AMS/Industry: Minority Scholarships 2003-2004

The American Meteorological Society is pleased to announce that 10 candidates have been selected to receive 2003/2004 AMS/Industry Minority Scholarships. The AMS/Industry Minority Scholarship is intended to encourage minority students who have been traditionally underrepresented in the sciences, especially Hispanic/Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Black/African American students, to pursue careers in the atmospheric and related oceanic and hydrologic sciences. Three scholarships have been made possible through the generous contributions of AMS members to the AMS 21st Century Campaign and seven scholarships are funded by industry: The Weather Channel(R), Northrop Grumman Information Technology, ClimaData, Inc., IBM, Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing, RS Information Systems, and Science Systems & Applications, Inc. (SSAI). The award is $3000 for a nine-month period in the freshman year and an additional $3000 for a nine-month period in the sophomore year, based on performance in the first year.

The Weather Channel(R)

Northrop Grumman Information Technology

ClimaData, Inc.

IBM

Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing

RS Information Systems

Science Systems & Applications, Inc. (SSAI)

AMS 21st Century Campaign

THE WEATHER CHANNEL(R)

The Weather Channel, Inc., based in Atlanta, is the nation's premier provider of weather information and reaches more than 85 million TV households in the United States. The Weather Channel Latin America reaches almost 10 million households in Latin America. The Weather Channel is owned by Landmark Communications, Inc., a Norfolk, Virginia-based and privately held media company with global interests. In addition to presenting weather information through The Weather Channel Radio Network and The Weather Channel Newspaper Service, The Weather Channel is the leading provider of weather information for emerging technologies with services for broadband and interactive TV (ITV) applications. The Weather Channel is also aligned with industry leaders in ITV. Partners include DIRECTV, AOLTV, WorldGate, Liberate Technologies, Source Swuite, WINK, and MSNTV. The Web site of The Weather Channel, weather.com, is the world's leading source of weather on the Web, averaging more than 350 million page views per month and is consistently ranked among the top TV-related Web sites by Nielsen/NetRatings. Other language-specific Web sites include: weather.co.uk, wetter123.com, meteo123.com, canaldotempo.com, and weather.com/espanol. The Weather Channel is the leading provider of broadband and wireless weather products accessible through high-speed internet services, digital cell phones, pagers, Palm Pilots, and other personal digital assistants.

MICHAEL L. DIAZ

Michael L. Diaz is a graduate of Bethel High School in Hampton, Virginia. He will major in meteorology at North Carolina State University.

THE LARRY R. JOHNSON MEMORIAL MINORITY SCHOLARSHIP

Larry Richard Johnson was born in Klemme, Iowa, on 6 May 1944. His contributions to meteorology spanned over 30 years and careers with the U.S. Air Force and PRC [now known as Northrop Grumman Information Technology (IT)]. Larry served 10 years with PRC in a variety of assignments on the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) program, the integrating element of the $4.5 billion National Weather Service Modernization. He served during the definition, development, and deployment phases as principal applications scientist department manager, executive manager, and deputy program manager. Known as "Mr. AWIPS," Larry's tenure on AWIPS was longer than any other person, and his contributions to the success of AWIPS stand out among all others. Larry earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in meteorology in 1969 and 1979, respectively, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He earned M.S.-equivalent degrees in 1983 from Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Alabama; in 1986 from Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Alabama; and in 1987 from National Defense University, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Ft. Leslie McNair, Washington, D.C. Larry served 23 years in the U.S. Air Force (USAF) Air Weather Service. Larry was active in the American Meteorological Society as a member for 29 years in numerous positions, and he was a founding member of the National Weather Association. He received numerous awards and published several articles and papers throughout his career. Larry Johnson's efforts were key to Northrop Grumman IT's early and continued support for the AMS Scholarship/Fellowship program.

Northrop Grumman IT provides scientific- and technology-based systems and services to government and commercial clients worldwide. Northrop Grumman IT is recognized for innovative methods of applying technology and science to solve customer's problems. One of Northrop Grumman IT's leading initiatives is its role as prime contractor for the National Weather Services' (NWS) AWIPS contract, the integrating element for the modernization of the NWS. With AWIPS, NWS forecasters produce more accurate and timely weather forecasts and warnings by combining and applying real-time satellite imagery, digital Doppler radar products, and ground system data, along with AWIPS-produced graphics of supercomputer-generated model output within a single, integrated system. Technologies developed by Northrop Grumman IT that are employed in AWIPS are now being reapplied in other commercial, governmental, and international weather programs. Northrop Grumman IT also operates and maintains the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) Data Receipt and Distribution Facility for NWS. At Northrop Grumman IT, the intellectual capacity and vision of its people are among the company's most valued assets. In support of education in earth sciences and in memory of Larry R. Johnson, Northrop Grumman IT proudly supports the Larry R. Johnson Memorial Minority Scholarship.

AMANDA C. CORDOVA

Amanda C. Cordova is a graduate of Loretto High School in Sacramento, California. She will major in environmental science at Northwestern University.

CLIMADATA, INC.

Founded in 1991, ClimaData is the nation's leading commercial weather firm for clients that serve the growing Hispanic population of the United States. ClimaData's weather forecasts reach millions of Latinos across the country on nearly 60 Spanish language radio stations. The presence of ClimaData is well known in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Dominican Republic as well, where residents can tune in for the company's weather forecasts on some of those islands' top-ranked radio and television stations, or even read the ClimaData Forecast in local newspapers. ClimaData also serves the industrial sector, with daily faxed forecasts and severe weather outlooks to multinational corporations with operations in the Caribbean. President and Chief Meteorologist John Toohey-Morales, CCM, said, "We are very proud to sponsor our fourth Hispanic student heading into a career in meteorology. Our scholarship winners set a high standard for all to follow."

BRAULIO E. SOSA

Braulio E. Sosa is a graduate of Winter Springs High School in Winter Springs, Florida. He will major in meteorology at The Florida State University.

IBM

At IBM, we lead in the creation, development, and manufacture of the industry's most advanced information technologies, including high performance computer (HPC) systems, data handling solutions, software, networking systems, storage devices, and microelectronics. IBM is the world's leading supplier of technology solutions for weather forecasting, climate and ocean research, and environmental simulations. IBM Research, with eight laboratories in six countries, plays a key role in advancing basic science and in creating innovative products and solutions for our weather and environmental customers. Check us out at www.ibm.com/servers/solutions/stc/

LINDA RUO-HUI FANG

Linda Ruo-Hui Fang is a graduate of Leland High School in San Jose, California. She will major in electrical engineering and computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

RAYTHEON SANTA BARBARA REMOTE SENSING

Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing (SBRS) is the world's leading manufacturer of precision, high reliability, remote sensing instruments for climate, planetary, environmental, and land research science use. Raytheon SBRS has a successful history of more than 35 years in the manufacture of space remote sensing instruments. It was a Raytheon SBRS Multicolor SpinScan Cloud Camera (MSSCC), the precursor to the GOES VISSR and VAS imager and sounder, aboard NASA's ATS-3 satellite that brought the world its first color image of the full Earth disk. Raytheon SBRS has built more than 78 sensors for planetary, meteorological, and Earth remote sensing use. We are proud of our record for 100% successful operation at turn on in orbit. SBRS' sensors operational lifetime on orbit have averaged more than 3 times the program requirements, making these sensors the most reliable space-qualified sensors worldwide thereby delivering exceptional value to our customers.

Raytheon SBRS plays an important part in NASA's Earth Science Enterprise having built the SeaWiFS, MODIS, ETM+, and the TRMM VIRS instruments and in the Space Science Enterprise with the TES II and THEMIS instruments presently orbiting Mars. These instruments are operating in space collecting data daily for NASA and the science community worldwide. The two Mars Exploration Rovers; MER A (Spirit) & MER B (Opportunity) each contain a Mini-TES instrument built by Raytheon SBRS. Integrated onto the twin rovers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and launched from the Kennedy Space Center in June 2003, the two MiniTES instruments will arrive on Mars in January 2004 to begin exploration of the Martian surface.

Raytheon SBRS continues our long heritage in meteorological sensors with the design and manufacture of the Japanese Advanced Meteorological Imager (JAMI) for Japan's MTSAT-1R mission. Integrated onto Space Systems Loral's spacecraft, JAMI is scheduled for launch in 2004. The JAMI will provide timely, high-quality, full-disk, multispectral imagery for operational weather needs over Japan, East Asia, and Australia. JAMI data supports weather forecasting in the Asia-Pacific region by measuring Earth radiation in four infrared bands and one visible band mapping cloud distribution, Earth surface temperature, cloudtop temperature, water vapor distribution, and the wind field.

Raytheon SBRS, under contract to Northrop-Grumman Space Systems, is designing, developing and manufacturing the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) and the Aerosol Polarimeter Sensor (APS) for the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS). VIIRS and APS are the next generation of advanced meteorological imaging and climate monitoring instruments. NPOESS converges the DMSP and POES systems that now serve the operational military and research science communities. The first VIIRS instrument suite will launch in 2005 as part of NASA's NPP mission. The first APS instrument is presently planned for launch in 2006.

VANESSA L. ALONSO

Vanessa L. Alonso is a graduate of G. Holmes Braddock Sr. High School in Miami, Florida. She will major in marine affairs and meteorology at The University of Miami.

RS INFORMATION SYSTEMS, INC. (RSIS)

RSIS provides advanced technical and business solutions in information technology, science, engineering, and management consulting.

Based in McLean, Virginia, RSIS is a minority-owned firm that has climbed into the ranks of the largest federal information technology contractors. Its president and CEO is Rodney P. Hunt, the company's cofounder.

With 1400 staff professionals nationwide, RSIS serves a wide range of federal agencies, both civilian and defense. It is this year's recipient of NASA's George M. Low Award, the agency's premier award for contractor quality. It was codeveloper of NASA's Software of the Year in 2001 and was named NASA's Minority Contractor of the Year in 2000.

The company supports key elements of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's environmental observation infrastructure: operations and engineering support of the National Weather Services' next-generation weather radar; software and systems engineering for the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System, and the data processing and distribution of satellite imagery. RSIS also provides systems development, science support, climate analysis and prediction, and system administration across NOAA's five line offices.

More information is available at www.rsis.com.

JOSHUA T. WALKER

Joshua T. Walker is a graduate of Oxon Hill High School in Oxon Hill, Maryland. He will major in meteorology at The Pennsylvania State University.

SCIENCE SYSTEMS & APPLICATIONS, INC. (SSAI)

Science Systems and Applications, Inc. (SSAI), a woman-owned small business, has been performing scientific and technological applications services and has steadily grown since its incorporation in April 1977. SSAI has received numerous commendations for within-budget and ontime quality support services. SSai's areas of expertise are earth and space sciences, advanced computing, scientific analysis, instruments engineering, Systems development, and information technology. SSAI employs a staff of highly qualified and experienced scientists, engineers, and information technologists. They strive for customer satisfaction by empowering their staff to achieve performance excellence. SSAI's customer- and employee- oriented polices have enabled them to maintain high staff loyalty and retention as an employer of choice for science, engineering, and IT professionals. SSAI is also a proud sponsor of the AMS/Om and Saraswati Bahithi Scholarship, which is named after the founders of SSAI, and is awarded to students entering their final year of undergraduate study.

OWEN H. SHIEH

Owen H. Shieh is a graduate of Melbourne Central Catholic High School in Melbourne, Florida. He will major in atmospheric science at Cornell University.

AMS 21ST CENTURY CAMPAIGN

The AMS 21st Century Campaign provides a focused institutional mechanism for AMS members, and organizations involved in the atmospheric and related sciences and services, to make meaningful contributions to the advancement of their science and to societal betterment. This campaign theme parallels and supports the goals of the AMS 10-Year Vision-which is to employ the remarkable advances in the atmospheric and related sciences and services for the benefit of society as a whole. The campaign is centered around four program areas:

* Public Awareness-focusing on increasing the visibility of AMS in both the atmospheric sciences community and in areas outside of our own field.

* Education of Our Future Scientists-supporting both collegiate studies with scholarships and fellowships and precollege education to assist students in becoming scientifically literate by providing training for K-13 teachers, and producing instructional resource materials.

* History of the Atmospheric and Related Sciences-supporting projects that are aimed at gathering, preserving, and providing access to historical documentation in science and technology.

* Atmospheric Policy Program-providing support to conduct studies of policy issues and providing education on policies that are affected by advances in atmospheric understanding and the provision of meteorological services by both the public and private sectors.

Through the support of member contributions to the AMS 21st Century Campaign, AMS is able to award minority scholarships and graduate fellowships to outstanding individuals pursing degrees in the atmospheric and related sciences.

ALBERTO A. GONZALEZ

Alberto A. Gonzalez is a graduate of El Rancho High School in Pico Rivera, California. He will major in the sciences at The University of California-Berkeley.

YOLANDA L. ROBERTS

Yolanda L. Roberts is a graduate of Clover Hill High School in Midlothian, Virginia. She will major in atmospheric science at Cornell University.

CORYNA M. SANDOVAL

Coryna M. Sandoval is a graduate of Angleton High School in Angelton, Texas. She will major in ocean and coastal resources at Texas A&M University.

UN experts complete inspection, seal containers of Russian nuclear fuel intended for Iran

U.N. atomic watchdog agency experts on Friday ended their inspection and sealed containers of Russian uranium fuel that is intended for Iran's first nuclear power plant, Russian officials said.

The completion of the International Atomic Energy Agency's work at Russia's main manufacturer of nuclear power plant fuel moves the delivery of the fuel for the Bushehr plant one step closer _ a step likely to further stoke concerns among Western nations deeply suspicious of Iran's intentions.

"The IAEA team together with representatives of the Federal Agency for Atomic Agency, the Iranian customer and the Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrate Plant examined the nuclear fuel and sealed the containers," state-run nuclear fuel manufacturer TVEL said in the statement.

Konstantin Grabelnikov, deputy head of the Novosibirsk plant, said delivery "will be made when there is a technological need at the plant and when a corresponding order is made," according to the statement.

During his trip to Iran last month, President Vladimir Putin promised that Russia would complete Bushehr, first planned more than a decade ago, but refused to say when it could begin operations.

He said a decision on shipping fuel would be made once Russian and Iranian experts agree on revisions to the contract.

Russia has said that the fuel dispute warned that Iran has been slow in making payments. Iranian officials have angrily denied they are in arrears and accused the Kremlin of caving in to pressure from Western countries.

The United States and other Western nations allege Tehran is using its nuclear program as a cover for efforts to develop atomic weapons. Tehran says its nuclear intentions are solely for generating electricity.

Putin's careful stance suggests he is seeking to preserve ties with Tehran without angering the West. Putin said he does not see evidence that Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons, as the United States and its allies contend.

Moscow has said it does not want a nuclear-armed Iran, and has urged Tehran to freeze uranium enrichment and answer international inspectors' questions.

Russia and China, another important ally of Iran, grudgingly approved two sets of limited United Nations sanctions against Iran over its refusal to suspend enrichment. But the Kremlin has bristled at the U.S. push for tougher measures, saying they would only escalate the rift.

Sizzling sound

Sunday evening at the Arc Bar, Broad Street, is officially SausageTime this weekend. That's not to say that the staff will be servingbratwursts over the bar, though.

In fact, Sausage Time is specifically "an extraordinary evening oflive alternative performance - from new music to scratch poetry, liveart to radical film - all of this and more." Sausage Time will, ineffect, provide a platform for artists who normally fall outside thetraditional concert format, as well as those who eager to trysomething very different from the nor m.

Local musicians Hugh Spiller and Nick Williams were inspired toinvent such a project by their collective experiences in variouscreative and performing arts in the past.

For more information visit www.sausagetime.com

Screech! ; Delays in production will upset Tata Motors' plans to earn money out of the low-cost car.

By the time this magazine is in your hands, there would be moreclarity on whether conditions have turned conducive for resumingwork at Singur, or whether Ratan Tata has decided to take the Rs1,500-crore project out of West Bengal to a more investmentfriendlystate. Whatever happens from hereon, it's increasingly clear thatTata Motors and its shareholders are going to feel the pinch of aproject that's delayed. Expectations of the first Nano rolling outof Singur by October or even in the October-December quarter appearoverly optimistic. That, coupled with Tata Motors' capital-raisingcompulsions for the acquisitions of Ford's Jaguar and Land Rover,have resulted in the stock having a torrid time on Dalal Street ithas slipped 24.4 per cent over the last three months, even as theBSE Sensex shed only 10.7 per cent.A delay in rolling out the Nanoisn't good for a few reasons: for one, it's a project whoseviability hangs on waferthin margins (estimated at barely 2 percent); for another, every day lost pushes back breakeven, whichanalysts expect in two years. A key to the Nano's costcompetitiveness is the integration of the adjoining vendor facility.Surinder Kapur, Managing Director, Sona Group, which is providingthe steering column to the Nano, told BT: Work on our facility iscomplete; we have moved the machinery in, and are awaiting word fromTata Motors. The burning Rs 1-lakh question, however, is whether theTatas will be in a position to position the Nano at around thatprice. It looks difficult because a delay will only compoundproblems of rising raw material costs. A quick ramp-up is animperative to break even. The initial plan for the plant calls forproduction of 150,000 units a year.Production in the six monthsbetween October and March 2009 will also be crucial to determine howlong Tata Motors takes to make profits. In a recent report, analystsat HDFC Securities were expecting only 25,000 units to roll out in2008-09. With the work having stopped, even that figure now looksoptimistic.

Rev. John V. Mentag, Former Loyola Prof

Rev. John V. Mentag, 78, a Jesuit priest and former assistanthistory professor at Loyola University, died Saturday in theColombiere Jesuit Community, Clarkston, Mich.

Father Mentag was on the Loyola faculty from 1960 to 1991, whenhe moved to Michigan.

During his tenure, he was a university trustee for five yearsand was acting manager for the historical journal Mid-America for 10years.

Father Mentag attended St. Mary's High School in his nativeMichigan City. In 1934, he entered the Jesuit order in Milford,Ohio. Ordained in 1947, he earned a doctorate in history fromLoyola.

Before teaching at Loyola, he was a history instructor at St.Xavier High School in Cincinnati and at nearby Xavier University.

He leaves three sisters, Barbara Meyers, Mary and Grace, and twobrothers, Robert and Dr. Paul.

Radical approach comes naturally to Pierre Boulez

Pierre Boulez with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra 7:30 p.m. Tuesday;8 p.m. Thursday and Friday; 3 p.m. Dec. 22 Orchestra Hall, 220 S. Michigan

$5-$54 (312) 435-6666

At age 66, Pierre Boulez has been part of the internationalclassical music scene long enough and has been outspoken enough sothat his reputation always precedes him.

There's Boulez the composer, creator of rigorously atonal workssuch as the cantata "Le visage nuptial" and chamber pieces such as"Repons" that mixed a digital processor with acoustic instruments.Since 1977, as director of the Institute for Acoustical-MusicalResearch and Coordination at the Pompidieu Centre in Paris, he hasworked with engineers, musicians and composers to push therelationship between computers and music into uncharted territory.

There's also Boulez the conductor, the man who provoked the ireof New York Philharmonic subscribers by giving them more than theminimal amount of 20th century music during his years as thesymphony's music director between 1971 and 1977.

And let's not forget Boulez the intellectual and musictheoretician, who as a young radical booed an all-Stravinsky concertas insufficiently adventuresome. The young Boulez also declared thatany composer who failed to employ the Arnold Schoenberg serial,atonal method of composition was "of no use."

The reputation is formidable, but during an interview a fewhours before the concert opening his four-week residency with theChicago Symphony Orchestra, the man was not. Relaxed after arehearsal that had gone well, sipping some mineral water, Boulezhappily talked about a wide range of subjects.

One of the most fascinating is his continuing work withtechnology and standard orchestral instruments.

"I don't like technology alone," Boulez said. `If you put thingson tape or on machinery that works by itself, you have no contact(with people). It's interesting under other circumstances. If youdo an exhibition or put it in an environment, it's OK. For aconcert, it is not OK."

Audiences who have endured the most rigorous kinds of electronicconcerts doubtless will agree. Few things are more disconcertingthat watching a set of speakers on an otherwise empty stage and notbeing sure whether the odd sounds you're hearing are sound checks,ventilation systems that have gone awry or the music itself.

"Not only do you need the eye to be involved," said Boulez, "butalso, what's interesting in music is the last-minute involvement ofthe performer. That provides something quite different (fromtechnology). You cannot have any technology doing that."

Boulez sees technology as the ultimate expression of therational in music. Training in both music and mathematics as ateenager, he has always had a special devotion to rationality sincehis earliest days as a conductor and composer. His own music has afierce underlying logic that may or may not be obvious on firsthearing. His conducting has a crystalline edge that typically shinesnew light on orchestral textures and layers.

"I like the rational side," said Boulez, "the rational sideamplified, expanded by technology. It gives sound sources, arelationship to the space, which is quite different (from) thatgiven by the performers). The musicians, in a way, disturb thetechnology. There is a confrontation that is interesting."

Applying computer technology to music has made huge stridessince Boulez started working with it decades ago. Early computerswere approximately as musician-friendly as the badly designedsoftware packages of some of today's personal computers.

"Before, technology was rather clumsy and limited," Boulezadmitted. "Today, the relationship between musicians and technologyis much easier. It speaks much more to their imagination becausethey have more direct contact with the results. The talk between themachine and musician is more musicians' talk now, not mathematicians'talk."

It will be some time, however, before such interaction occursregularly at orchestral concerts. "It probably will develop," Boulezsaid. "But you have two kinds of reaction. You have people who havea quick reaction to technology, and others who don't have a mind forit at all. They have to have an assistant. Among young people, thetransition will be easier. For people of my generation, it's a newthing to learn."

And given the complex sound makeup of the average symphonyorchestra, adding computers may simply muddy the musical waters."You cannot have complexity and complexity," Boulez said. "It's toomuch. It becomes messy. You could expand some soloists, forexample, but you cannot really do that with the whole sound of theorchestra."

Boulez will be conducting what he considers classics of the 20thcentury through Dec. 22 with the CSO. A close friend and colleagueof Daniel Barenboim, the CSO's new music director, Boulez will bemaking annual conducting visits to Chicago in coming seasons.

Most of his work these days is with his Ensemble Contemporainat IRCAM, which gives approximately 80 concerts a year. His"Notations 4-8," reworkings of short piano pieces done in the 1940s,was supposed to have its world premiere here with the CSO underBarenboim's baton this March. Boulez was ill earlier in the fall,and the work is still unfinished. The premiere has been postponeduntil the 1992-93 season.

Boulez has a strong reputation as a conductor. His work at theWagner Festival in Bayreuth, Germany, including "Parsifal" and thecomplete cycle of "Der Ring des Nibelungen" directed by PatriceChereau in 1976, were highly acclaimed. He limits his orchestralconducting now.

"I just do guest conducting from time to time in places that areinteresting to me," Boulez said. "For me to work with a musicdirector, like Daniel, who is really competent and imaginative,that's interesting. And the orchestra here," Boulez added, shakinghis head with pleasure, "such players, such discipline."

Obama wants small business tax, investment breaks

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration wants Congress to enact or expand tax breaks for small businesses and remove barriers to business startups. The legislation seizes on existing bipartisan proposals that could win support even in an election year.

President Barack Obama plans to send the legislation to Congress Tuesday. The package includes measures to make permanent a zero capital gains tax rate for investments in small businesses. It also would extend for a year the ability of businesses to immediately deduct all of the costs of equipment and software purchases.

Obama also is proposing a new 10 percent tax credit for small businesses that add jobs or increase wages in 2012. In addition, the legislation would make it easier for new startup companies to raise money and go public.