It’s not exactly a moment for celebration, but when a tropical storm is born in the Atlantic, millions of people learn about it quickly. As with any birth, though, a great deal has to happen in just the right way before a tropical storm is christened.

Richard Anthes suspected something was up when the UCAR Board of Trustees, minus himself, trooped to the stage at the institution’s 50th birthday dinner on 5 October. “When they started showing photos of my childhood, I really knew something was coming.”