From orr@physics.utoronto.ca Wed May 24 06:11:59 2006 Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 06:35:29 -0400 From: Robert S. Orr To: Ashutosh Kotwal Cc: Robert S. Orr , William@physics.utoronto.ca Subject: Toronto's offer to host HCP2009 Dear Ashutosh: Here is a somewhat expanded version of the Toronto proposal for HCP2009. Regards, Bob Orr ------------------------------------------------------- University of Toronto Proposal to Host HCP2009 (May 19, 2006) ---------------------------------------------- Contacts: Robert S. Orr (orr@physics.utoronto.ca) William Trischuk (william@physics.utoronto.ca) The enthusiasm we have for hosting this meeting stems mainly from the fact that hadron collider physics is central to the work of our group. We have been long standing members of both CDF and ATLAS, and we believe that there will be many exciting results from the field at the end of this decade. Our Department also has a strong theory group who support this proposal and will be involved in the local organisation. We think that the early summer time frame (before the major international conferences) is an ideal time for specialised workshops like HCP. Results released at the winter conferences can be discussed in detail, and a generic overview of results to be presented at the main international meetings in the summer can be given. Considering the wealth of physics that we expect to be coming from the LHC, and still coming from the Tevatron, we would suggest that it would appropriate to consider expanding the meeting to include a limited number of parallel sessions to foster more extensive discussion between specialists in QCD, Higgs, Exotics and Standard Model physics. Late spring is one of the most pleasant times of the year in Toronto with daytime highs of 20+ degrees and typical lows near 10 C. The University of Toronto is home to 50,000 undergraduate and 10,000 graduate students. It has a wealth of lecture halls and conference facilities that we can use for the workshop. We also have two video conference/board rooms available for parallel discussions. Wireless networking is available throughout the campus and our recently constructed auditoria have power outlets for laptops. The academic year in Canada ends in late April so these facilities are all available during the May/June time frame that we would propose for this meeting. Toronto is accessible by direct flights from everywhere in world (except Geneva!), including all the main European hubs (London, 6 flights a day, Frankfurt, 3 flights a day, Paris, Rome, Madrid, Amsterdam and Copenhagen), Asian hubs (direct flights from Hong Kong, Tokyo, Beijing and Seoul) as well as all major North American airports. During the early summer period we have access to college based conference housing on campus but there are also major hotels that are within 15 minutes walk of campus. The social schedule for a week long meeting might include: Sunday evening: Registration, reception, drinks Wednesday: Half-day excursion to Niagara Falls Thursday: Conference banquet at CN-tower (still world's tallest free-standing structure) The UofT campus is only 5km from the heart of the Toronto entertainment district that includes a symphony, ballet and live theatre. For people accompanying participants the are a series of world famous museums (natural history, art, design etc.) that are also within walking distance of our campus. Some of the most fashionable shopping districts in Canada (or anywhere in the world) are also within walking distance of the meeting site. Our urban campus is surrounded by several ethnic neighbourhoods that provide interesting options for lunch that can be reached in less than an hour break and cost less than $10. We anticipate that a registration fee of $300 per participant would cover the costs of the meeting room facilities, the conference dinner and the coffee breaks. Toronto is an international city with significant communities from almost every ethnic group and nation around the world (fortunately you won't be here during the world cup next month where every evening sees partisans of that days winner(s) driving around like maniacs with flags flying out the windows of their cars). At a recent CDF physics workshop we ended up having five meals that sampled cuisine from five different continents -- and none was North American. We have the resources to host such a meeting. We would expect to have practical support from the staff of the University and the Department. We are confident that we could secure significant financial support from the University of Toronto, the Faculty of Arts & Science, The Institute of Particle Physics of Canada, TRIUMF, the National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and perhaps industrial sponsors. Recently, our Department hosted both 2nd North American ATLAS Physics Workshop (with 150 participants over three days) and Strings05 (with 450 participants over a week). Both of these meetings were successful; we regard them as existence proofs that we can take on this task. Apart from the science program, we believe that participants found Toronto an interesting and congenial place to have a conference. Members of the Local Organising Committee: ----------------------------------------- David Bailey Bob Holdom Peter Krieger Mike Luke Bob Orr (co-chair) Pierre Savard Pekka Sinervo Richard Teuscher William Trischuk (co-chair) >