Top 10 Reasons to Attend the 2007 ASTIN Colloquium

ASTIN’s 50th Anniversary! This year marks ASTIN’s 50th anniversary and we will be celebrating in style. On the final night of the Colloquium, guests will be transported to the American Adventure Rotunda at Epcot® for the Gala Dinner. We will then move to a private isle off the shores of the French Pavilion for ideal viewing of IllumiNations, Epcot®’s thrilling nighttime kaleidoscope of fireworks set to rousing original music. Join us in celebrating ASTIN’s jubilee!

The Weak U.S. Dollar. Currently the exchange rate for the U.S. dollar is low, while the Euro is strong. This means that traveling to the U.S. from abroad is less expensive than usual.

The CAS Spring Meeting. Fee discounts are available to those registering for both the CAS Spring Meeting and the ASTIN Colloquium. The Spring Meeting is a forum for actuaries and other professionals to stay current with topics concerning property/casualty insurance and risk. This meeting will allow actuaries to fulfill some of their continuing education requirements while also affording an opportunity for informal discussion with colleagues. Learn more about the Spring Meeting’s programs here: http://www.casact.org/education/spring/2007/ .

Great Weather. The average daily temperature in June in Orlando is a comfortable 81 degrees Fahrenheit or 27 degrees Celsius. Combine that with sun and you have the perfect weather to explore the theme parks or the city. Is this weather too hot for you? All meeting facilities are climate controlled for maximum comfort.

Get to Know Orlando. The city of Orlando has a lot to offer besides theme parks. Try great restaurants, learn about Florida’s history at the Orange County Regional History Center, or enjoy some quality entertainment at the Sak Comedy Club. Learn more about what Orlando has to offer in this New York Times guide: http://travel.nytimes.com//2007/04/01/travel/01hours.html

Paper Presentations. Over 40 papers, authored by both practitioners and academics, will be presented during the three-day Colloquium. Paper topics cover risk management, reserving, and pricing. Read more about the papers here: http://www.actuaries.org/ASTIN/Colloquia/Orlando/Papers_EN.html

Walt Disney World. The multiple Disney theme parks have a variety of activities for every age group. Ride Space Mountain in the Magic Kingdom, trek through the jungle in the Animal Kingdom, and take a ride through a human artery in Body Wars in Epcot. Find out more here: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/index?bhcp=1

Writing Workshop. Would you like to write a paper and present it at the next ASTIN Colloquium in England? Attend the writing workshop at this year’s Colloquium to hone your skills. On Wednesday, June 20, there will be a three-hour hands-on workshop on “Writing Technical Papers That People Will Read.” The workshop will be led by Henriette Anne Klauser, Ph.D., one of America's leading authorities on communications and writing productivity. See http://www.casact.org/education/spring/2007/index.cfm?fa=limited

Excursion to NASA. The ASTIN social program includes a trip to the Kennedy Space Center! This trip starts with a bus tour of the Center and includes two self-guided tour stops. After the bus tour, attendees return to the Visitor Complex to watch an IMAX movie and explore the rest of the Space Center Complex. Dinner will follow in the Dr. Kurt H. Debus Conference Facility, where the pioneering spirit of America’s early space explorers makes a stirring first impression. Following dinner, enjoy dessert inside Early Space Exploration and explore the Rocket Garden.

And the Number one reason to attend the ASTIN Colloquium is….

Invited Lectures. Naomi Robbins, Ph.D., Morton Lane, Ph.D., Stephen P. D’Arcy, Ph.D., and Hans Bühlmann, Ph.D. will all present lectures at the Colloquium.

Naomi Robbins is a consultant and seminar leader who specializes in the graphical display of data. She will discuss “Visual Presentation of Quantitative Information.”
Morton Lane is the president of Lane Financial LLC, a broker-dealer focusing on the intersection of the reinsurance and capital markets. His lecture will concern “Does Securitization Threaten to Replace or Improve Traditional Markets?”
Stephen P. D’Arcy, who will discuss “ASTIN’s Next Greatest Contributions,” is a professor of finance and the John C. Brogan Faculty Scholar in Risk Management and Insurance at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Hans Bühlmann is professor emeritus of ETH Zurich, where he taught mathematics for more than thirty years. His lecture is titled, “History of ASTIN.” Dr. Buhlmann is world renowned for his work in the area of Credibility.