary Lab of the University of Arizona. I worked for various researchers there, but from 1986 until 1990, I was a programmer with the newly established Planetary Image Research Lab (PIRL).

     It was also during this time that I started to learn to fly gliders (sailplanes). I attribute my interest in soaring to "pushing me over the edge" into the atmospheric sciences. This was a hobby that my older brother had talked about when I was a kid. I had flown with a friend of mine, and decided that I would set aside the time and money to learn to fly. I soloed in six weeks and 25 lessons, taking lessons every Saturday and Sunday (i.e. every chance I got). After this I flew at least once every weekend for the next several years. As my interest grew in flying "cross country", I had to learn more about meteorology, which I did gladly. Recently soaring has taken a "back-seat" to graduate school and research.

     During the eighties, I had also been doing "free-lance" translating of scientific papers from Russian to English, but I worried that my verbal language skills were deteriorating. I saved up my vacation time to take a month-long study tour to Russia in 1989. Soon thereafter, I decided to quit my programming job to become resident director of a semester-long study program in St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad), Russia. I was subsequently offered a teaching position in the UA Russian Department. I enjoyed this work very much, and, after two years, I was offered the chance to teach upper division classes; I accepted. Unfortunately, several weeks later, the departmental budget (along with that of the whole university) was cut by the amount of my salary, and I was laid off.

     After various jobs using Russian (study programs, translating a book, and coaching movie actors), I secured a position as an interpreter with Hughes Technical Services Co. supporting the U.S. government in conducting arms control inspections. This work was in support of the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) and Strategic Arms Reduction (START) treaties. Aside from being important work, this work was quite lucrative and, perhaps more importantly, was based in Europe, allowing me to travel throughout Europe (to visit some of the sites my father had spoken of), Asia and Africa. With some Tucson friends, I climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and went on safari in the Masai Mara, located at the north end of the Serengeti.

     While working in Russia I decided to return to graduate studies in atmospheric sciences. This latest career had provided the financial means to do so. I was, however, worried that I had been out of school too long and may have lost the necessary study skills. While taking some "remedial" classes in physics and meteorology, I soon realized that the skills I had acquired during my various careers, more than compensated for any atrophying of my brain. After these remedial classes, I was accepted into the UA program and received my M.S. in May 2002. Science and interest in other cultures have always been competing pastimes for me.

     For the past year and a half I have been working with Rob Kursinski at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the University of Arizona in Tucson. Dr. Kursinski is one of the leading experts on GPS radio occultation techniques. Our research mostly uses spaced-based radio occultation data. However, we also work with ground-based GPS data, measuring precipitable water vapor (PWV), and have set up 5 SuomiNet stations and several GPS ground stations in Mexico as part of the North American Monsoon Experiment (NAME).

     My research is primarily focused on the troposphere, specifically the distribution of water vapor in the tropics and subtropics. We are comparing the GPS water vapor distribution to that in the models (e.g., ECMWF and NCEP analyses). It appears that the GPS specific humidity retrievals (from CHAMP and SAC-C) are wetter than the models in the tropics and drier in the subtropics; we need to verify this result. We also want to check this result with the higher resolution ECMWF analyses, to see whether this discrepancy is resolved.

Scientific Experience

     One general impression of these two countries is that their governments appear committed to devoting the necessary resources to accomplish the scientific research, considered a priority in each country. The facilities in both countries seem quite new or at least well maintained, and well equipped and staffed.

     However, it seemed that the focus of Japan and Taiwan, with respect to using GPS, is quite different. Whereas the Japanese with their GEONET network of over 1200 GPS ground-based stations are mainly (though not exclusively) concerned with tectonic and earthquake research, the Taiwanese GPS research is primarily geared towards atmospheric/meteorological goals. It was explained to me at the Geographical Survey Institute (GSI), that the GEONET was conceived and implemented in the aftermath of the Kobe earthquake (Jan. 17, 1995, also known as the Hyogo-Ken Nanbu Earthquake). The ultimate goal of the GEONET is rapid earthquake detection and prediction (if earthquake precursors can be determined), in order to give the Japanese people and civil defense officials timely warnings. The Taiwanese GPS research is oriented toward obtaining data to better model and to predict the tracks of typhoons and other weather events. Just a week or so before our arrival, typhoon "Mindulle" had struck Taiwan. It appears that there was sufficient warning of the typhoon's approach and its path. What were unexpected were the heavy rains coming from the southwest, which occurred after the typhoon had passed over Taiwan and weakened. There were 19 deaths reported from this latter rain. In general, from what I stated above, both governments have a very pragmatic approach with respect to their use of GPS technology and data.

     I found the GEONET, under the auspices of GSI, very interesting. The GEONET housing is made from very durable stainless steel. With about 1224 sites (as of 2004), monumented with concrete to a depth of 2 meters, and an average separation of about 20 km over all of Japan, this must be the densest network of GPS ground stations in the world. Readings are taken every 30 seconds, but are also event triggered; apparently data can be taken as often as every second. The variety of geophysical measurement made was interesting for me as a non-geophysicist, including, for example, the "ocean tidal loading". The most striking data from the GEONET was a trace of movement near the Mt. Usu eruption; the trace showed a rise of several centimeters (at the GEONET site) followed by a descent of more that 20 cm., relative to the pre-quake level. I am not sure about the time scale of this event, however the associate earthquake was at 8.1 on the Richter scale; the ground moved laterally 1 meter.

     I was amazed that only about 32 GEONET sites are equipped with meteorological packages. This would seem to be an incredible opportunity for dual use of GPS, i.e. meteorological and seismic research; this is being done in the U.S., where many of the SuomiNet GPS PWV ground stations are being "monumented" for seismic/tectonic research. I did learn that the Meteorological Research Institute (MRI) has studied using a "Dense Net GPS" to perform water vapor tomography. MRI is also using the GEONET for ionospheric observations. One of the results of this research was to track so-called "travelling ionospheric disturbances" (TID's). During one of the talks at MRI, we were shown a movie generated from GEONET data of large scale TID's, moving equatorward, and medium scale TID's, which radiate from the magnetic pole. Understanding ionospheric events is important for insuring more reliable communications and protecting the country's electrical infrastructure.

     At the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), we listened to several talks on the impact of GPS data on weather forecasting, specifically the effect on the JMA global spectral model. It appears that many researchers (in Japan, Taiwan, and around the world) are wrestling with the question of whether to assimilate refractivity or bending angle, obtained from GPS measurements, into NWP models. Which parameter to assimilate (refractivity or bending angle) was the topic of many talks and discussions at the colloquium in Boulder.

     As I mentioned above, the Taiwan government, through the Taiwan Central Weather Bureau (CWB), is very focused on problems associated with typhoons. My impression was that the researchers there are concentrating on most effectively using data (including GPS water vapor) to improve forecasts. The goal of their research is oriented towards practical results, be it for example "very short-range forecasts" (VSRF) or "quantitative precipitation estimates" (QPE), applied to flash flood prediction.

     We were briefed on the work to establish the "Taiwan Analysis Center for Cosmic" (TACC), which will process and archive data from the COSMIC (or ROCSAT-3) satellites. As explained, this center will also work on assimilating radio occultation data from COSMIC into weather forecasts.

     Without a doubt, one of the highlights of the visit to Taiwan was the trip to the National Space Program Office (NSPO), including the Multiple-Mission Control Center (MCC) and especially the integration facility where the COSMIC satellites are assembled and tested. Since I work mostly with radio occultation data, I recognize that the COSMIC program will provide a wealth of data for climate research, as well as day-to-day weather forecasting. The data on the distribution of water vapor will be very important to the ongoing research in my group at the University of Arizona, as well as elsewhere around the globe.

     At the Space and Remote Sensing Center, we were treated to a virtual "fly-over" of Taiwan, and saw incoming real-time images of the Peoples Republic of China, South Korea and Japan from the Spot-2 satellite. On a personal note, we were also shown an image of my current hometown, Tucson, Arizona; the operator panned over to the image of my house.

Cultural Experience and Personal Interactions

     This whole trip was very quick-paced and packed with meetings, so I can say that I got only a superficial impression of the Japanese and Taiwanese cultures (just as I obtained only a superficial impression of the interesting scientific work being carried out in these countries). However, one feature of Asian culture that was evident, if our hosts are any example, is that the Japanese and Chinese people are very gracious and obliging hosts. The Taiwanese students especially accompanied us everywhere to make sure we had a good time and that nothing went wrong during our stay. I am a sufficiently experienced traveler to not mind (and even enjoy) something going awry during a trip, but I did appreciate their kind friendship. I hoped they enjoyed spending time with us as we did with them.

     Much can be learned about a culture from its food (the preparation as well as the presentation, which were both excellent) and the way people relate to one another. But, being a linguist, I realize that so much of a culture is embodied in its language. A foreigner, almost no matter how well intentioned, cannot understand a culture well without some reasonable knowledge of its language. I have learned this through my study of French, Russian, Malay and recently German. I was reminded of this fact during this trip when I saw Ted Iwabuchi, Bill Kuo and Annabell Liu speaking their native languages. Especially with Bill and Ted, I had been accustomed to hearing them speak English, with their associated mannerisms, but when they spoke Japanese (Ted) and Chinese (Bill), their whole demeanor changed. Certainly part of this "change of character" has to do with the relative ease of speaking one's native language, but it seemed to me that they were actually switching their personality or internal "culture of the mind". It was as if they were switching from one part of their brain to another, literally.

     Getting back to food, our first experience with the sushi "bar" in Tsukuba (with the conveyer belt of dishes) was definitely unique. Our Japanese hosts also seemed to ensure that each day our meals got better and better. Every meal was an aesthetic joy: the many courses, the presentation, the serving rituals and the food itself. One particularly noteworthy meal was, I believe, the last evening in Kyoto, when we had mostly all tofu dishes. It was interesting to see the look of relief on the students' faces, when we were served a sushi course; sushi now seemed a normal thing to eat, whereas a week before they may never have tried it. The cuisine was no worse in Taiwan.

     The design of the restaurants also pointed out an interesting aspect to Japanese life. Clearly, Japan is very densely populated; people in the cities live almost literally on top of each other. So the ability to get some privacy must be critical to one's mental health. I noticed that the restaurants were divided up into either individual rooms or small cubbyholes, so that each group has privacy. In Taiwan, on the other hand, we often ate in large rooms encompassing the whole restaurant.

     The previous paragraph points out another difference between Japan and Taiwan. The Japanese seemed to be more conscious of another's individual space. This is an idea I think Americans can understand. I do not remember being "bumped into" in Japan. But in Taiwan on the crowded streets of Taipei or Danshui, people often ran into each other. It was not rude or mean-spirited and nobody got angry with this; the Taiwanese just seemed to accept this as a natural consequence of their crowded city life. Two different concepts of personal space, and two different approaches to dealing with it.

     I was glad that our hosts in Japan reserved rooms in Kyoto in a traditional Japanese hotel. I have read about and seen pictures reflecting the Japanese and Chinese aesthetic sense. It was fun to experience this aesthetic in the clean, straightforward design of the rooms. They embodied simplicity, which I sometimes wish I had in my own house. I was impressed by the traditional architecture in Japan (e.g., temples in Kyoto) and Taiwan (e.g., the houses and temples). Much of the city architecture of Taiwan reminded me of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which is not surprising, since ethnic Chinese make up 45% of the Malaysian population.

     As I recall events during this trip, I remember more that I want to write about, but there is only limited time and space. However, one thing I realized only in retrospect after seeing Tokyo, Kyoto and the cities and villages in between, is that Tsukuba is not a typical Japanese city. Compared to Tokyo and Kyoto, Tsukuba was relatively spread out, with wide boulevards and large green belts and parks. I later learned that Tsukuba is a planned city, designed to be a science city, similar to a university campus in America. I would say that I liked Kyoto the best of the Japanese cities, mainly because of its smaller size and its historical sites.

Concluding Remarks

     This field trip was a fantastic experience, especially for the younger students. I agree that such experiences will encourage them in their current studies and may lead to ongoing international cooperation in their future careers. I do not want to be strident, but Americans tend to be quite provincial, and therefore ignorant of what is going on in the world. During the GPS colloquium in Boulder, Bill Kuo mentioned the abbreviation "NIH", meaning "not invented here". Although this phrase was meant to apply to institutions, Americans tend to apply this idea to the world. I think that this field trip educated the students (given that they are receptive to new ideas) to the fact that innovative research and technical progress are being made in other parts of the world. Indeed, some of the most interesting projects using GPS for atmospheric research are being developed in Taiwan and Japan. Examples of these projects are the COSMIC satellite project in Taiwan, and GEONET and "downward looking" ground- and aircraft-based GPS stations in Japan.

     During my first trips abroad, I tried to be receptive to new ideas and lifestyles. I am sure that the "arrogance of youth" kept me from fully appreciating those new cultures, which I was experiencing. But, it was the first step in a life-long process of learning about and appreciating other cultures, and most importantly for our world today, understanding other points of view. I can only encourage the young students to continue their learning abroad, and experience the wide variety of cultures on our planet. Perhaps they will incorporate some of those cultures to enrich their own lives.

     I cannot thank enough the people at UCAR, especially Scott Briggs, Bill Kuo and Kim Prinzi-Kimbro, for suggesting and encouraging me to participate in this field trip. I also want to thank my fellow participants, and to let them know that the learning never does and never should end.