In his final issue as Editor, Ramesh Rao described "the secret" to generating the Newsletter: "it just happens!" In this, the first issue that has "happened" to me, my sincere thanks go out to Ramesh and all of the people who have supplied me with the articles, announcements, and pictures found in these pages. The Newsletter really is a team effort that would not function without the interest and contributions of Society members.
In this issue, the Society marks the passing of Roland Dobrushin with an obituary composed by some of his colleagues; David Forney discusses issues of Performance and Complexity originally described in his 1995 Shannon Lecture; and Jerry Gibson takes the helm as the 1996 Society President. Also, new officers, Board of Governors members, and IEEE Fellows are announced and welcomed; a source of Shannon's information is revealed; and several former Soviet leaders apparently arise from the grave to interact with our society members.
Please help me to make the Newsletter as interesting and informative as possible by contributing suggestions, news, and articles. The deadlines for receiving material for the next few issues are as follows.