KUNIO TAKEZAWA, PhD, is a Specific Research Scientist in the Department of Information Science and Technology at the National Agricultural Research Center, Japan. He is also an Associate Professor in the Cooperative Graduate School System at the Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Tsukuba, Japan. Dr. Takezawa holds several patents in mathematics and is the recipient of a Research Award from the Japan Science and Technology Agency and a Thesis Award from the Japanese Agricultural Systems Society.