I received a tweet yesterday evening from Dr. R. B. O’H, soon to be formerly of Helsinki. The tweet read, in its entirety,
Hey, Henry. Will there be a CISB10 next year?
And that set me thinking.
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I, Editor by Henry Gee
This is the Nature Network and therefore Terribly Extremely Very Serious foothold for Nature Senior Editor Henry Gee. If you want fun and games, visit http://cromercrox.blogspot.com/
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Is Cromer Still Bracing?
- Date:
- Thursday, 15 Oct ober 2009 - 08:36 UTC
As some of you recall, a few of us hardy souls gathered in Cromer last February for an unconference called Cromer Is SO Bracing 09. On the advice of Dr. M. F. of Hannover, we decided to engage in a specific project, and thus the Motion Picture Epic Darwin’s Lost Weekend, un film de Trevor Harrison-Phipps, was created, starring Sir John De Gilbey as Charles Darwin.
The occasion also featured Cowgirl K. V.‘s ever-popular Crochet-Your-Own-Marine-Invertebrate workshop; a rather chilly geological field trip to West Runton; a slap-up symposium dinner at the Cromer Tandoori (for which Nature kindly foot the bill); and some instant catering of the loaves-and-fishes variety from Mrs Gee’s Location Catering Services.
The question raised by Dr R. B. O’H of No Fixed Abode is, then, should we do it again? If we did, what should we do? When should we do it? And, for that matter, why?
I
poppedraised the question with Mrs Gee, who it has to be said was somewhat preoccupied at the time, trying to prevent our new cat Naughtypants (not his real name) trying to hypnotize the hamster.
Naughtypants, not wanting to photographed. YesterdayOnce the hamster had been priz’d from Naughtypants’ slavering jaws, Mrs Gee expressed the opinion that she really enjoyed having a houseful of interesting, stimulating people, although she might have been feeling particularly charitable, just at that moment.
So, would anyone be interested? I have already have had expressions of interest from Mr F. N. of London and Mr G. S. of Glasgow.
Were we to get together, I’d suggest moving it a little later in the year. First, I’d not want to run it too close to Borastock . Second, I’d like to have it when Cromer is a little less frigid, when green shoots are starting to appear, and when the Jardin Des Girrafes doesn’t look like a re-enactment of Passchendaele (with bunnies).
I suggest 21-23 May. It’s a nice time of year. And it also coincides with the First Cromer Crab and Lobster Festival, with its promise of many crustaceous opportunities for fine dining and associated merriment.
DiscrustDiscuss.Last updated: Thursday, 15 Oct 2009 - 08:36 UTC
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Comments
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Hi Henry,
I was amazing diverted by your entreaty regarding the proposed conference.
My colleagues at the University of Rural England are enthusiastic in their praise for this event, and are intent on joining you in this endeavour.
Cheers, John
I’ve been desperately seeking an excuse to get back to the UK, so you can definitely count me in.
I’m there, all things permitting.
Cowgirl K.V. can highly recommend the CISB experience, though she regrets to inform the organizers that international travel is out of the question for her in 2010, due to financial considerations and academic obligations
tormenting medical and dental students with anatomical minutiaein teaching and research.Talking about oneself in the third person is teh weirdz; I won’t be doing that again any time soon. ;-)
Count both myself and the wife in (she just wants to travel to CISB in a fast train). The Beast has offered to “look after” the birds.
R.B. O’Hara, formerly of Helsinki
P.S. The only reason I sent the tweet was to see if you were able to stay away from social media for an hour.
Thank you, everyone. The question now remains – once in Cromer, what shall we do? Stuffing ourselves with crab and lobster is good enough for me, but perhaps we should engage in more cerebral pastimes. Perhaps we should bring pocket microscopes and do some marine biology. When we first movd to Cromer I thought the beach-life depauperate, but it’s there, if you look… Perhaps we can devote the whole weekend to rockpooling and coming up with as many species as possible, then submitting a wildlife report to Nature Network.
@Bob – your middle initial corrected, Sir. As to social media, now I can haz iPhone I can haz connection to social media ALL TEH TIME.
@Grrl: fast train? fast train? Hahahahahahahahahahahaha splort splutter collapse summon ambulance I think I’m going to have a cardiac arrest.
OK, this is it…
CROMER IS STILL BRACING 2010 IS OFFICIALLY ON! THIS IS THE FIRST CIRCULAR!
Location: Maison Des Girrafes, Cromer, Norfolk, England.
Dates: Friday 21 May to Sunday 23 May, 2010.
Given that official events, if any, connected with the meeting will take place at the Maison Des Girrafes, the meeting will be free, with no registration, though it would be nice to know if you’re coming.
Getting to Cromer, and accommodation when you get there, is in your hands, though I’m here to provide advice/ chauffeuring. Given that CISB10 is deliberately timed to coincide with the
OlympicsWorld CupCromer Crab Festival, you should make arrangements for accommodation as soon as possible. This website is a good place to start. I regret that the Maison Des Girrafes is not really geared up for mass tourism. We could sleep two in an emergency in the sitting room on a sofa and a camp bed, but removal of your toes by cats in the middle of the night is at your own risk. There’s probably more room in Bush House or Pondside Lodge down the garden, except that they are already full of chickens.Will be necessary to think it….
¿How much is the time allowed to plan and think about whether to go or not?
I forgot.
Hi Henry – Thank you for the invitation.
Best regards,
Alejandro
Ah, Henry, how excellent of you to
be browbeatenvolunteer to host CISB10. In principle I would love to attend; in practice I think I would need some other excuse to be in the general geographic vicinity, if I’m to have somebody pay for the trip. Does anyone want to invite me to give a lecture? I’m afraid I’m no good at crocheting, so visual aids would probably be shudder Powerpoint.Yours, &c.
Dr. RW of That Place With The Big Pointy Tower™ (suburbs thereof)
A
heartyhealth reminder to those possibly attending the First Cromer Crab and Lobster Festival to those who over-consume !Image c/o Dr M.F. of Finlandos.
One has only now just clicked on the link to the Cromer crab&lob-fest gig, but this, I’m sure will be a lot of fun, for family ’n all.
“The three-day event will include cookery demonstrations, music concerts and film screenings”.
Based upon events surrounding CISB09, I’m more than
squeamishcertain that CROMER IS STILL BRACING 2010 will be an event worth considering attending in person rather than just putting in one’s diary.—
As I only found out of a few hours ago, the “film format” consequence of CISB09 is now online (you’ll have to register a free account with TriggerStreet.com it only takes a min). This version (unlike the DVD version) is highly compressed for teh webz but seems to play OK.
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Re. acommodation, one can highly recommend the Cliftonville Hotel in Cromer.
Re. acommodation, one can highly recommend the Cliftonville Hotel in Cromer
Yes, it even met with approval under the discriminating eye of Hotel Inspector Gee Minima. ;-)
The resemblance is uncanny.
Henry, I’ve been wondering about how open the conference is. Is everyone really welcome? And if not, isn’t it slightly risky to promote it in this manner?
But rockpooling is an excellent idea for an unconference activity.
As we’ll be a bunch of scientists together, I think we should do some real science. Investigate some Great Question of the Age. With real experiments and everything.
@Heather – I think the appeal of the meeting will be somewhat selective. In any case, I have made Beelzebun Demon Bunny of DOOM head of security. So they wouldn’t dare.
@Bob: My favourite question of the age is ‘Who Put The Benzedrine In Mrs Murphy’s Ovaltine?’
Cromer Crab and Lobster Festival?! Yummmmmmmm!
Bob came up with a great suggestion for a weekend project, in a comment thread elsewhere – to set up a cold-water marine tank at the Maison Des Girrafes. This requires a great deal of rock-pooling, shifting cans of water, teamwork, practical marine biology, and – hopefully – a sense of achievement at the end. There’d be plenty of blogging and tweeting opportunities along the way. Could be quite something. Any views?
Henry – I suggest we do shorebird census early in the morning of the three days. In addition to other birds of Cromer.
@Alejandro – great idea – not for from us is the Norfolk Wildlife Trust bird reserve at Cley, which is great for watching shorebirds. We could have a trip there. I can haz binoculars.
How big a tank are you thinking?
I consulted he who knows, he says he thinks you’d need a chiller as at ambient temperatures the water would get too warm?
Nothing too vast. A chiller would be good. What do they look like? Where would I get one? How much would they cost? All advice gratefully received.
I can haz book on the subject…
Larger image
Larger image
The boy says a chiller might be overkill for the size you’re thinking about, and also they are not cheap – he said just set the tank up using sea water, and see what happens.
I’ll work on persuading him to come with us to CISB10. Might come in handy.
Mrs Gee she says she’s not in favour of setting up a marine tank… so we cah jut do some ecology instead.
Excellent Henry! I have binoculars and fields guides of birds (American).
@Richard – if our genetics institute invites you to speak, does yours have any money to pay for the flight east? We could probably swing lodging in Paris (if worse comes to worse, we also have a sofa bed, and no bloodthirsty cats either). I could even lend you binoculars, should I not be able to attend personally. Once you were on this edge of the Atlantic, it might be easier to hop up north.
As participants (physical and virtual) of CISB’09 are aware, the associated FriendFeed room was a tres. handy way to keep up with events in real time. As such, rather than starting a new room, I’ve simply updated/re-named it CISB’10.
I think you should all put on a show at the end of the pier.
Perhaps a pantomime about crab diversity ?
That’s easy. There are two species of crab. Carcinus maenas, and the big one you can eat.
Well, casting should be easy then.
Though I don’t think you’re taking diversity seriously, Henry. They may all be Carcinus maenas, and the big one you can eat. but they all have their own personalities, their own uniquenesses.
…. and there might be more species than that. I reckon that if your really looked for crabs, rather than having them look for you, you might find all sorts of things. For example, when I first came tio Cromer, I didn’t realize that most of the seaweed is in fact bryozoa; that sponges are quite common; and that there are exotic, prehistoric-looking things like chitons. If we brought along some hand lenses an simple microscopes we’d probably find all sorts of colonial hydroids, sea spiders and stuff.
That sounds like many more cast members for the panto!
exotic, prehistoric-looking things
Who would play this is left as an exercise to the reader.
I have just started reading Logicomix: An Epic Search for Truth – a graphic novel about the life of Bertrand Russell. It sounds like an unlikely combination, but thus far I am totally hooked. It’s my first experience of graphic novels since The Beano Annual (barring one or two dodgy Spanish books I once brought back from Barcelona, but we’ll say no more about that).
Anyway, I wondered whether this could be a project for CISB2010 – a graphic novel version of … a scientist’s life … a classic research paper … last week’s Nature … or government policy on drugs … or something else? Whaddya think?