THE BIRTH AND EVOLUTION OF FUZZY LOGIC

I feel honored to have been chosen as thc winner of the 1989 Honda Prize. To me this honor has a special significance, First, because it represents an important recognition of the validity of the ideas which were set forth by me more than two decades ago. And second, because these ideas have found a fertile soil in Japan-a country for which I have a deep admiration and affection. It gives me great pleasure to take this opportunity to pay my tribute to the brilliant Japanese scientists and engineers who have contributed so fundamentally to the development of fuzzy logic and its applications and who have played such an important and enlightened role in the interna-