This year, the Space Studies Institute is doing what used to be known as the Princeton Conference on Space Industrialization in conjunction with the National Space Society's International Space Development Conference, in LA in May. They have a call for papers up for anyone interested in presenting relevant ideas.

[Update on Wednesday morning]

As Lee Valentine notes, the full name of the conference is Conference on Space Industrialization and Space Settlement, making it rare, if not unique, among regularly held space conferences.

Nice! This is shaping up to be a really significant conference. I know I'm going to be there.

I'm just wondering how in Earth or space we'll be able to top it in 2007 at the ISDC in the D/FW metroplex.

It's been the SSI/Princeton Conference on Space Manufacturing and Space Settlement. The more conservative folks tend to forget about the settlement part.

"Conservative" in what sense, Lee?

"Conservative" probably meaning "status quo".

Just curious.. has anyone ever done a paper about modifications of medical and surgical procedure in space? That might be interesting.

Probably, though one would have to do a literature search to know for sure. Harry Stein wrote an SF book under the pseudonym Lee Corey back in the early eighties that covered the subject, titled "Space Doctor." I doubt if it's in print any longer though--no sign of it at Amazon. I've got a paperback of it around somewhere.

Found it, Rand.

I guess you're a better Amazonian than I am, Jane. Of course, it always helps to spell the author's name right...

That's funny.. I've been accused of being Amazonian before (in the athletic sense) but never in this context.