Dr. Salam Hoshang

by Dr. Iain Corness

The program leader and lecturer in the Department of MIS, Faculty of Business at Asian University is a mercurial, but deeply philosophical Kuwaiti, Dr. Salam Hoshang. He also says of himself, “I have been very lucky. I could do what I wanted to do, and I enjoy it.”
Looking much younger than his years, he however limped into my office for the interview with his non-enjoyable fractured big toe a palpable example of the difference between hardware and software in the computing industry. “I dropped a computer on it,” he said, attempting to grin. “That’s the difference between hardware and software!” And even more apologetically, “And I am an IT person!”
He was born in Kuwait, though he has not lived there for many years. “It’s 50 degrees in summer,” he added later in the interview, so I could see why he would rather live here.
His father was a mechanical engineering consultant who had five sons and a daughter, with Salam being the middle boy. His father also had high hopes for this middle boy, an academic high achiever – he was to become a doctor and have his own medical clinic.
However, parental plans and personal plans do not always coincide. Young Salam had read an article about what was called ‘electronic brains’ and he was fascinated by this concept, this being the early days of computer science, but father persisted, and Salam was scheduled to go to the UK to study medicine.
At this point, serendipity stepped in. A family friend suggested Salam stay with them in Germany and study there. His mother agreed, saying “Germany is closer to Kuwait than England,” and Salam was up for the challenge – he did not speak German, but within three months he could read, write and speak the language. He was ready to study medicine in Germany. But Salam knew that he really wanted to study computer science.
It seemed there was to be an impasse in his life, until he found a course at Heidelberg University in Medical Computer Science. With perhaps a small sin of ‘omission’ he placated his father with the ‘Medical’ part of the course, while not emphasizing the ‘Computer Science’ part of the title.
He enjoyed his course so much that he never missed one lecture and undoubtedly would have hobbled in there with a hardware injury if he had been that unlucky. He spent five and a half years there at Heidelberg, emerging with a Master’s degree.
There was more to his life in Germany than just computer science, as he also probably ‘founded’ medical tourism to the region. A relative in Kuwait was found to have cancer, and Salam was asked if there were any good specialists in Germany with experience in treating this type of cancer. There were, and he arranged for the patient to be seen and treated. Surgery was a success, and more people made approaches to him from Kuwait, as the word spread. In fact the demand became so high he had to employ students to assist him with the medical tourism workload, and then brought his brothers in to help him as well.
Entering the workforce, he found there were plenty of openings for him, and was described as “An Oriental, European (he is now a German citizen), cosmopolitan systems analyst, consultant and lecturer.” He had found that he had a natural gift for teaching (Mannheim University) and decided to stay on there and study for his own doctorate as well.
During all this time, he also had the worries of his family left in Kuwait, as they went through what the Kuwaitis consider to be the three Gulf wars – Sadam Hussein and Iran, Sadam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait and the current coalition’s invasion of Iraq.
Salam comes down very heavily on the side of peace. “My name means peace. (I believe) war is a sign of your resignation from thinking. (Misuse of) power is weakness in thinking.” I believe that ‘thinking’ human beings would all agree with his sentiments.
By the beginning of this new millennium, he had moved out of academia and was an international consultant in his field being sent everywhere, but he found this was very tiring work. “I am a workaholic, but I was in hotels 230 days a year.” He needed a break, and Thailand was one country he had enjoyed on previous travels, so when a position came up at Asian University in Pattaya he took it, and has not regretted that decision.
When away from the cloistered corridors he indulges himself in travel and reading, favoring philosophical books on comparative religion. Whilst he is personally committed to Islam, the religion of his birthplace, he is not bigoted. “It is peaceful and not fanatic, and I allow myself to read about all religions. I analyze them, and they are all the same. You have to respect all others, even if you don’t accept it. I want peace for the world. Love others and bring peace and respect. All human beings are the same.” If only everyone was as respectful as Dr. Salam Hoshang, the world would be a safer, and better, place.
So where to from here for the philosopher? One day he might retire on a desert island, but not yet. Whilst he is still a happy bachelor his father feels that this should cease. His father even rang last week, saying “Boy, it’s time for you to marry and have a child.” However, Salam is not going to rush into this, saying, “It might stop me doing what I want to do.” The happy systems analyst and philosopher is probably not quite ready, but when he is, his father will be the first to be told. After Salam has fully analyzed the situation. His final words at the interview were, “You have to mix rational intelligence with emotional intelligence.” But with all due respects to Dr. Salam Hoshang, this just means he hasn’t met the right girl yet!