The pursuit of scientific and technical excellence in publishing was once again addressed and celebrated as 27 Fellows and AAPG staff members met in Houston for the third annual Charles H. Taylor Fellowship meeting.
The one-day meeting, held in early February under the leadership of elected editor Michael L. Sweet, allowed the group to focus on not only at the state of AAPG publications in 2014, but also at the future of publications.
Items of discussion included:
AAPG Publication Awards
Building on last year’s Fellowship meeting determinations of what constitutes a “best paper,” deliberations took place surrounding the next set of Sproule, Dott and Pratt award winners.
Balloting that had taken place in the two months preceding the meeting had narrowed down the candidate lists for each award. Winners are yet to be announced.
BULLETIN
Last year a record number of 240 papers were submitted for peer review and the publication of two Special Issues.
Also discussed was the upcoming launch of an AAPG Publications App for app-based delivery of the BULLETIN. The app, which will be free to members, is currently being bid on by app developers and will be available by Jan. 1.
DEG’S Geosciences Journal
The Environmental Geosciences journal’s new editor-in-chief Michelle Cooney gave a brief presentation on the journal and the Division’s current activities.
The Division also promotes AAPG and DEG through a quarterly newsletter addressing current events in energy and environmental issues; coordinates field trips, short courses and workshops; and works to educate and engage the public and scientific communities
on relevant issues in energy and the environment.
INTERPRETATION Journal
A brief update and a question-and-answer session on the SEG/AAPG journal was given by editor-in-chief Younghe Sun. The journal, launched August 2013, continues to gain ground and grow in content with each new issue. Submissions remain strong.
Books
A new AAPG Books Editorial Board was announced to take the place of the former Publications Committee. The Board’s primary mission is three-fold: Provide geo-technical analysis on Memoir topics; assist and advise Memoir compilation editors; and review chapters
and reviewers for each Memoir.
The new board will be led by William D. DeMis, a former chair of the Publications Committee, and is tasked with scientific oversight of all AAPG Memoirs.