What Were the Solvay Conferences Like?
Ihe 1911 Solvay Conference in Physics was the first international conference in physics ever organized.
It was held by Ernest Solvay, on scientific advice from W. Nernst and H. Lorentz.
On this occasion Einstein and Poincaré met, for the only time.
The key to the success of the "Conseils Solvay" lay in their organization:
an international scientific committee was in charge of defining the general theme of the conference
and of selecting a chair person. The conference chair set up the programme (decides specific subjects and sessions)
as well as the invitations.
One characteristic feature of the Solvay Conferences is the emphasis on discussions over presentations.
Typically, Solvay Conferences are divided into half-day sessions.
Each session begins with one or two reports reviewing the state-of-the-art of the subject
(and distributed to the participants before the start of the Conference), followed by vivid discussions steered by the chair of the session.
Participation to the "Conseils Solvay" was by invitation only.