In January I attended my first scientific conference, the meeting of the American Astronomical Society in San Diego. Since in my previous incarnation I was a professor of the humanities, I am not exactly a stranger to scholarly gatherings, having attended more Modern Language Association conventions than I care to think about. But this was my first venture among scientists.
The task of getting thousands of professors and other researchers together for a few days to exchange views is not a simple undertaking. There were 3,000 attendees at the AAS meeting; in its heyday, the MLA convention could attract 10,000. And everybody has something to say. How do you ensure that the people with something to say intersect with the people who want to hear it?
The scientists have devised a solution to this problem: the "poster paper." Twenty years ago, before this idea was hit upon, each presentation was given orally, meaning that if you wanted to hear a paper on quasar redshifts, say, you had to crowd into a small room at a particular time with other people wanting to hear the same paper. And if there was another interesting paper on a different topic being given at the same time in a different room, you were just out of luck. That is still the case in the humanities, so far as I know.
But in astronomy now, the great majority of presentations are poster papers, hundreds of them each day. The presenter is given a 4-by-4-foot space to display a large poster. The poster is left in place for a whole day, giving those interested the time to find it and even to chat with the author(s). Alternatively, the presenter can buttonhole people who ought to be interested, and invite them over to look at the poster. The whole thing is rather informal and unrehearsed, but very efficient.
As intrigued as I was by the idea of the poster paper, I was also very impressed by the more traditional oral presentations. The major invited talks, wherein a leading researcher makes a 45-minute presentation, were of the highest quality, and, indeed, I hope that we can attract some of these people for a MIRA lecture. The sessions with shorter papers (the shortest being 5 minutes, which hardly seems sufficient to clear one's throat) were also very good. The presentations were necessarily clear and to the point, and the questions were usefully critical without ever being hostile.
And the whole thing happens twice a year. It really is a big universe, with lots to do.
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MIRA volunteer Donna Dulo, shown at left, has been lending a hand repairing some of the Hamming Astronomy Center's computers. Thanks to her efforts, along with the work of fellow volunteer and System Administrator Bill Bishop, MIRA's network continues to offer our web page--which features Field Trips to the Stars--to thousands of visitors monthly. |
Lynx rufus! is Ivan's third photo exhibit at the museum, and will feature some of Ivan's amazing bobcat photos taken around the OOS. The exhibit is scheduled to open in early summer. Call (831) 648-5716 for more info.
MIRA has several interesting projects that we will be working on in the coming year - please phone the office at 883-1000 or email us at mira@iimira.org and let us know of your talents and interests!
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Last updated 3/18/02 DMC