A P S N E W S APSAUGUST/SEPTEMBER 1996 THE AMERICAN PHYSICALNews SOCIETY VOLUME 5, NO 8

Patel Recipient of Nation’s Highest Science Honor

PS Past President C. Kumar N. recipients and the five winners of the “Our nation is grateful to these vision- APatel, vice chancellor for research National Medal of Technology in June. aries for advancing our base of knowl- at the University of , Los An- The medalists will be honored at a edge. American industry especially is geles, is one of eight scientists to re- White House ceremony later this sum- indebted to them for contributing vital ceive the National Medal of Science, mer. Patel was honored for his inven- new discoveries and applications that the nation’s highest science honor. tion of the carbon dioxide laser, a major businesses have developed into cutting President Clinton announced this year’s scientific and technological break- edge ideas, products and processes. through which Fueled by science and technology, continues to be American enterprise remains the an important tool world’s leader in today’s global mar- in manufacturing, ketplace.” medical treat- ment, scientific in- The National Medal of Science, estab- vestigations and lished by Congress and administered materials process- by the National Science Foundation, ing. His carbon honors individuals for contributions to dioxide laser also the present state of knowledge in one led to the creation of the following fields: physical, biologi- of new genera- cal, mathematical, engineering or social bal competitiveness. The Medal of tions of lasers and and behavioral sciences. The medal has Technology also recognizes laser systems. now been awarded to 344 distinguished groundbreaking contributions that scientists and engineers. commercialize a technology, create jobs, “The 13 recipients improve productivity or stimulate the of these presti- Since its establishment by Congress, the nation’s growth and development in gious medals are National Medal of Technology, admin- other ways. American champi- istered by the U.S. Department of Com- ons of research merce, has honored 94 individuals and The other seven 1996 recipients of the and innovation,” seven companies for technological in- National Medal of Science are Wallace S.

An early 1965 Kumar Patel operating 100W cw CO2 laser the President said. novation and advancement of U.S. glo- (continued on page 6) APS Names Michels as 1996-1997 Congressional Fellow Weinberg is he American Physical Society selected the Joseph Michels sity in 1986, and his D.Phil. in experimental condensed mat- New PRD Editor Tas its next Congressional Fellow. Michels will serve one ter physics from Oxford University’s Pembroke College in 1994. year as a special legislative assistant in a congressional office, As junior dean during his last two years of graduate study, he rick Weinberg, a professor of following an intensive, 10-day orientation period and interview served on several college committees and helped initiate a E physics at , process. formal policy governing the consumption of alcohol in Pembroke. became editor of Physical Review D (PRD) Michels is currently employed by the Smithsonian Astrophysi- as of June 1, 1996. He succeeds Lowell “In the old era, it was almost unquestioningly accepted that cal Observatory, which in collaboration with Universita di Brown (University of Washington), whose science would improve the lives of American citizens and Firenze (Italy), developed the ultraviolet coronograph spec- term expired at the end of 1995. Weinberg make us safe in the dangerous world of the Cold War, but trometer (SOHO) satellite. Based at Goddard Space Flight received his Ph.D. in physics from those certainties have now disappeared,” Michels said of his rea- Center, Michels is helping to develop the observing plan for Harvard University in 1973 and spent two sons for applying for the APS Congressional Fellowship. “The the UVCS instrument on a weekly basis. Time not spent in years as a member of the Institute of present is an uncomfortable transition pe- mission planning he uses to study solar Advanced Study before joining the riod where fundamental questions are be- physics and the wealth of new informa- faculty of Columbia University, where ing asked about the role of science and the tion on the sun already produced by he has remained ever since. A former research community in a world governed SOHO. Alfred P. Sloan Fellow, he has served on by new economic and political deci- the editorial board of both PRD and sions.” Nevertheless, he views this as an A former participant in the 1987 Pan Physical Review Letters and on the APS opportunity to redefine and revitalize the American games and a contender for the Task Force on Journal Growth, as well as way science is pursued in the U.S. and 1988 and 1992 Olympics in rowing, he in various administrative capacities for the abroad, and believes young leaders with also rowed for Oxford in the annual boat Aspen Center for Physics. a broad base of scientific knowledge and race against Cambridge, a national event Weinberg believes the primary task of strong communication skills are essen- in England that garners worldwide me- the editor is to maintain PRD’s stand- tial to the transition. dia attention. Two years before com- ing as one of the leading journals in its mencing studies at Oxford, Michels was field, by ensuring that the articles are Michels received his B.S. in physics, with a founding partner of This Old House of the highest quality. The editor a minor in English, from LaSalle Univer- Renewed, a self-started and managed should also be involved in the deci- renovation firm in Philadelphia. sion-making process of the APS journal- related issues. The greatest challenge of Michels hopes to spend his fellowship IN THIS ISSUE the future will be electronic publishing, ac- year as a legislative assistance to a Mem- cording to Weinberg, although any steps ber of Congress. He is particularly inter- Patel Recipient of Nation’s Highest Science Honor ...... 1 toward an electronic version of PRD ested in the necessity of improving basic are at this point viewed as experimen- APS Names Michels as 1996-1997 Congressional Fellow ...... 1 science education in the U.S. “Science Weinberg is New PRD Editor ...... 1 tal. “We are not yet at the point where BE Condensates, Quantum Computing Highlight 1996 DAMOP Meeting ...... 2 (continued on page 3) it makes sense to fix long-term stan- Inside the Beltway ...... 2 dards, or even to decide precisely how IN BRIEF ...... 3 Correction we want to exploit computer technol- Opinion ...... 4 The Back Page of the March 1996 issue ogy to add capabilities that are not pos- APS Awards 1996-1997 Scholarships to Minority Undergrads ...... 6 of APS News by Julian Simon contained sible with a paper journal,” he said, Is U.S. Physics Truly International? ...... 6 an erroneous quote attributed to Stephen adding that the Los Alamos preprint Announcements...... 7 Schneider. Unfortunately, Simon’s notifi- server project has raised expectations, The Back Page ...... 8 cation of the error arrived after the issue and thus a short-term goal would be APS Meeting News ...... Insert was in print. Schneider responds with to have PRD available online in a form his viewpoint in an article on page 5. comparable to the Los Alamos project. This will happen in the near future. APS News August/September 1996 BE Condensates, Quantum Computing Highlight 1996 DAMOP Meeting

he latest results in Bose-Einstein was large enough to be directly ob- from the other atoms used to produce and trapping, physicists at Duke Uni- T condensation experiments, quan- served for the first time, and lasted for BEC in that lithium atoms in a gas are versity are developing new high reso- tum resonance imaging and comput- 20 seconds. The MIT researchers im- slightly attractive toward one another lution atom imaging methods, based on ing, and collision studies of aged the BEC with scattered laser light rather than repulsive. resonance imaging in ultrahigh gradi- laser-cooled atoms were among the with a sensitive camera. Interestingly, ent potentials due to optical force fields. highlights of the annual meeting of the the BEC acts as a lens in the experi- Quantum Computing. In a Friday According to John Thomas, his group APS Division of Atomic, Molecular and ments, allowing light to pass through morning session, C. Monroe of the Na- has demonstrated spatial resolution of Optical Physics (DAMOP), held 15-18 but bending it by a small degree. tional Institute of Standards and Tech- 200 nm, and the force exerted by the May at the in nology in Boulder, Colorado, reported potential is sufficiently large that the Ann Arbor. In addition to the 12 in- The MIT group also found that the light on progress toward the development of atomic momentum can be altered dur- vited symposia featured in the regular scattered off the condensate is aniso- useful quantum computers and described ing the measurement. Using new pulsed technical program, there was a confer- tropic. To produce the condensate, the the experimental challenges that lie atom imaging methods in this regime, ence banquet held on Friday, May 17, researchers used a combination of la- ahead. An attractive architecture for such he believes that “quantum snapshots” which included the presentation of sers and magnetic fields in a special a device is a collection of trapped ions, of cold atoms in microtraps should soon prizes and awards, as well as an after- configuration in which cloverleaf- where two internal states of each ion be possible. dinner lecture by Patrick Seitzer of shaped coils generate magnetic fields carry one quantum bit (qubit) of infor- University of Michigan’s Department of that tightly confine the atoms while al- mation. A challenge is to scale the sys- Atomic Beam Magnetic Resonance. Astronomy entitled, “Hubble Space lowing the setup’s 11 laser beams to tem to a string of many trapped ions so Researchers at Ohio State University are Telescope: Tragedy to Triumph.” pass easily into the trapping region. that the device can host many more than developing new ways to study vortex two qubits. lattices in both low- and high-tempera- Advances in Bose-Einstein Conden- The NIST-University of Colorado team, ture superconducting samples using Collisions of Laser-Cooled Atoms. sates. Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) led by Eric Cornell and Carl Wieman, atomic beam magnetic resonance tech- Advances in laser cooling of neutral at- comprise a unique state of in has found that theory agrees with ex- nology. Dissipative vortex motion is the oms have made possible a new form which gas atoms, cooled to near-abso- periment in its predictions of the Bose- major obstacle to many envisioned high- of high resolution known lute-zero temperatures, overlap with Einstein condensate’s critical temperature, temperature superconducting commer- as photoassociation colliding neutral at- each other and collapse into a common the temperature below which atoms in a cial applications, as well as a source of oms confined in a laser trap are quantum state, where they behave es- gas enter the Bose-Einstein condensate novel physical phenomena. sentially as a single “superparticle.” Stud- phase. Dan Kleppner of MIT described photoassociated to bound excited states of the dimer molecule by absorb- ies of Bose-Einstein condensates promise a new technique that greatly improves According to Gregory Lafyatis, the ba- important insights into the strange world the ability to monitor atomic transitions ing a from a tunable laser. The technique can probe long range mo- sic idea is to pass atoms very close to of quantum mechanics, and the future in trapped hydrogen. Achieving BEC in the surface of a superconductor that is possibility of technologically useful in- hydrogen has been a goal for many years. lecular states that are difficult or im- possible to detect by traditional means, penetrated by a magnetic field. In its ventions. What has hampered efforts has been the rest frame, an atom will see a fluctuat- difficulty of monitoring and controlling and, because of the extremely low en- ergy of the colliding atoms, it is capable ing magnetic field that is determined Building on over 20 years of experi- trapped hydrogen, since the lasers need by the pattern of magnetic vortices at mental work in atomic and optical to manipulate hydrogen energy transi- of high resolution. Recent results in- clude the first direct, and most precise, the superconductor’s surface and the physics, a research team at the National tions must deliver ultraviolet light and velocity of the atom. “If the fluctuating Institute of Standards and Technology need development. measurements of molecular dissocia- tion limit, and the first observation of field has a frequency component coin- (NIST) and the University of Colorado cident with a magnetic transition of the announced last summer that they had Randall Hulet of Rice University de- retardation effects in atom-atom interactions, high precision measure- atom, the transition may be driven,” he achieved Bose-Einstein condensation scribed a new trap, employing perma- said. “Turning things around, by mea- in a gas of about 2000 rubidium atoms. nent magnets, that creates a ments of atomic lifetimes, and the study of exotic states of alkali dimers. suring the transition probability for an combination of temperature and den- atom passing over the superconductor In a Saturday morning session, sity in lithium atoms believed to be sev- Quantum Resonance Imaging. as a function of velocity, we are able Wolfgang Ketterle and his MIT col- eral hundred times better than that Spurred by the advent of laser cooling to study the vortex lattice itself.” leagues announced that they had pro- needed to create Bose-Einstein conden- duced a Bose-Einstein condensate of sation. Surprisingly, Hulet’s team is find- 5 million atoms, 10 times bigger than ing that only a small fraction of the EarthLink™ Internet Access Provider any previous BEC. At 150 microns long atoms in the trap appear to display the and 8 microns wide, the condensate signature for BEC. Lithium is different APS is offering a new benefit of mem- Once you receive the software, you bership. Members who want reliable, will be billed directly by EarthLink. If nation-wide access to the Internet will you have technical problems, you may

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INSIDE THE BELTWAY IN BRIEF • At its April meeting, the APS Council voted to establish the Hans A. Bethe A Schizophrenic Congress Staggers Toward the Prize and the Joseph F. Keithley Award for Advances in Measurement Science. Announcements soliciting nominees for both the Bethe Prize November Elections and the Keithley Award will appear in APS News, on the APS home page by Michael S. Lubell, APS Director of Public Affairs on the World Wide Web, and other venues early in 1997 It is expected that the first recipients will be announced at the Society’s general meet- Even in times of relative tranquility, Lewis and Stokes had clearly done their ings in 1998. The Bethe Prize was named to honor Hans A. Bethe for his most federal policy making resonates homework. outstanding and numerous accomplishments in both astrophysics and with political overtones. But as elec- . Consisting of $7,500, it is to be awarded annually for But what happened when the bill tions grow near, the din of partisan- outstanding work in theory, experiment or observation in the areas of reached the House floor is another ship typically grows so loud that verbal astrophysics, nuclear physics, nuclear astrophysics, or closely related fields. matter. Member after member rose in outbursts become the accepted norm. The intention is to recognize outstanding achievements in one of these support of more money for veterans. areas by a scientist. The prize is endowed by donations from members of So far this year, behavior on the Hill By the time all the dust had settled, the Divisions of Nuclear Physics and Astrophysics, as well as friends of has defied the usual pattern. It has been the VA account had been enriched by . The Bethe Prize was announced at Han’s Bethe’s 90th birth- remarkably inconsistent and totally a transfer of 0.4 percent from all other day celebration at Cornell on July 2. unpredictable. It has seesawed be- allocations. On top of that, it had re- tween the expected partisan jousting ceived a $40 million bonus with money The John Keithley Award is intended to recognize physicists who have and some startling examples of colle- taken from President Clinton’s cher- been instrumental in the development of measurement techniques or equip- gial cooperation. Consider what has ished National Service Program. Trans- ment that have impact on the physics community by enabling new phys- happened to science. ferring funds to the VA is not a partisan ics advances through new or significantly improved measurements, many measure, since one election year maxim of whom are in the industrial and applied sector. The award is named For virtually its entire life, the House is never to say no to a veteran. But after Joseph F. Keithley, founder of Keithley Instruments Inc., who is noted Science Committee has maintained itself freshman Tod Tiahrt’s (R-KS) amend- for contributions to instrument development. Consisting of $5,000, it is high above the fray of political battles. ment that authorized the $40 million anticipated that it will be awarded annually. The award is being endowed Its subject matter has been too dry for bonus fell far outside the bipartisan by Keithley Instruments, Inc. and the APS Instrument and Measurement the partisan tastes of most members, and boundary that Lewis and Stokes had Science Topical Group. its clout on the Hill has been almost non- so carefully drawn. Tiahrt’s amendment existent. But since the dawn of the 104th also zeroed out all the remaining Na- • At its April Meeting, the APS Executive Board approved allocation of Congress, the Science Committee has tional Service funds, virtually guaran- funds for an expansion of the Society’s editorial offices, located in Ridge, found itself on a slippery slope that has teeing a presidential veto. New York. According to Cindy Rice, former Director of Editorial Office finally plunged it headlong into a tumul- Services, the expansion is long overdue. The present facility is stretched tuous sea of political rancor. The VA-HUD appropriations bill that beyond capacity, and there is still a need to accommodate an expanded ultimately passed the House by a 269 Journal Information Systems Department, some of whose members are On April 24, the committee began its to 147 margin also treated the NSF currently located in rented quarters at Brookhaven National Laboratory. business of marking up the $19.7 bil- rather shabbily, given the strong sup- Preparation of architects’ plans for the expansion have been completed, lion omnibus science authorization bill, port for basic research that both Demo- and construction is expected to commence later this year. The total capi- a piece of legislation that was guaran- crats and Republicans had been tal outlay for the expansion is estimated at between $2 and $2.5 million, teed to pass into oblivion, since the Sen- espousing for months. But for this treat- to be depreciated over 20 years. Other capital improvements at Ridge, ate, as has been its practice, would ment, the NSF was partially to blame. particularly the provision of more parking spaces, will require additional almost certainly refuse to consider it. In Before the bill hit the House floor, the expenditures in FY 1997. spite of the futility of the exercise—or agency had reported that the Research perhaps because of it—committee mem- and Related Activities (R&RA) account • A new report on 1994 physics bachelor degree recipients in the United bers hurled personal insults at each other was scheduled to increase a solid 4.6 States was released by the statistics division of the AIP. Among the high- for more than two hours as they pre- percent. That much was true, but the lights of the report are the following: the annual number of degrees con- pared to consider the details of the bill. NSF had neglected to say that the Fa- tinues to decline slightly; more fresh graduates are looking for jobs rather cilities and Instrumentation line, which As reported in the May 11 issue of Con- than heading for graduate school; for those going on in their studies, 89 was $100 million in FY 1996, was now gressional Quarterly, Ranking Democrat percent receive financial support; women constitute 17 percent of the fully contained within R&RA. The re- George E. Brown, Jr. (D-CA) called Com- degree recipients; and the median starting salary was $27,000. Those inter- search portion of the NSF budget that mittee Chairman Robert S. Walker (R-PA) ested in obtaining further information or copies of the report in its entirety the House finally approved rose less “the most autocratic, non-democratic should contact Patrick Mulvey at 301-209-3076 or via email [email protected]. than 0.7 percent. And more than half chairman I have ever had the pleasure of that increase was attributable to the • The APS has received a $10,000 bequest from the estate of Dr. Frank of working with.” And when GOP mem- Walker amendment that transferred $9.1 Evens Myers and Mrs. Ionemary Myers, which will be applied to the Mi- bers reprimanded Harold L. Volkmer (D- million from administration and travel norities Scholarship initiative of the APS/AAPT Campaign for Physics. Dr. MO) for habitually violating the law by to R&RA. All this goes to prove another Myers was a physicist whose research interests and achievements were in smoking in the hearing room, Demo- election year maxim: When budgets are scattering and polarization, nuclear physics, and ballistics. He crats retorted that the complaint repre- lean, don’t tell anyone you’re getting also had a distinguished career in teaching and university administration. sented the totality of the Republican fat, especially when it ain’t true. He was born in 1906, graduated from Reed College and received his position on pollution. The latent hostil- Ph.D. from NYU. He taught at NYU for many years and at Lehigh, serving ity boiled over again several weeks later As Congress grappled with the FY 1997 as dean of the graduate school there. The culmination of his career was as when the bill came up for consideration Budget Resolution, scientists were re- Associate Director of Argonne National Laboratory, from which he retired on the floor of the House. minded once again that they have a in 1970. He served as editor of the Journal of Applied Physics and Applied sincere friend in Senator Pete V. In contrast with the highly charged parti- Physics Letters. He was a elected fellow of APS in 1941. Domenici (R-NM). The chairman of the san air of the Science Committee’s debates, Senate Budget Committee proposed the House VA-HUD Appropriations Sub- increasing domestic discretionary committee, which is also responsible for 1996-1997 Congressional Fellow (continued from page 1) spending by $5 billion above the level funding the NSF, NASA and EPA, rolled approved by the House. Although he out its spending plan at the end of June now occupies a pervasive role in mod- scientists to become more aware of the is a fiscal conservative, he argued that amidst a fanfare of pledges of bipartisan ern civilization, but sadly, it is not viewed technical considerations underlying without the higher ceiling, critical pro- cooperation. Subcommittee Chairman as an integral part of our general cul- many important political decisions. grams such as scientific research, par- Jerry Lewis (R-CA) and Ranking Demo- ture, but as the domain of an elite sub- ticularly those within DOE, would crat Louis Stokes (D-OH) applauded set of society,” he said. “This scientific Two other APS members were also suffer considerable harm. With the urg- each other for their sensitivity to the illiteracy prevents people from reaching named 1996-1997 Congressional Fel- ing of the APS and other constituent needs of their respective constituencies. an informed consensus on political de- lows. Dr. Stephan J. Hagen, who is cur- organizations, House-Senate conferees They said that they had worked together bates, such as the disposal of nuclear rently working at the Laboratory of ultimately accepted a $4.1 billion in- to produce a bill that had carefully bal- waste, deterioration of the upper atmo- Chemical Physics, NIH, was selected as crease. But it took some extraordinary anced spending for housing, veterans’ sphere, advantages of optical fiber com- the American Institute of Physics Con- arm twisting by the Republican leader- health care and the science and tech- munication links, and national defense.” gressional Fellow. Dr. Michal Freedhoff, ship to sell the agreement to the House. nology programs of NSF, NASA and EPA. who is currently working in the AIP Only after nasty internecine battles did According to Michels, the fault lies as Public Information Division, was named The committee leaders clearly had they finally succeed. much with scientists as with Congress. the Materials Research Society/Optical learned a lesson from the public out- He believes the solution is two-fold: So as the 104th Congress staggers to- Society of America Congressional Fellow. rage over last year’s government shut- improving science education will make ward the November finishing line, look Dr. Freedhoff developed many of the down. The VA-HUD bill, which last year it easier for scientists to explain the rel- for continuing evidence of schizo- one-page Physics Success stories that was filled with riders that the Clinton evance of their work, and improving phrenic behavior. It may be a legacy of were featured in the May 1996 issue of Administration had found unacceptably representation of the scientific commu- the 1994 elections, and it may be with APS News. odious, was absolutely clean this year. nity on Capitol Hill will encourage non- us for a long time to come. 3 APS News August/September 1996 OPINION APS VIEWS LETTERS Guidelines for Professional Conduct Redirect Military Spending to Science and Education Approved by the APS Council, November 1991 Ernest Moniz’ Back Page article (APS lion without endangering military se- News, May 1996) effectively summarizes curity by adopting a more realistic mili- The Constitution of The American Physical Society states that the objective of the the Clinton administration’s view of the tary strategy and paring down the Society shall be the advancement and diffusion of the knowledge of physics. It is current state of science and education. existing excessive military force struc- the purpose of this statement to advance that objective by presenting ethical However, there is a glaring omission ture (The Defense Monitor).” (XXIV, No. guidelines for Society members. in his presentation. 7) Although we know the political rea- sons for the current taboo regarding a Each physicist is a citizen of the community of science. Each shares responsibil- Moniz notes that discretionary spend- critical discussion of military spending, ity for the welfare of this community. Science is best advanced when there is ing in the current budget amounts to it is deplorable that discussion of the mutual trust, based upon honest behavior, throughout the community. Acts of $250 billion. An equivalent sum is be- issue of the excessive military budget deception, or any other acts that deliberately compromise the advancement of ing proposed by the Clinton adminis- and its consequences upon discretion- science, are therefore unacceptable. Honesty must be regarded as the corner- tration for the current military budget. ary spending is avoided in the science stone of ethics in science. It occurs to some of us that much of and education community. the current malaise in society would The following are minimal standards of ethical behavior relating to several criti- be cured if military spending were to We have a deep systemic problems. cal aspects of the physics profession. be reduced dramatically and channeled Throwing money at the military and its into societal problems. The Center for hangers-on will only worsen it. Research Results Defense Information has stated that, The results of research should be recorded and maintained in a form that “The can reduce its an- M.K. Brussel allows analysis and review. Research data should be immediately avail- nual military expenditure to $175 bil- Urbana, Illinois able to scientific collaborators. Following publication, the data should be retained for a reasonable period in order to be available promptly and Support Good Russian Science, Not Bad Russian Translation completely to responsible scientists. Exceptions may be appropriate in Wallace Manheimer’s article in the June that they are sabotaging Russian scien- certain circumstances in order to preserve privacy, to assure patent pro- 1996 issue, “Going Against the Flow: tists during this crucial period by mak- tection, or for similar reasons. A Sabbatical in Russia,” prompts me to ing Russian science much less suggest an additional way to support accessible, especially in the era of key- Fabrication of data or selective reporting of data with the intent to mislead Russian science in this difficult period: word-based online searching. or deceive is an egregious departure from the expected norms of scientific support good Russian science, not bad conduct, as is the theft of data or research results from others. Russian scientific translation. Sometimes it takes me longer to “fix” bad translations than to do the transla- Publication and Authorship Practices I have a Ph.D. in chemical physics and tion entirely myself. Most are obviously Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contri- have been a scientific translator (into done by non-scientists, but one was bution to the concept, design, execution and interpretation of the research English from several languages) for 18 done by a co-author of the paper and study. All those who have made significant contributions should be of- years. Part of my work has included still used incorrect English terminology. fered the opportunity to be listed as authors. Other individuals who have translating Russian journal articles for So beware the catch-phrase “close con- contributed to the study should be acknowledged, but not be identified as cover-to-cover translation journals. In an sultation with the authors” from “in authors. The sources of financial support for the projects should be dis- understandable effort to help the Rus- Russia” translation agencies! closed. sian economy, the Russian publishers have increasingly been insisting that Most of us with the required back- Plagiarism constitutes unethical scientific behavior and is never accept- native Russians (in Russia) be hired to ground to accurately “fix” the awful re- able. Proper acknowledgment of the work of others used in a research do the English translations, despite the sults find the work so frustrating that projects must always be given. Further, it is the obligation of each author universal wisdom that we should trans- we increasingly avoid it. The publish- to provide prompt retractions or correction of errors in published works. late only into our native language when- ers avoid us, too, once we set our fees ever possible. Since those Russians who to match the real time such fixing takes. Peer Review “do science” are rarely those who “do In order to cut costs, I was sometimes Peer review provides advice concerning research proposals, the publica- English,” the result has been translations hired to just “fix the English” (i.e., told tion of research results and career advancement of colleagues. It is an which really should be stamped “read not to compare the English with the essential component of the scientific process. at your own risk.” In addition to hope- Russian except when necessary). lessly tangled sentences, the scientific Translation journals are so important Peer review can serve its intended function only if the members of the terminology is often completely wrong. both for the world scientific community scientific community are prepared to provide thorough, fair and objective The translators usually demonstrate little and the original authors, that it is crucial evaluations based on requisite expertise. Although peer review can be understanding of the Russian text, as to maintain high standards for them. difficult and time-consuming, scientists have an obligation to participate well as practically no access to the En- in the process. glish scientific literature (not even ba- Cathy Flick sic college-level textbooks). This means Richmond, Indiana Privileged information or ideas that are obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not be used for competitive gain. Public Based Affirmative Action Reviewers should disclose conflicts of interest resulting from direct com- While I agree with the basic sentiment faculty does not. Does that mean that petitive, collaborative or other relationships with any of the authors, and expressed by Elizabeth Baranger in we should be hiring African-Americans? avoid cases in which such conflicts preclude an objective evaluation. “Questioning Affirmative Action” (APS No. We should be hiring faculty who News, June 1996) the suggested actions can effectively teach and mentor our Conflict of Interest that she proposes are, in my view, in- black students, who currently are not There are many professional activities of physicists that have the potential appropriate. being served as well as they should be. for a conflict of interest. Any professional relationship or action that may result in a conflict of interest must be fully disclosed. When objectivity and In particular, she advocates that we give A similar argument can be made for effectiveness cannot be maintained, the activity should be avoided or preference in hiring/admissions to un- hiring faculty to better serve our female discontinued. der-represented minority and women science students. A statement of those physicists, justifying this by saying that goals should be in any job announce- It should be recognized that honest error is an integral part of the scien- we have traditionally favored some ment, and applicants should be ex- tific enterprise. It is not unethical to be wrong, provided that errors are groups, such as athletes, in-state stu- pected to present a case that they can promptly acknowledged and corrected when they are detected. Profes- dents, certain fields of research, etc. effectively meet those goals. Follow- sional integrity in the formulation, conduct and reporting of physics activi- ing such guidelines would shift the fo- ties reflects not only on the reputations of individual physicists and their What we really need is an attitude to- cus to accomplishing the mission of the organizations, but also on the image and credibility of the physics profes- ward affirmative action based not on race university rather than meeting racial and sion as perceived by scientific colleagues, government and the public. It or gender, but one based on serving all gender quotas. Perhaps I am being ide- is important that the tradition of ethical behavior be carefully maintained of our public. For example, my own in- alistic, but it seems to me such a client- and transmitted with enthusiasm to future generations. stitution is a state-assisted public univer- centered approach is more ethical, and sity housed in a black-majority city. Our less likely to be blocked by court chal- Physicists have an individual and a collective responsibility to ensure that there student population, though not propor- lenges and white male backlash. is no compromise with these guidelines. tionally representative of the metropoli- tan area, does have a substantial Ronald L. Greene percentage of African-Americans. Our University of New Orleans 4 University.

August/September 1996 APS News

Editor’s note: Professor Schneider was offered space to express his views following the publication of an erroneous quote attributed to him in the March issue. The opinions expressed are the author’s and not necessarily those of the APS, its elected officers or staff. OPINION Don’t Bet All Environmental Changes Will Be Beneficial by Stephen H. Schneider, Prof., Dept. of Biological Sciences and Sr. Fellow Inst. for International Studies, Stanford University

erhaps you shouldn’t believe me, and buts. On the other hand, we are metaphors that succinctly convey both jective and which are subjective, as well Pat least that is what Julian Simon’s not just scientists but human beings as urgency and uncertainty (pg. xi of Ref. as what is the scientific basis for any characterization of my views of envi- well. And like most people we’d like 3) and (2) produce an inventory of probability offered. For such reasons I ronmental threats would lead you to to see the world a better place, which written products from editorials to ar- was honored to receive, in 1991, the believe in APS News Back Page article in this context translates into our work- ticles to books, so that those who want AAAS/Westinghouse Award for the (March 1996, pg. 12). Simon “quotes” ing to reduce the risk of potentially to know more about an author’s views Public Understanding of Science. me directly, as supposedly saying “Sci- disastrous climatic change. To do that on both the caveats and the risks have entists should consider stretching the we need [Scientists should consider a hierarchy of detailed written sources If the readers of APS News are confused truth…” to get good publicity for their stretching the truth] to get some to which they can turn.3,4,5 What I was by all this rancor and want a fair and cause. After the March issue was in broadbased support, to capture the telling the Discover interviewer, of balanced treatment of environmental print, Simon notified the editor that this public’s imagination. That, of course, course, was my disdain for a soundbite- scientific and policy debates, they can false and very damaging statement was entails getting loads of media coverage. communications process that imposes turn to the several National Research incorrect. What he hasn’t yet admitted So we have to offer up scary scenarios, the double ethical bind on all who Council or IPCC assessments,6 in which is that even what he states to be the make simplified, dramatic statements, venture into the popular media. To words like “any,” “all,” “every,” and “en- “correct quote” is still an out-of-con- and make little mention of any doubts twist my openly stated and serious tirely” are scarce, and citations are text misrepresentation of my views, a we might have. This ‘double ethical objections to the soundbite process into quoted or paraphrased in their proper distortion he persists in perpetuating bind’ we frequently find ourselves in some kind of advocacy of exaggera- context. even months after I personally told him cannot be solved by any formula. Each tion is a clear distortion. Moreover, not of the context of the original quote. of us has to decide what the right bal- only do I disapprove of the “ends jus- References ance is between being effective and be- tify the means” philosophy of which I 1. P.R. Ehrlich and S. H. Schneider, Environmen- tal Awareness, 18 (2) pp. 47-50. (1995). The Simon APS News article offers to ing honest. I hope that means being am accused, but, in fact have actively 2. J. Schell, Discover, pp. 45-48, Oct. 1989. 2 bet environmentalists “…that any trend both.” campaigned against it in myriad 3. S.H. Schneider, Global Warming: Are We En- in material human welfare will improve speeches and writings. Instead, I re- tering the Greenhouse Century? (Vintage 1990). rather than get worse.” This article ech- Vested interests have repeatedly peatedly advocate that scientists explic- 4. S.H. Schneider, with L.E. Mesirow, The Genesis oes an editorial essay entitled “Earth’s claimed I advocate exaggerating itly warn their audiences that “what to Strategy: Climate and Global Survival. (Plenum NY 1976). Doomsayers Are Wrong” that appeared threats. Their “evidence” comes from do” is a value choice as opposed to 5. S.H. Schneider, National Geographic Research in the 12 May 1995 San Francisco partially quoting my Discover inter- “what can happen” and “what are the & Exploration 9 (2), 173-190 (1993). Chronicle open forum. Simon then said view, almost always -like Simon - omit- odds,” which are scientific issues (e.g. 6. Intergovernmental Panel on Climatic Change that “Every measure of material and ting the last line and the phrase “double p. 213 of Ref. 3). I also urge that scien- (IPCC), Climate Change 1995. The Science of environmental welfare in the U.S. and ethical bind.” They also omit my solu- tists, when they offer probabilities, Climate Change. Edited by J.T. Houghton etal. (Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, UK, 1996). the world has improved…” and that tions to the double ethical bind: (1) use work hard to distinguish which are ob- “All long run trends point in exactly the opposite direction of the doomsayers” Thus he implied that few, if any people would likely accept his Straight Talk bet since for the past 25 years the pes- by Francis Slakey, APS Office of Public Affairs simists have been “proven entirely wrong.” When my Stanford colleague, y the time I finished graduate verbs were not a source of confusion, mit, I am uncertain whether this very Paul Ehrlich, and I took up his chal- Bschool in physics, I had mastered they were all quite boring. I did plenty sentence should be boxed between two lenge1 and named 15 environment-re- technical speech. But, I managed day- of “measuring” and “calculating” but I others or be this paragraph’s caboose. lated trends we were willing to bet to-day conversation with all the grace rarely “reckoned” and I never “conjured would deteriorate, Simon refused claim- of a fellow whose unsuspecting foot up.” I needed to enrich my vocabulary. Most of the linguistic rules I’ve just de- ing to the Chronicle (18 May 1995) that catches on a sidewalk crack. Rather As I began stocking my head with fresh scribed, I worked out on my own, but I “I do not offer to bet on the progress than continuing to stumble about on verbs, I discovered that the adverb is have it from a respected source that they of particular physical conditions such the potholes of my own elliptic meta- completely over-sold. The adverb is a are, nevertheless, quite accurate. Al- as the ozone layer” (as if its decline phors, I made a decision. To the Ph.D. footstool for linguistic dwarfs who can’t though the source is dead, his writing were not a negative measure of envi- anointed among you, this may seem reach the right verb. For example, in- confirms my theories. For example, con- ronmental welfare!). strange. I decided that I wanted to be stead of saying a scientist “spoke con- sider the following plausible scientific understood. fidently,” you should say “babbled.” sentence: “In order to achieve some In November, 1995, I debated Simon Instead of saying the wise doctor measure of progress, it was necessary on Lateline, the Australian TV equiva- I began by trying to finger someone as “keenly lectured,” you should say for him to agitate the liquid repeatedly lent of the US Nightline program, on the cause of my dilemma. After all, the “droned.” What you find is that for with an exhausting twisting of his wrists.” the issue of the Chronicle bet. In a seg- first step to self-improvement is assign- every quality verb you learn, you can Now consider Hemingway’s version: “He ment they did not air, Simon charged ing blame. Maybe the environment discard one adverb. So, expanding your rowed and he rowed and he rowed.” that I advocate exaggerating science to mucked up my verbal skills? I consid- verb inventory doesn’t require any new Magnifique! No adjectival blockage, no enhance the appearance of environ- ered blaming my grad school mentor, shelf space. In fact, it’s quite the oppo- semicolon irregularities, just smooth flow. mental threats. To bolster this charge but I’ve hung enough of my deficien- site. If you choose your verbs carefully, he resurrected an oft-quoted, but usu- cies on him already. Then perhaps you will discover that when you finish You may have noticed that I don’t use ally out of context partial quote, from some pesky gene was the culprit? Alas, upgrading your inventory, you will the letter “Z.” I recommend that you a Discover Magazine interview2 in 1989 my father publishes poetry. Eventually have an impressive number of empty drop this letter from your public alpha- in which I decried soundbite science I settled on blaming Sir Isaac Newton. mental shelves. bet. You will find it difficult at first, and journalism by pointing out that Surely, Principia had been polluting my because you have to avoid phrases like nobody gets enough time in the me- diction since childhood. In the course of examining my speech, “Zeener diode” and “Zirconium cru- dia either to cover all the caveats in I found that I completely misunder- cible.” Of course, that’s precisely the depth, (i.e., “being honest”) or to The next step required some distaste- stood the semicolon. A typical sentence point—these phrases shouldn’t be used present all the plausible threats (i.e., ful self-examination. What was it about in my scientific papers would make a in mixed company. In fact, I believe “being effective”). During the TV de- my speech that made the eyes of the point, certainly, but then additional we should drop the letter “Z” from the bate, months before Simon’s APS News masses glaze? I examined my scientific little thoughts and fragments would tail dictionary altogether. That would do article appeared, I pointed out that he publications and uncovered my shame- along behind. The semicolon was the away with the zodiac, making us all a was taking only part of the full quote ful weakness. I, Francis Slakey, am an glue for the verbal streamer. What I lot better off. and that part was seriously out of con- adjective addict. There in my papers, learned, however, is that a semicolon text — this is the same source he mocking me, were the giveaway is the pennant of a dimwit, a waffler. There is one final bit of self-editing that “quoted” in APS News. The full quote phrases: “optically induced metastable So uncertain over wether to use a pe- I do, sort of the rhetorical equivalent follows, where I have italicized what phase” and “magnetic-exchange Coo- riod or a comma, the dimwit uses both of the least common denominator. Be- portions of it Simon quoted and brack- per-pair interaction strength.” The dev- — stacking them one on top of the other. fore publishing anything, I check the eted what I did not say but he attrib- ilish adjective was my master and I was average word length. In graduate school, uted to me in the APS News article: its pathetic tongue-lolling junkie. There Despite my best efforts, I haven’t mas- I could boast an average in the double was only one way to kick the habit — tered the paragraph. Apparently, the digits. Recently, a psychiatrist told me “On the one hand, as scientists we are I went cold turkey. purpose of the paragraph is to intro- that an obsession with long words is a ethically bound to the scientific duce more white space into the text, sign of sexual insecurity. Now I try to method, in effect promising to tell the When I had finally re-established con- breaking up what the eye would oth- keep my average under five letters. truth, the whole truth, and nothing but trol over the adjective, I began exam- erwise interpret as an endless blotch — which means that we must include ining other aspects of my scientific of ink. Fortunately, a skilled editor res- This article was reprinted from New all the doubts, the caveats, the ifs, ands, speech. I discovered that while my cued me in this matter. Though I ad- Scientist, June 22 1996. 5 APS News August/September 1996 APS Awards 1996-1997 Scholarships to Minority Undergrads

he APS has awarded corporate- the applications was extremely high. tee on Minorities, and is supported by of Toledo; Berta J. Lyles, University of Tsponsored scholarships for the Although only 24 students could be sup- funds allocated from the APS Campaign California, San Diego; Dana Ramos 1996-1997 academic year to 24 minority ported by funding from the Campaign for Physics. Scholarships are awarded Macaluso, Emory University; Jamie students who are majoring, or plan to for Physics, four alternate winners were to African-American, Hispanic Ameri- Morales, University of Texas, El Paso; major, in physics. Since its inception in chosen in the event that one of the win- can or Native American students who Lisa Rheann Morton, California State 1980, the scholarship program has ners could not accept the scholarship. are high school seniors, college fresh- University, Chico; Melinda Nickelson, helped approximately 200 minority men, or sophomores. Roughly half are Bryn Mawr College; Ann Margaret students pursue physics degrees. Each The applications of the 24 recipients were awarded to students enrolled in institu- Orthuber, University of California, scholarship consists of $2,000, which superior. All received extremely high rat- tions with historically or predominantly Santa Cruz; Eugenio Enrique Ortiz, may be renewed once, and which may ings from their professors or teachers who Black, Hispanic, or Native American en- ; Anthony V. Pulido, be used for tuition, room and board. taught them in math, physics or another rollment. After being selected, each ; Jamie Lynne Smith; science. Many students engaged in inde- scholar is matched with an available and Cohan Aishon Viernes, University “We are extremely proud of these schol- pendent research. The Scholastic Apti- scholarship, as well as an accomplished of Washington. ars and look forward to watching them tude Test scores for this subset of students physicist to act as a mentor. evolve into productive scientists, as were also extremely high. Three students Students whose scholarships were re- well as outstanding models for the next received perfect scores of 800 on the The new scholars for 1996-1997, and newed for 1996-1997 and their advi- generation,” said Associate Executive math portion of the SATs, 8 received their institutions (where known), are sors are: Alicia J. Hardy and advisor Officer Barrett Ripin. scores in the 700 range, and the balance Kanayo Agbodike, Princeton University; Peter Dourmashkin, Massachusetts In- received scores ranging from 570 to 660. Gregory Cezar Baeza, Emory University; stitute of Technology; Korrie Kamauoha Out of 79 applicants, 19 new scholar- Most of the students have a very definite Terance Roland Barkus; Martha-Eliza- and advisor William Strong, Brigham ships and 5 renewal applicants were idea of what field of physics they would beth Baylor, Kenyon College; Dean Ed- Young University; Obediah Lewis, Jr., selected. Male and female winners were like to focus their study and what they ward Berlin; Catalina Marie Buttz, Georgia Institute of Technology and ad- split evenly while 10 of the winners will do with their degrees once they have Massachusetts Institute of Technology; visor Askhut Em Bak, Morehouse Col- were African-American, 13 were His- attained them. Carina Pamela Curtom, Harvard lege; Asha K. Richard and advisor panic-Americans, and one was Native University; Paul Anthony Lopez, Mas- Vernon Hughes, Yale University; and American. The Committee on Minori- The APS scholarship program operates sachusetts Institute of Technology; Matthew J. Rodriguez and advisor ties in Physics felt that the quality of under the auspices of the APS Commit- Adetokumbo Michael Lukan, University , University of Illinois. Is U.S. Physics Truly International? Patel Recipient of Nation’s Highest by William A. Blanpied Science Honor cience, we have been assured, planned as an international facility from Although no seminal papers resulted (continued from page 1) Sknows no international boundaries. the start is an intriguing, if ultimately from that year, the experience was piv- Can the same be said for scientists? unanswerable, question. Serious nego- otal to my understanding of the inter- Broecker (Columbia University), for his Physicists will no doubt regard the an- tiations are currently underway that national culture of physics. Many of my pioneering contributions in under- swer as self-evident. could lead to a substantial U.S. contri- peers profited from similar experiences standing chemical changes in the ocean bution to CERN’s rival Large Hadron working abroad. and atmosphere; Norman Davidson With the possible exception of math- Collider (LHC). Yet the nagging thought (California Institute of Technology) for ematics and astronomy, we can with persists that might be Today, relatively fewer newly minted breakthroughs in chemistry and biol- considerable justification claim to have in a far better position today if propo- physicists leave the U.S. for such ex- ogy which have led to the earliest un- been the most internationalized of all nents of the SSC and LHC had initiated tended working experiences. Many rea- derstanding of the overall structure of the sciences for some time. The devel- serious negotiations a decade ago sons have been cited for this. The most genomes; James L. Flanagan (Rutgers opment and elucidation of quantum about substantial international collabo- telling is that, given the almost impos- University) for his foremost leadership mechanics in the 1920s and 1930s was ration and cost sharing. sible job market in academic physics, and innovation in bringing engineer- the shared work of physicists from young people put their careers at risk ing techniques and speech science to- many European countries, of Ameri- However, a decade ago, that would by taking a year off to work in foreign gether to solve basic problems in speech cans, and of at least two Asians. CERN, have been difficult if not impossible, laboratories, no matter how good the communication; Richard M. Karp (Uni- created in 1952, remains a monument primarily because, while physicists are physics may be at such facilities. versity of Washington) for his ground- to the conviction of leading Europe- in the habit of discussing future op- Younger physicists are unlikely to seek breaking work in theoretical computer ans after World War II that the interna- portunities on an international basis, working experience outside the U.S. science; (Academy of Natu- tional character of physics should be national governments are not. And unless they are encouraged to do so ral Sciences, Philadelphia) for her lead- made manifest by international institu- national governments provide the fi- by their senior mentors, many of whom ership in understanding biodiversity as tions for its conduct. Since the 1950s, nancial resources for both domestic and have extensive collegial contacts an indicator of environmental quality; qualified user groups from all countries international scientific projects. abroad. However, those mentors are Paul A. Samuelson (Massachusetts In- have enjoyed access to accelerator fa- unlikely to provide the needed encour- stitute of Technology) for his funda- cilities in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Until recently, no vehicle existed where agement unless they are convinced that mental contributions to economic more recently, China. Finally, U.S. phys- program managers from agencies that international experience is an essen- science, education and policy for nearly ics graduate schools have admitted fund large physics facilities in the tial element in the apprenticeship of a 60 years; and Stephen Smale (Univer- qualified foreign students since World world’s principal scientific countries young physicist. sity of California-Berkeley) for four de- War II. could meet on a regular basis to dis- cades of pioneering work on basic cuss promising opportunities for col- Perhaps the central transdisciplinary is- research questions which have led to However, it remains the case that, with laboration and cost-sharing. Thus, sue that concerns the APS today has to major advances in pure and applied a few notable exceptions like CERN, vir- many worthwhile collaborations may do with physics education and employ- . tually all institutions where physicists ply have literally fallen through the cracks. ment: how to transform graduate edu- their normal crafts and establish their ca- The Organization for Economic Coop- cation so that new generations of The five recipients of the National reers are national, rather than interna- eration and Development created its physicists will be adequately prepared Medal of Technology are Charles H. tional. Similarly, with the exception of Megascience Forum as a result of strong to contribute to a broad range of en- Kaman, president, chairman and CEO, the European Union, the principal orga- U.S. government leadership, intended deavors in addition to academic phys- of Kaman Corp., for his pioneering nizations that fund research are agen- as an attempt to remedy this deficiency ics, while preserving quality and work in helicopter technology; cies of national governments. These by providing a venue where national excellence. Many of the possibilities have Stephanie Louise Kwolek, consultant circumstances have been responsible for program officers responsible for big decidedly international dimensions, con- and former research associate at Du at least two partial barriers to more com- science projects can sit down with their sistent with what is commonly called the Pont Co., for her contributions in the plete integration of U.S. physics into in- foreign counterparts to discuss the dif- globalization of the economy. APS dis- discovery and development of high- ternational physics: (1) reluctance, until ficult issues associated with interna- cussions about broadened graduate edu- performance aramid fibers; James C. recently, to explore significant interna- tional collaboration. cation in physics must be cognizant of Morgan, chairman and CEO, Applied tional cost-sharing arrangements for this essential point. The Society can take Materials, Inc., for his vision and lead- major facilities; and (2) a lack of appre- The second barrier has been less widely the lead in assuring that international di- ership in the development of the U.S. ciation of the value of foreign working discussed. As I was completing research mensions of physics education are seri- semiconductor manufacturing equip- experience in the education of young for my doctoral dissertation in nuclear ously considered. ment industry; Peter H. Rose, president, U.S. physicists. physics a generation ago, my advisor Krytek Corporation, for his leadership urged me to consider a postdoctoral William A. Blanpied is Senior Interna- in the development and commercial- The first has been widely discussed dur- position in Europe as the culmination tional Analyst at the National Science ization of ion implantation products, ing the past few years. Whether or not of my apprenticeship. As a result, I en- Foundation. A longer version of this which are necessary for the production the late, lamented Superconducting joyed a memorable year in Italy, where article appeared in the March 1996 of modern semiconductors; and Super Collider (SSC) would have sur- I worked at what was then the new newsletter of the APS Forum on Inter- Johnson & Johnson, the world’s larg- vived and prospered had it been electron synchrotron facility at Frascati. national Physics. est and most comprehensive health care company.

6 August/September 1996 APS News ANNOUNCEMENTS

Students Find Summer Internships ATTENTION Through ISIP PHYSICS SENIORS AND GRADUATE STUDENTS!! ince its inception 18 years ago, the Medical Systems; and Dale Visser, Lu- SAPS Industrial Summer Intern Pro- cent Technologies. Apply Now and Spend Next Summer as an APS gram (ISIP) has helped over 260 U.S. Industrial Intern college students secure summer em- The primary benefits of the ISIP pro- ployment in some of the country’s best gram include exposure to industrial Applications are now being accepted for the 1997 APS Industrial Summer industrial laboratories, thus gaining research and the opportunity to estab- Intern Program (ISIP), a phase of the Society’s efforts to increase the cou- valuable hands-on experience in that lish important contacts in industry. “In pling between the academic and industrial members of the physics com- research environment. This year the a number of colleges and universities, munity. The program provides an opportunity for well-qualified physics program placed 12 students in positions the faculty hasn’t had much exposure students to spend time in an industrial environment during the summer at some of the nation’s top industrial to industrial science, and as a result their months. and national laboratories. students aren’t aware that interesting physics can be done in an industrial set- THE DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF APPLICATIONS IS Established by the APS Committee on ting,” said Israel Jacobs (General Elec- 25 OCTOBER 1996! Education in 1978, ISIP provides an tric R&D Center), who has served on the opportunity for qualified U.S. physics ISIP selection committee since the pro- Qualifications: Any graduating senior or first year graduate student in physics students to broaden their training by gram began. The program also benefits may apply. Applicants should expect to spend the period from June through working in an industrial environment the participating industrial laboratories. August 1997 as an intern and to participate in existing projects at the host for 10 weeks during the summer. In- Interns often produce useful results that laboratory. Many laboratories may require U.S. citizenship. Since the pro- terns receive salaries from their indus- help advance a company’s scientific pro- gram is very competitive, applicants should have good academic records trial employers. Interns and companies gram, and may return to industry after and a high degree of motivation, and should present evidence of some for the summer of 1996 are Peter earning their Ph.D.s. research or technical experience. Colarco, Alimenterics, Inc.; Kyle Stipend: The stipend for interns will be about $2,000 per month, varying Downey, IBM/T.J. Watson Research See the announcement on this page for somewhat with each industrial company. Provision for relocation expenses Center; Benjamin Evans, IBM/T.J. the 1997 Industrial Summer Internship and fringe benefits will be made according to the practice of each host Watson Research Center; Matthew Program. Student application forms are laboratory. Fulkerson, Lucent Technologies; Greg available from college physics depart- Hess, Michigan Tech University; Cory ments and from the APS. Undergradu- Selection Procedure: A review committee appointed by the APS President Hill, Exxon R&E; Brent Hoermann, ates in their senior year and graduate will screen all completed applications received by the deadline of 25 Octo- Lucent Technologies; Melissa Johnson, students are eligible. The deadline for ber 1996. The files of appropriately qualified candidates will be distributed Sandia National Laboratories; Katherine this year’s program is 25 October 1996. to research managers at the participating industrial laboratories. Those com- Rawlins, IBM Almaden Research Cen- Further information is available from the panies will offer internships directly to the students they select. The Soci- ter; James Rittner, Michigan Tech Uni- ISIP Administrator, APS, One Physics El- ety will not participate in the negotiations for any particular appointment. versity; Amanda VanderVenter, GE lipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844. It is expected that negotiations should be completed by mid-April 1997.

Industrial Organizations: Industrial organizations interested in participat- Nominations for Prizes ing in this program are invited to contact the Program Administrator. No commitment, other than willingness to consider appropriately qualified and Awards interns, is required. Interns are expected to agree to patents and propri- etary information policies ordinarily required at the given laboratory. The following prizes and awards will be bestowed at meetings of the Society in Application Procedure: Applicants should complete and return the appli- the coming year. Members are invited to nominate candidates to the respective cation form and arrange to have two letter-of-reference forms, in addition committees charged with the privilege of recommending the recipient. A brief to the chairperson’s endorsement form, sent to the Program Administrator. description of each prize and award is given below, along with the addresses of Transcripts may be included with the application form or be sent to the the selection committee chairs to whom nominations should be sent. Please Program Administrator by the school. Completed applications and sup- refer to the APS Membership Directory, pages xxiii- xxxix, or the APS home porting material must be received by 25 October 1996. page [http://www.aps.org] under the Prize, Award and Fellowship button, for complete information regarding rules and eligibility requirements for individual COPIES OF ALL FORMS ARE AVAILABLE IN THE prizes and awards. OFFICE OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF YOUR DEPARTMENT OR BY WRITING DIRECTLY Nature: The Award to be given annu- 1997 Outstanding Doctoral Thesis TO THE ADDRESS BELOW. Award for Research In Atomic, ally consists of $1,000 and a certificate Molecular, or Optical Physics citing the contribution made by the For further information or application forms, write to: Endorsed by members and friends of recipient. All finalists will receive a Industrial Summer Intern Program Administrator the Division of Atomic, Molecular and travel stipend of $250. The American Physical Society Optical Physics. One Physics Ellipse Send name of proposed candidate and College Park, MD 20740-3844 Purpose: To recognize doctoral thesis supporting information before 15 No- or call 301-209-3231. research of outstanding quality and vember, 1996 to: Kenneth C. Kulander, achievement in atomic, molecular, or Lawrence Livermore National Labora- optical physics and to encourage ef- tory, PO Box 808; L-014, Livermore CA fective written and oral presentation of 94551, Phone (510) 422-5400, Fax 510 research results. 424 4320, Email [email protected] CAUGHT IN THE WEB

Notable additions to the APS Web Server. APS Joins New Condensed Matter The APS Web Server can be found at http:// Electronic Alerting Service www.aps.org The APS has joined four other publishers, American Institute of Physics, Chapman and Hall Elsevier Science, and Institute of Physics Publishing, in the creation of an New/Updated Links: Governance/Public Affairs alert system for condensed matter and materials science articles. APS News online (latest edition) • Biographical Information and State- What’s New (latest edition) ments from Candidates in 1997 APS CoDAS Web (Condensed Matter Direct Alerting Service) is a Web-based product Membership Election. that delivers full bibliographic records (title, author names, full abstract, biblio- Units • The Current Energy Situtation graphic information) to the scientist’s computer. A user profile option allows • Topical Group on Magnetism and its researchers to select and store their preferred search terms thus enhancing the Applications (GMAG) starts its Journals relevance of the records delivered. The subscription fee is $95 for individuals. homepage • E-print Server • NY State Section Governance • PRB Rapid Communications online Further information and an online demonstration of CoDAS Web are available at • NRC Study of Condensed Matter and • PRC online the following sites: http://www.iop.org/Journals/CODAS or http:// Materials Physics on the DMP [email protected]. hompage Meetings • FIAP Newsletter (March Edition) • The Reines Symposium at LANL 7 APS News August/September 1996 THE BACK PAGE

DILBERT reprinted by permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc.

Drawing by Cheney; © 1996 The New Yorker Magazine, Inc.

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