Abstract Submission Fee Instituted and Preprint Page Charges Lowered for AMS Meetings

A number of program committees for AMS-sponsored conferences and symposia have indicated that they feel an abstract submission fee should be implemented for AMS meetings. The feeling is that this would reduce the number of submissions by authors who later fail to submit the extended preprint paper and/or fail to attend the meeting to present their paper. Both of these occur more than they should and both prevent the meeting from living up to its potential for scientific exchange.

In response to the suggestions of the program committees, the AMS is instituting an abstract submission fee for all meetings after the 2001 Annual Meeting in Albuquerque. The submission fee will be $60 per abstract. It will be required at the time the abstract is submitted for a meeting, but will be fully refunded if the abstract is not accepted for presentation at the meeting. The page charges assessed to authors for the publication of their papers in the preprint volume will be reduced in the new fee structure. Preprint page charges will be $65 for one to two pages, $130 for three to four pages, $195 for five to six pages, and $260 for seven to eight pages

The Annual Meeting "You Won't Want to Miss"

It might seem that January 2001 is a lifetime away but we at AMS are working hard to make the 81st Annual Meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the meeting "you won't want to miss"!

As outlined in the "From Headquarters" section of the June Bulletin, fewer specialty conferences and parallel sessions, two special symposia on interdisciplinary themes of broad appeal, and more poster sessions will make it easier than ever to get the most out of the week of great scientific exchange. But that's not all. We're also adding more fun! As part of the new conference format, AMS is shortening the conference week to end on Thursday evening with a special farewell celebration. That evening the exhibit hall will be open until 6:00 P.M. to give you extra time to see the latest state-of-the-art products and services for the atmospheric science community, and food and drink will be on hand while you are meeting with your friends and colleagues on the exhibit floor. The evening reception will be followed with a special presentation by Jean-Michel Cousteau, president and founder of the Ocean Futures Society, which is dedicated to raising awareness about the health of the ocean, its habitats, and its inhabitants. Internationally recognized for his efforts on behalf of the environment, Cousteau captivates his audience with tales of the oceans-one of our themes for the Annual Meeting.

Thursday evening festivities will end in grand style with a New Mexico-style fiesta, complete with Tex-Mex treats and traditional southwestern entertainment, including an award-winning troupe doing folk dances of Mexico, strolling mariachi band, and local artisans featuring authentic arts and crafts.

But the fun has only just begun, so don't leave for home yet. AMS and a local tour group have put together some special tour packages for Friday and through the weekend to enjoy individual or family activities. Escape to the white-capped mountains to ski, glide over the Albuquerque terrain in a hot air balloon, explore the ancient pueblos, tour the magnificent cities of Santa Fe and Albuquerque, or even get the chance to play a few rounds of golf. To book your reservations and to receive discounted tour rates, contact Tour New Mexico (1-800-333-7159). The tour registration form and tour descriptions have been posted to the AMS Web site and will also be featured in the Bulletin each month up to the Annual Meeting.