<p><strong>COMPUTINGRESEARCHNEWS </strong></p><p>TheNewsJournaloftheComputingResearchAssociation </p><p><strong>January1993 </strong></p><p>Vol. 5/No. 1 </p><p><strong>MembershipofCongresschangessignificantly </strong></p><p>alsowasre-elected.Hehasproven tobe an effectiveandwell-informedchair, but given theturnoverin theHouse andhisrisingpoliticalstar,hemaynot remain activein R&amp;Dpolicy.Boucher alsoservedon theEnergyandCommerceSubcommitteeon TelecommunicationsandFinance,whereheexpressedagreat dealofinterest in stimulatingthecreation ofabroadband, digitalnationalinformation infrastructure.Thisinterest hasbeen reflectedin hisongoingscrutinyoftheNational ScienceFoundation’smanagement of theNationalResearch andEducation Network(NREN). attention on high-technology,the committeepossiblywillattract more members.But it willneverhavethe attraction orpoliticalpowerofthe EnergyandCommerceCommittee,the WaysandMeansCommitteeorthe AppropriationsCommittee,which also willhaveopenings.Unlesstheyhave specificinterestsandexpertisein scienceandtechnology,memberswith seniorityandinfluencetendtogravitate towardthosemajorcommittees, particularlyiftheyhavean opportunity tochairasubcommittee. <br>Rep.BobTraxler(D-MI),chairof <br>HouseAppropriationsVA,HUDand Independent AgenciesSubcommittee, retiredthisyearandRep.BillGreen (R- NY),therankingminoritymemberof that subcommittee,lost hisseat. Although that subcommitteemade largecutsin NSF’sbudget request, TraxlerandGreen wereconsideredto beunderstandingfriendsofresearch. Rep.LouisStokes(D-OH) isnext in seniorityforchairofthat subcommittee.Hisattitudetowardscienceand technologyisnot well-known. </p><p><strong>BY Fred W. Weingarten </strong></p><p>CRAStaff </p><p>Although incumbentsfaredbetterin theNovemberelectionsthan was expected,themembershipofCongress haschangedsignificantly.Congresshas 118newmembers,andsomekey membersweredefeatedorretired,so there will be quite a bit of change in the membershipofcommitteesand subcommitteesconcernedwith research. </p><p><strong>Senate </strong></p><p>TheSenateisstablebecausethere waslessturn-overandscienceisunder theCommerceCommittee,which isa plum.VicePresident-elect AlGorewill bereplacedaschairofthescience subcommittee.Sen.JayRockefeller(D- WV) isthenext-rankingmemberon thesubcommitteeandreportedlyis readytotakeoveraschair.Hisinterests aredescribedas“moretechnologythan science,”but heisseen asopen-minded andinformed.Rockefellerwasastrong supporterandacosponsorofthe HPCC Act.Hemost likelywill </p><p><strong>HouseofRepresentatives </strong></p><p>Rep.GeorgeBrown (D-CA),chair oftheHouseCommitteeon Science, SpaceandTechnology,whonarrowly won a racemanyexpected himtolose, most likelywillcontinuetochairthe sciencecommittee.Formanyyearshe hasbeen consideredoneofthemost knowledgeablemembersoftheHouse on sciencepolicy.Hiscallsforpriority setting,increasedaccountabilityand demonstratedsocialbenefit from research investmentshavealarmed somemembersofthebasicresearch community.However,thecommunity considershimastrongcongressional supporterofscienceandhiswarnings an attempt toimprovesciencepolicy. Brown alsohasled,with mixedsuccess, thefight against “pork”in science appropriations. <br>Actionstaken thisyearby <br>Boucher’ssubcommitteewillbe particularlycriticalforthecomputing research community.Thesubcommittee willconsiderNSF’sreauthorization,a processthat willhelpdefinethe agency’smission andorganization for thenext severalyears.Thesubcommitteewillcontinueitsoversight ofthe High-PerformanceComputingand CommunicationsAct andconduct hearingson thefutureofUSR&amp;D policy, as a follow up tothe full introducesomeformofthedigital infrastructurebillintroducedlast fallby GoreandcosponsoredbyRockefeller. Hissubcommitteealsowillconsider NSFreauthorization. </p><p><strong>Continued on page 5 </strong></p><p>InsideCRN </p><p><strong>PAGE 2: </strong>CS community reacts </p><p>to NRC report </p><p><strong>PAGE 6: </strong>Workshop attendees </p><p>tackle CS research problems </p><p>committee’sTaskForceReport on the Health oftheUSResearch Enterprise releasedlast year[NovemberCRN, Page1]. </p><p><strong>PAGE 3: </strong>Women, childcare </p><p>andconferences </p><p><strong>PAGE 7: </strong>SIGACT trying to get </p><p>children more excited about CS </p><p>TheHousesciencecommittee </p><p><strong>PAGE 4: </strong>Commission on NSF </p><p>issues report to NSB </p><p><strong>PAGE8:</strong>Professional </p><p>Opportunities </p><p>often hasaheavyturnoverin members becauseit isnot viewed asa “major” committee.Thisyear,with allthe <br>Rep.RickBoucher(D-VA),chair oftheHouseScience,Spaceand TechnologySubcommitteeon Science </p><p><strong>PAGE 4: </strong>NSF committee has </p><p>directoratewideresponsibility </p><p><strong>PAGE 12: </strong>FCRC ’93 will be </p><p>held in May </p><p><strong>News Analysis </strong></p><p><strong>HowwillS&amp;Tpolicyfareinnewadministration? </strong></p><p>emphasizedandrestructuredoverthe next fewyears,both forreasonsdetailed in recent issuesofCRN andbecause scienceandtechnologywasaserious focusfortheClinton/Gorecampaign. Theresearch communitywillbe responsibleforhelpingcreatepublicand politicalsupport forS&amp;T initiatives, andactivelyparticipatingin the politicaldebatesoawell-informedand sensibleset ofpoliciesisdeveloped. Let’slookat fourdimensionsofthis responsibility. funding,that support isthin,at best. Sciencepolicy-makershavesaidthat thecomputingresearch community needstoprepareacarefulcaseexplainingthenatureofresearch andthe benefitstothenation,then communicateit in clearandunderstandable termstothepublicandthepoliticians. </p><p><strong>BY Fred W. Weingarten </strong></p><p>CRAStaff </p><p>Politicaltransitions,particularlyones reflectingamajorpoliticalshift,are timeswhen great hopes—andfears— areraisedabout possiblechangesin all areasofpublicpolicy,rangingfromthe most fundamental,such asnational prosperityandsecurity,tothemost arcane.Thistransition hasbeen no different.BecausePresident-elect Bill Clinton’scampaign emphasizedchange, expectationsseemtobeeven higher. (Somereportsestimatedthat theLittle Rocktransition officereceivednearly 30,000lettersperdayaftertheelection.) </p><p><strong>Consensus </strong></p><p>S&amp;T policywillemphasize consensus,which alsoisexpectedtobe thebasicstyleofthenewadministration. S&amp;T policyisnot an area in which politiciansliketospendpoliticalcapital toresolveconflicts,andpoliticians seldomareeffectivewhen theydotry. On most scienceandtechnologyissues, politicianswant expertstoidentifyareas wherethereisagreement in the community.Theyhavetoomanyother thingstofight about,andtheyunderstandthat theylackthenecessary expertisetomakeajudgment call. (Politicalcontroversydoesexist—there havebeen debatesovertheStrategic DefenseInitiativeandfloorfightsover fundingforthesupercollider.) </p><p><strong>Publicandpoliticalsupport </strong></p><p>Anymajorpolicyinitiativerequires broadpublicsupport andtheunderstandingandsupport ofthepolitical leadership.Nearlyone-quarterof Congressisnewthisyear.Thesenew membersdidnot votefortheHighPerformanceComputingandCommunicationsAct,norweretheypartyto the“agreement”madein 1987to doubletheresearch budget ofthe NationalScienceFoundation.Fewof thenewmembers,even iftheywere activein localpolitics,haveanyS&amp;T policyexperience. <br>Thepublic,in general,hasapoor andsimplisticunderstandingofscience and technologyand howit islinked to economicgrowth.Although thepublic seemstoaccept that thegovernment shouldsupport somelevelofR&amp;D <br>Most ofthesehopesandexpectationsdiminish asthenewpresident startsfocusingon hardpriorities, decidingwheretoexpendpolitical capitaland wheretowait forabetter opportunityorabetterideaofthereal cost ofsomeproposedprograms. Although DemocratscontrolCongress andtheWhiteHouse,politicalpower stillisdiffuse,andtherearemany conflictingpressures.In thepast, scienceandtechnology(S&amp;T) policy almost immediatelywasrelegatedtothe backseat in transition politics. <br>TheHigh-PerformanceComputing andCommunicationsAct passed unanimouslyin theHouseandSenate. It wasclearthat,ifunanimitydidnot exist,thebillwouldnot havebeen taken tothefloor. <br>Thispasthistoryshouldbeawarning totheresearchcommunity.Thereisgood reasontoexpectthatS&amp;T policywillbe </p><p><strong>Continued on page 5 </strong></p><p><strong>January 1993 </strong></p><p><strong>COMPUTING RESEARCH NEWS </strong></p><p><strong>Opinions </strong></p><p><strong>ComputingResearch </strong><br><strong>Association </strong></p><p><strong>CScommunityreactstoNRCreport </strong></p><p><strong>BoardOfficers </strong></p><p>John R. Rice </p><p>Chair </p><p><strong>Effective CS researchers must compute for the future </strong></p><p>disciplinedskillin socialanalysis, computerscientists’claimsabout the usabilityandsocialvalueofspecific technologiesismereopinion,andbears an exceptionalriskofbeingself-serving opinion. computing,such asnetworkingand microcomputing,changedthedistribution ofapplications.Whiletheysupport traditionalnumericalcomputation, albeit in newerformatssuch asspreadsheets,theyalsohaveexpandedthe diversityofnon-numericalcomputations.Thesemodesofcomputinghave madedigitallyrepresentedtext and graphicsaccessibletotensofmillionsof people. </p><p><strong>BY Rob Kling </strong></p><p>TheNational Research Council’sComput- </p><p>ingtheFuture:A BroaderAgendafor ComputerScience andEngineeringis </p><p>awelcomereport </p><p>PurdueUniversity </p><p>PeterFreeman </p><p>Vice Chair Georgia Institute of Technology </p><p>Gregory R.Andrews </p><p>Secretary </p><p>Computerscientistswhodonot haverefinedsocialanalyticalskillshave sometimesconceivedandpromoted technologiesthat werefarlessusefulor farmorecostlythan theyclaimed. EffectiveCSpractitionerswho“computeforthefuture”in manyorganizationsneedsomeskillsin socialanalysis tohelpunderstandappropriatesystems requirementsandtheconditionswhich transformhigh-performancecomputing intohigh-performanceorganizations. Becausethereport doesnot spellout thesetacit implications,Iwouldliketo explain themhere. </p><p>University of Arizona </p><p>Michael R. Garey </p><p>Treasurer </p><p>that arguesthat academiccomputer scientistsmust acknowledgethedriving forcesbehindthegenerallygoodfederal support forthediscipline.Theexplosive growth ofcomputinganddemandfor computersciencein thelast decadehas been driven byadiversearrayof applicationsandnewmodesofcomputingin diversesocialcontexts.The report takesastrongandusefulposition in encouragingallcomputerscientists tobroaden ourconceptionsofthe discipline. <br>Thereport’sauthorsencourage computerscientiststoenvision new technologiesin thesocialcontextsin which theywillbeused.Thenumerous examplesofcomputerapplicationsthat theauthorsidentifyashavingsignificant socialvaluerest on socialanalyses ofthesetechnologies.Further,the report tacitlyrequiresthat theCS communitydevelopreliableknowledge, basedin systematicresearch,tosupport effectivesocialanalysis.Andit requires an abilitytoteach such skillsto practitionersandstudents.Without a </p><p>AT&amp;T Bell Laboratories </p><p>Noneoftheseadvancesare </p><p><strong>BoardMembers </strong></p><p>W. RichardsAdrion </p><p>inconsistent with“mathematical foundations”in computersciencesuch asTuringmachineformulations.But theyarenot well-conceptualizedbythe foundationalmathematicalmodelsof computation.Nordoourfoundational mathematicalmodelsprovideuseful waysofconceptualizingadvancesin even moretraditionalelementsof computerssystemssuch asoperating systemsanddatabasesystems.Mathematicalanalysiscan playacentralrole in someareasofcomputerscienceand an important rolein manyareas.But we cannot understandimportant aspectsof usabilityifwelimit ourselvesto </p><p>UniversityofMassachusetts, Amherst </p><p>VictorBasili </p><p>University of Maryland </p><p>Ashok K. Chandra </p><p>IBM Almaden Research Center </p><p>FernandoCorbató </p><p>MIT </p><p><strong>Systemusability </strong></p><p>Dorothy E. Denning </p><p>GeorgetownUniversity </p><p>Becausetheusabilityofsystems and software isa keytheme in the historyofcomputerscience,wemust expandbeyondmathematicsforour conceptionsof“theory”forthediscipline.Someapplications,such as supercomputingandcomputational science,areevolutionaryextensionsof traditionalscientificcomputation,even though theyhavetaken anewdirection with rich graphicalfront-endsfor visualizingenormousamountsofdata. But someother,newermodesof </p><p>C. William Gear </p><p>NEC Research Institute Inc. </p><p>JurisHartmanis </p><p>CornellUniversity </p><p>mathematicaltheories. </p><p>PatrickHayes </p><p>StanfordUniversity </p><p>Ofthediversetrendsin computing, thegrowingemphasisofusabilityisone ofthemost dominant.Theusability tradition hasdeeprootsin computer science,andextendsbackintothe design ofprogramminglanguagesand </p><p>Mary Jane Irwin </p><p>PennsylvaniaStateUniversity </p><p>LennartJohnsson </p><p>ThinkingMachinesCorp. </p><p>MariaKlawe </p><p><strong>Continued on page 5 </strong></p><p>University of British Columbia </p><p>H.T. Kung </p><p>HarvardUniversity </p><p><strong>Merging CS and CE disciplines is not a good idea </strong></p><p><strong>BY John McCarthy </strong></p><p>computerengineeringencourages research that isnot reallybasicandhas onlyametaphoricalrelation toapplications. quiteusefulin someunderdeveloped countries. </p><p>Edward D. Lazowska </p><p>University of Washington </p><p>McCarthywas </p><p>Criteriaforwhat constitutes </p><p>Nancy G. Leveson </p><p>University of California, Irvine </p><p>involvedina petitionthatcalled forthewithdrawal </p><p>ofComputingthe Future.Manyof </p><p>thepetitioners’ </p><p>scientificprogressin variouscomputer sciencedisciplinesneedtobediscussed andclarified.Ibelievemuch oftoday’s workin computersciencewillnot meet thesecriteria. <br>• Thereport&nbsp;recommendstying computerscienceandengineeringto limited-duration giant projectslikethe High-PerformanceComputingand Communication(HPCC)initiative. <br>Thisenlargesandformalizesalayer ofbureaucracyintotheproposal mechanism.Whileresearch proposals arepeer-reviewed,whethertheyfit into theHPCCprogramisan administrative decision. <br>When HPCCends,thelong-term research in scienceorengineering supportedunderitsumbrellagoesinto limbo.Thereisnoreason tosuppose that manyareasofcomputerscienceor computerengineeringwillbesynchronized with HPCC. IfHPCC wasnot regardedasasuccess—liketheJapanese fifth-generation project—then thebasic research it supportedisin additional bureaucratictrouble.HPCCmight end upregarded asa failurefor a varietyof reasons:foreignersdobetter;US companiesunsupportedbythegovernment programdobetter(ashappened in theearly1960swith thedevelopment ofintegratedcircuits);andthe supposedbeneficiariesofthegigabit communication might decidethat what <br>• Artificialintelligencehasboth engineeringandscientificaspects,but it isamistaketoidentifythem.Scientifically,artificialintelligenceinvolves understandinghowtoachievegoalsin open-ended,informationallycomplex situations.BecausetheAIfielddoesnot yet understandsomedifficult conceptualproblems,it isnot known when human-levelintelligencewillbe achieved.It isnecessarytomeasure progressin thescientificsideofAIby scientificcriteria—what isunderstood nowthat wasnot understoodbefore.In myopinion,thediscoveryofformalized non-monotonicreasoningwasamajor advance. </p><p>Steven S. Muchnick </p><p>Sun Microsystems Inc. </p><p>DavidA. Patterson </p><p>University of California, Berkeley </p><p>problemswiththereportwereresolvedina jointstatementbythesponsorsofthe petitionandNRC. </p><p>Robert W. Ritchie </p><p>Hewlett-PackardCo. </p><p>John E. Savage </p><p>BrownUniversity </p><p>Ihavesomeotherproblemswith theNRCreport.Thesecommentsare mineand maynot reflect theviewsof thepetitioners.Someofmycomments donot addressthereport itself. <br>Mergingthetwodisciplinesof computerscienceandcomputer engineeringintoasinglediscipline called CS&amp;Eisnot a good idea. <br>• Scienceisconcernedwith findingout about phenomena,and engineeringisconcernedwith making usefulartifacts.Whilescienceand engineeringareclosertogetherin computersciencethan in otherfields, thedistinction isimportant.For example,thescientificproblemofthe relation between specificationsofa programanditstext needstobestudied independentlyofprogramverification systems. </p><p>AnthonyI. Wasserman </p><p>InteractiveDevelopmentEnvironments </p><p>MarkWeiser </p><p>Xerox Palo Alto Research Center </p><p>JohnWerth </p><p>University of Texas, Austin </p><p>David S. Wise </p><p>IndianaUniversity </p><p>Theappliedaspect ofartificial intelligenceisexpert systems,which has somebasictechnologicalproblems,such ascreatingtools.But thecriteriafor evaluatingmost ofitsworkarepractical.Areexpert systemsuseful? </p><p>WilliamA. Wulf </p><p><strong>ExecutiveDirector </strong></p><p>Fred W. Weingarten </p><p>• Itisamistaketoidentifybasic researchwiththeory,andwritingprograms withapplications.Artificialintelligence, forexample,hasalargecomponent of experimentalbasicresearch,where experimentalprogramsarewritten for what theywillteach usratherthan for theirdirect useful.Advisingsomeoneto alwaysdoprogrammingin connection with applicationsislikeadvising </p><p><strong>CRN welcomes letters from its readers. Letters may be edited for space and clarity. Send them to Joan Bass, Managing Editor, CRN, 1875 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 718, Washington, DC 20009. E-mail: [email protected]. Letters must include your name, address and telephone number or E-mail address. </strong></p><p>Theengineeringproblemof makingchangesin systemsofprograms that are too big for any one person to fullyunderstandneedstobestudied apart fromformalmethods—and shouldmakeuseofformalmethods,as well.Mergingcomputerscienceand geneticiststouseelephantsinsteadof fruit flies,becausenooneneedsabetter fruit fly,andsmallerelephantsmight be </p><p><strong>Continued on page 3 </strong></p><p><strong>Page 2 </strong><br><strong>January 1993 </strong></p><p><strong>COMPUTING RESEARCH NEWS </strong></p><p><strong>ExpandingthePipeline </strong></p><p><strong>Childcareanissueforconferenceattendees </strong></p><p>thejuniorlevelcan affordanysuch trips? childforthenecessarydays?Ifnot, couldtheyasktheircaregiverfora recommendation?Ifthisdoesnot produceleads,Ilookforfaculty valuablemembersofourprofessional community.Possiblesolutionsinclude: <br>• Professionalsocietiescan&nbsp;adopt thepolicythat allsponsoredconferencesshouldbeheldat hotelsthat providechildcarefacilities.Hotels,like otherbusinesses,areresponsivetowhat theyperceiveastheireconomicselfinterest.Ifmajororganizations,such as ACMandIEEE,demandon-site childcare,changeismuch morelikelyto occurthan ifindividualssimplyrequest it orindividualconferencesrequireit. <br>Although Ibelievethereisa reasonableargument that thecost of thischildcareshouldbebornebyall since it is for the common good of the professionalcommunity,Iamnot proposingthat.Iamonlysuggesting that ourprofessionalsocietiesrequire that afee-for-servicesfacilitybe </p><p><strong>BY Elaine J. Weyuker </strong></p><p>Given that theparent somehow managestohandletheexpense,thereal challengestilllooms.Howdoyou arrangeforchildcarein an unfamiliar, distant place?Ifyou can locatea caregiver,howcan youfeelsecureabout leavingachildwith acaregiveryou havenevermet? <br>Childcare,orthe lackthereof,isan issue for allofus. It affectsus, at least tangentially, whetherweare femaleormale, membersneartheconferenceandask themtoaskstudentsiftheywouldlike toearn extramoneybabysitting.Iask colleagueswhethertheirteenage children willbeattendingandmight be interestedin babysitting.It isalot of work,andit isnot forthefaint-hearted. Ihavehad somewonderfulluck, but on otheroccasions,Ihavecomeupemptyhandedandsimplydecidedtherewas nosolution,andthat Iwouldjust have tomisstheconference. <br>The bottom line is that I am a fairly seniorresearcherandmuch betterable toabsorbthecoststhan manyother people.Beingsenior,Iknowlotsof peoplearoundthecountryand oldoryoung,parentsornot.There havebeen manyarticlesdecryingthe lackofhigh-quality,affordablechildcare,andavarietyofsuggestionsabout what employersandthegovernment shoulddotoalleviatetheproblems. <br>In thisarticle, Iwillfocuson one narrowaspect ofthisbroadand complextopic:howchildcareissues affect theabilityofaresearcherwith youngchildren toattendandparticipatein conferences,andconsequently howcareeradvancement isaffected.As a mother who has no option but to travelwith her4-year-olddaughter,I writefromfirst-handexperience. <br>Thefirst issuetoconsider,andone that frequentlyisthedecidingfactor,is thetravelingexpensesofachild. Expensesinclude: <br>• airfare(fullfarestartsat&nbsp;age2), • childcare(in&nbsp;addition tonormal childcareexpensesat home,which must bepaid whetherornot thechild attends), <br>• carrental(cabsrarelyhave seatbelts,thereforechildsafetyseats cannot beused), <br>• meals(forlogisticalreasons, theseoften must bebought in the notoriouslyexpensivehotelrestaurant) and <br>Frequently,largehotelslist babysittingasan availableservice. However,mypersonalexperienceis that thebabysittersrarelyexist.My daughterwas5monthsold when Itook her with me for the first time. It was the most important conferencein myfield.I wason theprogramcommittee,andI had apaperin theconference. Iwould not have missed it for the world. I phonedthehotelandwastoldtheyhad ababysittingserviceandthat no reservationswereneeded.When we arrived,Ilearnedthereality—maybe theycouldthinkofsomeoneIcould phoneand askiftheywanted tocome tothehotelandbabysit.Aftersome discussion,theyconcludedtheycould not thinkofanyone.Mydaughter thereforeattendedherfirst conference. Needlesstosay,it affectedmyabilityto participate. <br>Similarsituationshappenedat the next severalconferencesweattended. Finally, IrealizedIwasnot likelytofind childcareat ahotel,andhadbetter makeotherarrangements.Ihave devisedmanycreativewaystoarrange forchildcarewhen Iattendaconference.When Icannot locatewhat seems tobehigh-quality,safechildcare,I simplydonot attendthemeeting. <br>Severalmonthsbeforethe thereforehavegoodcontacts.Still, traveltoacountrywhereEnglish isnot theprimarylanguageseemsimpossible to me now. I simply do not submit paperstoconferencesoverseas,andIdo not attendthoseconferences. availableat theconferencesite. <br>• Rulesofgrantingagenciescould bechangedtopermit additional expensestobecharged,when necessary, forthegranteetotravel.Ifranklyhave mixedemotionsabout thissuggestion. Theregenerallyisafixed,finiteamount oftravelmoneyavailable,andfunds used topayfora child’stravelcould not beused bya student orgrantee. However, ifthisistheonlywayfor someonetoattend,then perhapsit is worth thetradeoff. <br>It iscertainlytruethat thereare men whoaresingleparentsorthe primarycaregiversfortheirchildren, andwhofacetheseproblems.And therearewomen whosepersonal situation allowsthemtotravelwithout theirchildren.Still,at thepresent time, childcareresponsibilities,especiallyfor youngchildren,falldisproportionately on women,andthereforewomen suffer most often andmost directly. <br>Anotherpossibilityisthat ifthe granteecan obtain anothersourceof travelfundsforthemselves,thegrant travel money can be spent to pay for a child’stravel.It issometimespossibleto arrangetogiveacolloquiumat an industryoruniversitysitenearthe conference.Ifthat sourcepaysthe grantee’sexpenses,then thegrant moneycouldbeusedinsteadforthe child,therebyallowingthegranteeto attend. <br>Whateversolutionswesettleon,it meanschangingpublicpolicy.Weare not likelytoaccomplish thisin thenear future. Aslongasit isnot perceived by ourcommunityasaseriousproblem requiringaction,nothingwillchange. <br>Howmanywomen facethese situationsandfindtheminsurmountable?Howdoesthisaffect theircareers? Aretheytaken lessseriouslybecause theycannot attendmeetings,and thereforepublish lessthan theirmale colleagues?Aretheyconsidered unprofessionaliftheyattendwith a youngchildbecausethat istheonlyway theycan attend?Even ifaparent managestoattendandarrange childcare,it isdifficult,ifnot impossible, toattendthesocialeventssurrounding theconference.What contactsare missedasaresult? <br>Weneedcreativesolutions,orwe willcontinuetolosetheparticipation of <br>• additionalhotelcosts. Usually,noneofthesecostsare reimbursablebyaresearch grant or employer.Thesecostsarenot even taxdeductible,although theyaremandatoryfortheemployeetoattendthe conference.It isnot unusualforit to cost $1,000 to take my child to a conference.Howmanyconferencescan aparent affordtoattendwith thistype offinancialburden?Howmanypeopleat conference,Ibegin phoningeveryoneI knowwholivesand worksin the conferencearea.Iaskiftheyhave colleagueswith children mydaughter’s age.Ithen phonethose“leads”andask about theirchildcarearrangements. Couldtheyfindout whethertheir caregiverwouldtakean extra(wonderfullybright,easy-going,ever-cheerful) </p>