IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - June 2020 - 7

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Responding to a Pandemic
By Seth Hutchinson

s I write this, sitting in my
study, where I now pass large
blocks of time in the new
work-from-home rhythm,
the street below is strangely quiet for a
warm, mid-April evening in Atlanta.
Looking forward in time, it seems impossible to predict how things will be
when this column goes to press in early
June, a mere two months from now,
yet well beyond any reliable prediction
horizon. As an engineer, I know that
prediction is a difficult game. Good
prediction relies on good models, accurate characterizations of uncertainty,
and informative observations of state
as things evolve, none of which is
readily available with respect to the
COVID-19 pandemic that now dictates lifestyle for much of the world.
And yet, even in the absence of reliable forecasts, decisions must be
made-in the case of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, these
include determinations about conferences (whether to cancel, reschedule,
or move to a virtual format), financial matters, new initiatives, and ongoing programs.
Happily, none of these decisions
rest with a single individual. Each conference has a team of organizers, chosen based on their expertise and
experience. Our Society's administrative and executive committees are populated by wise, rational leaders in our
community, supported by an excellent
group of full-time IEEE staff. In addiDigital Object Identifier 10.1109/MRA.2020.2987716
Date of current version: 10 June 2020

tion, the IEEE has a team specifically trained to deal with
emergency situations who
are already working with us
to plan a way forward in
these times of uncertainty.
However, even with this outstanding team, optimal outcomes cannot be guaranteed. We, as engineers
and scientists, know that under significant uncertainty, optimality in the
expected sense is the best one can hope
for, and this provides little comfort
when dealing with specific outcomes. It
is certainly possible that some of the
decisions being made now will, in retrospect, seem too conservative or too
optimistic, cavalier, or short-sighted.
This cannot be avoided. However, I can
say with absolute confidence that the
people making these decisions are acting in good faith, taking their responsibilities seriously, and considering all of
the available data, costs, and benefits as
well as the well-being of our Society-
in short, that they are stepping up to
this challenge, accepting responsibility,
and doing their best in service to the
research community. When this crisis
has passed, we will owe these folks a
debt of thanks for their thoughtfulness,
their energy, their investment of time,
and their commitment.
Some of the more consequential
decisions are already known. It was
clear some weeks ago that ICRA 2020
could not be held as an in-person meeting in Paris during the first week of
June. It has now been decided that the
2020 conference will be a virtual meeting, although, as I write this, it is still not

certain when the meeting will
be held. Likewise, the IEEE
Haptics Symposium, RoboSoft, and CASE have all
decided to move to fully virtual events. Other conference
organizers are now in the process
of rescheduling their in-person meetings in the hope that a sufficient delay
will give the world time to return to
something more normal. These include
ISMR, BioRob, COINS, and ICMA.
In all cases, these decisions have been
driven by the question of how best
to serve our
membership. It is certainly
Safety concerns
have been pre- possible that some of
eminent. The the decisions being
quality of the
c o n f e r e n c e made now will, in
experience has retrospect, seem too
been the driving criterion conservative or too
for optimality. optimistic, cavalier,
Financial consequences to or short-sighted.
the Society have
been, at most, a
secondary concern. It is quite possible that our Society will lose money
this year; that is not surprising in a
time of crisis, and years of careful
budgeting have left us well prepared
for such an event.
However, as important as all of this
may be for our Society, in the larger
scheme of today's reality, how roboticists conduct their meetings is n o t
ove r whelmingly important. That our
community is inconvenienced by travel

JUNE 2020

IEEE ROBOTICS & AUTOMATION MAGAZINE

IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - June 2020

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