Blockchain, as an emerging decentralized architecture and distributed computing paradigm underlying Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, has attracted intensive attention in both research and applications recently. Blockchain, especially powered by chain-coded smart contracts, has the full potential of revolutionizing increasingly centralized Cyber-Physical-Social Systems (CPSS) for constructions and applications, and reshaping traditional knowledge automation workflows. The key advantage of blockchain technology lies in the fact that it can enable the establishment of secured, trusted and decentralized autonomous ecosystems for various scenarios, especially for better usage of the legacy devices, infrastructure and resources*.

Blockchain is essential to knowledge automation, a direction for further development of Artificial Intelligence technology and a normal general framework for dealing with management and control of CPSS type complex systems. The goal of knowledge automation is from UDC to AFC, that is, dealing with issues of Uncertainty, Diversity and Complexity with capacity of Agility, Focus and Convergence**.

Blockchain and knowledge automation have emerged as a dynamic and fast-growing research area. Many issues need to be addressed and further investigations are critical for future development. Therefore, to stimulate innovation in this new direction, the aim of this special issue is to call for the state-of-the-artworks on blockchain and knowledge automation.

The topics of this special issue include, but are not limited to

1. Fundamental Theories and Approaches of Blockchain

2. Distributed Consensus Algorithms

3. Theories and Applications of Smart Contracts

4. Integration of Blockchain and Internet of Things

5. New Business Models of Blockchain Industries

6. Big Data and Trusted Computing

7. Social Computing and Social Intelligence

8. Theories and Approaches of Knowledge Automation

9. Intelligent Information Processing and Knowledge Engineering

10.Knowledge-based Intelligent Management and Control

Manuscript Submission

Preparation of manuscripts should refer to the guidelines in the “Author Information” on the IEEE Transactions on Systems,Man, and Cybernetics: Systems website:

http://www.ieeesmc.org/publications/transactions-on-smc-systems/information-for-authors

Submission for the special issue should be made through the Manuscript Central web site: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/systems. Authors should clearly indicated in the cover letter that the manuscript is submitted for the Special Issue on “Blockchain and Knowledge Automation”.

*Yuan Yong, Wang Fei-Yue. Blockchain: the state of the art and future trends.Acta  Automatica Sinica, 2016, 42(4): 481-494

**Yuan Yong, Wang Fei-Yue. Parallel blockchain: concept, methods and issues. Acta Automatica Sinica, 2017, 43(10): 1703-1712

Important Dates

Submission Deadline: June 1, 2018

Reviews Completed: August 30, 2018

Expected Publication Date: December 1, 2018

Guest Editors

Prof. Yong Yuan (Corresponding Editor)

Qingdao Academy of Intelligent Industries, China

Email: yong.yuan@qaii.ac.cn

Prof. Fei-Yue Wang

Institute of Automation,Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

Email: feiyue.wang@ia.ac.cn

Prof. Chunming Rong

University of Stavanger, Norway

Email: chunming.rong@uis.no

Prof. Angelos Stavrou

George Mason University, USA

Email: astavrou@gmu.edu

Prof. Jun Zhang

University of Denver, USA

Email: junzhangdu@gmail.com

Prof. Qiang Tang

New Jersey Institute of Technology, USA

Email: qiang@njit.edu

Prof. Foteini Baldimtsi

George Mason University, USA

Email: foteini@gmu.edu

Prof. Laurence T. Yang

St. Francis Xavier University, Canada

Email: ltyang@stfx.ca