Candidates Needed for 2011 Board

AESE is seeking nominations for the following positions on the 2011 Board of Directors:

Vice-president
Treasurer
Secretary
Member at-large

All positions are three-year commitments. The Vice President will serve as VP in 2011, President in 2012, and Past-President in 2013. The Treasurer and Secretary can serve for an additional three-year term at the discretion of the board.

Interested members, or anyone with ideas for candidates, should contact Past President Tom Overton.

AGI requires input: National Water Vision

As a member society, the AESE has been asked for input on AGI and the American Water Resources’ discussion on if the US should develop a national water vision.

They have resources available, such as a conference series (http://www.awra.org/meetings/conference_series/policy_dialogue.html), member society webinars (http://www.agiweb.org/members/webinars/index.html), and an article about the National Water Vision (http://awramedia.org/vision/).

If you have an opinion on the potential of a national water vision, feel free to take part in the national discussion!

More on the Google Books Settlement

The parties to the Google Books lawsuit have come out with a revised settlement in response to objections earlier this year. If you are interested in this issue, the Copyright Clearance Center is holding a free webinar on the changes to the settlement on Dec. 10. You can register here.

What to do in Houston during the meeting

If you are interested in haunting about Houston, consider these ghost tours:

Discover Houston Tours:  http://www.discoverhoustontours.com/

Cloud 9 Living: Ghost Tour of Houston: http://www.cloud9living.com/experience.php?exp=705&utm_source=gifts.com&utm_medium=cpc&utm_content=LIF-HOU-0002&utm_campaign=Ghost_Tour_of_Houston_Houston

If you are interested in haunting about Houston during Halloween weekend, consider these ghost tours:

Discover Houston Tours

Cloud 9 Living: Ghost Tour of Houston

Getting from the airport to the annual meeting

Wondering how you are going to get from the airport to the Doubletree Suites convention hotel in Houston? The hotel planner says that SuperShuttle services both airports (Bush IAH and Hobby) to the hotel.

AESE Meeting Update

Reduced-rate registration for the annual meeting closes tomorrow!  We have some really interesting sessions planned.  Here is a general schedule:

Friday, October 30

8:30-9:15am  Science in nonscientific writing

9:15-10:15am   Geoarchaeology publishing

10:45am-12noon   Online Geoscience Education

2:00-3:00pm   Database Design/Archival Techniques

3:15-3:45pm   Copublishing

3:45-4:45pm  Online Book Manuscript Management

Saturday, October 31

8:15-9:30am   Digital Publishing, Print Publishing, and Publishing Production

9:30-10:30am   Editing Issues

10:45-11:45am   Geology and Geography of Texas

2:00-2:45pm   Copyright Issues

3:00-3:15pm  International Year of Planet Earth Update

3:15-4:00pm  Discussion on the Future of AESE/Preview of the 2010 Meeting in Victoria

In addition to the technical sessions, the meeting includes an icebreaker, editors’ breakfasts, the awards banquet, and the field trip to Galveston.  It’s a great time to reconnect with fellow editors and network with new colleagues!

Update on the Google Books settlement

Facing a chorus of opposition from groups such as the U.S. Justice Department, the parties to the Google Books settlement have asked  the court for more time to rework the proposed agreement. The revised settlement that emerges is likely to differ in some substantial ways from the earlier one, thus the July 27 post on the subject is probably obsolete. Nevertheless, we encourage AESE members to pay close attention to future developments to ensure their rights are protected.

Summer Blueline is out

The Summer issue of the Blueline was released this morning. If you didn’t get the email notice, you can pick it up from the AESE web site in the Members Area.

AESE has Paypal

We are pleased to announce that AESE can now accept credit card payments through Paypal for the annual meeting registration fee. You’ll still need to send in your meeting registration form, but it’s no longer necessary to send a check or wire transfer. This payment method works even if you don’t have a Paypal account–all you need is a credit card. (Note: this will also be available for membership dues when the time comes, though it’s not set up for it yet.)

Last call for Earth Science Week toolkits

I still have seven kits available from the 50 that AGI has offered us. Anyone still interested should let me know.