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Sloan Digital Sky Survey Meeting   »   Frequently Asked Questions


Why are there two registration forms for the meeting?

The pre-registration form can be filled out at any time, and lets us know that you plan to come to the meeting and which working group sessions you want to attend. This enables us to schedule the scientific program. The second registration form can be filled out once you have made your travel reservations. It allows us to plan for parking permits, hotel shuttle runs, social events, and visitor laptop support.

Why do I need to upload my talk before the meeting?

Think back to the last meeting that you attended. How much time did you, and 75 of your closest friends, spend waiting for speakers to debug the interface between their laptops and the projectors, and to struggle with the local network? Now consider the fact that NMSU has recently upgraded its internal network so that laptops which are not recognized by the central computing center cannot access the network. Still asking?

We are asking all plenary speakers to submit their talk presentations ahead of time via FTP; we will place all of the talks on a single laptop and check ahead of time that they are compatible with the NMSU hardware. Speakers on day two can also update their presentations in person on the first day of the meeting. We realize that this will pose a certain inconvenience to some speakers (those who might otherwise write their talks on the plane, and you know who you are), and encourage them to think of this as time saved to look for the Grand Canyon through the windows.

Can I access the internet with my laptop from NMSU?

The NMSU campus network utilizes DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol), which assigns an IP address (e.g., 192.168.23.8) on the fly when a computer is powered up or plugged into the network. For security reasons, the servers will only allocate an address to a known device, one whose serial number has been registered with NMSU. Every ethernet NIC (Network Interface Card) in the world has such a unique identifier programmed into it by the manufacturer. This identifier is known as the MAC Address (Media Access Control) or Ethernet Hardware Address, and is often written as six hexadecimal bytes separated by colons (e.g., F0:2E:15:6C:77:9B).

In order for your laptop to be recognized by the NMSU campus network, you will need to provide us with your MAC Address ahead of time, on your meeting registration form. If you do not know the address already, your local system administrator should be able to help you to determine it.

Do I need to bring a passport with me?

In spite of its deceptive name, New Mexico lies on the US side of the US-Mexican border. You do not need to bring your passport with you, unless you are a foreign national and you plan to leave the immediate area of El Paso and Las Cruces (e.g. visiting White Sands National Monument, visiting APO).

How smoothly does the El Paso airport security cordon run?

El Paso is a fairly small airport, with a reasonably efficient screening process for passengers. Visitors generally experience no problems in making flights when arriving 1.5 hours before the departure time.

What will the weather be like in Las Cruces?

A current weather forecast can be found here. Las Cruces is located at an altitude of 4000 feet and has chilly winters, and a large temperature shift occurs between night and day. By March the weather should have warmed up enough that you will be comfortable during the day walking around with a sweater and trousers; the highs are usually 70 F and the overnight lows around 37 F (anything from 40 F to 80 F is possible, but count on sunny and dry skies). The sky is always extremely bright, so please bring sun glasses! If you plan to do any walking or hiking in the area, you should also bring sunscreen.

What time zone, and area code, cover Las Cruces?

Las Cruces lives on Mountain Time, one hour later than the West Coast and two hours earlier than the East Coast. The local area code is (575).

How far away is Apache Point Observatory?

APO is located roughly 100 miles from Las Cruces, via White Sands National Monument and Alamogordo. If you plan to visit the site during your stay be sure to bring a valid USA driver's license (American citizens) or a valid passport (foreigners), as you will pass through a border check-point.

Where are the talks and working group sessions being held?

The full group talks and the working group sessions will all be held in the Corbett Center on the NMSU campus. To get there on foot from University Ave., go south from the intersection of University & Locust or University & Jordan.

Where is the NMSU astronomy department?

The astronomy department is located a three minute walk away from the Corbett Center. To get there, exit the Corbett Center on the ground floor through the door which faces west (next to the bookstore), travel southwest through the Corbett Center parking lot towards the Zuhl Library, go past the library and the Frenger Food Court, and continue down the Frenger pedestrian mall. The Astronomy building will be the first building on your left, a tan two story structure. If you enter from the pedestrian mall, you will find a personnel directory inside on the wall.

Where can I read my email?

A dedicated terminal will be available in one of the small conference rooms in the Corbett Center. There will also be ports to hook into with laptops, which will first need to be registered with the central computing department.