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Inside ASIST Election Underway for ASIST Officers and Directors The annual summer process of electing new officers and
directors for the American Society for Information Science and Technology is underway with ballots mailed to all eligible voters within the membership. Eight candidates are vying for four available seats on the ASIST Board of
Directors.The following individuals are seeking the positions noted: President-elect for the 2002 administrative year: Victor Rosenberg and Trudi Bellardo Hahn; Treasurer
for administrative years 2002-2004: George Abbott and Cecilia Preston; and Directors-at-large for the 2002-2004 administrative years (two candidates to be elected):
Julian Warner, Abby Goodrum, Laura Cousineau and Andrew Dillon. The slate of candidates was prepared by the Nominations Committee and submitted to the Board of Directors for adoption. Members of the
Nominations Committee are Eugene Garfield, chair; Margret Branschofsky; Samantha Kelly Hastings; Michel J. Menou; and Beata Panagopoulos. For President-elect Victor Rosenberg
Victor Rosenberg is associate professor in the School of Information at the University of Michigan. Before coming to Michigan, he was on the faculty of the University of California at Berkeley. He received his
doctorate in library science from the University of Chicago, a master's degree in information science and a bachelor's degree from Lehigh University. Dr. Rosenberg was the developer of ProCite and BiblioLink software.
In 1996 his company was sold to the Institute for Scientific Information. He was recently on leave to the United States Department of Commerce, Office of Technology Administration, on a fellowship from the Computing Research
Association. Dr. Rosenberg is serving on the Board of Directors of ASIST and on the editorial board of ARIST. His research has won the JASIS Paper of the Year Award, and he has reviewed papers for
JASIST and for other publications. Trudi Bellardo Hahn Trudi Bellardo Hahn is manager of Library User Education Services and adjunct professor at the College of Information Studies at the
University of Maryland. Prior positions were as training specialist with the Maryland State Department of Education, director of professional development for the Special Libraries Association, associate professor at Catholic
University and assistant professor and data services librarian at the University of Kentucky. She received a Ph.D. in information systems from Drexel University and an MSLS and BA in linguistics from the University of
Kentucky. Over a 25-year career, she has written and edited numerous books, articles and conference papers, and taught workshops in information literacy, teaching with technology, indexing, and information science history and
education. Her contributions to ASIST have included chairing the 2001 Annual Meeting (Washington, DC) and the 1983 Mid-Year Meeting (Lexington, KY), chairing the Education for Information Science and Awards & Honors
Committees, chairing the SIGs for History & Foundations of Information Science and Education for Information Science, serving as Director-at-Large, and chairing numerous juries for awards, papers and scholarships, as well as
chairing the Potomac Valley Chapter. For Treasurer George Abbott George L. Abbott is head of the Media Services Department at Syracuse University Library. He is responsible for
the Library Multimedia Center, Television History Archives, Digital Copy Center and media collections, including microforms. He is currently working on an international, grant-funded project to digitize and transfer to DVD a
collection of videotaped television interviews. An ASIST member since 1969, George served on the Board of Directors (1981-1985) and received the Watson Davis Award in 1987. He has been active in many SIGs and served as
SIG Deputy Director (1979-1981) and SIG Cabinet Director (1981-1985). He co-chaired the 1987 Mid-Year Meeting devoted to optical disc technology and has served on several ASIST committees. In addition to ASIST, George is a member
of IFLA and ALA, serving on many ALA committees. He was Exhibits Manager for the 1983 and 1987 LITA National Conferences, handling planning and all onsite aspects of the exhibits. George serves as a site visitor for the ALA
Committee on Accreditation. Cecilia Preston Cecilia M. Preston is the senior managing partner at Preston & Lynch, a consulting firm established in 1995, with clients that include libraries,
museums, standards bodies and others interested in the use of technology to distribute information. Prior to that she was the principal in Strategic & Competitive Research of Palo Alto and Ventura, CA, and has held positions in
both corporate and academic libraries. Cecilia earned a BA in history from Glassboro State College (now Rowan University) and an MLIS from Rutgers' School of Library and Information Studies. An ASIST member since the
early 1980s, she has served in many positions: in the San Francisco chapter; on Annual and Mid-Year Meeting program committees – local arrangements, technical and proceedings editor; the standards, nominating and membership
committees; and award juries. Cecilia is the co-author of an ARIST chapter with Clifford Lynch, and they are currently working on an upcoming chapter. For Director-at-Large Julian Warner
Julian Warner is a faculty member in information science, the Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland. He teaches courses in the human aspects of modern communication technologies and in information
sources. Previously, he worked in scientific research and academic libraries. He has also been a visiting scholar at the University of California at Berkeley and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr.
Warner received his Ph.D. in English literature from Oxford University in 1984, a masters in librarianship from the University of Sheffield also in 1984, and a BA in English literature from Newcastle University in 1977. He has
been a member of ASIST since 1991 and has served as chair of the European Chapter and of SIG/History and Foundations of Information Science, as well as on the ISI Dissertation Scholarship Jury. He is involved with other relevant
professional associations and is currently a vice-president of the Institute of Information Scientists, the British Isles analogue to ASIST. He has research interests in information retrieval, the history of copyright, in the
connections between writing and computing, and in understandings of information technology. Abby Goodrum bby Goodrum is assistant professor in the School of Information Studies at Syracuse
University. She was formerly at Drexel University where she taught courses in visual information retrieval, knowledge management and information architecture. Prior to beginning her academic career, she was a librarian for Cable
News Network. She received her Ph.D. in information science from the University of North Texas, a master's degree in library science, and a bachelor's degree in radio, television and film from the University of North
Texas. Her general research interests include information seeking and retrieval in multimedia environments and the development of web-based environments for the production and dissemination of still and moving images. An active
ASIST member since 1991, Abby has served on the SIG Cabinet Steering Committee and SIG Cabinet Advisory Board, the Leadership Development Committee, Continuing Education Committee, the Leadership Award Jury and the Student Chapter
of the Year Jury. She has chaired the ISI Doctoral Dissertation Award Jury and has served as Chair of SIGs/TIS, VIS and CON. She has contributed numerous panels and presentations to ASIST meetings over the years and won the
Doctoral Dissertation Proposal Scholarship in 1996. Laura Cousineau Laura Cousineau is the head of Lilly Library at Duke University. Her job duties have included reference, collection development,
bibliographic instruction, web development and community outreach to area schools for technology instruction. She holds a BA in management from North Carolina State University, an MLS from North Carolina Central University, and she
has studied French and philosophy at the Sorbonne and L'Institute Catholique in Paris. Laura has been an active member of ASIST since the Baltimore meeting in 1996, when she began her involvement with SIG/LAN, organizing conference
sessions, presenting and serving as chair. She is currently serving on the SIG Cabinet. Andrew Dillon Andrew Dillon is an associate professor of information science at Indiana University where he
serves as director of the IU Program in HCI and holds adjunct faculty positions in computer science and instructional systems technology. He teaches graduate classes in human-computer interaction. Formerly a Research
Fellow at the Human Sciences and Advanced Technology Institute at Loughborough, he serves on the editorial boards of International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, Interacting with Computers, the
Journal of Digital Information and the New Review of Hypermedia and Multimedia. He is currently co-editing a special issue of JASIST on information architecture. He holds a BA and MA (First Class) in
psychology from University College Cork, and a Ph.D. in human factors psychology from Loughborough University. His research focuses on the human response to information technology, the dynamics of user acceptance, the role of
aesthetics in design and the development of reliable and valid user experience evaluation methods. He serves as a consultant on software design with companies both in the U.S. and in Europe, and writes a regular column on
Information Architecture for the ASIST Bulletin. For President-Elect Victor Rosenberg"As President I plan to continue
developing new programs that will attract and retain new members, while increasing services to continuing members. ASIST is at the center of one of the most dynamic technologies of our time, and we can become one of the leading
organizations in the field." Trudi Bellardo Hahn "Encouraging and involving new members, especially in areas that are hot and emerging, must. . . be a priority. . . . We need to be responsive
to the needs of members at all levels of experience and knowledge who have a wide range of interests and focus." For Treasurer George Abbott "Strong financial management is key to the success of
an organization. It is critical that the Society make wise choices and deploy its resources on the programs, publications and services that most advance the field." Cecilia Preston "This society has
seen its fair share of financial ups-and-downs. . . .[W]ith some foresight and some creative thinking ASIST should be able to weather these changes and come out in a stronger position both financially and with a broader membership
base. . . ." For Director-at-Large Julian Warner "ASIST gives extensive opportunities for the personal and professional growth of its members, by socially engaging with others in an
interdisciplinary environment. . . . Its diversity is its strength. I would bring a humanistic perspective, a deep understanding of information science and transatlantic scope. . . ." Abby Goodrum
"It is ASIST's unique interdisciplinary mix. . . that makes it so appealing. . . . It is. . . essential that ASIST market itself and its membership strongly by collaborating with related organizations and sister societies, by
attracting and supporting student members and by aggressively developing the knowledge and success of our members. . . ." Laura Cousineau "I would work to have ASIST better meet the needs of
[practitioners and researchers], while fostering mutual respect between them. I would also like to explore ways in which our organization, its SIGs, its chapters and its individual members can reach out to the technology have-nots
of our communities, sharing our knowledge and expertise with them." Andrew Dillon "I will work to increase the visibility of ASIST publications and activities among other professional groups . . .
while encouraging new researchers. . . . I will encourage involvement of a wider international audience. . . .I will seek ways to improve the support available to local SIGs and Chapters. . . ."
ASIST 2001 Taking Shape in Washington, DC Entering the new millennium, ASIST is at an exciting crossroads of multiple information networks. Careening into the crossroads, an incredible wealth of information
and new technologies need to merge and converge for traditional and new uses. Racing out from the crossroads, information is exploding in new, previously unimagined, products, services, technologies and applications. The 2001 ASIST
conference will be an opportunity to examine, reflect on and assess these information phenomena and the ways they are transforming real life, real users and real needs. Under the theme,
Information in a Networked World: Harnessing the Flow, conference goers will gather November 3-8, at the J.W. Marriott Hotel in Washington, DC. The program committee, under the direction of Trudi Bellardo Hahn, has put
together an incredible program filled with presentations and papers from the leaders in information science and technology practice and research. In broad terms, the sessions cover the following topics: Technologies;
Information Discovery, Capture and Creation; Classification and Representation; Information Retrieval; Legal, Ethical, Cultural, Social and Behavioral Aspects of a Networked World; and Information Dissemination. Continuing Education Workshops In addition to the superb technical program planned for the meeting, an exciting lineup of
pre-conference workshops has been scheduled for the two days preceding the start of AM 2001. Separate registration is required for these sessions.The following three workshops will beheld on Friday, November 2. (For
additional information, see the ASIST 2001 Preliminary Program.) Content Management Framework
(course will be repeated on Saturday) - Interactive, hands-on workshop providing participants with a step-by-step process for creating successful content management systems. Instructor: Bob Boiko
Information Architecture and Organizational Strategy – Discover how to leverage an organization's information architecture to achieve an invisible competitive advantage. Instructor: Peter Morville
Content Management: Strategies & Tools – Intermediate to advanced-level workshop exploring cutting-edge content management strategies and tools to develop a world-class Intranet site. Instructor: Howard McQueen
Six workshops are scheduled for Saturday, November 3. Content Management Framework (see above) Practical Statistics for Information Professionals
– Informative workshop designed to help information professionals improve their proficiency in understanding and interpreting statistics. Instructor: Liwen Vaughan
Intranet Taxonomies and Metadata: Creating Them, Using Them – Tools needed to develop an effective metadata set and taxonomy that will serve as the foundation for highly successful, user-friendly website. Instructor:
Marjorie M.K. Hlava Content Personalization, User Customization, Portal & Dashboard Strategies
– Real-world examples of proven techniques and strategies for creating targeted, personalized content required for a successful organization-wide, departmental or work group Intranet site that will meet needs and expectations of users. Instructor:
Howard McQueen Effective Methods for Studying Information Seeking and Use: SIG/USE Symposium – Innovative, effective research methods aimed at acquiring better data on how users seek out and utilize information.
Instructor: Barbara Wildemuth Data Mining
– Data mining can be a powerful tool for unearthing meaningful patterns and trends from massive volumes of digital data. Learn the key components of setting up a successful data mining program. Instructor: Elizabeth D. Liddy
One half-day pre-conference is scheduled for Sunday, November 4: Machine Learning for Text Classification and Information Organization
– See how to use machine learning to categorize, filter, mine and otherwise impose sense on online data. Instructor: David Lewis Plenary Presentations An increasingly popular feature of ASIST
Annual Meetings are the plenary sessions. This year's schedule includes two, both of which are destined to become classics. On Sunday, November 4, Brewster Kahle, best known as the inventor of both the Internet
Archive and the Wide Area Information Server (WAIS), will offer a thought-provoking examination of the roles, rights and responsibilities of libraries and archives in providing public access to information in the digital age. He
will explore how innovative thinking during this crucial time can have a far-reaching impact on the future of education and scholarship. Then on Thursday, November 8, the closing session will feature a lively exchange
between two leaders in the field of human-computer interaction – James Hendler and Ben Shneiderman – who will debate a variety of issues related to the next generation of computer interfaces, including such hot topics as direct
manipulation vs. agents, usability, user control and responsibility, and the future of the Web. Hendler is currently chief scientist of the Information Systems Office at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Shneiderman is professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Maryland, College Park. For
updated meeting information, visit the ASIST website regularly.News from ASIST Chapters The Los Angeles Chapter
of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (LACASIS) sponsored a workshop on Licensing 101: A Workshop on Licensing Digital Resources
for its May meeting. Workshop leaders were Sharon Farb, coordinator for Digital Acquisitions for the UCLA Library, and Barbara Schader, head of collection development at the UCLA Biomedical Library. The May workshop was followed in June with a program on
Information Architecture: Practice and Perils. The scheduled panel included Jason Binford, information designer at IBM, and Lynn Boyden, lead information architect at Rare Medium. These practicing information
architects provided an overview of the field and looked at hot issues and challenges facing information architects and Web designers today. The Southern Ohio ASIST (SOASIS) Chapter, in conjunction with
the LexisNexis Technical Library, sponsored Aboutness: Automated Indexing & Categorization
in June. The workshop focused on ways to capture and convey "aboutness" of online documents through an overview of theory and discussions and practical exercises involving automated indexing and categorization. Among the scheduled speakers were
Leslie Denton and Jill Sellers of LexisNexis, speaking on "Automated Rule-Based Indexing," Jean Godby, OCLC, on "The WordSmith Project," and Rich Miller, LexisNexis, on "Visual Thinking."
There's good news coming from Michigan these days, where the ASIST Michigan Chapter announces its revitalization! Under the leadership of Allison Kopczynski, chair; Scott Lapinski, chair-elect and Web
manager; Jennifer Moldwin, program chair; and Victor Rosenberg, advisor, the group has launched a website and held its "kick-off" meeting, featuring Gene Garfield, immediate past president of ASIST. A major
chapter extravaganza, doubling as the chapter's annual meeting, is planned for September. News from ASIST SIGs Planning is well underway for the 12th Annual SIG/CR Classification Research Workshop,
sponsored once again by the ASIST Special Interest Group/Classification Research (SIG/CR) and to be held on Sunday, November 4, in conjunction with the ASIST Annual Meeting. This highly acclaimed meeting promotes the
exchange of ideas among active researchers in all aspects of classification theory and application. This year's workshop is being organized by Efthimis Efthimiadis, University of Washington. He is assisted by a program
committee that includes the following individuals: Helen Barsky Atkins, ISI; Clare Beghtol, University of Toronto; Allyson Carlyle, University of Washington; Susanne Humphrey
, National Library of Medicine; Traugott Koch, Lund University Libraries, Sweden; Barbara Kwasnik, Syracuse University; Jens-Erik Mai, University of Washington; Philip Smith, Ohio State University;
Paul Solomon, University of North Carolina; Paul Thompson, St. Thomas University; Diane Vizine-Goetz, OCLC; and Marcia Lei Zeng, Kent State University. News About ASIST Members Former ASIST President W. David Penniman
has been named dean of the University at Buffalo School of Informatics. Among his previous positions, Penniman was professor and director of the Center for Information Studies at the University of Tennessee and served as president and CEO of the Council on Library Resources.
Melissa Gross, assistant professor of information studies at Florida State University, is the recipient of the 2001 Recognition Award for Emerging Scholars presented by the American Association of University
Women (AAUW) Educational Foundation. She was chosen in recognition of her achievements in the field of library and information studies, her teaching record and her commitment to women's issues in the community.
Norman Horrocks, editorial consultant for Scarecrow Press and professor emeritus at Dalhousie University School of Library and Information Studies, is the recipient of the 2001 John Ames Humphry Award of the ALA International
Relations Committee given to an individual for significant contributions to international librarianship. Though cited for numerous activities, the primary contribution noted by the award chair is Horrocks' help in establishing
standards of reciprocity and equivalency in credentialing librarians moving across national boundaries. Sue O'Neill Johnson, information officer at The World Bank in Washington, DC, is the recipient of the 2001
SLA President's Award given annually to an SLA member who has shown a commitment to the development of the association. She was recognized for her efforts in the development of the SLA Global 2000 Fellowship program, which
was created to facilitate participation in SLA's Global 2000 Conference by information professionals in developing nations. Myke Gluck, assistant professor in the School of Information Studies at Florida State
University, has accepted a new position at Virginia Military Institute. He will teach in the Math and Computer Science Department, where the emphasis is on more technical course content and delivery. Allyson Carlyle
has been elected to her first term in the University of Washington University Senate, joining her Information School colleague Efthimis Efthimiadis, who was re-elected to the body. Anthony Oettinger,
recent plenary speaker at the ASIST Annual Meeting, received the 2001 Honorary Member Award from SLA. The Gordon McKay Professor of Applied Mathematics and professor of information resources policy at Harvard University was
recognized for his extraordinary involvement in the field of information and technology throughout his career. Robert Sidney Martin, former director and librarian of the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission, has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate as director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services, an independent federal grant-making agency that supports the nation's libraries and museums. Most recently, Martin has
been professor and interim director of the School of Library and Information Studies at Texas Woman's University. Pacific Northwest Reading Group Provides Haven for Discussion What began as an
exchange between several Pacific Northwest ASIST members expressing a need for more informal discussion about information science has resulted in a regular reading group of information professionals discussing current information
science articles. The group has met every other month for the past eight months, picking articles about search engines, copyright and the semantic web, among other topics, from JASIST
, the Web and other publications. Melissa Riesland is glad to have found a place to discuss such concepts, noting that her motivation for co-founding the group was "to provide networking opportunities and a forum for
discussing those topics that interest us as professionals but that bore our friends." Vivian Bliss from Microsoft, Dana Bostrom from the University of Washington and Melissa Riesland from Singingfish have coordinated
the group, arranging for a location and announcing the date and topic on local e-mail lists. Attendance at the reading groups has ranged from three people to almost 20 and has included reference librarians, academic
librarians, corporate librarians, researchers and students. Dana Bostrom enjoys attending because of the "diversity of interests and experiences shown in the discussions. The group has provided the place for discussion
that Melissa, Vivian and I had hoped for." Participants have enjoyed talking about key concepts in the fields of library and information science with information professionals who have different alma maters, jobs and areas of
interest. The group is now on a break for the summer, but plans to start meeting again in September. The group is always eager to hear suggestions for articles to discuss, and invites readers to send suggestions for
articles to Melissa Riesland, riesland65@yahoo.com. Currently, the group is considering topics for the fall such as the digital divide and the Cooperative Digital Reference Service. In its last meeting before the
summer break, the group read "The Semantic Web," a new article from Tim Berners-Lee, James Hendler and Ora Lassila. Obituary Kay Denfeld, online services librarian at the University of Washington
(UW) and active ASIST member since 1980, died June 24 as a result of a kayaking accident on the N. Fork of the Sauk River in Washington. Since joining the UW faculty in 1973, Kay introduced colleagues to computer searching and
applications in the Health Sciences Library and similarly trained many U.S. Forest Service employees. In ASIST, Kay has chaired the Awards and Honors Committee and served as a member of the Membership Committee, the
Watson Davis Award Jury and the Nominations Committee; and has been active in SIGs/STI and BC and the Pacific Northwest Chapter. A memorial celebration for Kay was held on July 15. Remembrances may be made to American
Rivers Inc., 150 Nickerson St., #311, Seattle, WA 98109; or to the American Red Cross, Seattle-King County Chapter, 1900 25th S, Seattle, WA 98144. Institutional Member News
University of North Texas Creates Scholarship Fund The University of North Texas (UNT) School of Library and Information Sciences established the $15,000 Ana D. and Donald B. Cleveland
Endowed Scholarship Fund through the combined donations of UNT alumni and friends. The fund will provide scholarships for graduate students enrolled in UNT's interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in information science specializing in medical informatics.
Both Drs. Ana and Donald Cleveland are UNT library and information sciences faculty members who have fostered and supported the university's medical informatics and interdisciplinary Ph.D. programs. The UNT medical
informatics program is ranked second in the nation by US World and News Report. Donald served as a major architect and leader of the interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in information science and as the program's
associate director for 10 years. He recently retired to modified service at UNT. Ana joined the UNT faculty in 1988 to establish and direct a program in medical informatics – bringing more than $1 million in training
and research grants to the program.
ASIST Liaison Activity
ASIST and the Council of Scientific Society Presidents (CSSP): A Reportby Donald H. Kraft Donald H. Kraft, ASIST
president-elect, is professor, Department of Computer Science, Louisiana State University, 298 Coates Hall, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803-4020; telephone: 225/578-2253; fax: 225/578-1465; e-mail: kraft@bit.csc.lsu.eduI do not know how many
readers are aware that ASIST has been a member of the Council of Scientific Society Presidents (CSSP) for the last two years. The Council is "an organization of presidents, presidents-elect and recent past presidents of
about 60 scientific federations and societies whose combined membership numbers well over 1.4 million scientists and science educators. "The purpose of CSSP is to serve as a strong national voice in
fostering wise science policy, in support of science and science education, as a premier national science leadership development center and as a forum for open, substantive exchanges on emerging scientific issues." CSSP has task forces and committees on some major issues related to science. These include government and public affairs, population and environment, science and mathematics education, international science,
public appreciation of science, ethical and social issues in science, CSSP alumni, research vice presidents, and cyberspace/information technology. Some of the members of CSSP include American Academy of
Forensic Sciences, American Institute of Biological Sciences, American Institute of Physics, American Mathematical Society, American Society for Information Science and Technology, American Chemical Society, Association
for Computing Machinery, Association for Women in Science, Computing Research Association, SPIE - International Society for Optical Engineering, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, Linguistic Society of
America, Institute of Food Technologists, Soil Science Society of America, Crop Science Society of America, Sigma Xi, Association for the Education of Teachers in Science and Institute for Operations Research and
Management Sciences. CSSP had its semi-annual meeting at its headquarters, which is housed in the American Chemical Society (ACS) building in Washington, DC. As the president-elect of ASIST, I had the
pleasure of attending that meeting on the first weekend in May. The first day was a Leadership Development Workshop that lasted all afternoon. That workshop featured an introduction to CSSP by Ed Wasserman, the CSSP
chair-elect and a past president of ACS. Martin Apple, the CSSP president, talked about the role of the federal government in supporting science, including how and why to lobby for proper funding for science
research. This was followed by a discussion on leadership, which was, in turn, followed by President Carter's science advisor talking about science as a national policy issue. We then heard a series of talks about
conducting surveys of our membership and on public relations, especially with the media, to gain support for science. We also learned about fellowships in the U.S. State Department, providing expertise to the State
Department, to our embassies and to foreign governments on science issues. The next day, we had committee meetings. I opted to go first to the Cyberspace/Information Technology Committee. It became
readily apparent to me at that committee meeting that many, if not all, of the societies are quite keen and eager to have digital libraries of their journals and other materials, as well as having proper Web sites. In
addition, we talked about treating computer science as a true science, not just a developer of tools for the other sciences to use. I then opted to go to the Ethical and Social Issues in Science Committee meeting,
where we discussed potential questions for the panel the next day on human cloning. In the afternoon, we had an update on the federal budget, followed by discussions of some remarkable scientific research going on
in the areas of global change, safer nuclear energy with pebble reactors, AIDS and nanobiotechnology. And, if that was not enough, we heard from the president of the National Academy of Sciences on the subject of
science education. On the third day, we heard about how scientists should and must become involved in public policy issues. We heard about other fellowships, especially those at the AAAS (American
Association for the Advancement of Science). We also learned how to lobby effectively on the Hill, i.e., Congress. Incidentally, for those who could stay an extra day, and I was not among them, a day on the Hill was
arranged. After lunch on that third day, we heard a panel of three former presidential science advisors, those who served Presidents Nixon, Ford and Clinton, talk about science in the White House. A panel of bioethics
experts talking about human cloning followed this. For what it is worth, most felt that at this time human cloning is too dangerous, especially to the potentially newborn infant, with too much not yet understood. Of course, there were business meetings with committee reports and suggestions for future sessions and other courses of action. CSSP will be meeting again in DC in late November, and I am hopeful that we can
send a delegation, perhaps including our executive director. All in all, it was a most interesting meeting. It was quite good meeting presidents of other societies, some much bigger than ASIST, and
some our size or even smaller. We need to consider future courses of action, including possibly becoming involved with a social action committee to keep ASIST members informed of public policy issues at the federal, and
perhaps even the state and local levels. |
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