Horrible news for Nudi fans: Sea Slug Forum to close

[marriard 0]

I am a huge user and supporter of this highly informative and useful site. Although it will remain 'up' it will basically stop adding content from this point onwards. Below is the official message on the board and also an address to write to if you wish to express your disappointment that it is going away. I am in the process of drafting mine and if you have utilized this source I know it would be hugely appreciated by Dr Rudman if you would also (politley) indicate your disappointment to the below address as well.

 

Maybe we can get this decision turned around over the next few months. www.seaslugforum.net is the address just in case you have never been there before.

 

Thanks,

Paul/Marriard

 

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I regret to inform you all that the Sea Slug Forum as you now know it will close. Bill Rudman is a Principal Research Scientist at the Australian Museum and has been the mainstay of the Forum. His work as a Research Scientist is reviewed every three years by an externally appointed Committee, independent of the Museum. Last year he was told that the Committee, although it recognised that the Forum was a valuable contribution to science, did not consider his activity on the Forum to fulfil the requirements of his classification. Dr Rudman appealed that decision, with the help of letters of support from about 30 leading scientists from around the world. A few days ago Dr Rudman learnt that his appeal had been rejected.

 

The most immediate effect of this decision is that Dr Rudman will be unable to answer any more questions sent to the Forum. Despite his best efforts, the backlog of unanswered messages has reached almost 1000. Bill will try to answer those, but as he will have to that in his own time, It will be a slow task.

 

So that the Forum does not become totally static, we will keep the REPLY form available so that discussion on messages posted can take place.

 

Over the last few months Bill and the Web Unit have been planning a reorganisation of the design of the Forum so that we can implement some of the forum users suggestions and the outcomes of a accessibility evaluation. The navigation will improve, the general topics will be reorganised and hopefully the FAQ’s [Frequently Asked Questions] can provide many answers. These site changes are still planned to occur in May-June and implemented 1 July.

 

As the Manager of the Web Unit and a communicator, not a scientist, I am very proud to have been associated with the Sea Slug Forum. From its beginning in 1997, the Sea Slug Forum has been seen as an innovative site, which fully utilises the potential of the Web. It is much more than electronic information or a question and answer site. It is an interactive site which allows professional scientists to discuss science, post observations, and post and generate new ideas. It is also a site where new information is generated by a unique interaction of professionals and amateurs.

 

A recent article on the Encyclopedia Britannica website described the Forum as 'the famous Sea Slug Forum'. It is indeed famous, attracting over 2000 visitors a day, from school kids with projects, to professional scientists who visit daily to see what new discoveries have been posted in the last 24 hours.

 

The extensive amount of information and the unique way it is organised and accessed on the Forum will remain available, without Bill’s input, in the foreseeable future.

 

If you want to express a view supporting the value of the Sea Slug Forum please send your email to

Send emails to: feedback@seaslugforum.net

 

Anne Skates

Manager, Web Development Unit

Australian Museum

annes@austmus.gov.au

[Dave H 0]

I completely agree with what Paul has just said.

 

The Seaslug Forum is the best resource on the internet for information in relation to nudibranchs. I checked the site daily to see what new species has been identified around the world and the scientiifc information on the site is of the highest order and updated daily.

 

Dr Bill Rudman does a fantastic job running this site and answering everyone's questions and its devastating to see that it is now closing down.

 

This is a huge loss to scientists, divers and all marine enthusiasts...

[echeng 0]

I've mirrored the cry for help on the front page. I hope that's ok!

[JamesWood 0]

One thing I don’t get is that while us scientists are ultimately funded by public funds (your tax dollars) and there is often a huge public interest/demand for quality resources like this, for some reason decision makers often view such activities as a waste of a scientists time. This is especially true across any kind of boarder – the narrow bean counter thinking is "whatt does an Australian care if an American leans something" and vice versa. I hope WetPixel members do create a fuss over things like this! Many scientists want to share what they do, are succesful and are shut down.

 

Dr. James B. Wood

[marriard 0]

As for a form letter to email to the appropriate address, this was written initally by a another person and I have added to it. I think sums it up quite appropriately while still being polite:

 

Dear Sirs:

 

I am writing to express my profound disappointment that the independent Committee which periodically reviews Dr. Bill Rudman's work did not deem his Sea Slug Forum activites to be consistent with the position of Principal Research Scientist.

 

To be frank, in my opinion his contributions to this internet forum do more to advance the field and to call positive attention to the Australian Museum than would any series of  research projects that are published to a much smaller audience.  

 

I have seen posts and questions from people of all ages andbackgrounds on this forum, and if that is not advancing not only scientific knowledge but also interest in advancing scientific knowledge, than I do not know what does.

 

I urge the Museum to reconsider their support of Dr. Rudman's contributions to the Forum.  

 

Respectfully,

Name....

 

Thanks,

M