Mamoru Hayakawa: The Neighbor's Persimmons are Red

2025/01/15

Actually, I am a graduate of Waseda University. I met many Keio University peers, seniors, and professors through the Waseda-Keio rivalry in the Aikido Club, which I joined after a freshman welcome event, a joint Waseda-Keio overseas internship using the ASML Internship Scholarship Program, and participating in poster sessions at The Society of Materials Science, Japan. Through these experiences, I was exposed to the humorous conversations and sophisticated demeanor of the Keio people, and I began to admire them, thinking, "They're kind of cool." I continued my research while harboring a faint admiration for Keio University.

My specialization is Mechanics of Materials, the study of understanding the deformation and fracture characteristics of materials. Previously, I specialized in experimental evaluation, but I became involved in numerical analysis—predicting deformation characteristics using computers—as a substitute for a colleague who fell ill. Through that experience, I became convinced that "new technologies in numerical analysis will open up the future," and I knocked on the door of Keio University as a working professional doctoral student. In this way, I gained an opportunity to reaffirm the importance of basic research.

When trying to work on new product designs using both experimental evaluation and numerical analysis, the walls of reality stand in the way. Even if you propose a design that seems to be the optimal solution, it is not uncommon for research and development to stall due to manufacturing constraints or cost issues. Now that I am a corporate researcher, I feel the weight of my professor's words from my student days: "Ichiro hits .400, but if a researcher succeeds 10% of the time, they are a professional." Still, the key to overcoming these difficulties lies in the Mechanics of Materials I learned as a foundation. Tensile testing, the basis of experimental evaluation, and numerical analysis and fracture mechanics, which link test results to structural design, demonstrate their power at key points in research and development, leading to results such as product improvements and academic awards.

The way experimental evaluation and numerical analysis complement each other overlaps with the scene of the Waseda-Keio rivalry, where both sides push each other to excel. Currently, research, development, and commercialization in new fields such as DX and digital twins are actively taking place, but they are a mix of success and failure. Even so, just as the neighbor's persimmons look red, I believe that continuing to pursue the "red, sweet fruit" of my own research theme is an important right and responsibility as a researcher. I intend to continue my path as a researcher to give back that fruit to society and industry.