United Kingdom (05/01/2012) : I recently chaired the program for ASPLOS, the premier “systems” conference on the interaction of computer hardware and software. The conference was held in March, 2012, in the historic quarters of the Royal Society in London, just a few blocks from Parliament and a host of other historic sites. Logistics were masterfully planned by Tim Harris of Microsoft Research. While ASPLOS has met some 17 times since its founding in 1985, this was the first time ever outside of North America—a telling (if belated) recognition of the growing internationalization of the field. Some 300 researchers participated, from about 20 different countries. 45% were students.

China (05/01/2012) : In May 2011, I spent a few weeks working in far western China in the Qaidam basin on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. I am a geologist, and I study the tectonic evolution of Tibet and its impacts climate. This region is extremely arid because the Tibetan plateau blocks moisture from penetrating the interior of Asia. Geology field work can be grueling, especially in remote regions. On a few days of the trip, we spent a lot of time driving and hiking over remote, roadless areas to scout for continuous sections of rock that preserve depositional environments over long time periods. We identified an excellent section, where we spent several weeks measuring, describing, and sampling.

United States (05/01/2012) : One of my favorite memories from studying abroad is the time I finally climbed the bowsprit on the Seamester schooner, the Ocean Star. She's an 88-foot sailing boat that we lived on for 40 days, traveling around the Caribbean, and part of living on a boat is showering in the ocean. Every day, we'd soap ourselves up, then jump down off the boat and swim in the water, then climb the rope ladder back up to rinse and dry off. One time, I forgot to lower the rope ladder before jumping in, leaving me stuck in the water... I was never prouder than when I hauled myself all the way up by my arms and sheer grit... http://rochester.edu/college/abroad/student_testimonials.html

Nepal (12/07/2011) : I recently spent two magical days in Kathmandu, Nepal visiting significant religious and cultural sites. We also took a memorable 45-minute Buddha Air scenic flight over the Himalayan mountain range for some breathtaking views of Mt. Everest, known locally as "Sagarmatha." The numerous and redundant, yet surprisingly ineffective, security checks/pat downs at the Kathmandu airport did not instill a lot of confidence in the infrastructure (nor did the pirated power lines and nonexistent traffic lights); however, the lack of regulatory oversight does have an upside -- all 16 passengers on the flight got to take turns (mid-flight) going up to the cockpit for a better view and photo opportunity.

Nepal (12/07/2011) : Typical Nepalese transportion -- traditional headwear included.