ABSTRACT
The conference institution is made up of two major sub-systems: pre-conference recruitment – the import system which produces the members; and the conference programme – the conversion-export system through which those members who arrive pass on their way to becoming ex-members. The primary task of the import system is the production of conference members. In the framework of any one conference it is a discrete operating system in that, by the time the conference starts, its task has been accomplished. The major unsolved problem is how to communicate to inquirers what the conference can achieve, and how to prepare them for what will happen to them if they become members. The purpose of the conference is to allow members to learn what they will, when they will, from the opportunities provided, and such a message would contravene this intention. The conference reviews, which take place in plenary sessions, also allow for a final manifestation of the conference as a whole.
