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HELLENIC ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER
NUMBER 57 November 2002
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E-mail: elaset@astro.auth.gr WWW: http://www.astro.auth.gr/elaset
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TOPICS:
1. Members in new positions
2. New position at the Academy of Athens
3. Recent GSRT-ESA Workshop
4. New way of dialing telephone numbers in Greece
5. Upcoming Astronomy meetings in Greece
6. About this newsletter...
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1. MEMBERS IN NEW POSITIONS
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We would like to congratulate Dr. Panayotis Boumis who was at the
Univ. of Crete and he was recently elected as an assistant researcher
(EREYNHTHS D') at the Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics of the
National Observatory of Athens.
2. NEW POSITION AT THE ACADEMY OF ATHENS
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We have been informed that the Research Center for Astronomy and
Applied Mathematics (RCAAM) of the Academy of Athens invites
applications for a researcher (EREYNHTHS Gamma) in fields related to
the scientific areas of the RCAAM. The deadline for applications is
Nov. 20th, 2002. Interested applicants may contact the Secretariat of
the Academy at the Telephone : 010-3614552 (Ms Dimopoulou).
3. RECENT GSRT-ESA WORKSHOP
---------------------------
On October 7, a one-day meeting on ESA-Greece collaboration was
held in Athens. The meeting addressed only application-oriented ESA
programmes in telecommunications and remote sensing. Once again the
official research agency of Greece seems to have chosen to ignore
science throughout, and to engage only in application-oriented
programmes. According to the announcement of GSRT itself (see
http://www.gsrt.gr/gget_cgi/esa_hmerida/epiker.html), the Greek
government has negotiated participation of Greece in the following
(optional) ESA programmes:
· ARTES 1/Basic Activities
· ARTES 3/Multimedia
· ARTES 5/Telecommunication partnership
· GMES/Global Monitoring for Environment and Security
· GSTP/General Support Technology Programme
Notably, there is no Greek participation in PRODEX, the only
science-oriented support programme of ESA. PRODEX guarantees the flow
of money to various areas of basic research and instrument
development.
As it is well known, the compulsory 'core' ESA programmes are those
on Space Science and Astrophysics. Every country has to participate
in these, while technological programmes such as Earth Observation,
Telecommunications, Micro-gravity, etc., are optional, and an
additional fee is required from the member countries in order to
participate.
Therefore, the paradox emerging is the following: Greece will spend
money to develop Tecommunications and Earth Observations, while in 3
years time, when we will join ESA as a full member, we will be
entirely unprepared to join the compulsory core programme! Then, we
will have to switch to Space Sciences and essentially to start from
scratch.
We all agree that considerable support should be given by the GSRT
to application-oriented programmes, such as telecommunications and
remote sensing. At the same time however, we feel that basic science
should not be left to perish. Regrettably, the GSRT attitude
demonstrates its low esteem for basic research, despite the
undeniable fact that technologically advanced countries (where,
presumably, the GSRT wants to drive Greece), sustain strong basic
research programmes. It seems that for the Greek government, basic
research is still a luxury, and this is shown in every possible way,
including the recent choice of ESA programmes for Greek
participation.
It is interesting to compare the above attitude of the GSRT with
the one of a private company, namely SIEMENS, as it was presented in
the welcoming address of its representative in the inaugural ceremony
for the meeting 'Calaxies and Chaos', where it was one of its
sponsors: "...it takes a company with the history of Siemens, one
which has been operating for over a century world-wide in an
extremely diverse variety of technological fields, to appreciate the
importance of science and basic research and to encourage it in any
way possible..".
4. NEW WAY OF DIALING TELEPHONE NUMBERS IN GREECE
-------------------------------------------------
We would like to remind the members of Hel.A.S. that following the
decisions of the Greek National Telecommunications and Post
Commission starting on the 3rd of November 2002 the first digit of
the 10-digit telephone number will change depending on the type of
the phone number.
When one calls a standard "fixed" number the first "0" will be
replaced by "2". For example we'll have:
* old number: 031 0 998417
* new number: 231 0 998417 [after 3 Nov. 2002]
When one calls a "special" number (0800, 0801, 090, 096, and 0807)
the first "0" will be replaced by "8". For example:
* old number: 0962515150
* new number: 8962515150 [after 3 Nov. 2002]
For more information please visit the web pages of the Commission
at: http://www.eett.gr/
5. UPCOMING ASTRONOMY MEETINGS IN GREECE
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The following meetings will take place in Greece in the coming
months. Please check the corresponding web pages or contact the
organizers by e-mail for more information.
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NATO Advanced Research Workshop on
Effects of Space Weather on Technology Infrastructure
Rhodes, 25-29 March 2003
http://www.space.noa.gr/esprit2003/
or contact:
Dr. I. Daglis (daglis@space.noa.gr)
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International Conference on
Multi-Wavelength Cosmology
Myconos Island, 16-20 June 2003
http://www.astro.noa.gr/~my03/
or contact:
my03@astro.noa.gr
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6. ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER
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This Newsletter was edited by Vassilis Charmandaris and Kanaris
Tsinganos. It was forwarded to the 219, out of the 237 members of
Hel.A.S., who have e-mail access.
The next edition of the Newsletter will be mailed around December
1st 2002. Please send your announcements (e.g. appointments/departures,
job openings, research opportunities, awards, conferences in Greece)
or comments before November 25, 2002. All correspondence concerning
the Newsletter should be addressed to:
elaset@astro.auth.gr
If you do not wish to receive future issues of this Newsletter or the
e-mail address to which it was sent is not your preferred one, please
let us know.
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HELLENIC ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER
NUMBER 57 Extra issue November, 8th, 2002
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E-mail: elaset@astro.auth.gr WWW: http://www.astro.auth.gr/elaset
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Dear colleague
We issue this extra Newsletter because it has just brought to our attention
that the deadline for applications for the new position at the Research Center
for Astronomy and Applied Mathematics (RCAAM) of the Academy of Athens for a
researcher (EREYNHTHS Gamma) in fields related to the scientific areas of
the RCAAM is Nov 18th instead of Nov. 20th, 2002, as it was erronously
announced in the previous Newsletter. Interested applicants may contact
the Secretariat of the Academy at the Telephone :010-3614552 (Ms Dimopoulou).
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