When I was young a conversation was more often than not something my mother had with her neighbour over the garden fence, that is an informal and casual exchange of news, ideas and opinions. A conversationalist was a person who excelled in conversations which was seen as a characteristic of a cultured and well-educated person. A conversation piece was something novel or strikingly intense that stimulated conversation. A subsidiary meaning of the word, conversation, as set out in my Merriam-Webster dictionary refers to an informal discussion of an issue by representatives of governments, institutions or groups. But although the words conversation and discussions could be seen by some as synonyms,…