IEEE Communications Society Distinguished Lecturer Tour of Yi Qian in Latin America, August 2018

By Carlos Eugenio Martínez-Cruz - El Salvador Section Chair and Yi Qian - IEEE ComSoc Distinguished Lecturer, USA

As part of the ComSoc Distinguished Lecturer Tour (DLT) program, from August 5 through 11, 2018, Professor Yi Qian visited chapters in Chile, Bolivia, and Peru. Four cities were visited, Santiago, La Paz, Cochabamba, and Lima, on August 6, 7, 8 and 10, respectively. The tour included two cities in Bolivia, the country’s capital, La Paz, and Cochabamba. Planning started in April 2018 and involved the help of regional director, Lisandro Granville, regional DLT coordinator, Pedro Aguilera, and chapter chairs, Diego Dujovne (Chile), Sandra Hidalgo (Bolivia), and Fredy Campos (Perú).

Santiago, Chile

Professor Yi Qian arrived in Santiago de Chile early n the morning on August 6, 2018. He was received and attended by Chile Chapter Chair, Diego Dujovne and by Pedro Aguilera. After having lunch, they took him to Universidad Diego Portales where he gave a one-hour lecture that started at 15:30. The topic was “Security for 5G Wireless Networks.” More than 80 people attended the lecture. There was also time for a little bit of tourism and leisure. Professor Yi Qian was taken to dinner in a restaurant at the top of a mountain in Santiago. That location offered beautiful night views of the whole city, with the Andes Mountains in the background. The next day he left Santiago at 7:30 am, heading to La Paz, Bolivia. He spent less than a day in Chile.

La Paz, Bolivia

After a three hour flight over the snowcapped mountains and the deserts of the South America highlands, at 10:30 on August 7 he arrived in La Paz, Bolivia. ComSoc Bolivia Chapter Chair Sandra Hidalgo welcomed him at La Paz International Airport. To be at a very high altitude is always scary. The city is over four kilometers in altitude and its airport is the highest international airport in the world. Ms. Hidalgo took him to the city, through Teleférico La Paz-El Alto, or cable car, where he could enjoy breathtaking views of the whole city and the highlands. He gave two lectures in the same afternoon, at Hotel Casa Grande, La Paz. The talks were given at 16:30 and 20:00, lasting one hour each. In between the lectures another lecture was given by Huawei Technologies. The lectures’ titles were “Smart Grid Communication Infrastructures” and “Security for 5G Wireless Networks.” They were attended by more than 60 professionals, professors and students. There was time for talking beyond the technical talks, to discuss IEEE technical involvement, volunteering, and professional societies such as IEEE and IEEE ComSoc. The lectures were intended to motivate the attendees to try to maintain their IEEE involvement in the schools and in the rest of their careers.

Cochabamba, Bolivia

Wednesday morning, August 8, 2018, Professor Yi Qian took a flight heading southeast to Cochabamba, which is 2,558 meters above sea level surrounded by higher snowcapped mountains. The lecture was scheduled from 15:00 to 18:30, followed by a 30 minute Q&A session. The title of the lecture was “Challenges and Solutions for LTE and 5G Vehicular Communications,” which was requested by the IEEE Student Branch from Universidad Privada Bolivia. About 40 people attended this lecture. The audience was very enthusiastic throughout and after the lecture. Professor Yi Qian left Cochabamba early on Thursday morning. The flight to Lima had two stops, in La Paz and in Cuzco.

Lima, Perú

Professor Yi Qian arrived at Lima International Airport at 13:00, August 9. Arrangement were made by ComSoc Peru Chapter Chair, Fredy Campos, who has a lot of cultural experience and a good sense of humor. This part of the tour provided the opportunity to enjoy a Gala Dinner, good food, nice drinks, friendly cheers and toasts, heavy pisco sour and long hours of dancing. The next day, during the morning, there was time to do a little bit of tourism. ComSoc Peru Secretary, Esmeralda Asurza, took Prof. Qian for a half-day tour to the ancient ruins of Pachacamac, about 40 kilometers southeast of Lima.

The lecture lasted one hour from 17:30–18:30 as a Keynote at the INTERCON 2018 Conference. It was given at San Marcos National University. Over 100 people attended the lecture, which was titled “Security for 5G Wireless Networks.” There were a lot of interesting questions on 5G, wireless security, and network security. A long and fruitful discussion was established, especially among the young. After the lecture, late Friday afternoon, several laboratories were visited, including telecommunications and computer network.

Friday evening, there was a welcome ceremony. The organizers were Peru Chapter Officers, Fredy Campos, Carlos Velasquez, and Esmeralda Asurza. The gathering included a lively night show, Peruvian folklore on stage, dinner, drinks, and dancing. Professor Qian was driven to his hotel around 3:30 am. He left Lima at 6:50 am, Saturday morning and arrived in the U.S. the same day, August 11.

With part of the audience, after my one hour Keynote Lecture at INTERCON 2018 Conference, at National University of San Marc, in Lima, Peru, August 10, 2018.