[Coral-List] Some encouragement for attending the ICRS

Jasper de Goeij jmdegoeij at gmail.com
Tue Aug 9 10:14:08 EDT 2011


Dear all, Alan, John,

Wise words indeed and I also think a lot of us would prefer to discuss our
work face-to-face. The virtual conference is certainly an option for those
choosing to join a conference long-distance. I do feel that it is important
to note, again (sorry for that), the reason why the discussion was started
in the first place. A fair amount of scientist, from all over the world, do
not have the choice anymore to meet each other in Australia, because of the
ridiculous high costs of the symposium (and it is ridiculous....
really....). To my opinion the solution is quite simple: do all the effort
possibly imaginable to cut down on the costs or find additional
sponsorships, and REDUCE the fees for this symposium considerably. And then
lets meet and talk and discuss about what we all do: Coral Reef Science.
Isn't that the purpose of the ICRS?

Cheers,

Jasper.
    ______________________________

Dr. Ir. J.M. de Goeij
University of Amsterdam (UvA)
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics -
Aquatic Ecology and Ecotoxicology (IBED-AEE)
     ______________________________

Science Park 904
P.O. Box 94248, Amsterdam
The Netherlands
Tel.   +31 20 5258290
Mob. +31 6 52471433


2011/8/8 Alan.e.strong <alan.e.strong at noaa.gov>

> Coral Enthusiasts,
>
> John's words are important to consider in making the correct decision
> about attendance at the upcoming ICRS.  I'd been hoping something might
> be stated along these lines as clearly to me "going virtual" may not be
> the simple answer for this venue (many sites are likely to have
> difficulty with streaming video).  While I would argue that we need to
> be realistic and certainly strive to use these personal-contact venues,
> such as what is proposed for the upcoming ICRS sparingly and carefully,
> to begin having these "meetings" mainly as on-line conversations will, I
> feel, rob many the chance to make important [often life-changing]
> contacts with scientists and managers in a face-to-face setting ---
> often through side-bar session or even simply going out for a meal.
>
> Think about it....communicating your ideas typically involves more than
> just your spoken words...
>
> Cheers,
> Al
>
> On 8/8/2011 1:31 PM, John McManus wrote:
> > Hi all,
> >
> >
> >
> > The recent discussions may have left a few people bit discouraged about
> > attending the upcoming ICRS. It will indeed be expensive. However, for
> those
> > who can possibly make it, I strongly encourage you to do so. This
> especially
> > applies to students and early-career scientists.
> >
> >
> >
> > There is, in fact,  another reason why the ICRS is held in alternate
> > locations. It is an attempt to break down one of the worst problems faced
> by
> > coral reef scientists - regional paradigms. A scientist who has only seen
> a
> > limited range of coral reefs generally develops a limited view of what
> coral
> > reefs are like, which tends to be reinforced by others in the same region
> > with the same problem. In particular, people who have only dived on reefs
> in
> > unique areas such as Florida, or the populated Hawaiian Islands will
> likely
> > have difficulties visualizing what other reefs are like. No matter how
> many
> > films one watches or papers one reads, one can only hope to understand
> coral
> > reefs from a comparative standpoint if one has seen a wide variety in
> > person. Many debates in the history of coral reef science could have been
> > avoided had the participants each had broader ranges of personal
> experience.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Australia offers a chance to break down some of another major difficulty
> -
> > the shifting baseline. Most coral reef scientists have never seen a
> really
> > diverse coral reef with high bottom cover and dense assemblages of fish.
> > Many have never seen the adults of fish species with which they are
> > otherwise familiar. If someone has not been on a reef with so many fish
> that
> > they block ones view, or been surrounded by multitudes of fish large
> enough
> > to make one nervous, then that person probably has a distorted view of
> what
> > a natural reef should look like. Not all Australian reefs are pristine,
> but
> > the average healthy reef there is likely to be radically different from
> what
> > most reef scientists have seen.
> >
> >
> >
> > The ICRS is a unique opportunity to meet colleagues, generate project
> ideas,
> > and re-motivate our important research efforts. However, the opportunity
> to
> > do field trips or commercial dive trips is equally important.
> >
> >
> >
> > Of course, attendance for many is completely out of the range of
> > possibility. However, if you aren't sure if taking out a loan or
> pestering
> > local embassies for funds to attend is going to be worth the investment,
> it
> > may turn out to be so.  It is easily as important as a year of graduate
> > school.
> >
> >
> >
> > I have managed, and sometimes struggled, to attend all since the 4th ,
> and
> > helped out a bit with the 4th and 11th. I greatly appreciate the
> incredible
> > amount of work and worry that has gone into putting the upcoming ICRS
> > together. That level of insane effort is always driven by a strong belief
> in
> > the importance of the task.
> >
> >
> >
> > I certainly hope that something can be done about broadcasting some of
> the
> > presentations. However, if you can possibly attend, I encourage you to do
> > so. If not, please do at least try to make some future trips to some
> > relatively pristine, large reefs in area far away from your own.
> >
> >
> >
> > Cheers!
> >
> >
> >
> > John
> >
> >
> >
> > John W. McManus, PhD
> >
> > Director, National Center for Coral Reef Research (NCORE)
> >
> > Professor, Marine Biology and Fisheries
> >
> > Coral Reef Ecology and Management Lab (CREM Lab)
> >
> > Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science (RSMAS)
> >
> > University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, 33149
> >
> > jmcmanus at rsmas.miami.edu      http://ncore.rsmas.miami.edu/
> >
> > Phone: 305-421-4814
> >
> >
> >
> >    "If I cannot build it, I do not understand it."
> >
> >                --Richard Feynman, Nobel Laureate
> >
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > Coral-List mailing list
> > Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> > http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>
> --
> ****<><  *******<><  *******<><  *******<><  *******
> Alan E. Strong, Ph.D.
> NOAA Coral Reef Watch, Consultant
> Strong Research, Inc.&  IMSG
> National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
> NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program
>  e-mail: Alan.E.Strong at noaa.gov
> url: coralreefwatch.noaa.gov
>
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