Dr. Iwata is president of the Committee on Data for Science and Technology, professor at the Graduate School of Frontier Sciences at the University of Tokyo, chairman of the 122 Committee, and JSPS/vice-chairman of the Knowledge Infrastructure Committee at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT) and Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI). Dr. Iwata earned his degree in nuclear engineering in 1975 from the University of Tokyo.