The genesis of IAU Colloquium 182, 'Sources and scintillations: refraction and scattering in radio astronomy,' can be traced to the desire, on the one hand, of Beijing Astronomical Observatory radio astronomers to organize a conference which would highlight the need for high sensitivity - as a way ofpromoting their own project to build the world's largest telescope (FAST) - and to a suggestion from Ron Ekers on the other. During a discussion with the two SOC co-chairs (as they then were not) in January 1999 in Epping, Ron noted the success ofa meeting on 'radio seeing' in Beijing in 1989, and...