Kazuo Oike
On 15th of December last year, I took over from the former president Dr.Makoto Nagao and confer this honorary degree of doctor on you. It is a great honor for me to confer the first honorary degree of doctor of Kyoto University to you today.
This is the first honorary degree of doctor of Kyoto University because until the end of fiscal year of 2002, the honorary degrees of doctor have been conferred by each graduate school. We have one honorary degree of doctor of science, three of engineering, three of medicine, and two of agriculture.But from now on the honorary degree of doctor is conferred from the university. And this honorary degree of doctor to Dr.McKenzie is the first one of Kyoto University and the first in the field of economics.
We have many distinguished institutes for examples, the Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences which was founded in April 1963 as a cooperative research institute at the inter-university level with the aim of promoting research in the mathematical sciences. The Institute of Economic Research was established to promote quantitative economic research in 1962,a couple of years after Dr.Mckenzie got the office of University of Rochester.
Dr.Mckenzie, your studies have greatly influenced not only economic theories but also the fields of mathematics and engineering.And I express my deepest appreciation for your efforts to have instructed many graduate students from Japan and mentored many researchers from Japan. I also thank you for your kind donation of your books to our Institute of Economic Research.
Congratulations and thank you very much for your attending this ceremony today and for your lecture this afternoon.
"From the address and toast"
Today is the "setsubun", the eve of the beginning of the spring. We are tossing beans into the air while saying "fuku wa uchi, oni wa soto" （"fortune in and demons out"）.
It is our custom on the "setubun" to eat an uncut sushi roll while facing in the year's lucky direction. This is for your good health and good economy. The lucky direction of this year is the east of northeast. And we eat beans of the number equivalent to our own age to ensure health and luck in the coming year.
This is an equilibrium theorem of the "setsubun". Dr. Mckenzie, you have to eat 22 beans more than ones I do.
Let's give a toast to celebrate the honorary degree of doctor and for Dr.McKenzie's health.
In Japanese.
"Kanpai!"