The end of the calendar year is a natural time to reflect on the year just passed. I know we’re not quite there yet, but clocks are back on standard time. (I’m in my office and it’s dark outside!) The weather has turned colder in DC, holiday breaks are starting, and January will be here before we know it – and before the next CINA newsletter goes out.
So, what does CINA’s 2022 look like in the rear view mirror? We launched multiple new projects, continued several others, and worked on transitioning still more. The projects are advancing the state of the art and science with respect to CINA and the Department’s missions, and we are proud of our contributions.
We had a very productive summer with our interns and our MSI partners, and we recently had our annual meeting where we were fortunate to see and talk with many of you.
More recently, we co-sponsored an anti-counterfeiting hackathon sponsored by Amazon and organized by Mason’s own TraCCC Center (see details below). My primary takeaway from the hackathon? Pose hard problems, and they will come. I know the world is full of smart people, but we offered worthwhile prizes and some good food, and we got a depth and breadth of solutions beyond my expectations.
So I leave you with a message of reality and conviction: the world will continue to toss hard problems at us, and we at CINA will continue to tap the dedicated, smart, and talented occupants of that world to solve them.