I enjoy scientific conferences. I can find out what everyone else in my field is up to, and receive advance notice of any exciting new developments. I get a valuable opportunity to discuss technical issues and talk through problems with the real experts. As the sole palaeomagnetist on the staff here in Johannesburg, that's not something I get to do very often. Most importantly for a young researcher like me, I can improve my visibility in the scientific community: future collaborations and jobs will probably come much more easily if people can put a face to the name on an application or proposal.

So when I got an abstract accepted for this year's American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco, I was very excited — until reality intervened. It is hardly a short hop from South Africa to California, and my attendance would far exceed my travel budget for this year. As I can afford to go to only one or two big conferences during my postdoc, I'll be spending my money much more wisely, and I'll make much more of an impact, if I've got an exciting story to present on the basis of my work here in South Africa. It's a little early yet to tell that story. So I regret that San Francisco will have to wait. Perhaps next year I'll be ready.