Dear Wu Mei : I hate to sound like a sociologist, but I am one, let me say that human beings do have needs for networks and connections that can only be realized face to face contact, even if we all had webcams and could see each other, it would not be enough. I know its a bit essentialist, but I am not a pomo, but I would go so far as to say that contect, connection and attachment are in our DNA. While professional and colleagial relations are not like deep friendships and relationships, it does happen that meetings can lead to such (I met my wife at a meeting. But even for our scientific work we gain much from sitting and talking with each other in a face to face context. As Durkhiem, in his analysis of primitive religion, the otherwise dispersed clans came together once a year to affirm their common roots, shared identities, and rekindle the bonds of solidarity. In this way, many of our conferences serve very similar functions. And while most of us are quite comfortable with emails, websites, blogs, virtual communities and who knows, someday teledildonics, a community of scholars, not all that different from premodern Australian nomads, do have a need to come together and enact rituals and beliefs that join us together in a scholarly community. And as we know, those of us who do internet stuff, from a number of disciplines, are not typically likely to meet each other in most other venues. Hope to see you in Chicago next year, and perhaps have another great dinner. Warmly, Lauren

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meiwu@umac.mo 10/05/04 9:02 PM >>> As we are all researchers on the "virtual world", why should we still keep to the old, pre-Internet tradition of holding an annual conference in a "real venue," but not in a "virtual venue"? All the technologies to hold a virtual conference are available. What we need is to be more innovative in practising what we have been campaigning in our research: being global and connecting to as many people as possible with the help of the internet. What I suggest is that Aoir 5.0 could select one "real venue," and at the same time, set up a "virtual venue" for those who have registered, but for whatever reasons (be entry regulations, cost consideration, busy schedules, hurricanes, etc..) could not come to the "real venue" to participate, specially for panel discussions. Virtual participants can also organize local panels. Just throw my little thought here. Wu Mei University of Macau

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