2024 Project Connect participants: Elik Tek (TAMU), Reece Winmond (Morgan State University), Tawfik Osman (ASU), Abhay Samant (NI, PC Organizing Team), Mitch Plaisir (FAMU/FSU, PC 2023), Vaiva Markevicius (UIC), Carlos Diaz Jacobs (USF)

For the last 11 years, the IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS) has been the host event for the noteworthy outreach enrichment activity, Project Connect (PC). PC is a program that aims to broaden participation in the field of wireless/microwave engineering in partnership with the Education Committee of IEEE MTT-S. Financial support comes from the Society`s flagship conference, industry partners, federal agencies in the United States, and private donors. Organized by a committee of volunteers from academia and industry, PC takes place annually in conjunction with the IMS. The goal is to provide students with exposure to industry and educational opportunities and the chance to learn about graduate school and pathways through career advancement.

Project Connect is an immersion program that is interleaved with the technical and networking activities of the IMS and professional development for the student cohort.  The program is designed to ensure the best possible experience for the students, including networking with key members of the IMS and MTT community and interacting with like-minded peers within the Project Connect cohort. The students are expected to commit to full participation in the PC activities, and this comes with a certain amount of effort that is designed to enrich the student outcomes. They are intentionally not given responsibilities for supporting the conference through activities such as being student volunteers or mentors for other students. The only deliverable expected of students is a video presentation that describes the unique interests and experiences that excited and educated the members of the student teams during the program.

Thanks in large part to the incredible support from the IMS organizing committee and dozens of engineering professionals who share their time and knowledge with student participants, the impact of the program has been awesome. In its first 11 years, there have been 187 student participants who were either undergraduate or graduate students from one of 45 different universities. The ethnic and gender demographics of the student participants are notable — at least 55% female participants and 77% students of color. 94% of respondents strongly agree that Project Connect is a valuable professional development experience, and 55% maintain contact with their peers/fellow participants after the event.

Even more outstanding is the fact that PC students pursue graduate degrees at 3- to 4 times the national average in the United States. Of the 49 students in the 2014-2020 cohorts who received their BS degrees at least 1 year after participating in Project Connect, 49% have completed a master’s program and 12% are in or have completed a Ph.D. program. Moreover, the current professional positions of the 2014 – 2022 cohorts are predominantly in the RF/microwave/wireless field and graduate school.

Perhaps the best proof of the Project Connect model is that former student participants are now practicing engineers and academic faculty who are leading the organizing committee. Thus, it seems that Project Connect will continue connecting a diverse community of students with the RF/microwave field, one cohort at a time.

Rosalind Agasti, University of Oklahoma, Rhonda Franklin, University of Minnesota; Enrique Gonzalez, Qorvo; Rashaunda Henderson, University of Texas at Dallas; Netra Pillay, Skyworks Inc.; Heena Rathore, Texas State University; Abhay Samant, National Instruments; Jena Staab, National Instruments; Alex Stutts, Apple; Tom Weller, Oregon State University

There has been an explosion of interest in Artificial Intelligence (AI) in recent months – following the technical progress in generative AI.  AI technologies now make it possible to generate professional-quality art, music, videos, news articles, and books – with only modest guidance from the app user. Furthermore, AI-powered chatbots are adept at answering questions about almost anything. Many people now envision a technical revolution of apps based on these technologies – that will affect many professions including retail, publishing, media creation, education, and software development. Investment in AI – and its applications has also soared.

IEEE’s Role in AI Extends Across the Organization

The AI explosion touches IEEE in many ways.  As the leading professional society in AI-related technologies, IEEE has a tacit responsibility to provide sound technical information to the general public. As a standards organization, we have an interest in developing standards for AI’s safe and effective use. As a professional society with AI in our field of interest, we have a keen interest in supporting our members who work on AI technology and how it affects their careers. And as a publisher, media creator and educator, we have a keen interest in how AI can be used to improve our own operations.  

IEEE has long been active in its response to AI opportunities and challenges. Many IEEE Societies and Councils have responded in their domains. A coordinated response is needed to ensure that IEEE’s response has no major gaps. That was a prime motivation for forming the IEEE AI Coalition.  

IEEE’s AI Coalition 

The AI Coalition represents a collective of over forty stakeholders from across IEEE who have come together with a shared purpose: to consolidate IEEE’s AI content on a cohesive platform and foster a robust network for AI-related resources. Its mission encompasses three key objectives:

1. Classify and Index IEEE AI Work: We diligently organize and categorize AI-related work from across IEEE, ensuring that it is accessible in one centralized area. By doing so, we aim to bridge any gaps and facilitate seamless exploration of AI research, applications, and insights.
2. Enhance IEEE Services with AI: We explore how artificial intelligence can enhance the services provided by IEEE. Whether it’s optimizing processes, improving member experiences, or advancing technical publications, we strive to leverage AI effectively.
3. Provide a Long-Term Vision: The AI Coalition is committed to developing a forward-thinking, long-term vision for the integration of AI within IEEE. We envision a future where AI-driven innovations empower our members, drive societal progress, and shape the technological landscape.

AI Coalition Team Workshop

On June 6^th, the AI Coalition held a team workshop at the Microsoft New England Research and Development (NERD) Center in Cambridge Massachusetts. Forty-two participants attended – with twenty-one attending in person and twenty-one participating remotely, including TAB VP Fred Schindler.

The result of the workshop was the identification of gaps and companion action items:

·   AI Technology – Advancing Hardware topics in AI

o   Action:  Work with Leadership Team to identify experts to lead this effort (Computer Society, CIS, etc)

·   Social Implications of AI, partner with Tech Ethics and SSIT

o   Social implications related to implementation

o   Responsible AI

o   Technology to Verify AI Models and Data to build Trust and Understanding

o   Action:  Recruit leadership / form subcommittee

·   Future Tech Forum / AI Coalition Event

o   Nov 7-8, 2024, NERD Center Cambridge, MA

o   Will invite Imagination in Action to collaborate

The discussion of developing a Long-term vision of the AI Coalition began – but will require more work and reflection.

All of the in-person meeting attendees were invited to attend the CSAIL + Imagination in Action Summit: AI Frontier & Implications at MIT’s Stata Center on June 7. The summit itself – which featured many short expert talks on a broad swath of AI topics – was a real imagination expander. And … many informal discussions on AI opportunities and challenges took place among the hundreds of attendees in the hallways surrounding that meeting. Before lunch, all IEEE members in attendance were invited to go on stage to be recognized and share a group photo.   

After the meeting, discussions have continued on further refining the list of high-priority gaps. One particularly interesting new idea, currently under discussion, is the creation of an AI Speakers Bureau to provide trusted information on various aspects of AI.

Learn More About the IEEE AI Coalition

General information on the IEEE AI Coalition may be found at Events – IEEE AI Coalition.  The IEEE Collabratec AI Community, a discussion forum on Artificial Intelligence, is open to all at

https://ieee-collabratec.ieee.org/app/community/1298/Artificial-Intelligence/activities.

Fred Mintzer,

Editor In Chief, IEEE Collabratec AI Community – a stakeholder in the AI Coalition

participant in the June 6^th meeting

Thanks in large part to all IEEE societies, IEEE DataPort currently has over 8.5 million global users and over 6000 datasets.  IEEE DataPort is a global research data platform available to individual researchers and institutions enabling them to perform critical data management functions including storing valuable research datasets and accessing research datasets that can be used in research.   Society members can search, access and use the over 6000 datasets to help accelerate data-based research, foster innovation, and support research reproducibility.   All society members receive a free Individual Subscription to IEEE DataPort when they login to the platform (you must login to get this $480/year benefit!) and will have the ability to download any of the 6000+ datasets or access them directly in the cloud.  Watch this short video on IEEE DataPort to learn more.

IEEE Data Descriptions (IEEE-DATA), a periodical published on behalf of all IEEE Societies and Technical Councils, was launched in early May. IEEE-DATA  is a specialized journal that publishes peer-reviewed, concise articles detailing datasets across various domains, promoting open and reproducible scientific research. The founding Editor-in-Chief, Stephen Makonin, first presented the idea during the June 9 (2022) IEEE DataPort Steering Committee meeting, of which he is a member.

The journal’s primary aim is to enhance dataset visibility and utility through comprehensive descriptions, which include data collection methods, data quality assessments, and detailed metadata. To ensure the datasets are broadly usable, they must be findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable, with a strong preference for storage on IEEE DataPort or other permanent repositories.

There are three types of articles that can be submitted for review: descriptors, collections, and metadata. Descriptor articles (the main type of article published) describe the published (or soon-to-be-published) dataset. In essence, this is a detailed manual on the dataset — what it is and how to use it. Similarly, collections articles follow the lead and expectations of Descriptor articles and will focus on groups of datasets collected during or created from a competition, hackathon, or event. 

Meta articles depart from but follow the lead and expectations of Descriptor articles. Meta articles are articles that allow for discussion about data. Authors can express their findings about data in several areas, including, but not limited to: standardized formats for data in a given area (e.g., collecting power data from sub-stations), surveys of several datasets of a given type (e.g., GIS, time-series, etc.), data that are a library of models for a given AI or machine learning algorithm or system, data or dataset that is metadata of existing published datasets, comparing many similar datasets in an area to create meta-statistics data; or, any other data topics that may not have traditional scientific experimental results.

IEEE Data Descriptions is a gold, fully open-access publication and is one of the first to have an open review process. Until IEEE-DATA receives an impact factor (usually three years), the standard APC will be heavily discounted. Accepted articles have a recommended length of 4—8 pages and any extra information can be submitted as supplementary information, which will be published alongside the article on IEEE Xplore. 

Visit https://www.ieee-data.org/ for more information and instructions on how to submit your manuscript today.

​So why are cellphones ‘vehicular technology’?

Simple: early mobile phones used to need a vehicle to carry them about. When IEEE Vehicular Technology Society started, as the sixth professional group of the Institute of Radio Engineers in 1949, it was the ‘Vehicular and Railroad Communications Group’. Broadcast radio dispatch to police vehicles started in Detroit in 1928, but the 1940s brought the trifecta of technology, spectrum and use cases spurring exciting new developments. For 6G that’s ML and ISC, THz communications and telepresence. For the pre-G 1940s, the buzzwords were VHF and FM, and new handheld mobile radios developed during the Second World War, and the new use case being services to the public, albeit very limited. Our Group held its first conference – appropriately in Detroit – in November 1950 with 8 technical papers.

For much of its life, the Society was fairly niche. Mobile was not a consumer technology – it was ‘PMR’, often called Professional Mobile Radio, although Private Mobile Radio was the official expansion. Neither suggested mass market. The group grew in other ways: the mid 1960s saw automotive electronics added and the name changed to ‘Vehicular Technology Group’. Railroads, dropped from our Group’s name in 1950, returned to the fold the 1970s when the Land Transportation activity moved from IAS and the Vehicular Technology Society gained its current form.

First generation mobile radio systems did begin to gain widespread adoption in the late 1980s, but it was 2G which really got things moving. Early GSM testbeds again needed a vehicle to carry them about, but when deployments started in Europe it showed the power of a ubiquitous network. That lead to huge interest in GSM’s successor, 3G. The annual VTC conferences, which had grown to a few hundred papers, exploded to thousands of submissions, still mostly from industry. Starting 1999, the conference went biannual: one alternating between Europe and Asia and the other being in North America. We were ‘Connecting the Mobile World’ – our tag line introduced on our 50^th birthday. The switch to electronic proceedings in the early 2000s (in those days CDs) came just in time.  For VTC99-Fall in Amsterdam, the 5 volume printed proceedings were fork-lifted in to the convention centre on pallets. Since a single set weighed 6kg, there were stories of quite a few ending up in the canals!

While the dot com crash cooled the 3G hype, the seemingly anomalous juxtaposition of mobile radio and vehicular technology meant the society was well placed to be at the centre of new disruptions, in the form of the electrification of transport, and connected and autonomous vehicles. Along with PELS, the society created the Vehicle Power and Propulsion Conference in 2004 to stimulate technologies around electric vehicles. After all, as our Land Transportation Division will proudly attest, the hybrid electric vehicles started on the railways in the late 19^th century, more than 100 years before Toyota’s Prius.

The biannual conferences have continued their world tour, so this October we will celebrate the 100^th VTC, the 20^th Vehicle Power and Propulsion Conference and the 75^th anniversary of the Society.  Hope you can join the party in Washington – it will be a blast!

The IEEE Education and Training Forums were started as a result of the Technical Activities/Education Activities Ad Hoc on Continuing Education. The objective is to provide IEEE  education volunteers with best practices, case studies, and information about available resources to help them work effectively in their roles as education volunteers. There are three virtual sessions held throughout the year as part of this ongoing collaboration.

On July 18, “IEEE Education and Training Forum: Strategic Thinking Exercise” will be held where Randi Sumner, Senior Director, Strategy & Entrepreneurship,  will take volunteers through an exercise encouraging volunteers with an idea for an education program to take it through a structured process of bringing potential programs to market. 

IEEE Technical Activities is seeking to understand the challenges faced by industry managers in providing continuing education and training to their workforce in technical areas. Please complete this short survey to help IEEE understand your workforce challenges and needs.

Antimicrobial resistance is a rapidly increasing and deadly global health threat that is undermining progress toward achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals related to health, food and water security, and economic growth. Often, antimicrobial medications are prescribed based on symptoms, without a definitive diagnosis of the pathogen. This approach results in avoidable mortality and misallocation of limited healthcare resources due to ineffective and/or unnecessary treatment regimens. Moreover, inappropriate use of medication can lead to the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens that are increasingly difficult to treat with existing drugs. We urgently need accurate, accessible, and rapid diagnostics that can be used in diverse healthcare settings to guide antimicrobial use and prevent the further emergence and spread of multidrug-resistant pathogens.

IEEE Technical Activities is proud to host the next IEEE Tech Talk at the June IEEE Meeting Series in Toronto, Canada, where Dr. Nikki Weckman will speak on synthetic biology sensing systems for tackling global challenges. 

Dr. Nikki Weckman (ISTEP, ChemE) is the Paul Cadario Chair in Global Engineering at the University of Toronto. Her research focuses on developing the next generation of point-of-care technologies for diagnosing diseases and monitoring outbreaks of drug-resistant infections. She is particularly interested in developing low-cost and sustainable diagnostics that can help to improve health equity. Dr. Weckman joined U of T after completing postdoctoral research at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired

Engineering, Harvard University and the Cavendish Physics Department, University of Cambridge. Before her postdoctoral work, Dr. Weckman obtained her PhD in Engineering from the University of Cambridge, her MEng in Chemical Engineering from McGill University, and her BASc in Nanotechnology Engineering from the University of Waterloo. 

Antenna, RF, wireless and other electromagnetics-related technologies are exploding! A part of the IEEE, the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society (AP-S) is dedicated to advancing the theory and practice of antennas, propagation, and electromagnetics technology for the benefit of humanity and fulfilling the technical and professional goals of its worldwide membership and the AP community and profession at large.

This year is a special celebratory year for the AP-S, as we are celebrating the 75th Anniversary – Diamond Jubilee – of the Society. We were founded in 1949, as the third oldest IEEE society (or professional group as the societies were called then), the IRE Professional Group on Antennas and Propagation. In 1973, we became the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society, so we kept the same technical name (AP) during our entire history of 75 years.

Maxwell’s Equations: How it All Began

It all started with Maxwell’s equations 150 years ago, sparking phenomenal AP inventions and realizations up to the present, and a half of that history was with the AP-S as one of the leaders in the field. We started with 509 members in 1949, and the figure below provides some numbers, parameters, and graphical inputs demonstrating our main activities and accomplishments as they stand today.

Celebrating 75 Years 

The AP-S 75 Years TAB Celebration on February 16, 2024 in Orlando, Florida, with twelve AP-S leaders onstage and IEEE leaders and Society/Council Presidents in attendance (figure bellow), culminated with a standing ovation congratulating us on the fantastic 75 years. A highlight of the event happened spontaneously when a President of another society started singing the “Happy Birthday to You” song and the entire ballroom joined.

The main anniversary events will take place at our flagship conference, the IEEE International Symposium on AP, in Florence, Italy (see figure), on July 17–18, 2024, with a 75 Years Plenary Session, Intersociety Collaboration Panel, Celebratory Gala, and more, and many IEEE and society/council leaders attending. We are preparing a Special Issue of the AP Magazine devoted to the anniversary.

APS Publications Lead in FOI

Our publications are a signature of the Society and our technical achievements and impacts. Our Transactions, Letters, Magazine, and Open Journal are performing extremely well, with excellent impact factors (see figure) and reputation. For example, AP Transactions features Impact Factor of 5.7 and is 3rd among all IEEE periodicals in terms of article usage.

APS Conferences Worldwide

The next five editions of our flagship conference, popularly referred to as APS, will take place in four different countries around the world. In addition, the AP-S financially (co)sponsors several other topically and/or regionally focused IEEE conferences (as shown in the figure) and is a technical cosponsor of about 30 more conferences all over the world. 

Supporting Students

We provide hundreds of research grants, scholarships, fellowships, and travel grants to students every year, as well as sponsorship of a large number of impactful humanitarian projects and workshops worldwide. AP-S is one of the IEEE societies/councils with the highest level of support to students and humanitarian projects.

As shown, the state of the AP Society is truly outstanding. This is thanks to incredible work and contributions by AP-S leaders, volunteers, and members throughout our history of 75 years.

Future of Antennas and Propagation and APS

It is a fascinating time to be an antennas and propagation researcher, practitioner, educator, or student. It is even more fascinating, during a very special celebratory year, to be an IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society member.

Electromagnetic fields and waves are here to stay and to be used in all aspects of work and life of the humanity of the future, wireless world will just become more and more wireless, and the needs for antennas and antenna systems as the eyes, ears, voice, and brain and propagation as the means for action at a distance of communication, security, defense, medical, transportation, computing, and industrial devices and systems of next generations of technology will multiply like never before.

Indeed, the next 75 years of AP and AP-S are promising to be equally rich, fascinating, and intense!