In Brief

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.

At its November meeting, the APS Council approved a proposal for the APS to join The Science Coalition, a Washington, DC based organization working to identify and demonstrate support for basic research to Members of Congress, the Administration, the media, and the general public. The APS joins some 200 leaders, companies, associations and universities committed to sustaining the federal government's historic commitment to U.S. world leadership in basic science research. There is no membership fee, and participation in Coalition activities is strictly voluntary. Activities include meeting with Congressional representatives in Washington and in local district offices, as well as participation in letter-writing campaigns, and local or national media activities. Although the APS, like many organizations, is already engaged in stressing the importance of basic research, The Science Coalition is intended to create an additional support network to help the many diverse interested parties to coordinate their efforts.

Three APS divisions - Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, and Particles and Fields - will jointly sponsor a special colloquim for general audiences on the evening of May 2, in conjunction with the 1996 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting in Indianapolis. The talks are intended to provide an introduction to three important issues in nuclear and particle astrophysics: big bang nucleosynthesis and the dark matter problem, the solar neutrino puzzle, and the microwave background as a probe of cosmological models. David Schramm (University of Chicago) will address key problems in physical cosmology today, including the nature of dark matter. Hamish Robertson (University of Washington) will describe recent experimental results indicating a pattern of solar neutrino fluxes that is inconsistent with predictions. Paul Steinhardt (University of Pennsylvania) will explain how measurements of the cosmic background radiation can be used to test cosmological models.

The APS Division of Biological Physics (DBP) has compiled a directory of graduate opportunities in biological physics, available electronically on its home page on the World Wide Web. According to DBP Past Chair Stuart Lindsay (Arizona State University), the division has been ruminating on the production of a brochure explaining biological physics for some years, with the goal of attracting students to the field. However, producing something for such a very diverse group proved too difficult, and the division decided to circumvent the problems of printing costs and obsolescence by posting a directory of graduate opportunities on the World Wide Web. Frank Moss (University of Missouri), a DBP Executive Committee member, compiled the listing from entries in AIP publications, and Lindsay formatted the resulting text. "We hope that it will be a dynamic listing, kept up to date by email from the users, and that it will play a role in introducing students to the exciting research areas in biophysics," said Lindsay.

The APS Laser Science Topical Group has become the Division of Laser Science, after maintaining a membership exceeding 3 percent of the total APS membership for two consecutive years and approval by the APS Council. A special election will be held this year to elect the new divisions first councillor. According to Chair Patricia Dehmer (U.S. Department of Energy), the unit has developed into a focal point for laser science within the Society, and is unique among the APS units in that it is both broadly multidisciplinary and interactive with other professional societies. Its annual joint meeting with the Optical Society of America includes invited and contributed papers in chemistry, physics, biosciences, medicine, nonlinear optics, ultrafast phenomena, and instrumentation, with attendees from all research sectors: academia, industry, and government laboratories.

The newly-approved APS Division of Laser Science has selected its traveling lecturers for 1996-1997. The program's purpose is to bring distinguished scientists to predominantly undergraduate colleges and universities in order to convey the excitement of laser science to undergraduate students. The lecturers will visit selected academic institutions for two days, during which time they will give a public lecture open to the entire academic community, and meet informally with students and faculty. They may also give guest lectures in classes related to laser science. A selection committee decides on host institutions, giving priority to those not located in major metropolitan areas and lacking extensive resources for similar programs. The 1996-1997 lecturers and their topics are Geraldine Richmond (University of Oregon), surface nonlinear optics; Jagdeep Shah (AT&T Bell Laboratories), quantum optics; Stephen Leone (JILA/ University of Colorado), chemical physics; Philip Bucksbaum (University of Michigan), high-field laser physics; and Bill Phillips (NIST), atom cooling and trapping.

In December, APS Past President C. Kumar N. Patel (University of California, Los Angeles) forwarded a letter to the president of the Chinese Physical Society expressing the APS Council's concern that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two societies is not being satisfactorily implemented, particularly with respect to the enrollment of Chinese institutional and university libraries in the Library Outreach Program. The Council resolved that if substantial progress is not made within the coming year, it will abrogate the agreement, acting on the appropriate recommendation from the APS Committee on the International Freedom of Scientists and the Committee on International Scientific Affairs.