Volume 25, Number 4, October 1996NEWS
Forum Executive Committee Session at the Indianapolis APS/AAPT MeetingThe Executive Committee of our Forum met on May 4, 1996, and took care of the following business: The results of our Forum election were accepted by ExComm. Considering the very low turnout for the election, the committee's acceptance of the results may essentially represent some kind of electoral redundancy. The nominating committee is having trouble finding a sufficient number of nominees for our elections. Just think: If we continue in this vein, plus impose term limits on the ExComm, then a future roster of Forum officers might consist of {The Null Set}. A short course entitled "Military Technologies in the Post Cold-War World" is being planned for the time of the Washington, D.C. meeting in April 1997. More details later. Budgets are a' tightenin' all over: This year, for the first time, APS billed our Forum $236 for EACH certificate for the Szilard Award winners. As Szilard's friends and admirers used to say, "What would Leo think?" It was agreed that electronic messages should be sent to the entire Forum membership only on rare occasions. Phewph! The editing that Art Hobson used to do single-handedly for P&S is now being done by a committee. (This should go a long way to explaining the coherence [or lack of it] of our latest issues of P&S.) Both invited and contributed sessions at the St. Louis APS meeting were viewed as successful, so both types of sessions will be continued. The program committee is looking into the possibility that P&S will sponsor sessions at APS meetings other than the two spring meetings. We are in the black! In fact, FY 1995 showed a net gain of over $5k on our books, which comes to $1.29/member. However, there was no discussion whatsoever of decreasing our annual Forum membership fee by $1.29, or even just a measly buck. Instead, the minutes indicate that "The committee agreed to retain the surplus". Aha! Now we know the real reason why so many physicists make trips to Switzerland! Forum members have worked substantially on questions of jobs and education and have collaborated with others in APS, AIP, and AAPT to identify where action was required. Forum members have worked to develop a tutorial for faculty on how they can help students better prepare for diverse careers as well as help locate specific job opportunities. The minutes of the meeting indicate that the meeting was stopped 4 hours after it started, but that adjournment didn't occur until an additional half-hour passed(??). During that half-time, decisions were made to continue compiling a joint program of titles and papers for all invited sessions of all the Forums, and to e-mail this well before the spring meetings to the joint membership of all Forums. (N.B.: The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the Executive Committee, and probably shouldn't be. For anybody who wants to read the REAL minutes of our ExComm meeting, you can access it via our home page on the WWW. These minutes are here. Marc Sher has done an outstanding job of creating a terrific Web site for our Forum.)
The annual Corporate Associates meeting of the American Institute of Physics will take place October 28-29, 1996 in Ridgefield, Connecticut. The meeting is being hosted by Schlumberger-Doll Research in Ridgefield, and the theme of the meeting is "Energy for the 21st Century". All are welcome to register for attendance. The first day of the program includes a theme session on energy (with talks entitled "Energy and Development in a Greening World", "Climate Friendly Energy Technologies", "Seismic Exploration and Reservoir Characterization", and "Borehole Applications of Magnetic Resonance"), a talk by DOE's Director of Energy Research, Martha Krebs ("The Role of DOE Energy R&D in the Nation's Future Energy Supply"), a tour of Schlumberger-Doll Research Laboratories, and an evening banquet/award/anniversary ceremony. The second day includes a policy session on industrial research and product development in a global environment, with participants from Schlumberger, Xerox, NEC, and General Motors. There will also be presentations on the frontiers of physics including talks on granular systems, organic semiconductors, newly-discovered planets, and geological patterns. Registration by October 4, 1996 should be sent to AIP, Executive Director's Office, One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, including $225 for all the sessions and all the food events, or $150 for just the sessions. Call the AIP at (301)-209-3131 for further details regarding fees, hotel reservations, reservations for the Schlumberger-Doll tour, etc. Your organization might also want to consider applying to join the AIP Corporate Associates, annual dues for which are between $600 and $6000 depending on how many physicists are employed in your organization. The phone number given above should be used for membership inquiries.
The Centennial Meeting of the American Physical Society is
scheduled for March 1999 in Atlanta. APS has set up a committee,
chaired by Brian Schwartz, to plan the celebration; Heinz Barschall
of the University of Wisconsin
"Energy: The Forgotten Problem"
Our nation's complacency about the energy problem is dangerous.
While the understandable result of currently abundant supplies of
energy at low prices, such complacency is short-sighted and risky.
Low-cost oil resources outside the Persian Gulf region are rapidly
being depleted, increasing the likelihood of sudden disruptions in
supply. Energy-related urban air pollution has become a world-wide
threat to human health. Atmospheric concentrations of carbon
dioxide,other greenhouse gases and aerosols are climbing; this will
cause changes in temperature, precipitation, sea level, and weather
patterns that may damage both human and natural systems.
The introduction of non-fossil-fuel energy sources, new ways of
producing and using fossil fuels, and a myriad of energy-efficient
technologies have helped to improve our energy security and to
reduce environmental stress. In an era of growing global energy
demand, such innovations must continue.
The Council of the American Physical Society urges continued and
diversified investments in energy research and development, as well
as policies that promote efficiency and innovation throughout the
energy system. Such investments and policies are essential to
ensure an adequate range of options in the decades ahead. Our
national security, our environmental well-being, and our standard of
living are at stake.
Daniel M. Kammen, who is Assistant Professor of public and
International Affairs at Princeton University, Co-Chair of their
Science, Technology and Public policy Program, and a member of the
Forum's Executive Committee, has written an interesting an
informative article entitled A personal introduction to opportunities
and resources for research and activism in energy and environmental
science and policy. The article is available (and periodically
updated) on the WWW at:
http://www.wws.princeton.edu/faculty/kammen.html/energy-
jobs
Click here to connect.
In the article, Kammen attempts (and, I think admirably
succeeds) to answer the question: How do I go about getting involved
in environmental work? His answer to this question contains
wisdom (e.g., "...study what you enjoy over what [you] think will
afford you some idealized credential..."), lots of practical tips (e.g.,
"Start talking to people."), and some juicy humor (e.g., "Regardless of
whether you regard neoclassical economics as a crucial too, or as a
means to obfuscate the truth, it has an important role in current
thought..."). The article ends with a long listing of program and
organization names, addresses, and phone numbers related to
environmental science.
Kammen's article has much useful information for anybody
trying to break into any field, not just environmental work.. For
example, he recommends that "...a cover letter and resume are useful
in advance of a phone call....The letter is useful both because it gives
you the opening line of your phone conversation ('My name is Jill
Johnson, I sent you a letter a couple of weeks ago') and [because] it
will have already forced you to figure out your fit with the
organization you are contacting." Clearly such advice is as good
outside as inside the field of environmental science.
Last, but not least from the standpoint of this editor,
Kammen's article is an example of fine writing. Kammen is to the
point, his prose is crispy and spicy, and he gives the impression of
being passionate about his subject. I recommend it to anybody
looking for a job, particularly if their interest is in environmental
work.
The NSF tracks resources, demographics, and trends of the
nation's R&D efforts. Such information is periodically transmitted
to the President of the United States via a document called Science
& Engineering Indicators. According to the AIP's Bulletin of Science
Policy News Number 125 ("FYI", by Audrey T. Leath), the lastest
Indicators contains chapters on Elementary and Secondary Science
and Mathematics Education, Higher Education in Science and
Engineering, Science and Engineering Workforce, Research and
Development, Academic Research and Development, Technology
Development and Diffusion, Public Attitudes and Understanding, and
Economic and Social Significance of Scientific and Engineering
Research. "Science and EngineeringIndicators-1996" is for sale by
the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office,
Washington, DC 20402 (stock number 038-000-00592-8).
Jeffrey Marque
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