PCGM 31 Announcement

The 31st Pacific Coast Gravity Meeting will be held at the University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, on March 13 and 14, 2015. In keeping with its tradition, this will be an open, relaxed, and informal conference. We are inviting researchers and students interested in all areas of gravitational physics: classical and quantum gravity, general relativistic astrophysics and cosmology, quantum cosmology, gravitational waves, experimental gravity, and mathematical relativity. Because this is a regional meeting, many attendees will be from the western United States, but all are welcome.

Talk Format
Following the usual tradition all participants, and especially postdocs and graduate students, are encouraged to contribute short, introductory talks on their current research, with the aim of fostering communication and understanding among gravitational physicists with different backgrounds. Everyone who requests to speak will be given equal time (plausibly between 10 and 15 minutes, including a question period). A prize (sponsored by the APS Topical Group on Gravity) will be awarded for the best talk given by a student at the meeting.

Scientific Program
The 31st PCGM will begin at 9:15am in the morning of March 13, in Jaqua Academic Center (Glass Palace), auditorium J101, on the University of Oregon campus. The schedule of talks and related information will be posted on the Scientific Program page shortly before the meeting, and will be distributed to participants on March 13. A PDF of the program (including some useful maps) will also be posted on that page when available.

Special Lecture by Kip Thorne
There will be a special lecture given by Kip Thorne at 7pm on March 13; details may be found here here. There will also be a wine and cheese reception at 6pm before the lecture.

Practical Information
Please see our Practical Information page to learn about lodging, dining, directions, parking, and computer support for the 31st Pacific Coast Gravity Meeting.

Online Registration
There will be no registration fee, but no financial support is available for travel expenses. We request that participants register, and submit the titles of their talks if they wish to speak, by March 6, 2015. Registration will close on that date. Registration can be completed online by filling out the Online Registration Form, or by e-mailing pcgm31@ccom.ucsd.edu. For the list (updated daily) of who is planning to come to the meeting, please see the list of Registered Participants.

Sponsors
The 31st PCGM is being sponsored by the Institute for Theoretical Sciences, the Mathematics Department, and the Physics Department at the University of Oregon. The meeting is being hosted by the University of Oregon campus in Eugene, Oregon. The website for PCGM 31 is hosted by the Center for Computational Mathematics at UC San Diego, which also maintains the PCGM ARCHIVE.