[DUSELScience] Town meeting in Washington DC November 1-2. Web site is up!

[Bernard Sadoulet]

As announced previously, the National Science Foundation is 
sponsoring a Town Meeting in Washington DC (November 2-4, 2007) to 
discuss and develop the next phases of the study of a Deep 
Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL). The 
site-independent scientific study group of Deep Underground Science 
and Engineering (the so-called "S1" group) is organizing this event.

On Friday afternoon, November 2, we will hold an open meeting to 
describe to interested federal officials and the press the scientific 
and educational potential of DUSEL, and present the upcoming 
site-specific technical design of the envisioned Homestake 
laboratory. We hope that a large number of scientists will be present 
to express their interest in the project.

 From Saturday morning, November 3, to Sunday afternoon, November 4, 
we are organizing a scientific workshop involving all underground 
disciplines (Physics, Astrophysics, Biology, Earth Sciences and 
Engineering) to focus on the next phases of the project.

The Saturday-Sunday meeting is critical in organizing  the 
conceptual/technical designs of the first suite of DUSEL experiments 
for submission to the NSF Major Research Equipments and Facilities 
program (MREFC) at the same time as the DUSEL facility. Such designs 
will be supported  by Solicitation 4, which will be discussed at 
length during the week end. In addition we will give additional 
technical input to the S3 design, further define the needed R&D, 
explore the science and education before the MREFC  approval and 
during construction, and discuss coordination mechanisms with 
existing national and international underground laboratories/sites, 
national labs, funding agencies and other entities. This will be an 
opportunity to further organize ourselves as a community and provide 
input to the NSF process.

A web site is now up 
http://cosmology.berkeley.edu/DUSEL/Town_meeting_DC07/ with practical 
information, a preliminary program, and a working group sign up page .
We have secured the venues
	* Friday afternoon: National Academy of Sciences
	* Saturday, Sunday: an hotel in central Washington DC, that 
we will announce as soon as we have finished negotiation of the 
contract.
As soon as this is done, we will open the registration and 
accommodation page (target date October 1).

Meanwhile, it would help us greatly in our organization effort if you 
signed up for working groups for the Scientific Workshop (if you plan 
to come of course), and indicate whether you would like to give a 
presentation and its tentative title. Note that this is not a 
registration, you will have to come back to the web site after 
October 1 (we will send a reminder). Please plan to come also  to the 
Friday afternoon event if at all possible.

We are currently discussing travel support with the NSF. Some will 
definitely be available with priority to working group conveners and 
younger scientists. We will also try to encourage a diverse 
participation in the meeting. Further details will be available on 
the web site very soon.

For questions or comments contact us at 
inpac_response at cosmology.berkeley.edu or through the web site.

For the S1 team

Bernard Sadoulet