date: Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:20:02 +0100 from: "Burgess Jacquelin Prof \(ENV\)" subject: RE: UNcertainty to: "Jickells Tim Prof \(ENV\)" , "Briffa Keith Prof \(ENV\)" , "Andrews Julian Prof \(ENV\)" , "Grant Alastair Prof \(ENV\)" , "Watkinson Andrew Prof \(ENV\)" , "Turner Kerry Prof \(ENV\)" Tim, Thank you very much for putting some initial thoughts together .... I really like the ideas in here and think we could take them on at the right scale and intensity of activity if we had the funds. We need a really dramatic title to catch the scale and importance of what we are doing. I'm hopeless at this sort of stuff but something like `Global Earth Systems Laboratory?' ....er..... I will copy the original to Bill - as he's got his gala dinner tonight, this might give him something to work on. Jacquie ___________________________________________________________________________________________ From: Tim Jickells [mailto:t.jickells@uea.ac.uk] Sent: 26 September 2008 12:34 To: Briffa Keith Prof (ENV); Andrews Julian Prof (ENV); Grant Alastair Prof (ENV); Burgess Jacquelin Prof (ENV); Watkinson Andrew Prof (ENV); Turner Kerry Prof (ENV) Subject: UNcertainty I attach an attempt at trying to write up the discussion we had on Wednesday about a big idea for the VC for ENV. I have called it Uncertainty but given the possible resultant strap line of "we don't know what we're doing" I think we need a better title!. I have tried to imagine something that could stretch across much of ENV and in the process I have strayed into areas so far beyond my knowledge that there are heresies in here of considerable scale I suspect. I beg your indulgence and invite you to correct these and also consider if you still think this idea has merit in the cold light of day. I have aimed to keep this short and of course the devil is in the detail, but any pitch for the funding will initially deal with the idea not the detail. If there is a consensus to move this forward then we'll need to think how to do that. Tim Professor Tim Jickells School of Environmental Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ UK tel 01603593117, fax 01603 591327