ACS should channel more of its resources into setting up and operating regional meetings. This could be done with the assistance of full-time staff functioning out of ACS headquarters in the same way national meetings are planned, and run so that all regions would have the benefit of personnel experience in planning and operating ACS meetings. Better interregional coordination would assure greater uniformity in bringing about and maintaining high-caliber regional meetings. One possibility. ACS is certainly not the only society whose meeting organizers are faced with the problems of setting up equitable ways of reviewing and evaluating contributed as well as invited papers. These problems have been encountered many times and are of immediate concern to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), whose program directors may find it necessary to accept for presentation only a small fraction of the papers submitted. Dr. Blaine McKusick is laboratory director, industrial and biochemical department, Du Pont, past chairman of the Delaware Section, and chairman of the organic program for the July 1971 meeting of IUPAC in Boston. "One of the recommendations currently being studied by IUPAC is to establish two categories of acceptable papers. One category would be accepted for publication of the abstract only; the other would be accepted for publication and for presentation. In this way, a paper that is judged to be important or valuable but not suitable for presentation would not have to be totally rejected. "We would have to schedule as many as nine to 12 simultaneous sessions even if we accepted only the highest quality papers. Without limitations we can hold the number of simultaneous sessions down to three, at most. We turn down many good solid papers simply because there is not enough time and space," explained Dr. McKusick. Progress is being made but there is still a lot of ground that needs to be covered in the race to bring about across-the-board upgrading of ACS regional meetings. Dr. Theodore L. Cairns, member, President Nixon's Science Advisory Committee; assistant director, central research department, Du Pont; and member of ACS's Joint Board-Council Committee on Chemistry and Public Affairs, was asked about the prospects for immediate changes in regional meeting operations. "Almost anything you do will create some turmoil,>; he said, "but you'll have even more turmoil if you don't do anything." 48 C&EN APRIL 6, 1970
Constitutional amendments for member vote At its meeting on Feb. 24, the Council voted to amend the Constitution, Article XIV, Sec. 3, to increase the apportionment of funds to local sections, and Article X, Sec. 3, to permit selection of nominees for regional directors by the councilors from the regions instead of selection by the Council. (The related amendments to Bylaw V, Sec. 3 ( c ) , ( d ) , and (e) to accomplish the latter change are subject to confirmation or rejection by the Board of Directors but do not require member ratification; therefore, they are not included in this ballot.) The amendments on which member action is necessary are as follows: Local Section
Apportionments
On recommendation of the Committee on Local Section Activities and with the concurrence of the Council Policy Committee, the Council VOTED by more than a two-thirds majority to amend the Constitution, Article XIV, Sec. 3 by deleting its present provisions reading as follows: Sec. 3. There shall be an apportionment of funds to Local Sections upon a sliding scale based upon the total membership of each as of July 1 of the preceding year, as follows: 1. Each Section, irrespective of size, shall receive an allotment of $200 per year. 2. Each Section having not more than 300 members, in addition to said allotment of $200 per year, shall receive $2.75 per member for each member enrolled therein. 3. Each Section having more than 300 members, in addition to said allotment of $200 per year, shall receive S2.75 per member for each member enrolled therein not
to exceed 300 members, and $2,25 per member for each member enrolled therein in excess of 300 members. If ratified by the members the following substitution will be effective retroactive to Jan. 1, 1970. Sec. 3. There shall be an apportionment of funds to Local Sections upon a sliding scale based upon the total membership of each as of July 1 of the preceding year, as follows: 1. Each Section, irrespective of size, shall receive a oase allotment of $450 per year. 2. Each Section, in addition to said base allotment of $450 per year, shall receive a yearly allotment based on its membership in accordance with the following schedule: $4.00 per member for the first 500 members; $3.00 per member for the next 2000 members; $2.00 per member for all those over 2500. Nomination of Regional
Directors
On recommendation of the Committees on Local Section Activities and on Nominations and Elections and with the concurrence of the Council Policy Committee, VOTED by more than a two-thirds majority to amend the Constitution, Article X, Sec. 3, by deleting the words "by the Council and also may be made by petition," to be effective July 1, 1970, if ratified by the members, after which Article X, Sec. 3 will read as follows: Sec. 3. Nominations for PresidentElect, Directors-at-Large, and Regional Directors shall be made as provided in the Bylaws. Please fill out, sign, and date the accompanying ballot. Mail it to the Executive Secretary, American Chemical Society, 1155-16th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036. Votes will be counted on May 18. Please vote promptly.
Ballot for ACS members and associate members only D I approve the amendment to the ACS Constitution, Article X|V, Sec. 3 printed on page 48 of C&EN for April 6, 1970. •
I disapprove the amendment to the ACS Constitution, Article XIV, Sec. 3 printed on page 48 of C&EN for April 6, 1970.
D I approve the amendment to the ACS Constitution, Article X, Sec. 3 printed on page 48 of C&EN for April 6, 1970. D I disapprove the amendment to the ACS Constitution, Article X, Sec. 3 printed on page 48 of C&EN for April 6, 1970. Signature Date Ballots void if received after May 18, 1970.
