Executive Committee of the American Institute of Physics
Minutes of Meeting
Members Present: Ralph A. Sawyer – Chairman, Wallace R. Brode, S. A. Goudsmit, W. W. Havens, Jr., R. B. Lindsay, S. L. Quimby, Francis W. Sears
AIP Staff Present: Elmer Hutchisson, Wallace Waterfall, Henry A. Barton, Mary M. Johnson
The Chairman called the meeting to order at 12:35 p.m.
1. Minutes
Upon motion made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote, the minutes of the meeting of 25 January 1963 were approved as distributed.
2. Report on Subscription Handling and Dues Collection
The Secretary reported that about 29,000 1963 renewal bills had been sent to members. By 8 February remittances had been received on about 90% of them. Between 8 February and 8 March another 1,500 had been received for a total of 95%. Within about a week we expect to start cutting off journals from those who have not paid, estimated at about 1,000.
Last year the majority of complaints were about missing issues. In an effort to please, we created new stencils when we couldn’t find stencils in our files. For this reason and others our present trouble is with duplicates. We are cleaning up our stencil files as rapidly as we can and expect the duplicate problem to be eliminated almost completely after the cutoff.
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Cresap, McCormick and Paget Report
The Secretary displayed a copy of the final report of Cresap, McCormick and Paget, who have been surveying our service operations. For various reasons the report is not being widely distributed but any Board member who wishes to do so may borrow a copy of the report to read at his leisure. The CMP study covered subscription handling, dues collection and accounting procedures and many of the CMP recommendations have already been followed. Establishment of a separate Cashiering Unit and purchase of a validating machine were recommended and these have been done. Machine accounting was recommended and an NCR machine and the necessary forms have been ordered. A study of available equipment led CMP to recommend that the newly developed Remington Rand 1004 Computer be obtained to replace Scriptomatic equipment for addressing and the computer has been ordered for delivery late in 1963. CMP suggested changes in our methods of allocating costs which they felt were justified but which would result in increased charges to Member Societies for some AIP services. These suggestions are being studied.
Installation of the 1004 Computer will mean a number of changes which we expect to make during the current year. Names and addresses will be punched into the cards and this we can have done by an outside service bureau. While making this change we also intend to create separate lists for each Society and for each journal or group of journals. This change-over is estimated to cost about $35,000 and we believe it will be justified by improved operations.
Within the next two months or so we plan to call a meeting of our Committee of Society Secretaries and Treasurer to discuss all aspects of our service operations and accounting methods. The complexity of our dues and subscription rate structure is the cause of most of our difficulties and high costs and we want to enlist the help of these officers in making simplifications.
3. Discount to Subscription Agencies
The Secretary reported that, during the past year, we have received calls and letters from most of the agencies expressing dissatisfaction with the discount we allow them and threatening to stop handling orders for our journals. We now allow them a discount of 5% with a maximum of 50 cents per subscription (non-member only) while other organizations similar to ours are allowing discounts of 10% to 30%. We have told them we are reconsidering our policy for 1964 and staff intends to present a recommendation to the Executive Committee in June.
For background, the Secretary said that approximately half of all subscriptions are non-member and about half of these come through agencies. Agencies are very helpful to libraries and most librarians place subscriptions through them. Agencies also simplify our handling of non-member subscriptions, particularly foreign. Eighty per cent of our agency subscriptions come through about ten large agencies. It is difficult to estimate how much the agencies promote our journals or save us in handling costs but we estimate that the discounts may amount to $15,000 per year.
4. Reports of Editors
The Director summarized reports received from J. B. H. Kuper, Editor of RSI; J. W. Stout, Editor of JCP; Elliott Montroll, Editor of JMP, and Robert R. Davis, Editor of PT, (copies of which reports are attached to official minutes). A verbal report to the Director from James H. Crawford, Jr., Editor of JAP and APL, predicted a reduction in the backlog of JAP due to an increase in the page budget for 1963 from 3,000 to 3,300 pages. APL is only a few months old, has been well received, and is keeping within its budget. No report was received from Francois N. Frenkiel, Editor of PF.
5. Report on Corporate Associates
The Director distributed copies of a status report on Corporate Associates (copy attached) and he asked that members of the Executive Committee and Governing Board continue to propose new prospects for Corporate Associate affiliation.
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Election of New Corporate Associates
The Director reported that the following organizations had applied to become Corporate Associates of the Institute and, upon motion made, seconded and passed without dissent, they were so elected:
Jarrell-Ash Company $500 Consultants Bureau Enterprises Inc. $500
6. Review of Governing Board Agenda
Copies of the agenda and other material for the Governing Board meeting were distributed. The Director noted that no major criticisms of his annual report, a draft of which was sent to all Board members in advance of these meetings, had been received.
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Percentage of Dues to be Paid by Societies in 1964
The Secretary reported that it is customary for the Executive Committee to recommend to the Governing Board the percentage of dues to be paid by Member Societies for the support of the Institute for the following year. The contract between the Member Societies and the Institute permits a maximum of 15%, but the amount paid has been 10% for a number of years and, upon motion made, seconded and passed unanimously, the Executive Committee recommended to the Governing Board that the amount of such dues to be paid in 1964 remain at 10%.
In answer to a question, the Secretary explained that Member Society dues are not allocated to any particular items of expense; rather they help to cover various activities which must be paid for out of unrestricted income.
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Applications for Affiliation
The Secretary reported that applications for Affiliated Society status had been received from the following organizations:
- American Vacuum Society
- Physics Club of Milwaukee
- American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (replacing the American Rocket Society which merged with the Institute of the Aerospace Sciences)
After brief discussion, the following motion was made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the Executive Committee recommend to the Governing Board that the three above-named organizations be elected Affiliated Societies of the Institute.
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Appointment of Committees and Representatives
The Director discussed a list of proposed committees and representatives for the current year which had been distributed to Executive Committee members. After brief discussion, it was moved, seconded and passed unanimously that the proposed committees and representatives be recommended for appointment by the Governing Board.
7. Group Insurance for Society Members
The Secretary reported that he has been deluged with requests from insurance salesman for permission to arrange group insurance programs covering members of Member Societies. Mr. Quimby stated that the offering of group insurance to its membership had been considered by the American Physical Society some time ago but, because of the complications involved, the Council had refused to undertake it. He then made the following motion which was seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the Executive Committee recommend no group insurance program for members of Member Societies be undertaken by the Institute.
8. Annual Magnetics Conference
The Secretary stated that for several years the Institute and the AIEE have been acting as co-sponsors of the annual magnetics conference, each advancing $500 to cover initial expenses. Conference proceedings have been published annually as a supplement to JAP and the initial advance of $500 has always been recovered. The conference group has now decided to organize formally and has submitted a constitution which they would like the Institute as a co-sponsor, to approve. The Secretary explained some of the details and, after brief discussion, the following motion was made, seconded, and passed without dissent:
MOVED that the Institute subscribe to the Constitution of the Conference on Magnetism and Magnetic Materials and become a sponsor.
It was pointed out that the Institute will be required to appoint a number of the members of the Magnetics Conference Advisory Committee (the managing body) and the following motion was made, seconded, and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the Director be authorized to appoint AIP representatives on the Magnetics Conference Advisory Committee when requested.
9. Next Meeting
As previously reported, the next meeting of the Executive Committee has been scheduled for Friday, 7 June 1963, at the offices of the Institute.
The meeting adjourned at 3:05 p.m.