SoutheastCon 2006 Report for January 2006 ExCom

SoutheastCon 2006 will be held in Memphis from March 31 - April 2, 2006.

As you know, SoutheastCon is the premier technical conference sponsored
annually by Region 3. Hundreds of students from the most outstanding
engineering programs in the Southeastern U.S. and Jamaica will engage in
robotics, software, website design, and technical paper competitions at this
conference, along with two full days of technical presentations by
professionals. Students will have the opportunity to participate in a job
fair and a resume/interviewing competition, as well. Region 3 also holds its
annual meeting at this event, and several pre-conference tutorials will be
offered. As an added bonus, the Memphis Area Engineering and Sciences
Conference is being held concurrently at the conference hotel, with
discounted registration for conference attendees.

Obviously, there will be a lot going on at the conference * but there is also
a lot going on in Memphis, and we want you to experience the flavor of our
city while you are here. What could this mean? Barbecue? Music? Elvis? Yes *
all three, and more! Memphis is the Birthplace of Rock and Roll and the Home
of the Blues, and you can sample both on world-famous Beale Street. The King
* Elvis, that is * made his home here, and today more people visit Graceland
than any other home in the country, including the White House. Memphis's
history is rich, with a heritage built on cotton and commerce. FedEx is
headquartered here, making us the busiest freight airport in the world, and
you'll want to visit the Memphis Cotton Exchange Museum to see how Memphis
became the leading cotton market in the world. Important recent history also
happened here, as you can see when you visit the National Civil Rights
Museum, the Stax Museum, or the Smithsonian's Rock 'n Soul Museum. Have fun
with your family at the Children's Museum, the Pink Palace museum, or the
Memphis Fire Museum. Feeling more artistic? One of the world's premier
collections of Chinese art and jade is here, and other museums feature
everything from Impressionists to the world's top metalsmiths. Visit Mud
Island to experience a four-block long working scale model of the Mississippi
River, then take a paddlewheel boat ride on the real thing. Oh, and don't
forget to eat * Memphis-style pork barbecue!

The Memphis Section and the student branches at both Christian Brothers
University and the University of Memphis, hosts of the conference, are very
busy implementing the details of our plan to make this a very successful and
fun conference. A registration announcement/form will appear in this month's
Region 3 newsletter, but student interest has been strong, and we already
have over 100 authors submitting papers!

Bookmark our website, www.secon06.org to get all the latest details of the
conference, including details on tutorials and the many events planned for
our students.

We know you'll want to come to SoutheastCon 2006!

- Allan Long, Chair a.long@ieee.org