Media Advisory 4: AGU 2006 Fall Meeting
Preliminary press conference list, Field trip itinerary
Moscone Convention Center West and South
San Francisco, California
11–15 December 2006
Contents of this message
- Preliminary press conference list
- New Press Room!
- MBARI field trip itinerary
- NCSWA holiday dinner: You are invited!
- News Media registration information
- News Media Registration Form
- Who’s coming
Please see:
- Media Advisory 1
- for important information regarding visas for international reporters and information on hotel bookings at meeting rates
- Media Advisory 2
- for information about the News Media field trip to MBARI
- Media Advisory 3
- for information on searching for sessions and abstracts of interest to you
1. Preliminary press conference list
We are in the process of developing a series of press conferences on some—a tiny fraction, really—of the newsworthy presentations at Fall Meeting. The following list is, of course, subject to change, including deletion of items, likely addition of other press conferences, and different emphases. Reporters are urged to check the sessions and abstracts and attend sessions on topics of interest to them, in addition to attending press conferences (see Media Advisory 3). The last pre-meeting media advisory will contain the full list of press conferences, including days and times, explanatory blurbs and lists of participants. All press conferences take place in Room 236 Moscone South (see Item 2, below).
- Latest news from Titan (Session P11A—only first session of a series listed here)
- Density and temperature of thermosphere as affected by greenhouse gas and solar cycle—and why it matters (SH22A)
- First results from the six-satellite Formosat-3/COSMIC mission, improving weather prediction (A14A)
- Gas hydrate discoveries off the British Columbia coast and their implications (OS11E)
- Advances in forecasting hurricane intensity (A13E)
- Responses of coastlines to major storms and hurricanes (H31I)
- Submarine landslides as tsunami generators (OS33E)
- Studying solar mass ejections with the SMEI Mission—latest results (SH32A)
- Early results from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (P23B)
- Spirit and Opportunity: latest discoveries of the Mars rovers (P41B)
- Catastrophic risk from natural perils: Scientific, engineering, and financial issues (GC44A)
- Think snow (before it’s gone?) (C11B)
- Etc.…
2. New Press Room!
Fall Meeting has burst the bounds of Moscone West (MCW in Session lists), due to its continuing growth. This year, half of the 1,120 oral sessions will be housed in Moscone South (MCS), as will the Press Room and Press Conference Room. Moscone South is across Fourth Street from Moscone West, on the south side of Howard Street, between Third and Fourth Streets (same block as the carousel), a half block from Moscone West.
The Press Room is Room 238 Moscone South. Upon arrival at Fall Meeting, go there first, to pick up your News Media badge (if preregistered) or to fill out the News Media Registration Form. The room provides working space for reporters, including phone lines (no charge for business calls), two computer terminals, wi-fi for use with your own laptop, and space for socializing. Press releases and related materials provided by scientists and their institutions will be available, along with the official Program Book and the CD containing all 13,000+ abstracts.
Breakfast (from 0730) and lunch (from 1130) are provided daily for News Media registrants, with coffee, tea, and soft drinks available all day. The Press Room is open daily from 0730 to 1800 (earlier closing on Friday). Phone number: +1-415-348-4440.
The Press Conference Room is Room 236 Moscone South, immediately adjacent to the Press Room.
3. MBARI field trip itinerary
- Sunday, 10 December
- 0800–1800h (approximately)
- Meet at Moscone South, 800 Howard Street, corner of Fourth Street
We are currently running a wait list for this visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, but if you are interested in participating, please do let us know via e-mail or the News Media Registration Form. In previous years, most wait-listed registrants who showed up prior to departure time have been accommodated, due to last minute cancellations and no-shows. The following itinerary is subject to change.
Field Trip itinerary
- 0800 — Check-in begins outside Moscone West, 800 Howard Street, corner of Fourth Street.
- 0815 — “Registered” status expires for anyone not already checked in; Wait Listed people may fill slots up to maximum capacity of MBARI (not of the bus!).
- 0830 SHARP — Bus leaves with scientist [TBD] on board to explain geologic features visible during the trip south along California 1 (coastal route). The distance is approximately 160 kilometers [100 miles]. Water and soft drinks will be available on the bus, but no food. Please eat breakfast prior to arrival at Moscone and take snacks along!
- 1030 — Bus arrives at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) at 7700 Sandholdt Road in Moss Landing, California.
- 1040 — Field trip participants gather in MBARI’s Pacific Forum auditorium:
- 1040–1100 — Communications Associate Kim Fulton-Bennett welcomes participants and gives an overview of MBARI
- 1100–1130 — Marine chemist Edward Peltze: Recent undersea research on methane hydrates
- 1130–1200 — Marine geologist Charles Paull: Active geologic processes in Monterey Canyon
- 1200–1230 — Box lunches provided by AGU. If the weather is nice, participants can eat on the beach or sit on the concrete sea wall in front of MBARI. Alternatively, participants can eat in the Pacific Forum.
- 1230–1300 — (Optional) Participants can watch a video about MBARI’s research ships and undersea vehicles in the Pacific Forum.
- 1300–1330 — Physical oceanographer Francisco Chavez: Long-term cycles in ocean and atmospheric processes
- 1330–1400 — MBARI engineer Gene Massion presentation: The MARS ocean observatory in Monterey Bay
- 1400–1600 — Participants split into four groups. The four groups visit the
locations listed below on a rotating basis. At each location, an MBARI researcher or staff
person will describe the equipment and answer questions.
- Research vessel Western Flyer and remotely operated vehicle Tiburon
- Environmental Sample Processor (a robotic undersea DNA laboratory)
- Autonomous underwater vehicle laboratory.
- 1600 — Bus departs MBARI, arriving in San Francisco at approximately 1800.
Note: This schedule is tentative and subject to change with regard to time, presenters, topics, and sites visited.
4. NCSWA holiday dinner: You are invited!
The following notice is provided as a courtesy to the Northern California Science Writers Association (NCSWA). This is not an AGU event.
AGU press invited to NCSWA’s holiday dinner 13 December
The Northern California Science Writers Association (NCSWA) invites reporters and PIOs covering AGU to attend its holiday extravaganza in San Francisco on Wednesday evening, 13 December. This year, two of our members will describe their international adventures in science journalism. Ruthann Richter, media relations director at Stanford’s School of Medicine, traveled to rural Kenya to document the impact of AIDS on families and children; and Erika Check, senior reporter for Nature, explored the tension between tiger conservation and the rights of indigenous people in India. We’ll also have a science-trivia contest for door prizes, a book exchange, and time to socialize with 100 NCSWAns at a no-host bar.
The event starts at 1830 at a nearby San Francisco landmark: Sinbad’s, at the foot of Market Street on the waterfront. We have a choice of three entrees: bouillabaisse, prime rib, and filet of halibut with wine sauce. The cost is $40 (we provide receipts for reimbursement). To sign up, specify your entree selection and mail a check payable to “NCSWA” by 1 December to:
Robert Irion
115 Northrop Place
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Questions: irion@nasw.org
5. News Media registration information
News Media registrants receive a badge that provides access to any of the scientific sessions of the meeting, as well as to the Press Room and Briefing Room. No one will be allowed into the Moscone West Exhibition Hall (Level 1) or up the escalators or elevator to Levels 2 and 3 without a badge.
Eligibility for press registration is limited to the following persons:
- Working press employed by bona fide news media: must present a press card, business card, or letter of introduction from an editor of a recognized publication.
- Freelance science writers: must present a current membership card from NASW, a regional affiliate of NASW, CSWA, ISWA, or SEJ; or evidence of by-lined work pertaining to science intended for the general public and published in 2005 or 2006; or a letter from the editor of a recognized publication assigning you to cover Fall Meeting.
- Public information officers of scientific societies, educational institutions, and government agencies: must present a business card.
Note 1: Representatives of publishing houses, for-profit corporations, and the business side of news media must register at the main registration desk at the meeting and pay the appropriate fees, regardless of possession of any of the above documents. They are not accredited as News Media at the meeting.
Note 2: Scientists who are also reporters and who are presenting at this meeting (oral or poster session) may receive News Media credentials if they qualify (see above), but must also register for the meeting and pay the appropriate fee as a presenter.
6. News Media Registration Form
The News Media Registration Form is set up for online submission, but includes a link to a version that can be printed out and faxed or mailed. Go to: http://www.agu.org/meetings/fm06/?content=media&show=pressReg_online
The last day for advance News Media registration, assuring that your badge will be waiting for you when you arrive, is Friday, 1 December 2006. You may also register onsite.
7. Who’s coming
This year, we are posting the Who’s Coming list online. It is updated daily and may be seen at http://www.agu.org/meetings/fm06/?content=media
