Noboru Takigawa received his DSc in physics from the University of Tokyo in 1971. He subsequently worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Nuclear Study of the University of Tokyo, 1971-1972, RIKEN, 1972-1973, Hahn Meitner Institut für Kernforschung Berlin GmbH, 1973-1975, the Technische Universität München, 1975, the University of Oxford, 1975-1976, the Institut de Physique Nucléaire d’Orsay of the Université Paris-Sud, 1976-1977, and the Universität Münster, 1977-1979. He served as a research associate (1979-1988) and as a professor of physics (1988-2007) at Tohoku University. Further, he has been a long-term visiting professor at the Technische Universität München, Academia Sinica at Taipei, Michigan State University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Frankfurt, Université de Mons, Universidade de Sao Paulo, Australian National University, University of Catania, Institute for Nuclear Theory of the University of Washington, Tennessee Technological University and ECT* at Trento. He is now an emeritus professor at Tohoku University.Kouhei Washiyama received his DSc in physics from Tohoku University in 2007, and thereafter worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Grand Accélérateur National d'Ions Lourds, Université Libre de Bruxelles, and RIKEN Nishina Center. He is currently a researcher at Center for Computational Sciences, University of Tsukuba.