[NANOG participation is particularly desirable] On the Internet In a Disaster Call For Participation September 11th 2001 was an interesting day on the Internet. The collapse of the World Trade Center towers damaged communications lines. Many people turned to Web sites on the Internet for news and emergency information. For some people in New York, the Internet was used as a replacement communications system while the phone service was out. Some firms had to start providing their internet services from backup locations. What makes the events of September 11th special are not the individual events. Communications links have been severed before, and Web flash crowds have overloaded Web sites. Rather it is the combination of events that collectively represents the Internet's experience in a disaster. How the Internet does and can respond to a disaster is of great interest to relief agencies and other crisis responders, governments, national security entities, businesses, and the general public. To better understand exactly how the Internet did respond to September 11th, the National Research Council's Computer Science and Telecommunications Board is convening a workshop to be held in March 2002 in Washington, DC. This call solicits participants and written contributions for the workshop. The workshop is being organized by a small committee of Internet experts. It will draw on the workshop to produce a short, summary and synthesis report, which will be subject to a rigorous review process supervised by the National Research Council. The workshop will be small (approximately 25-35 participants) meeting. The meeting will consist of two days of a mix of presentations and discussions. The focus of the presentations will be quantitative information (measurements, analysis) of how portions of the Internet behaved on September 11th 2001. Participants should note that our definition of Internet is quite broad: beyond measurements of packet traffic or outages, we welcome data for Web sites, dialup statistics, wireless access, experiences of backup data sites, and the like. We want to assemble the broadest possible picture of data communications and how it evolved in response to the disaster. Some of the workshop participants will be invited to expand their presentations at the workshop into papers, to be included in the workshop report as reference material. This workshop will not be open to the public. It will engage only the participants and NRC/CSTB staff in the discussions. Furthermore, submissions for participation will not be distributed outside the set of workshop organizers and attendees. CSTB expects that the closed nature of the meeting will encourage the candor necessary to fully assess the data from September 11th. Parties interested in participating in the workshop are invited to submit a 3- to 6-page white paper. White papers should describe in some detail the data or analysis (or both) from September 11th or its aftermath that the participant would like to present at the workshop. Please also include a one-paragraph biography of the participant. Participants should note that our definition of Internet is quite broad: beyond measurements of packet traffic or outages, we welcome data for Web sites, dialup statistics, wireless access, experiences of backup data sites, and the like. We want to assemble the broadest possible picture of data communications and how it evolved in response to the disaster. Submissions are due January 10, 2002 and should be sent to: Mr. D.C. Drake/Internet Under Crisis Conditions Computer Science and Telecommunications Board National Research Council 2101 Constitution Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20418 ddrake@nas.edu 202-334-2605 Note: In light of mail difficulties in Washington arising from anthrax incidents, please call to confirm snail-mail details before mailing. An alternate address may be recommended. Participants will receive an invitation by January 24th.