Ian, there are several others around here who could be more helpful to you. I am a retired mathematician who loves to watch physics from the sidelines, the way science journalists and kibbitzers do. Have you tried posting questions in the General Relativity forum?
I'm curious about your choice of a research direction. I hope you have tenure or an otherwise secure position as a condensed matter physicist, that will serve as support while you venture into gravity. (Excessive curiosity is a major character flaw with me. You are welcome to ignore it.)
In case you are interested in conferences, we could share information. I think that the most important gravity professional society is the GRG (general relativity and gravitation) and they have the big international GRG conference every three years. It was held in 2007 in Sydney and will be held again in 2010 in Mexico City. You can find out the list of plenary talks, indicating the hot research topics and the leading people, by googling "GR18" or "GR 18 Sydney"
I'm curious about what line of gravity research you envisage going into. Gravity waves? Quantum gravity? Quantum cosmology? Classical cosmology? The search for signs of dark matter and dark energy and the attempts to learn about them?
there is also the Marcel Grossmann series of meetings on GR and gravity. the next MG conference is in Paris next year. they also run on a three year cycle. the 2006 MG 11 was in Berlin. But to me the MG organizers seem to have more limited vision and the MG lineup is never so interesting. Even though it is a year farther off, I am more interested in seeing the program for GR19 (2010) than I am in whatever will be talked about at next year's MG12. But maybe that one is more your cup of tea. Here is a link
http://www.icra.it/MG/
If you tell me what line of gravity or cosmology you envisage getting into I will try to think of interesting papers, recorded lectures, conferences.
Oh here is one, just at random, since you are interested in singularities. Have you watched the online videos of the workshop on Quantum Spacetime Singularities at the Santa Barbara Kavli (KITP). The workshop took place early in 2007. Gary Horowitz and Martin Bojowald were two of the organizers. There was a lot of discussion of how various approaches get rid of singularities (cosmological and black hole mainly). Bojowald and Ashtekar and Pullin were there for Loop cosmology, and there were a lot of String folks, and also some people who just do Classical GR.
I think if you google "KITP singularities" you will get it.
Maybe you were already well-aware of all the stuff I mentioned. Let me know it it was all old news to you---then I will know I have to work harder
