Forte di Bard

After our aborted attempt at Monte Rosa, Abele Blanc treated us to a quick visit to Forte di Bard, a 19th Century military fortress in the Valley of Aosta [a first version of which was razed by Napoleon’s troops in 1800] on top the medieval village of Bard. Ironically, the current fortress never saw action as Napoleon’s siege was the last invasion of the kingdom of Savoy by French troops.

The buildings are impressive, so seamlessly connected to the rock spur that supports them that they appear to have grown out of it. They reminded me of Vauban’s fortresses, with the feeling that they were already outdated when they got built. (On the French Savoy side, there is a series of fortresses that similarly faced no battle as they were designed to keep the French out, becoming overnight useless when this part of Savoy was ceded to France in exchange for its support of the unification of Italy. For instance, there is such a fort in Aussois, which now houses an hostel, a gastronomical restaurant [we enjoyed at O’Bayes 03], and a via ferrata…)

The fortress has been recently and beautifully renovated with the help of the Italian State and of the European Union. It houses conferences and art exhibits. Like those on Marc Chagall and Elliot Erwitt that we briefly saw, missing the massive museum of the Alps… A few dozen kilometers from Torino, it would be a perfect location for a small workshop, albeit not large enough for a future MCMski.

next BayesComp conference planned for Jan 2018, any volunteer?

[A call from the BayesComp section of ISBA for the next Bayesian computation meeting! As suggested in an earlier post, the label MCMski is discontinued to allow for any location amenable to organise a 200 plus meeting in good and hopefully reasonably priced conditions.]

The Bayesian Computation Section of ISBA is soliciting proposals to host its flagship meeting: BayesComp 2018

The expectation is that the meeting will be held in January 2018, but the committee will consider proposals for other times through January 2019. This meeting is a continuation of the popular MCMSki on recent advances in the theory and application of Bayesian computational methods such as MCMC. The tradition was to hold MCMski meetings in ski resorts, but, as the name change suggests, we encourage applications from any venue that could support BC2018.

A three-day meeting is planned, perhaps with an additional day or two of satellite meetings and/or short courses. One page proposals should address feasibility of hosting the meeting including

1. Proposed dates.
2. Transportation for international participants (both the proximity of international airports and transportation to/from the venue).
3. The conference facilities.
4. The availability and cost of hotels, including low cost options.
5. The proposed local organizing committee and their collective experience organizing international meetings.
6. Expected or promised contributions from the host organization, host country, or industrial partners towards the cost of running the meetings.

Proposals should be submitted to Nicolas Chopin (Program Chair) no later than May 31, 2016. The Board of Bayesian Computing Section will evaluate the proposals, choose a venue, and appoint the Program Committee for BayesComp 2018.

MCMskv, Lenzerheide, 4-7 Jan., 2016 [breaking news #6]

As indicated in an earlier MCMskv news, the scientific committee kept a session open for Breaking news! proposals, in conjunction with poster submissions. We received 21 proposals and managed to squeeze 12 fifteen minute presentations in an already tight program. (I advise all participants to take a relaxing New Year break and to load in vitamins and such in preparation for a 24/7 or rather 24/3 relentless and X’citing conference!) Here are the selected presentations, with (some links to my posts on the related papers and) abstracts available on the conference website. Note to all participants that there are still a few days left for submitting posters!

Luke Bornn

Jon Cockayne

Gersende Fort

Michael Gutmann

James Johndrow

Jean-Michel Marin

Murray Pollock

Maxim Rabinovich

Rebecca Steorts

Alexander Terenin

Yazhen Wang

Giacomo Zanella

MCMskv, Lenzerheide, 4-7 Jan., 2016 [news #5]

While the deadline for Breaking News! submission is now over, with close to 20 submissions!, there is a new opening for cheaper lodging: The CUBE hotel in Savognin (20km away) has an offer at 110 CHF per person and per night, including breakfast, dinner, and skipass in a room for 3 people (or more). Be sure to mention MCMski in the subject of your email. As mentioned in the previous post, there are other opportunities in nearby villages, for instance Tiefencastel, 11km away with a 19mn bus connection, or Chur, 18km away with a slower 39mn bus connection, but with a very wide range of offers.

MCMskv, Lenzerheide, 4-7 Jan., 2016 [(breaking) news #4]

As the deadline draws near, a week from now!, I want to remind participants to the next MCMSki conference in Lenzerheide that they can candidate to the Breaking News! session:

This edition of the MCMSki conference will include a Breaking News! session, covering the latest developments in the field, latest enough to be missed by the scientific committee when building the program. To be considered for this special session, please indicate you wish to compete for this distinction when submitting your poster. The deadline for submission is November 15, 2015. The selection will be made by the scientific committee and the time allocated to each talk will depend on the number of selected talks. Selected presenters will be notified by December 02, 2015, and they are expected to participate in the poster session to ensure maximal dissemination of their breaking news.

And since I got personal enquiries yesterday, the number of talks during that session will be limited to have real talks and not flash oral presentations of incoming posters. Unless the scientific committee cannot make its mind on which news to break..!

MCMskv, Lenzerheide, 4-7 Jan., 2016 on a shoestring [news #3]

As the ‘Og received several comments about the accommodation costs for BayesComp MCMski V, which are indeed rather high if one only follows the suggestions on the lodging webpage, I started checking for cheaper alternatives in Lenzerheide and around. On booking.com, I found several local hotels and studios from 100€ to 200€ per night for two or three guests, with breakfast included. The offer on airbnb was quite limited but I still managed to secure a small chalet at about 50€ per person and per night. There are more opportunities in nearby villages, for instance Tiefencastel, 11km away with a 19mn bus connection. Chur is 18km away with a slower 39mn bus connection, but with a very wide range of offers. Savognin, near the pricey Sankt Moritz is 20km away, with other cheap alternatives. Which may even make renting a car worth the expense if split between 3 or 4. Note also that low-cost airlines fly to Zürich from major European cities. For instance, Easyjet is currently offering a round trip from London for 72€…

MCMskv, Lenzerheide, 4-7 Jan., 2016 [news #2]

A quick reminder that the early bird registration deadline for BayesComp MCMski V is drawing near. And reminding Og’s readers that there will be a “Breaking news” session to highlight major advances among poster submissions. For which they can apply when sending the poster template. In addition, there is only a limited number of hotel rooms at the Schweizerhof, the main conference hotel and the first 40 participants who will make a reservation there will get a free one-day skipass!