IRCEM, Brown, Providence, RI (recollections)

Back from ICERM, I reflected on how pleasant those three days have been: with only four talks a day and an enjoyable lounge to exchange with friends and colleagues, I feel like I benefited immensely from this type of schedule, when compared with a 6 or 10 talks a day workshop. This atmosphere with admirable facilities and staff reminded me of another mathematical haven, the Isaac Newton Institute in Cambridge, and of the ICMS in Edinburgh as well, and it led me to ponder how to extend it to other workshops, maybe facilitating even further possible informal communications between participants. Another illustration of this fascinating atmosphere is that I hardly set foot outside during the three days and come back from Providence with a very limited picture of the city (except for the area I explored during my early morning runs.)