In this note research and publications by Zdzisław Pawlak and his collaborators from 1970s and 1981 are recalled. Focus is placed on the sources of inspiration which one can identify on the basis of those publications. Finally, developments from 1981 related to rough sets and information systems are outlined.

Zbigniew Michalewicz is Emeritus Professor of Computer Science at the University of Adelaide in Australia. He completed his Masters degree at Technical University of Warsaw in 1974 and he received Ph.D. degree from the Institute of Computer Science, Polish Academy of Sciences, in 1981. He also holds a Doctor of Science degree in Computer Science from the Polish Academy of Science. Zbigniew Michalewicz also holds Professor positions at the Institute of Computer Science, Polish Academy of Sciences, the Polish-Japanese Institute of Information Technology, and the State Key Laboratory of Software Engineering of Wuhan University, China. He is also associated with the Structural Complexity Laboratory at Seoul National University, South Korea.

In the natural world, many species can walk over slopes and irregular surfaces, reaching places inaccessible even to the most advanced rover robots. It remains a mystery how complex movements are handled so seamlessly by even the tiniest creatures. What we do know is that even the simplest brains contain pattern-generator circuits (CPGs)[1], which are wired up specifically for generating walking patterns. Attempts to replicate such circuits artificially have so far had limited success, due poor flexibility. Now, researchers in Japan and Italy propose a new approach to walking pattern generation, based on a hierarchical network of electronic oscillators arranged over two levels, which they have demonstrated using an ant-like hexapod robot.

While working in his native Poland in the 1960s, Dr. Michalski devised an early computer system that could recognize handwriting. After coming to the United States in 1970, he expanded the field of machine learning, creating applications in which computers could execute a form of reasoning, drawing conclusions from information supplied to them. "He was a pioneer in this field," said James S. Trefil, a GMU physicist and writer. Dr. Michalski's specialty of machine learning is similar to but distinct from artificial intelligence. The underlying purpose of much of his work was to use computers to recognize patterns that could ease the decision-making process in seemingly unrelated systems.

Ryszard Michalski, PRC Professor of Computational Sciences and Health Informatics, died from cancer on Sept. 20, Provost Peter Stearns announced Tuesday. He joined the Mason faculty in 1988. A memorial will be held at Bellarmine Chapel, 4515 Roberts Road, at 1 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 28. A reception at the same location will follow the service. All members of the university community are invited to attend.