Hi Conch-L'ers, I have been a member of this illustrious group for about a year and a half now, and as anyone with a number of months experience can attest, the topics of discussion have ranged far and wide, from the ridiculous to the sublime - well, at least from the ridiculous to the less ridiculous. There are periods when we seem to concentrate on relatively technical topics like rules of taxonomy, definitions of subspecies, and the role of DNA sequencing. Then, there have been other periods when the prevailing topic was our scariest moment while collecting, or dreams we have had that featured shells, or how we first got interested in shell collecting, or how to keep slugs out of our gardens. There have been many good discussions on topics of interest to "old" and "new" collectors alike, such as methods of cleaning shells and organizing a collection. Questions have been posted by non-collectors, beginning collectors, advanced amateurs, and professionals, and I can't recall seeing any question posted that was inappropriate or "unscientific". A question does not have to be phrased in technical jargon to be valid. "What's the difference between a whelk and a conch", or "how can I get the green scum off the shell I found on the beach" are perfectly legitimate scientific questions (both of which have been asked here and received several replies). Why am I writing this? Primarily because we have been in a "technical phase" for a while now, and I wouldn't want any recent subscribers to get the erroneous impression that such topics are all that is allowable or appropriate on Conch-L. Any question - ANY question or topic at all that relates to shells in ANY way is appropriate here, no matter how technical, no matter how basic. It would be a shame for a subscriber to only learn about taxonomic rules, when what he/she really needed and wanted to know is how to remove green scum. So, post the ideas YOU have, and the questions YOU need answers to! That's what keeps Conch-L moving. Most of your questions WILL receive responses. If an occasional question doesn't generate a response, don't take it personally, or feel ignored. Probably, no-one knew the answer. You'll get a reply to your next query, and that reply will benefit not only you, but all those others who were wondering the same thing, but were afraid to ask! Paul M.