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Some people need to be taught how to suck eggs. We should never put them in
charge of organising a scientific conference, but if fate casts them in that
role, August Epple’s Organizing Scientific Meetings (Cambridge University Press,
£11.95, ISBN 0 521 58919 3) is an essential good-luck gift. Epple covers
everything from the biggest questions—what the conference is about, where
to hold it—to ludicrously small details such as the design and use of
stickers. . Much amusement can be derived from descriptions of past disasters,
as long as you are not in the middle of organising one. And if you are, please
remember the media: Epple conveniently overlooks arrangements for troublesome
journalists.