Welcoming Address delivered to CASCA 2000
by Martha Piper, President of UBC

On behalf of The University of British Columbia, it is a pleasure to welcome you to our campus and to Vancouver for this annual general meeting of the Canadian Astronomical Society. We are truly honoured to be a part of this prestigious collective of research talent, and in particular, to have you as our guests for what I trust will be an enjoyable and stimulating forum.

I am indeed impressed by the vast and significant contributions that have been made to astronomical research, for over two decades, by the members of this organization. But what is almost as significant as the breakthroughs themselves, is the manner in which they were achieved - through extensive collaboration.

For it is precisely this - the multi-faceted cooperation among yourselves, your international partners, as well as with the National Research Council and NSERC - that has resulted in the development of some of the world's most important research facilities, from the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope project in the mid-seventies, to the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory, to the most recent milestone for Canada and for international collaboration - the Gemini Project. In this context, you are to be commended not only for the results of your efforts, but for having the vision to understand that vast strides can be made when countries pool their resources, including their most important asset of all - their human capital.

In a book I recently read, entitled The Sun, The Genome and The Internet, the author Freeman Dyson (Professor Emeritus of Physics at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton University), suggests that molecular biology and astronomy are the most rapidly growing areas of science today. He states and I quote:" The genetic engineering of viruses and other creatures will give rise to new scientific revolutions that will have profound effects on human life. Meanwhile new tools of observation will be causing scientific revolutions in astronomy."

New tools of observation-Indeed, it is these new tools that we are celebrating here at UBC and this Congress as we publicize the creation of MOST-the telescope that will fit into a suitcase and will be able to detect subtle vibrations in distant stars and help us answer some big questions, such as how old the universe is.

Truly it is this powerful combination-new tools answering the oldest questions on earth-that form the basis of the report entitled, The Origins of the Universe that will be launched today. This report is the result of the work of the members of the Long Range Planning Panel and forms a comprehensive vision for astronomy and astrophysics in Canada ... a vision that will catapult to new levels, our knowledge of everything from the formation of planetary systems, stars, and galaxies, to the structure of the universe itself..a vision that will solidify Canada's leading role in international astronomical research. We at UBC support this vision and join the Long Range Planning Panel in requesting the funding required to implement this strategic approach to this new era of astronomical science - an era that will elucidate our understanding of the origins of structure in the universe.

I wish to commend the many students, faculty and staff of the UBC Physics and Astronomy department for the incredible team effort that has gone into staging this conference, the first for this organization at UBC since 1987. In particular, I am grateful to two of our graduate students - Kristey Skaret and Colin Borys - for organizing yesterday's graduate student conference, and for thereby enabling a sizable group of students to participate in an active way.

As the genome pulls us inward to explore the workings of our minds and bodies, the sky pulls us outward to explore the universe. The importance of these two pulls, inward and outward, cannot be overemphasized as we move forward into the 21st century seeking a better understanding of our totality - our minds, our bodies, our spirits and our universe.

And so, on behalf of UBC please accept my best wishes for a productive conference - one that strengthens our understanding of this outward pull. We all extend the warmest welcome to you and offer our support to you and your colleagues for continued success in this important realm of scientific discovery.

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Cassiopeia -- 2000-JS