By Laurie Garrett
It's axiomatic that whenever someone says, "This new technology will help you do everything faster, more efficiently," you had better brace yourself: You're about to be deluged with more work than you can imagine. So it is that NASW's on-line services have resulted in an avalanche of energy and demands, all of which fall on the shoulders of the organization's board members. For most of its five decades, NASW has functioned more like a club than a society, encouraging collegiality and social functions. That's been great. But with the creation of an on-line mode for group communication all hell has broken loose. Users get hot under their collars about all sorts of issues, vent, share ideas and ultimately demand action from their officers. Exhausting as it may be for yours truly, I think this is very positive. For example, as you will read elsewhere in this newsletter, NASW has joined other major writers' organizations (including the Canadian Science Writers Association) in protesting the New York Times copyright policies, and we plan to take a far more aggressive stance vis-a-vis our members' ownership of their creative materials. All of this energy has arisen from on-line discussions. In the long run I have reached the conclusion that NASW has no choice but to move its on-line service into the Internet. The world of science is on the Internet, as are virtually every major journal and public archive. I have had numerous discussions over recent months with our counterpart organizations in Canada, Europe, and Australia, as well as leading science writers in Africa and Asia, all of whom are eager to join in World Wide Web science discussion groups and information exchange. The Pasteur Institute, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, World Health Organization and numerous other overseas science institutions are keen to provide on-line press releases to American journalists. And all the major journals are sanguine about future one-stop shopping on-line foe embargoed stories. Wow! Looks great, eh? But, of course, there are problems, Currently NASW On-line is on CompuServe, and it will remain so for the foreseeable future. Joe Palca, the On-line Committee, and I have been exploring other options for several months. We had hoped to be able to announce in this issue a revolutionary breakthrough, but we've hit a few snags. Dubbed EUREKALERT, a new on-line service is trying to take its first infant steps on the Internet under the aegis of the AAAS. The intent--or fantasy--is to offer all AAAS members an astonishing array of science data and bulletin board services. Embedded in that array, accessible only to NASW members, would be our service. It would be World Wide Web accessible; most major scientific journals would be available in advance of publication either in full or abstract form; there would be "rooms" for discussions of all sorts of science issues; a jobs bulletin board would exist; virtually every major institution would provide regularly updated news releases. Terrific! What's the snag? Money. What else? AAAS has been unable, to date, to raise sufficient funds to ensure operation for five years, and I am reluctant to move our on-line service off CompuServe in lieu of assured survival of EUREKALERT. Your fearless leaders are exploring other options and continuing to work with AAAS. Nan Broadbent of AAAS hopes to have a EUREKALERT prototype up and running for your perusal at the annual meeting in Baltimore this coming February. In the meantime, Internet NASW folks can chat in an unrefereed manner at a site created by Simson Garfinkel. The address is http://nasw.org. Users who try the Internet slot and have previously used our CompuServe site will soon see how much gratitude we all owe Larry Krumenaker, who has been sysop'ing that site for three years. Larry's efforts have been outstanding, and it's obviously preferable to have a well-managed, regularly updated, cyberspace. The day before the aforementioned AAAS meeting NASW will convene an exciting symposium of its own. (Kudos to Deborah Blum and Mary Knudson for their yeoman's [yeoperson's?] efforts.) Plan to come to Baltimore a day early--it will be worth your while and hotel fees. A detailed symposium schedule will be mailed to all of you in December, but I'll tease you now with some highlights:
-- Neurosciences--a session organized by Sandy Blakeslee.
-- Author's Rights--advice from copyright lawyers and authors' advocates on our ever-shrinking rights in the Information Age.
-- Access to Scientists via PIO's--organized by NAS's Susan Turner-Lowe.
-- Surfing the Internet"--several sessions in a specially designated room, for Internet novices, intermediates and hackers.
-- Keynote speakers--It's a surprise. Suffice it to say, it's big, it's Washington, and it will be hot news.
-- Special sessions organized by and for PIOs.
The action will start February 8th at 11 a.m. and continue well into that evening. A breakfast keynoter will commence on the 9th. As always, we will also have FUN. The DCSWA chapter (again, kudos to Mary Knudson) has organized a major party at Camden Yards, the Baltimore Orioles ballpark, and the annual banquet/awards ceremony will be held inside the Baltimore Aquarium. Yes, you will be allowed to sing to the dolphins. Come to Baltimore--and bring your dancing shoes!
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