EDITOR’S COMMENT The progress made by semiconductor physics, from what was described by Wolfgang Pauli as ‘Physik der Dreckeffekte’ or ‘dirt physics’ in 1920s, over the eight decades or so of the last century is truly amazing. The technological revolution unfolded by this progress has ushered in a new epoch in human civilization. The information age is but a spin-off of this revolution. Arguably no other field of human endeavour has had such a profound and wide ranging impact on human society over the last century. The story of this march from 'dirt physics’ to such subtle and complex effects as the fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) is full of numerous exciting thrills ranging from our deeper understanding of the defect (dirt) states and how to control them to a level where semiconductors rank among the cleanest man-made materials with unparalleled purity, so high as to exhibits ever unknown physical phenomena such as FQHE and Wigner crystallization, uncovering new constituents of matter such as composite Fermions and Skyrmions. But what has really reached the common man out of this progress is the phenomenal range of electronic applications which have unleashed a flood of consumer goods and communication gadgets, starting from the wireless radio to the present day personal computer and the mobile phone, coupled with the software resolution engendered by the Internet. With such a vast seachange sweeping the human society, it is pertinent to stop and take stock of these landmark achievements at the turn of the century and the millennium and to speculate as to where this field of human intellect will take us. With this in mind we invited some of the leaders of semiconductor science and technology to let our readers know their thoughts on the directions this field will take in the new century. With their own assessment of where we stand today, we had asked these distinguished semiconductor scientists to contribute articles highlighting their answers to the following questions:   the general directions areas of hot pursuit the expected survival time We are privileged to say that these contributors, many of whom are acclaimed builders of the 20th century semiconductor science, obliged us through their articles appearing in this first issue of the new millennium. We are sure our readers will feel equally privileged to have this rare opportunity of knowing the views of these leaders. While most of these articles are of a broad technical nature, one of our contributors highlights the complex nature of the worldwide sociological problems, probably of special significance tot he third world, which the electronics and information revolution may unleash. It will be worth their while for the leaders in science and technology and more so, for the political and social leadership in both the first and the third world to take these potential dangers very seriously and block their materialization before they take root, if this world is to become a better place to live for humankind. We hope you will enjoy reading this issue. Do let us have your comments on what you think of it. Best wishes for the New Year. May the generations to come who break ever newer grounds in semiconductor science and technology to make this planet a better human abode.   Zafar