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Newsletter of the Central Wisconsin Section - American Chemical Society Volume 29•No 3•April 7, 2005

the AlembicChair's Corner A small but spirited group

turned out for the GusmerEnterprises plant tour on St.Patrick’s Day. Though no greenbeer was consumed, we did have anenjoyable dinner and interestingtour of the facility. Thanks toeveryone who made the trip over toWaupaca.

Dave Thiel will be hostingour April meeting in WisconsinRapids next week. The speaker forthis month will be Dr. AtillaPavlath. Dr. Pavlath is a formerpresident of the ACS and has beenvery active in the organization forover 45 years. More on hispresentation follows later in thisnewsletter.

I would also like to remindeveryone that our May meeting isthe annual awards banquet. Weare still soliciting nominations forsection awards. To refresheveryone, the categories andpurpose of each are:

Outstanding Service AwardTo recognize outstanding service tothe Central Wisconsin Section andthe field of Chemistry.

High School Chemistry SeniorAwardTo recognize and encourage highschool students who havedemonstrated a high degree of self-discipline and motivation in thepursuit of the science ofChemistry.

College Chemistry SeniorAwardTo recognize s ignif icantachievement in the chemicalsciences at the undergraduate levelby a student who will enter theirsenior year in the fall of the Awardyear.

High Schoo l ChemistryTeaching AwardTo recognize, encourage, andstimulate outstanding teachers ofhigh school chemistry within theboundaries of the CentralWisconsin Section.

If you are interested in nominatinga candidate for any of the awards,feel free to contact one of thechapter officers. Please mark yourcalendars now for this meeting onMay 11th to honor the awardrecipients.

Steve

ACS - CWSMini-Directory

ChairSteve Nieland612 West Fulton StreetWaupaca, WI 54981phone (715) 258-5525(office)email snieland@fmspecialty.com

Chair-ElectLaura Cole

Secretary - TreasurerTip Randall

CouncilorC. Marvin Lang

Alternate CouncilorDave Lewis

Newsletter EditorTom ZamisDept. of Chemistry, UW-SP,Stevens Point WI 54481phone (715) 346-3258(office)email tzamis@uwsp.edu

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Alternate Energy Sources: From the Sun to the Depth of the Earth

byAttila Pavlath

Wednesday, April 13, 2005, 7:30 PMAlexander House,

1131 Wisconsin River Drive , Port Edwards.

This lecture gives a general description of the availability of variousenergy resources other than coal, gas, and oil. It summarizes the presenttechnological background of possibilities from geothermal to fusion power. It ispresented in a way understandable to a large degree even by non-technicalaudiences. The amount available in each area and the future outlook are discussed.

*** About the Speaker ***

Dr. Attila E. Pavlath received his education at the Technical University of Budapest in Hungary,where he became assistant professor. In 1956, he left Hungary first for Montreal, Canada (McGillUniversity), then in 1958, he joined Stauffer Chemical Company in Richmond, California. Since 1967, he hasbeen with the Western Regional Research Center of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in Albany,California. He is leading a group involved in research on various agricultural chemical problems. Dr. Pavlath'sscientific career includes work on fluorine chemistry (30+ years), glow discharge chemistry (10+ years),textile chemistry (10 years), energy and biomass research (10 years), the freshness in fruits and vegetables(10 years) and most recently on biodegradable wrapping films. He has published over 120 scientific paperson these subjects, three books and has presented numerous lectures in the U.S. and abroad. He also holds 25patents. Dr. Pavlath is also well-known for his activities in the ACS during the past 35 years to make theACS more responsive to the professional needs of its members. He rose from his Section�s Treasurer to thePresidency of the whole ACS.

***************************************************************************Gather at 5:30. Eat at 6:00 at Café Mulino in the Hotel Mead, 451 E. Grand Avenue in Wisconsin Rapids.Hotel Mead is three blocks east of the Wisconsin River on East Grand Avenue. Please call or e-mail DaveThiel at (715) 887-4338 or thiel@wctc.net before noon on Wednesday, April 13 to make a reservationfor dinner.

The meeting will begin at 7:30 at the Alexander House, 1131 Wisconsin River drive in Port Edwards. This ison Highway 54/73 about a mile north of the Domtar paper mill. To get there from the Hotel Mead go west onGrand Avenue to the first stop light at 3rd St.. Turn left (south) onto 3rd St. and proceed about _ mile to theRiverview Expressway (Hwy 54/13). Turn right, cross the river, and turn left at the end of the bridge ontoHighway 54/73. Proceed 2.7 miles to the Alexander house on your right. The Alexander House is acombination art gallery and historical museum, and will open especially for us at 7:00 pm.

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ACS - Central Wisconsin Section 2005 Meeting ScheduleDATE LOCATION SPEAKER TOPIC HOST

WednesdayApril 13

WisconsinRapids

Attila Pavlath Alternate Energy Sources: Fromthe Sun to the Depth of the Earth

Dave Thiel

WednesdayMay 11

Marshfield? Frank A. Settle The Chemistry of the AtomicBombAwards Banquet

October 12 Stoltz - Tentative Medical Practice during the CivilWar

TuesdayNovember 8

David F. Wiemer Herbal Products: They're Naturalbut Are They Safe?

ACS-CWS Web Page

www.uwsp.edu/chemistry/acscws/Up-to-date information about section activitiesincluding the Alembic and meeting notices.

Molecule of the Month

Sudan 1, a red dye used in waxes and polishes, hasbeen banned for food use in many countries becauseof studies showing a tentative link to tumor formationin some animal species. Recently, traces of Sudan 1were found in chili powder imported from India.

The gang in protective gear for thetour of Gusmer Enterprises.

229th National MeetingAMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY

San Diego, CaliforniaMarch 12-16, 2005

C. Marvin LangCouncilor, Central Wisconsin Section

The following summary reports key actions of theACS Council and Board of Directors at the 2005spring national meeting from which I just returned.

ACTIONS OF THE COUNCIL

Election Results

• The Committee on Nominations and Electionspresented to the Council the following nomineesfor selection as candidates for President-Elect,2006: Pat N. Confalone, Catherine T. Hunt, JohnW. Kozarich, and Cynthia A. Maryanoff. Bywritten ballot the Council selected Catherine T.Hunt and John W. Kozarich as candidates for2006 President-Elect. They join George E.Heinze, who was certified as a petition candidatefor 2006 President-Elect.

• The Committee on Nominations and Electionsannounced the results of the election of nomineesfor candidates to represent District III and DistrictVI on the Board of Directors for the term 2006-2008. Nominees for District III included:Catherine C. Fenselau, Edward J. Grabowski,Madeleine M. Joullié, and Willie E. May.Nominees for District VI included Bonnie A.Charpentier, Janan M. Hayes, Clayton H.Heathcock, and Stanley H. Pine. By written ballotthe Council selected Catherine C. Fenselau andMadeleine M. Joullié as District III candidates; andas District VI candidates, Bonnie A. Charpentierand Stanley H. Pine. Ballots will be mailed on orbefore October 10 to all members in District III

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and District IV for election of a Director for eachDistrict.

Candidates for Directors-at-Large

• The Committee on Nominations and Electionsannounced the selection of the followingcandidates for Directors-at-Large for a 2006-2008term: James D. Burke, Edwin A. Chandross, C.Gordon McCarty, and Frankie Wood-Black. Theelection of two Directors-at-Large will beconducted in the fall, with ballots mailed to theCouncilors on or before October 10.

Committee Review

• As part of a regular review, the Council VOTED tocontinue the Committee on Project SEED. TheCommittee on Project SEED oversees theSociety’s summer educational experience programfor disadvantaged youth.

• Proposal for a Committee on Ethics

• The Committee on Committees presented toCouncil a proposal for establishing a Committeeon Ethics as an Other Committee of the Council.The charge of this committee would be as follows:To coordinate the ethics-related activities of theSociety, serve as an educational resource andclearinghouse, but not as an adjudication body, forACS members seeking guidance on ethics issues;raise awareness of ethics issues through meetingprogramming and columns/editorials; reviewrecognition opportunities for acknowledgingethical behavior; and to develop and oversee suchother ethics-related activities as will serve ACSmembers and promote the Society’s standards ofethical conduct within the profession of chemistryand its related disciplines. After defeating amotion to assign the proposed duties of thecommittee to the Committee on Economic andProfessional Affairs, the Council VOTED toestablish a Committee on Ethics as an OtherCommittee of the Council.

Registration Report

• As of March 15, 2005, the ACS spring nationalmeeting had attracted 15,385 registrants as follows:Regular attendees 8,372; Students 4,160;Exhibitors 1,624; Exposition only 628; and Guests601.

Member Statistics

• Membership in the American Chemical Societywas 158,127 as of year-end 2004. Compared tothe previous year, this represents less than a 1%

decrease. In 2004, more than 13,000 new memberswere added to the rolls.

Petition for Consideration

• The Committee on Nominations and Electionswithdrew a petition on election procedures. Thecommittee plans to offer additional changes to theSociety’s election procedures and introduce a newpetition at the fall national meeting.

Special Discussion Item

• A special discussion item was put on the Councilagenda for this meeting. ACS President WilliamF. Carroll presented an overview of ChemistryEnterprise 2015, posing the question, “Where willour students come from in the next ten years,and where will they go?” Councilors thenparticipated in a lively discussion of this issue. The issue was framed as follows: Currently theU.S. has a strong university system and U.S.graduate education in science is widely recognizedas the best in the world, but problems loom on thehorizon. In addition, a variety of factors in thenation’s academic infrastructure are likely toproduce change in the training and careers of newchemists. The discussion at Council intensifiedawareness of this issue and possibilities forsolutions.

2006 Member Dues

• The Council VOTED to set the member dues for2006 at the fully escalated rate of $127.

ACTIONS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Special Temporary Assessment

• In December 2002, the Board of Directors enacteda special temporary assessment to cover the costsof increased funding for divisions and localsections, as stipulated in the Petition for Divisionand Local Section Funding, which wassubsequently approved by the ACS Council,Board, and membership in March 2003. TheBoard accepted the temporary assessment with theunderstanding that it would be reviewed each yearto determine whether it could be reduced. TheBoard reviewed the temporary assessment for 2006and, in light of the Society’s strong financialperformance, VOTED to reduce it to $5, ratherthan proceeding with the scheduled $6 assessment.Thus, member dues will be $127 plus $5, or $132for 2006

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The Society’s Current Finances and FinancialFuture

• The Committee on Budget and Finance reportedthat the Society ended 2004 with a net contributionfrom operations of $5,099,000 on revenues of$419,200,000 and expenses of $414,700,000.This was $3,628,000 favorable to the approvedbudget. After including the results of the BelmontConference Center, recorded as a discontinuedoperation, and the Member Insurance Program, theSociety’s overall net contribution for 2004 was$4,465,000, which was $3,229,000 favorable to theapproved budget.

• The Board reviewed and VOTED to accept severalrecommendations from the recent FinancialPlanning Conference held January 2005. Thepurpose of this conference was to provide acomprehensive assessment of the Society’sfinancial position; to review the appropriatenessand adequacy of the Society’s current financialguidelines; and to assess the Society’s changingrisk profile and the potential implications on majorACS funding sources over the next three years.

The Board’s Committees and Task Forces

• The Board received a screened list of candidatesfrom the Committee on Grants and Awards for the2006 Priestley Medal and the Volunteer ServiceAward. The Board will announce the two winnersat its June meeting.

• The Board, through its Committee on Professionaland Member Relations (P&MR), reviewed theapproval process for recurring meetingcosponsorship requests and VOTED to streamlineand simplify the process. The Board also VOTEDto authorize P&MR to approve requests whereACS seeks the cosponsorship of otherorganizations.

• The ACS/AIChE governance-to-governance taskforce and the ACS/AIChE Joint Membership taskforce have concluded formal discussions and haveagreed on several points. At this meeting, theBoard VOTED to discharge both task forces withthanks.

The Society’s Staff

• The Board received a report from the ExecutiveDirector/CEO and several of her direct reports onthe status of the Society’s website project, specialissues associated with Chemical Abstracts Serviceand the Publications Divisions, the Green

Chemistry Institute, and the activities of theGeneral Counsel. The Board also reviewed andapproved several recommendations from theCommittee on Executive Compensation relative tocompensation for the Society’s executive staff.The compensation of the Society’s executive staffreceives regular review from the Board.

The Society’s Publications

• The Board VOTED to approve the appointment ofan editor for a new Society journal, ACS ChemicalBiology. ACS Chemical Biology is scheduled todebut in 2006.

ACS Governance Review

• The Board of Directors VOTED to support thecreation of a Joint Board-Council PolicyCommittee Task Force on Governance Review withthe charge to conduct a review of the Society’sgovernance structure and Constitution and Bylawsto ensure that the Society has a governingframework to enable it to best fulfill its mission,meet member needs, and remain a world-classorganization.

Regarding my personal involvement in the ACS, Icontinue to hold membership on the CouncilCommittee on Community Affairs (formerly theNational Chemistry Week Task Force), the CouncilCommittee on Public Relations, and a new appointmentas Associate on the Council Committee on Meetingsand Exhibitions. Each of these assignments carriesattendance at numerous meetings, sub-committeemeetings and focus group meetings. Most of thematerial discussed is interesting but some could beeasily condensed to one or two simple sentences.Anyway, once again, thank you for electing me to serveyou as Councilor from the Central Wisconsin Section.

Marv Lang