Download PDF The Bridge: 50th Anniversary Issue January 7, 2021 Volume 50 Issue S This special issue celebrates the 50th year of publication of the NAE’s flagship quarterly with 50 essays looking forward to the next 50 years of innovation in engineering. How will engineering contribute in areas as diverse as space travel, fashion, lasers, solar energy, peace, vaccine development, and equity? The diverse authors and topics give readers much to think about! Foreword: A Special 50th Anniversary Issue Thursday, January 7, 2021 Author: Asad M. Madni and Ming Hsieh At a lunch table during the 2019 NAE annual meeting in Washington, we joined Editor in Chief Ron Latanision, Managing Editor Cameron Fletcher, and NAE Director of Programs Guru Madhavan in a conversation about the upcoming 50th anniversary of the publication of The Bridge. They were considering a suitable commemorative issue, but mindful that resources would be necessary to pull it together. As enthusiastic supporters and dedicated readers of The Bridge, we offered that we would be very glad to provide the funding for this anniversary issue. We are both members of the NAE’s Section 7: Electronics, Communications, and Information Systems Engineering, but we appreciate that this quarterly makes a point of appealing to engineers in every area. Recent issues, for example, have explored nuclear energy, aeronautics, climate change, cybersecurity, and disaster resilience. And the articles are written to be accessible to all readers regardless of expertise. This issue is no different, except that it spans an exceptional variety of engineering areas within its pages instead of exploring one theme in depth. With the diversity of subjects, it is sure to engage readers and prompt thoughtful reflection on engineering advances and innovations that can truly benefit everyone. We applaud Ron and Cameron for their resourcefulness and dedication in planning this issue and engaging contributors to examine opportunities in so many different fields. These essays give us all much to think about as we plan for the future! About the Author:Asad M. Madni (NAE) is retired president, chief operating officer, and CTO of BEI Technologies, Inc. Ming Hsieh (NAE) is CEO and chair of Fulgent Therapeutics.