The 2012 annual meeting was held during the 2012 DAMOP meeting, June 4-8, 2012, Orange County, CA. The meeting was scheduled for Monday, June 4, from 8 to 10 PM in the Harbor Room at the conference hotel (Hyatt-Regency).
TAMOC 2012 Agenda: Monday June 4, 8 PM in the Harbor Room (Hyatt-Regency)
at DAMOP
8:00 Welcome remarks (TAMOC)
8:05 Call for nominations and election of officers
8:15 Latest news from ITAMP (Hossein Sadeghpour, ITAMP Director)
Funding situation reports:
8:25 Department of Energy (Jeff Krause, Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Sciences program manager)
8:35 National Science Foundation (Richard Pratt, Atomic Theory program manager)
8:50 APS report from Washington (Mike Lubell)
9:00 Discussion of the report "TAMOP: Recent Developments and a Vision for the Future." (Klaus Bartschat, Ivan Deutsch, and/or Doerte Blume)
Minutes:
TAMOC minutes June 4, 2012 Anaheim, CA, 8 PM.
Secretary introduced the meeting and discussed the new web site,
launched this year (sites.google.com/site/tamocphysics). The aim
is to have continuation of the website through leadership changes;
also historical TAMOC information (old newsletters and meeting
minutes, etc.) are posted within the website.
New officers. A call for nominations was made for the Chair and
the Secretary positions. Two candidates were proposed, and they
accepted. Christian Buth (Argonne) and Svetlana Malinovskaya (Stevens)
will be the new co-Chairs of TAMOC.
The Latest news from ITAMP was reported by Hossein Sadeghpour
(ITAMP Director). ITAMP will be refunded by the NSF. Details to
follow.
Jeff Krause (AMOS or Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Sciences program
manager) discussed the Department of Energy budget and progress
in the last year. FY 2013 BES AMO science request was +4.7%. The
program supports 62 PIs, including 1 center at KSU with 10 PIs.
AMOS is 36% theoretical and 64% experimental; also 30% is university
and 70% labs. Areas currently funded are intense field, ultrafast
x-ray, correlated dynamics, ultra cold molecules and nano science.
A new strategic plan and other reports are available from the DoE.
Richard Pratt (Atomic Theory program manager) discussed the National
Science Foundation TAMOP program. Budget was down a few percent
this year. Support is $4.5M for TAMOP and $4.2M for quantum information
science (QIS). As far at the TAMOP workshop report (see below),
his program will take into account recommendations when considering
new solicitations over the next three years. The Committee of
Visitors at NSF recommended fewer but larger awards for the TAMOP
program but the theory panel opposed this suggestion. NSF is
considering future action as well as role of TAMOP in supporting
research in other areas (e.g. plasma, astro) as well as connections
to broader fields (condensed matter, materials research). Similar
considerations pertain to QIS's relationship to optics. Wendell
Hill and Pratt will be leaving. The experimental program manager
search is in the interview phase, the theoretical program manager
will be Ann Orel.
Mike Lubell (APS) reported on the Washington DC scene. APS did a
public poll on attitudes towards science. (Not clear if this is
available yet.) For many voting groups scientific research was at
or near the top of the list of areas for government spending to
reduce. A group including Ira Flatow, Ken Chang, Brian Greene,
Alan Alda, Neil deGrasse Tyson, met to consider what APS can do.
Several considerations of pressure on the Federal government budget
process were discussed (sequestration in January, continuing
resolutions, AMT, debt ceiling, …). The "Fiscal Cliff" study by
Goldman Sachs indicates a 4% drag on the economy could result.
(apparently the source is The Election and the "Fiscal Cliff"(Phillips),
Goldman Sachs Global Economics, Commodities, and Strategy Research,
published April 4, 2012).
Klaus Bartschat discussed the report "TAMOP: Recent Developments
and a Vision for the Future." The report will be printed and
distributed (for a fee) by AIP to policy makers, department chairs,
etc. Recommendations are in the report.
Meeting adjourned around 9:30 PM. Jim Babb, Secretary.