Subject: What's in a name?

From: D. C. Jewitt

Submitted: Thu, 17 Jul 2003 09:55:29 -1000 (HST)

Message number: 145 (previous: 144, next: 146 up: Index)

Hi Sidney

That's very interesting news to me.  Again, though, it is at odds with
the LSST Corporation press release which only states:

http://www.noao.edu/outreach/press/pr03/lsstc0301.shtml

"The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) Corporation Inc. has been
formed ....for the purpose of designing and constructing this
challenging new telescope. "

without stating what you said by email, namely that the purpose is
instead to pursue the *DMT* design alone.  That's a crucial
difference.

It would be more accurate if the LSST Corporation were to be called DMT
Corporation, if that is what they are interested in building.  It is
their taking of the general name LSST that confuses the innocent
bystander.  (But it does explain why the www.lsst.org site has been
created by crossing out every occurrence of DMT on www.dmtelescope.org
and replacing it with lsst.)  What's even more confusing is that I
can't find any names of people on www.lsst.org.  And I don't see a link
to the LSST Corporation press release, or any mention of LSST
Corporation, or any explanation of what either body is about.  Is
www.lsst.org a product of LSST Corporation or of NOAO (or neither?).

This confusing situation is unfortunate because it works at a
subliminal level to equate the LSST with the DMT, whereas your email
states that, in fact, this equation has not been made (by NOAO,
presumably, although it has by LSST Corporation).  It further confuses
me as a member of the LSST SWG....I am asked by NOAO to work on the
LSST science case for NOAO, or for LSST Corporation, or whom?

My guess is that a majority of people in the broad astronomical
community are confused by this shell game, too.  Clarity is always
better than confusion and the long-term viability of the real LSST
(which I had believed was to be a centerpiece of the new NOAO although
now I am not so sure) will be helped if the fog could be lifted now.

There are two things you could do right now:

1)  If you or any reader of this email has control over www.lsst.org or
over LSST Corporation, it would be very useful to have the above
issues, and especially the relationship between NOAO and LSST
Corporation spelled out.  www.lsst.org also should not be a
dissociated site.  Is it from LSST Corp, or NOAO?

2)  You could explain in a prominent public place (e.g. an NOAO
document and/or www site) how the LSST (not DMT) is being approached by
NOAO, including the part about the decision on the basic design to be
made 2 years down the line.  (I have all sorts of questions about how
this decision will be made and by whom but I'll save those for later).


Regards

Dave

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