A Message from SITAR President – Wright
Dear colleagues,
As president, I’m happy to be sending off a few comments in anticipation of our 21st annual meeting, in Montreal, Quebec. I’m reminded that my first SITAR was 13 years ago (2005), where we also met in Montreal. The conference hotel was the same, but this year we unfortunately don’t have anyone coming to speak to us from the SETI (Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence) Institute. We do, however, have a fantastic slate of 20 talks, 19 posters, two keynote speakers, and a workshop on circumplex statistics and data visualization. So, on the whole this should be a very good year for attendees. As always, I’m sure the research being presented will be top notch and diverse in focus and scope. And, my money is on the student presenters giving the best talks. It will be good to reconnect with old friends and colleagues and meet new ones.
There is one bit of homework I’d like us all to work on over the next month before we meet. At last year’s executive meeting, and in my last newsletter piece, I raised the issue of moving to a biennial meeting from an annual meeting. More details are provided in my last newsletter column, and I would encourage everyone who will be in attendance to give it a look and consider the issues involved. My hope is that we can have a discussion, and possibly a vote, during our business meeting. I would be eager to hear from you in advance, whether you be for or against this change, and what your thinking is on the topic.
I look forward to seeing everyone and to learning a great deal from you all.
Sincerely,
Aidan