What's New: The end of an era

Robert Park

1. END OF AN ERA: PARK STEPS DOWN AS DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC INFORMATION.
Bob Park, long-time faculty member at the University of Maryland and former physics department chair, is stepping down as Director of Public Information of the American Physical Society. Park established the APS Washington Office in 1983 and has been a DC fixture since, holding politicians, policy makers, administrators, quacks, buffoons and miscreants accountable for their deeds and misdeeds. Shy, timid and retiring only in his dreams, Park has been a candid, caustic critic in real life. Over two decades he helped convert the Washington Office from a one-man show into a strong, six-person professional advocacy operation. Although he will end his role as an APS spokesperson, Park will continue in his role as a part-time APS consultant. “I’m not really going anywhere,” Park advises friend and foe alike, “I just won’t have the title anymore.”

2. VOODOO VAMPIRES BEWARE !! PARK BOOK RELEASED IN ROMANIAN.
Park will continue to write his weekly “What’s New” column, begun in 1987 and now available in unexpurgated form at http://www.bobpark.org . And his 2000 book, “Voodoo Science,” has just been released in Romanian, having been translated into nine other languages since its publication.

3. MORE TREES TO FALL: PARK INKS BOOK DEAL.
Park recently signed a contract for two new books. But that’s not all. He will still keep busy with his op-ed pieces and his occasional TV and radio appearances, debunking pseudo-science, expressing his strong views on manned space exploration and keeping Puff Panegyric and General Persiflage of the Missile Defense Agency shuddering in their silos.

4. PRAISE FROM ON HIGH: APS LEADERS OFFER PLAUDITS.
WN hasn’t yet heard from Pat Robertson and probably won’t, but in the meantime APS President John Hopfield told us that “Bob Park’s years of service to APS have been invaluable both in dealing with the media and in keeping the APS membership informed about Washington affairs.” If that’s not enough to bring tears to the eyes of WN readers, APS Executive Officer Judy Franz added, “We owe Bob tremendous thanks for initiating and helping to maintain an APS presence in Washington.”

These opinions may not be shared by Park, but they should be.