The format has undergone many changes in response to requests from previous conferences. The challenge to the Organizing Committee was to provide a forum for all conference participants to present their research within a format with fewer days and fewer parallel sessions. As in the past, the papers were not refereed. We believe in the free and immediate flow of ideas. However, to accomplish this organizational feat, we modified the structure of some of the sessions.
The minisymposia have been redirected to topics in emerging areas in CAGD and have been solicited by the Organizing Committee. Since the emphasis is on new frontiers, the level will be expository but will have enough substance to engage the student as well as the experienced researcher.
There is a new kind of session, called the Contributed Focus Session. These sessions are intended for discussion by the full audience. They will be conducted by session moderators who have seen the extended abstracts in advance, and have prepared an introductory survey of the topic area and session papers. This introduction will contain the necessary background material for each paper thereby permitting each speaker to focus on the salient points of his or her research. The presentations will be followed by a moderated discussion. To encourage the participation of younger members of our community, in some of the focus sessions, the Organizing Committee has paired a young person with a senior person as a moderating team. Together this team will prepare the introductory talk which will be given by the younger member. Since the sessions will be tightly focused, there will be no schedule coordination with the other concurrent sessions and we expect that the audience will stay for the entire session.
Not all of the contributed papers could be assembled into focus sessions. Therefore, there will still be some traditional Contributed Sessions. The format will be 20 minutes per person. Session Chairs will endeavor to keep to the schedule to permit efficient movement between sessions.
Since CAGD has an important visual component, the Poster Session would seem to be an ideal medium to convey one's research. The Poster Session will be a plenary evening event complete with refreshments. A prize will be awarded to the best presentation.
We expect the format to further evolve as we learn the most efficient and current ways to exchange information. Any suggestion or comment that might improve the conference is welcomed and should be directed to any member of the Organizing Committee.