Media Advisory 3: 2008 Joint Assembly

27–30 May
Greater Fort Lauderdale - Broward County Convention Center
Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Press conference schedule, Call-ins now with visuals

AGU Release No. 08-18
22 May 2008

Contact: Peter Weiss
Public Information Manager
Phone: +1 202 777 7507
E-mail: pweiss@agu.org

Contents of this message:

  1. Press Conference Schedule
  2. NEW! Press-conference visuals available to call-ins
  3. Press Rooms
  4. Attention PIOs: Sending press releases to Joint Assembly
  5. AGU journalism awards to be presented
  6. News Media Registration Information
  7. Who's coming

Note: For links to previous media advisories about the 2008 Joint Assembly, please go to http://www.agu.org/meetings/ja08/?content=media

1. Press Conferences

The following schedule of press conferences is subject to change, before or during Joint Assembly. Press conferences may be added or dropped, their titles and emphases may change, and participants may change. All updates to this schedule will be announced in the Press Room (Room 302, Level 3). Press conferences take place in the Press Conference Room (Room 301), which is adjacent.

Times for press conferences are Eastern Daylight Time. Session numbers at the end of each press conference listing may show only the first in a series of related sessions on the topic.

Press Conference TUE10

Solar Tornadoes?
Tuesday, 27 May
1000h

Thanks to satellites that can now see the Sun as never before, researchers have detected short-lived swirls at the solar surface that are associated with releases of solar matter into space. Some of the swirls resemble terrestrial tornadoes, but they're supersized—taller than 10,000 kilometers and nearly half as wide as the Earth. Sightings of the newfound twisters and other unprecedented features are helping scientists understand how jets of particles spew from the solar surface and other aspects of the fiery turmoil that roils the face of our stellar neighbor.

Participants

Edward DeLuca
Supervisory Astrophysicist, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
Spiros Patsourakos
Research Assistant Professor, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
Etienne Pariat
Research Assistant, CEOSR, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA

Sessions SH24A/SH51C/SP51B/U22A

Press Conference TUE13

Climate change vs. the Everglades
Tuesday, 27 May
1300h

As climate changes and sea level rises, what do scientists forsee for the fragile Everglades ecosystem, and for the huge wetland restoration effort—the largest and most expensive yet attempted—that aims to rescue it? Researchers will discuss these newly recognized threats to this unique hydrological and ecological environment, as well as consequences of prolonged drying out of habitats from annual human diversion of water to agriculture at the end of the Southern Florida wet season. The annual drawdown imperils estuarine fish and shellfish and wading birds, and encourages encroachment by exotic plants.

Participants

Hal Wanless
Department of Geological Sciences, University of Miami Coral Gables, Florida, USA
Jayantha Obeysekera
Department Director, Hydrologic & Environmental Systems Modeling, South Florida Water Management District, West Palm Beach, Florida, USA
Edward J. Kearns
Physical Oceanographer, South Florida Natural Resources Center, National Park Service, US Department of the Interior, Homestead, Florida, USA

Sessions SH24A/SH51C/SP51B/U22A

Press Conference TUE14

What a science-literate person should know
Tuesday, 27 May
1400h

Skeptics of climate-change evidence and evolution theory make much of the uncertainties in science. But what is really known to science in those and other areas? A meteorologist will discuss his recent experiences as a framer and writer of Florida's new kindergarten–12th grade science education standards, which were hotly contested by anti-evolutionists. And, an Earth-science education specialist will tell the story of a nationwide effort to define what's known in climate science for the benefit of educators, schools, and students.

Participants

Frank Niepold
Climate Education Coordinator (UCAR), NOAA Climate Program Office, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
Paul Ruscher
Associate Professor and Associate Chair, Department of Meteorology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA

Session ED24A

Press Conference TUE16

Predicting “killer bee” expansion beyond south Florida
Tuesday, 27 May
1600h

An oceanographer and amateur beekeeper will speak about mounting evidence of honeybees gathering nectar earlier due to climate change and about a new NASA program to see if satellite observations can be used to track and predict such biological changes. The satellite approach, if it works, could yield improved predictions of how far north and where Africanized honeybees (widely known as “killer bees”) will spread beyond their current foothold in South Florida. The scientist will discuss this research also in a plenary lecture.

Participants

Wayne Esaias
Research Scientist/Oceanographer, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA
EAS Master Beekeeper, Howard County, Maryland, USA

Session U32A

Press Conference WED10

How the Sun's corona gets so hot
Wednesday, 28 May
1000h

Recent observations and computer simulations are helping scientists chip away at a major mystery of solar science: how the Sun's outer atmosphere, or corona, blazes at millions of degrees while the solar surface remains at just thousands. The new insights could lead to better forecasting of solar radiation effects on telecommunications, navigation, and satellites, and may also prove useful for explaining characteristics of more distant stars. While the long-held view of steady and uniform coronal heating conflicts with observations, new data suggest that heating occurs fitfully and close to the solar surface.

Participants

James A. Klimchuk
Astrophysicist, Solar Physics Lab, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA
Ignacio Ugarte-Urra
Research Assistant Professor, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
Harry P. Warren
Astrophysicist, Space Science Division, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C., USA

Sessions SP31C/SP41C

Press Conference WED11

Solar Wind Challenge
Wednesday, 28 May
1100h

A debate has recently flared among solar scientists about what fuels the solar wind—the great outflowing of matter from Sun that fires up auroras, disrupts satellites, and shields the solar system from galactic cosmic radiation. Does the energy come from the churning of the Sun's surface or from its hot, bright magnetic loops? Resolving this question is vital to improving forecasts of solar wind-induced hazards and to deepening our understanding of stellar winds in general. In addition to speakers representing each side of the debate, Eugene Parker, who in 1958 was first to propose the solar wind's existence, will offer perspective and commentary on solar wind research and the current debate.

Participants

Nathan Schwadron
Associate Professor of Astronomy, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Nancy Crooker
Research Professor, Center for Space Physics, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Eugene Parker
Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus, Departments of Physics and Astronomy & Astrophysics, Enrico Fermi Institute, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Session SH34B

2. NEW! Press-conference visuals available to call-ins

Call-ins by reporters to the press conferences are welcome. As a new service to be introduced and evaluated at this meeting, members of the news media may also log on to a web site to view the slides that accompany the talks, as those slides are presented. Although audio of the press conference remains accessible only by phone, the quality of the sound should significantly improve compared to previous AGU meetings.

A. Call-in information:

Here are the phone numbers and access code for doing so:

When prompted, please enter this access code: 115139
(Note: This code remains the same for all press conferences. However, you must place a separate call for each one, even in consecutive hours.)

B. Remote access to press-conference visuals (NEW!):

To view the slides shown by press-conference speakers, as those slides are presented, go to this website: http://www.visualwebcaster.com/event.asp?id=48707

Type in your name, name of employer, and email address. Then click “Register”. At the new web page that appears, click on the “Slides Only” button. When another web page then opens (the 'player' window), please click on its “Ask A Question” button, type in your name and the press-conference code (e.g. Jane Smith TUE10), and click “Submit”. (The press-conference code is the first three letters of the day of the week plus a two digit time—see list of press conferences above.)

On the player window, press-conference slides will appear at the same time as they are shown at the meeting. By means of this window, you can also type in questions during press conferences. In addition, you can access electronic copies of supporting materials, such as press releases, preprints of scientific papers, and other handouts provided by speakers. Press-conference speakers may also use this system to cause other relevant web pages to appear on your screen.

Note: Reporters are required to register only once at the website. Each subsequent time you call up the above web address, you will be taken directly to the player window.

IMPORTANT: To insure that the supporting material and other features available on the player window get updated properly, please close the window at the end of each press conference. Then, reopen it about 5 minutes before the next press conference of interest. Also, each time you open the player window, please click on the “Ask A Question” button, type in your name and the press conference code (e.g. John Jones TUE10), and click “Submit”. (Reminder: The press conference code is the first three letters of the day of the week plus a two digit time—see list of press conferences above.) Typing in your name and the code alerts AGU that you are viewing the press conference.

Regrettably, the website cannot display dynamic content, such as videos or animations, which may be shown during press conferences.

3. Press Rooms

The Press Room for the meeting is Room 302, on Level 3 of the convention center. Its phone number is +1 954–765–5470; give this number to anyone who may have to call you there. There are additional phones for outgoing calls, at no charge to you for business calls.

The Press Conference Room, Room 301, is adjacent to the Press Room.

If you preregistered, your Press/News Media badge will be waiting for you in the Press Room (Room 302). However, preregistration has closed. You may register onsite in the Press Room (not at the main registration booths in the lobby).

Both the Press Room and Press Conference Room are equipped with wi-fi for use with your own laptop. The Press Room also has one Internet-connected computer for shared use, with a shared printer.

The Press Room (Room 302) hours are:

Mon., 26 May 1430h–1830h
Tue., 27 May 0700h–1800h
Wed., 28 May 0730h–1800h
Thu., 29 May 0730h–1800h
Fri., 30 May 0730h–1400h

Breakfast and lunch are served in the Press Room daily, Tuesday-Friday, for News Media registrants. Breakfast is at 0730h. Lunch is at noon.

4. Attention PIOs: Sending press releases to Joint Assembly

Public information officers are urged to work with scientists from their institutions to produce press releases and other materials for the media, related to their research, regardless of whether the scientists will be participating in press conferences. We suggest around 20 copies of printed materials and three copies of any video for broadcast.

The simplest way to send such materials is with the scientists themselves, asking them to drop them off in the Press Room (Room 302, Level 3, of the convention center). If that is not feasible, please ship them to:

Peter Weiss
Guest (Arriving 5/25/08)
c/o Bahia Mar Beach Resort and Yachting Center
801 Seabreeze Boulevard
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33316
(Phone: +1 (954) 764-2233)

Remaining copies of press materials may be collected up to 1300h on Friday, 30 May, after which they will be scrapped..

5. AGU journalism awards to be presented

AGU will present two journalism awards at Joint Assembly, as part of the Honors Evening on Thursday, 29 May:

News Media registrants are encouraged to attend the awards ceremony, which begins at 1830h in the Convention Center's Floridian Ballroom, on Level 3.

After the awards ceremony, an Honors Banquet will take place in the Ft. Lauderdale Grande Hotel, Grande Ballroom, beginning at 2030h. The banquet costs $55 per person. Members of the news media who wish to attend, please call the AGU Member Service Center at +1 800 966 2481 (toll free) or +1 202 462 6900, and request seating at the press table. For further information, contact Peter Weiss (pweiss@agu.org, 202-777-7507). The Ft. Lauderdale Grande Hotel is a short walk from the convention center.

6. News Media Registration Information

International reporters: If you are neither a citizen nor a permanent resident of the United States, you need a visa to cover meetings in the U.S. This applies also to reporters from countries in the Visa Waiver Program, who do not need visas to visit the U.S. as tourists. For current information, see the official State Department web site: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1276.html.

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 Press Conference Room. No one will be admitted to press conferences, sessions, or the exhibition hall without a valid badge.

To enter the Convention Center, you will need to show a government-issued picture ID (passport or driver's license). Please proceed next to the Press Room (Room 302) to receive your badge. Preprinted badges will be waiting there for News Media registrants who have preregistered. Be prepared to show professional identification (see below).

If you have not preregistered, you may fill out a News Media Registration Form in the Press Room (Room 302), presenting appropriate identification (see below). Your badge will be made while you wait.

Eligibility for press registration is limited to the following persons:

Note: 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.

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.

7. Who's Coming

The online list of journalists who preregistered for the meeting may be seen at http://www.agu.org/meetings/ja08/?content=media (Scroll down to see list.)

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