26 November 2012
Moscone Convention Center
San Francisco, California
3–7 December 2012
Contents of this message:
- Pre-registration Remains Open, Please Pre-Register Online To Avoid Long Lines
- Press Conference Schedule
- Webstreaming: How to Access 2011 Fall Meeting Press Conferences via the Internet
- Where Do I Pick Up My Press/News Media Badge?
- Press Rooms Update
- News Media Registration Information
- Who’s Coming
- Virtual Press Room, and Sending Press Releases to Fall Meeting
- Northern California Science Writers Association (NCSWA) Dinner – Register by Wed., Nov. 28
For important information regarding visas for international reporters and hotel bookings at meeting rates, please see: Media Advisory 1.
For additional information about searching the scientific program, please see: Media Advisory 2.
For information about special events, the ceremony/reception for journalism award winners, sending press releases to the meeting, and more, please see: Media Advisory 3.
1. Pre-Registration Remains Open, Please Pre-Register Online To Avoid Long Lines
Online pre-registration for Fall Meeting Media Registration will remain open through the meeting in order to expedite the badge pick-up process (see #4 below for details).
However, please fill out the online form, including your press credentials, before you arrive at the Moscone Center, especially if you are a blogger or a freelancer. Freelancers and bloggers must present three clips to register as media, and verifying the clips in-person at the press registration desk will slow down the process. Those who are pre-approved will be able to pick up their badges from a kiosk and should not have to wait at the registration desk.
With a press conference on the latest results from the Mars rover Curiosity scheduled for 9:00 a.m. Monday, we expect many members of the media to arrive early Monday. If you have pre-registered, you can pick up registration materials and badge holders on Sunday (see #4 below).
2. Press Conference Schedule
The following schedule of press conferences is subject to change, before or during Fall Meeting. 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 3001A, Moscone West, Level 3, adjacent to the Level 3 lobby). Press conferences take place in the Press Conference Room (Room 3000), diagonally across the hall from the Press Room.
Times for press conferences are Pacific Standard 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.
Mars Rover Curiosity’s Investigations in Gale Crater
Monday, 3 December
9:00 a.m.
NASA’s newest Mars rover, Curiosity, has been investigating past and modern environmental
conditions in Mars’ equatorial Gale Crater since August. This briefing will offer findings from
examining the composition and textures of targets touched by the rover’s robotic arm. Curiosity
is the car-size rover of NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory mission. At the time of the AGU Fall
Meeting, it will be four months into a two-year prime mission.
Participants:
Michael Meyer, Program Scientist for Mars Science Laboratory; NASA Headquarters,
Washington, D.C., USA;
John Grotzinger, Project Scientist for Mars Science Laboratory; California Institute of
Technology, Pasadena, California, USA;
Paul Mahaffy, Principal Investigator for Curiosity’s Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM); NASA
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA;
Ralf Gellert, Principal Investigator for Curiosity’s Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer;
University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada;
Ken Edgett, Principal Investigator for Curiosity’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI); Malin
Space Science Systems, San Diego, California, USA.
Session: U13A
Climate Change and Civilizations
Monday, 3 December
11:30 a.m.
The languages spoken today in the Middle East may owe themselves to a shift in climate change
that happened over 4,000 years ago. The rise and fall of civilizations may follow patterns in
climate change records. Finding these records, though, can involve negotiating not only with a
national government, but also with the local chief. This briefing will offer findings from the
Middle East and the Indian subcontinent to show how climate change played a part in the success
and disintegration of several past civilizations.
Participants:
Matthew Konfirst, Byrd Fellow, Byrd Polar Research Center, The Ohio State University,
Columbus, Ohio, USA;
Sebastian Breitenbach, Postdoctoral Researcher, Climate Geology, ETHZ Geologisches
Institut, Zurich, Switzerland.
Session: PP13D
Voyager press availability
Monday, 3 December
12:30 p.m.
Scientists with NASA’s Voyager mission will present the latest findings from the mission to the
edge of the solar system, and will be available to answer questions from journalists.
Participants:
Ed Stone, Voyager project scientist, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif., USA;
Leonard Burlaga, Voyager magnetometer team scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center,
Greenbelt, Maryland, USA;
Stamatios (“Tom”) Krimigis, Voyager low-energy charged particle instrument principal
investigator, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Maryland, USA.
Improving forecasts of “Pineapple Expresses”
Monday, 3 December
1:30 p.m.
NOAA scientists and colleagues are installing the first of four permanent “atmospheric river
observatories” in coastal California this month, to better monitor and predict the impacts of
landfalling atmospheric rivers. These powerful winter systems, sometimes called “pineapple
express” storms, can cause destructive floods and debris flows, and can also fill the state’s
reservoirs. The coastal observatories – custom arrays of instruments installed in collaboration
with the California Department of Water Resources – will give weather forecasters, emergency
managers and water resource experts detailed information about incoming storms. The move to
install the observatories comes after several winters of testing, during which the scientists
determined the most effective arrays of instruments for collecting information useful for decision
makers.
Participants:
F. Martin (“Marty”) Ralph, research meteorologist and chief of the Water Cycle Branch,
Physical Sciences Division of NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory;
Mike Anderson, California State Climatologist, California Department of Water Resources;
Third panelist tba
Session: GC14B
Winter is coming… but what happens when it leaves early?
Monday, 3 December
2:30 p.m.
To some scientists working in the Rocky Mountains, the winter of 2011-2012 was one of the
strangest observed in decades. The record-early snowmelt – about six weeks earlier than the
previous year – caused plants to start growing earlier, and then get wiped out by hard frosts. The
early spring disrupted the life cycles of plants, and the effects cascaded to animal species as well.
Scientists will present new observations of what happens when the snow disappears early, and
discuss the implications for alpine ecosystems.
Participants:
Heidi Steltzer, Assistant Professor, Biology at Fort Lewis College, Durango, Colorado, USA;
David Inouye, Professor, Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park,
Maryland, USA.
Sessions: B21I
Superstorm Sandy, Black Swan Cyclones and the Economic Toll to Come
Monday, 3 December
4:00 p.m.
As New Jersey still recovers from Superstorm Sandy, scientists continue to study how it and
future storms of similar magnitude and frequency might affect U.S. coastlines. New data from
the U.S. Geological Survey will be presented, along with forecasts of the economic impact of
this and possible future storms. This briefing will also consider the possibility of Black Swan
cyclones – bigger storms making landfall outside of typical tropical storm impact regions.
Participants:
Ning Lin, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton;
Hilary Stockdon, Research Oceanographer, U.S. Geological Survey, St. Petersburg, Florida,
USA;
Dylan McNamara, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics & Physical Oceanography,
University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina, USA.
Sessions: NH23C, OS24C
New Findings, New Enigmas: NASA’s Van Allen Probes Begin their Exploration of the
Radiation Belts
Tuesday, 4 December
8:00 a.m.
The twin Van Allen Probes (formerly the Radiation Belt Storm Probes), launched by NASA on
August 30, are already delivering data of unprecedented detail, gathered from within our planet’s
dynamic radiation belts. The mission is the first to send two spacecraft to reside within the
incredibly hostile environment of the belts, which are named for their discoverer, James Van
Allen. Almost immediately following launch, the probes began to reveal fascinating new
structures and surprising dynamics of the radiation belt region that have never before been
observed.
Participants:
Daniel Baker, Principal Investigator, Van Allen Probes Relativistic Electron Proton Telescope
(REPT; part of the Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal Plasma Suite), Laboratory for
Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, USA;
John Wygant, Principal Investigator, Van Allen Probes Electric Field and Waves Suite (EFW),
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA;
Joseph Mazur, Principal Investigator, Van Allen Probes Relativistic Proton Spectrometer
(RPS), Aerospace Corporation, Chantilly, Virginia, USA.
Sessions: SM24A, SM31C, SM34A, SM42B, SM43E, SM44A
Fire in a Changing Climate and What We Can Do About It
Tuesday, 4 December
9:00 a.m.
Land area burned by fires has increased in the United States over the past 25 years, consistent
with a trend toward climate conditions more conducive to fire. In contrast, fires for agricultural
and forest management show declining trends in the western U.S. despite overall increases in
wildfire activity and associated carbon emissions. Looking ahead, new IPCC climate projections
offer insight into potential changes to U.S. fire activity over the next 30-50 years based on the
climate sensitivity of fires in recent decades. Scientists will present new data on which regions of
the U.S. might see fire seasons become longer and more intense.
Participants:
Louis Giglio, Research Associate Professor, University of Maryland College Park, Maryland,
and Physical Scientist, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA;
Christopher Williams, Assistant Professor of Geography, and Adjunct Assistant Professor of
Biology, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA;
Doug Morton, Physical Scientist, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland,
and Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Maryland, College Park, USA;
Hsiao-Wen Lin, Graduate Student Researcher, Department of Earth System Science, University
of California, Irvine, USA.
Sessions: NH52A, B22B, B41B, B23F
Mars Rover Opportunity’s Investigations at Endeavour Crater
Tuesday, 4 December
10:30 a.m.
NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity, working on Mars since January 2004, has spent
recent months examining outcrops in an area on the rim of Endeavour Crater. There, the rover
has found unusual textures and orbital observations have suggested the possible presence of clay
minerals. This briefing will offer an update about what has been found so far during these rover
investigations at “Matijevic Hill” on the crater’s western rim and outline plans for continuing
work by Opportunity.
Participants:
Steve Squyres, Principal Investigator for Opportunity, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., USA;
Diana Blaney, Deputy Project Scientist for Opportunity, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
Pasadena, California, USA.
Sessions: P14A, P14B, P21C
An Unlikely New Tool for Spotting Clandestine Nuclear Tests
Tuesday, 4 December
1:30 p.m.
While countries such as North Korea may go to great lengths to conceal illegal nuclear weapons
testing, others around the globe are finding new ways to detect those tests. In the search for
rogue nukes, researchers have discovered an unlikely new tool. Like GPS before it, a new use for
this common tool was born out of the discovery that even underground nuclear explosions leave
their mark in unexpected places.
Participants:
Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska, Professor of Geodetic and Geoinformation Engineering, The Ohio
State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA;
Jihye Park, post-doctoral researcher in geodetic and geoinformation engineering, The Ohio
State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA;
Joseph Helmboldt, Radio Astronomer, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C., USA.
Session: G11C
Science & Technology at Extreme Depths, with James Cameron and DEEPSEA
CHALLENGE Scientists
Tuesday, 4 December
2:30 p.m.
Journalists can follow up on special session U22C with questions for James Cameron and three
scientists from the DEEPSEA CHALLENGE Expedition. The panel will discuss the innovative
design of the submersible as well as new scientific findings. Along with a team of scientists and
engineers, Cameron co-designed the submersible in which he became the first person to descend
alone to the Earth’s deepest known point. The expedition included multiple sub dives to explore
the New Britain and Mariana Trenches where it collected video footage of unprecedented clarity,
physical oceanographic data, water samples, biological samples and sediment.
Participants:
James Cameron, Expedition Leader, DEEPSEA CHALLENGE; Chairman, Blue Planet Marine
Research Foundation; Explorer-In-Residence, National Geographic Society, Washington,
D.C., USA;
Douglas Bartlett, Professor of Marine Microbial Genetics, Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UCSD, La Jolla, California, USA;
Patricia Fryer, Professor, Hawaii Institute of Geophysics & Planetology, University of Hawaii,
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA;
Kevin Hand, Deputy Chief Scientist, Solar System Exploration, NASA Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Pasadena, California, USA.
Session: U22C
NASA’s Lunar Twins – GRAIL First Science Results
Wednesday, 5 December
9:00 a.m.
First science results from NASA’s GRAIL moon gravity mapping mission. Launched on Sept.
11, 2011, the mission’s twin washing-machine-sized spacecraft, named Ebb and Flow, entered
lunar orbit on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. During the prime mission science phase,
which stretched from March 1 to May 29, the two GRAIL spacecraft orbited at an average
altitude of 34 miles (55 kilometers). The data collected during GRAIL’s primary mission has
generated the highest resolution gravity map of another celestial body.
Participants:
Maria Zuber, GRAIL principal investigator, Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
Cambridge, USA;
Mark Wieczorek, GRAIL co-investigator, University of Paris, France;
Jeff Andrews-Hanna, GRAIL co-investigator, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Co., USA;
Sami Asmar, GRAIL project scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Ca., USA.
Sessions: G32A, G33B, P33E
Earth at Night
Wednesday, 5 December
10:30 a.m.
A new cloud-free view of the entire Earth at Night, courtesy of a joint NASA-NOAA satellite
program called Suomi NPP, will be unveiled at the press conference. This image is an order of
magnitude more detailed than the wildly popular earlier Earth at Night image, and reveals new
information scientists are using to study meteorology, natural and human-caused fires, fishing
boats, human settlement, urbanization and more. Scientists will discuss the advancements now
possible with these new images and detail a few examples of the features mentioned above – plus
present images of Earth on moonless nights, lit only by “airglow” and starlight, as well as the
vast difference moonlight makes on the Earth’s surface.
Participants:
James Gleason, NASA Suomi NPP project scientist, NASA Goddard, Greenbelt, Maryland,
USA;
Christopher Elvidge, lead of the Earth Observation Group, NOAA’s National Geophysical Data
Center in Boulder, Colorado, USA;
Steve Miller, senior research scientist and deputy director of the Cooperative Institute for
Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA), Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
Sessions: A54F, IN33C
What’s going on in the Arctic?
Wednesday, 5 December
11:30 a.m.
Despite unremarkable air temperatures this year, the Arctic still set records for loss of summer
sea ice, decline in spring snow extent, rising permafrost temperatures in northernmost Alaska,
and duration and extent of melting at the surface of the Greenland ice sheet. Large changes in
multiple indicators are affecting climate and ecosystems. What’s going on here? NOAA
Administrator Jane Lubchenco and others will outline the changing conditions as part of the
annual update of the Arctic Report Card, an international effort to assess the state of the Arctic
environmental system.
Participants:
Jane Lubchenco, Undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere, and administrator of
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Washington, DC, USA;
Martin O. Jeffries, Program Officer & Arctic Science Advisor, Office of Naval Research,
Arlington, Virginia, USA;
Donald Perovich, Adjunct Professor at Thayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth College;
Jason E. Box, Associate Professor, Department of Geography, Byrd Polar Research Center
The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Sesssions: C33F, C51E
How Much Carbon Gets Stored In Western U.S. Ecosystems?
Wednesday, 5 December
2:30 pm
In a report to be issued at the time of this press conference, U.S. Geological Survey scientists
estimate the ability of different ecosystems in the West to store carbon — benchmark data vitally
needed for science-based land-use and land-management decisions and for future studies. The
area examined extends from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific coastal waters, and totals almost
2 million square miles of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Major findings include how much
carbon is sequestered annually in this vast region, as well as the amount projected to be
sequestered by ecosystem type under a range of land use and land cover, climate, and wildfire
scenarios.
Marcia McNutt, Director, U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior, Reston, VA,
USA;
Benjamin Sleeter, Research Geographer, U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior,
Western Geographic Science Center, Menlo Park, CA, USA.
Sessions: GC23C, B33D, B33G, B34C
Setting boundaries for the Anthropocene
Thursday, 6 December
9 a.m.
Should the Age of Man be an official epoch? Scientists are debating whether the Anthropocene,
the centuries during which humans have left our mark on the planet, should be an official unit of
geological time. And if it is – how do we define it? When the geologists of the distant future dig
test pits, what will they recognize that marks the boundary of the Anthropocene? The panel will
tackle that question, discussing whether fossils, contaminants, or excavated ground ending up
where it shouldn’t be would best mark the start of our geologic influence.
Participants:
Tony Brown, Director of the Palaeoenvironmental Laboratory University of Southampton,
United Kingdom;
Michael A. Kruge, Professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Studies, Montclair State
University, Montclair, NJ, USA;
Colin Waters, Principal Mapping Geologist, British Geological Survey, Environmental Science
Centre, Nottingham, United Kingdom;
Michael A. Ellis, Head of Climate Change Science, British Geological Survey, United
Kingdom.
Sessions: GC51H, GC53C
—-
Media Availability with NSF Director Subra Suresh
Thursday, 6 December
1:30 p.m.
Subra Suresh, director of the National Science Foundation, will be presenting AGU’s Union
Agency Lecture. As director of this $7-billion independent federal agency since October 2010, Suresh
leads the only government science agency charged with advancing all fields of fundamental science and
engineering research and related education. Directly after his lecture, Suresh will be available in the
press conference room to answer questions from members of the media.
Participants:
Subra Suresh, Director, National Science Foundation
3. Webstreaming: How to Access 2012 Fall Meeting Press Conferences (LIVE) via the Internet
If you don’t have it already, download the Adobe Flash player onto your computer (It’s a quick download), available for free from: http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
At the time of the press conference, please go to the AGU press conferences web page:http://live.projectionnet.com/agupress/fm2012.aspx
If you wish to be able to ask questions (via chat only) you must first register by clicking the Register link at the bottom of the page. Please register using your real name (without spaces). Once registered, you need only log in to take part in subsequent press conferences.
On the press conferences web page, you will see a webstreaming window on top that will show, to the right, the speakers’ PowerPoint slides in real time (including video), and, to the left, live video of the speaker table and panelists. You will hear audio of the press conference via the same web page (To expand the webstreaming window to full screen, click on the icon in the lower right margin of the window (Esc key to cancel)).
Below the webstreaming window, you will see the chat window. During press conferences, an AGU staff member will monitor the chat and ask questions to the press conference speakers on your behalf. You will hear the speakers’ answers via the web page.
AGU staff will upload handouts, scientific papers, or other press conference relevant documents to the Virtual Press Room: http://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/media-center/virtual-press-room/. These materials will have been provided by press conference speakers for reporters to download.
To report difficulties remotely accessing AGU press conferences, please do so via the chat. If it is not functioning, please email AGU’s press officers at [email protected] or phone the Press Room at +1 (415) 348-4404 or +1 (415) 348-4405.
If, for some reason, the webstreaming does not work for a particular press conference, we will immediately put up a message on http://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/media-center and will switch to make the briefing available via teleconference. To call into the teleconference, dial (888) 481-3032 within the United States, or +1 (617) 801-9600 internationally. The participant passcode is 115139. NOTE: The teleconference will only be available if the webstreaming is not working, as announced on the media center website.
These instructions are also available at: http://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/media-center/press-conference-webstreaming-instructions/
4. Where and How Do I Pick Up My Press/News Media Badge and Ribbon?
**Press/News Media Registration has changed considerably since last year. To avoid lines on Monday morning, 3 December, we encourage all members of the news media go through the final steps of registering and picking up your badge by Sunday, 2 December. Unlike in previous years, you may register online throughout duration of the Fall Meeting. As always, press/news media registration is complimentary.
If you do not preregister online: This year, the main Fall Meeting registration area is in the lower level of Moscone South; the registration counters are located at the bottom of the long escalators immediately ahead of you as you enter the South building lobby. The Press/News Media registration counter will be on the far left, next to Exhibitor registration. To register on-site, you must go to this Press/News Media Registration Counter in Moscone South, fill out an onsite registration form, present your news media credentials or, if a freelance or blogger, provide three clips of articles/posts covering the Earth and space sciences that appeared in 2012.
If you preregistered and were mailed your badge: If you have your badge in hand, you can complete the registration process (picking up a badge holder, program book, and other materials) at booths at the entrance to the Moscone South Lobby and at locations in Moscone West, and in the San Francisco Marriott Marquis hotel (see hours at the end of this item). At those booths, you can hand in the voucher that came with your badge and you will be handed the badge holder and other materials. Then, at your convenience, please come by the Press Room (Room 3001A, Moscone West) for your green Press/News Media ribbon that gets attached to your badge. You will need a ribbon to have access to the AGU press rooms, but not to attend sessions or other venues at Fall Meeting.
For hours of the badge-holder-pickup booths and other registration counters, please seehttp://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/travel-housing/registration-rates/on-site-registration-badge-holder-pick-up/
If you preregistered (registered online) but didn’t receive your badge in the mail (or forgot to bring your mailed badge to the meeting): You may use the self-registration lines in the main registration area on the lower level of Moscone South (you do not need to use the press registration line). At the self-registration counters you can either type in your name and zip code or scan the barcode that you received in the email confirming your registration (either from a printout or a smart phone image).
The entrances to the Moscone South building are on Howard Street between Third and Fourth streets. The entrances to the Moscone West building are on Fourth Street between Howard St. and Minna St.
5. Press Rooms Update
The Press Room is Room 3001A in Moscone West, Level 3. (This room has an unusual number -the added A – because it is a custom-made room that’s only here during the AGU Fall Meeting, located between Room 3001 and the Level 3 Lobby.)
Press conferences take place in the Press Conference Room, Room 3000, which is also on Level 3. It is diagonally across the hall from the Press Room.
The Press Room provides working space for reporters, including two phone lines (with no charge for business calls), two computer terminals and a printer, Wi-Fi for use with your own laptop, and space for socializing. The main phone number in the Press Room for incoming calls is +1 (415) 348-4404 and the secondary number is +1 (415) 348-4405.
The Press Room opens daily at 7:30 a.m., Mon., Dec. 3 through Fri., Dec. 7. The room closes daily at 6:30 p.m., except for Friday, 7 December, when it will close at 2:00 p.m.
Some meals and other refreshments will be provided in the Press Room for news media registrants. Breakfast (from 7:30 a.m.) will be available on Monday and Tuesday. Lunch (from 12:30 a.m.) will be available Monday-Wednesday. In addition, press room registrants can receive a voucher for Wednesday breakfast and Thursday lunch, valid for the food kiosks in Moscone Center buildings. Please pick up the vouchers in the Press Room, Room 3001A in Moscone West. Coffee and tea will be available at 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Monday to Friday.
6. News Media Registration Information
News media registrants receive, at no charge, a badge that provides access to any of the scientific sessions of the meeting, as well as to the Press Room, Quiet Room, and Press Conference Room. No one will be admitted without a valid badge.
Eligibility for press/news media registration is limited to the following persons:
- Working press employed by bona fide news media outlets who regularly report news on the Earth and space sciences. These registrants must present a press card, business card, or a letter from an editor of a recognized news media outlet assigning you to cover Fall Meeting.
- Freelance science journalists and science bloggers who present evidence of three (3) bylined news reports in the Earth and space sciences intended for the general public and published in 2012.
- Public information/press officers of scientific societies, educational institutions, and government agencies.
Note: Scientists who will be presenting at the meeting and who are also reporting from the meeting for bona fide news media outlets may be issued News Media credentials at the discretion of AGU Public Information Staff. Everyone who presents at the meeting must also register for the meeting and pay the appropriate fee as a presenter.
Representatives of publishing houses, the business side of news media, political action committees or similar, and for-profit corporations must register at the main registration desk at the meeting and pay the appropriate fees, regardless of possession of any of the above credentials; they will not be accredited as News Media at the meeting.
All press badges will be issued solely at the discretion of the AGU Public Information Office.
7. Who’s Coming
The online list of journalists who have preregistered for the meeting is updated daily. (Click on “Who’s coming” button.)
8. Virtual Press Room, and Sending Press Releases to Fall Meeting
The AGU Fall Meeting Virtual Press Room is the online place for journalists to find meeting-
related materials such as press releases and press-conference PowerPoint presentations, plus
images, videos, scientific papers, etc. To access the Virtual Press Room, go to the Media Center
on the Fall Meeting website, and click on the “Virtual Press Room” tab:
http://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/media-center/.
Public Information Officers can upload press releases (along with accompanying images, videos,
audio files and external links) about research presented at the Fall Meeting to the Virtual Press
Room. To access the Uploader, PIOs must first register by going to the Media Center on the Fall
Meeting website, and clicking on the “For PIOs” tab: http://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/media-
center/. Only registered PIOs will be allowed to upload content.
Public information officers of universities, government agencies, and research institutions can
also disseminate paper press releases and related documentation at Fall Meeting. We recommend
around 50 copies of printed materials and three-to-five copies of broadcast quality video.
The easiest way to get these materials to the Press Room is to take them yourself, if you are
going to Fall Meeting, or to give them to one of your scientists, with instructions to deliver them
to the AGU Press Room (Room 3001A) Moscone West, from Mon., Dec. 3.
If you prefer, you may send these materials (but not to arrive before Nov. 30) by FedEx, UPS, or
DHL to the following address:
Peter Weiss
(Guest arriving November 30)
The Westin San Francisco Market Street
50 Third Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 974-6400
Shipments to the above address should be timed to arrive on Fri., Nov. 30, or after. They will be
displayed from Mon., Dec. 3 or as soon as received (if later than Monday).
Remaining materials may be collected from Room 3001A by Fri., Dec. 7, at 1:00 p.m., after
which they will be scrapped.
9. Northern California Science Writers Association (NCSWA) Dinner – Register by Wed., Nov. 28
[The following notice is provided on behalf of the Northern California Science Writers Association about their Holiday dinner: Nerds on Wall Street: Math, Machines and Wired Markets, on the evening of Wed., Dec. 5, at Picaro Restaurant in San Francisco. For registration (required) information, please visit: ncswa.wildapricot.org.]
Come enjoy paella, calamari, grilled artichoke, garlic shrimp and a mix of other Spanish tapas from Picaro’s far-flung menu. Dive into a pitcher of sangria. Hobnob with your local friends and out-of-town colleagues visiting for the annual AGU meeting. And of course we’ll offer a top-notch lineup of seriously unserious science trivia, whacky door prizes, and an entertaining talk about Wall Street’s wired markets.
LOCATION:
Picaro: 3120 16th Street (near Valencia), San Francisco
Phone: 415-431-4089
http://www.picarotapasrestaurant.com/index.html
· a one-block walk from the 16th St. BART Station
· the 16th St. BART station is a quick, four-minute ride from the Powell St. BART Station near Moscone Center, where the AGU meeting will be held
[click for Google map]
SCHEDULE:
6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. No-host happy hour
7:30 p.m. – 8:45 p.m. Dinner
8:45 p.m. – Speaker
COST:
$29 members
$19 students
$33 non-members & AGU attendees
NCSWA is subsidizing the cost in order to keep dinner affordable. Register by Wednesday, November 28 to reserve your spot!