It is our great pleasure to express our welcome to the 23rd International Symposium on Superconductivity ISS2010 in Tsukuba. This symposium is sponsored by the International Superconductivity Technology Center, ISTEC. It is also supported by seven major organizations including the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and approved by nineteen other academic associations and institutions. In the recent years, the basic and fundamental technologies of superconductivity have been making remarkable progresses, and it is expected a new superconductivity industry will appear soon in various industrial fields.  The world situation is complicated recently. Developing countries including BRIC's nations have been steadily growing at the high rate. The construction of a new society that reduces energy consumption as well as the amount of the greenhouse gas emission is a pressing need. (1) next generation power grid for energy transport (2) optical fiber cable network including a new router for information transmission (3) rapid railway system for the transportation of people and (4) new power energy source that supplies energy for all of those  The international collaboration is indispensable in order to overcome these difficulties. And it must be superconducting technologies that play a leading role.  More than five hundred papers, either oral or poster presentations are presented this year in the five technical fields, i.e., Physics & Chemistry, Bulks & Characterization, Wires, Tapes & Characterization, Films, Junctions & Electronic Devices, and Large Scale System Applications.  We expect that this symposium accelerates commercialization of superconductivity technology in various application fields through the global cooperation in the academic, governmental and industrial communities.  The members of the ISS2010 committees hope that the symposium will serve as a forum where the scientists, engineers, business administrators and entrepreneurs in the world could meet in the spirit of international cooperation, exchange and discuss their views and findings on superconductivity and its future applications. Shoji Tanaka Chairperson Organizing Committee ISS2010

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