EVP Report

There are twelve committees, commissions, publications, etc. in the Department of the Executive Vice-President (EVP). A thirteenth item has been added here to cover permissions to reprint from NSS publications.

Progress:
In summary, The Speleo Digest Committee is still on fire, moving at breakneck speed to catch the NSS up to date. Scott Fee has been doing an amazing job. The NSS NEWS has been looking great, has continued to be on time and is within budget. Dave and Elizabeth Bunnell are now a happily married couple. The same "kudos" goes for the Journal of Cave and Karst Studies. Louise Hose, Jim Pizarowicz and company have successfully caught up the backlog of Journal articles. Lois Lyles is actively working on the Members Manual. Publication is expected in early June. Additional work is being done to address problems found last year. Special Publications has a long report. Several items have changed On Caves and Cameras will also be moved back a year. Speleogenesis: Evolution of Karst Aquifers I have asked for smaller publishing estimates on both. The NCRC book that was expected to be published this fiscal year has been backed off a year. A 96-98 American Caving Accidents expects to be publishing in the May 31^st -June 1^st time period. Bill Putnam is adjusting his schedule to address this. This will both bring ACA up to date and cut some costs. There are motions on the Spring 1999 agenda for two EVP committee chairs: Joel Despain (International Exploration) and one of two candidates for (Research Advisory Committee). The other chairmen are out doing what they enjoy doing most.

All in all, the EVP committees are in great shape (thanks to my predecessor) and the continuing professionalism of the committee chairs.

Plans:
Continue riding the bull and help the committee chairs where ever possible. On the table right now are the following discussions: 1) Establishing advertising structures for each of the publications. 2) Better defining our Special Publications markets to avoid over inventory. 3) Should ACA be forced to become an "every other year" publication, the December issue of the

NSS News or remain a separate, annual publication. I prefer the last. It is also the most expensive option. After the 96-98 ACA is published in June this decision must be made and financed accordingly.

Problems:
EVP Committees were stressed financially from three directly related areas and one indirectly. These are: 1) Postal increases starting January 10, 1999 will have a substantial impact on the

EVP publication budgets. (The publicized $.01 for first class equates to substantially more when mailing the many NSS publications. 2) EVP budgets were reduced due to lower bookstore sales.

3) Cave Minerals of the World II is not selling nearly as well as expected. ie. We have a lot of inventory.

Committee Members:
Louise Hose
John Gookin
George Dasher
Dave Hughes
Butch Feldhaus

Progress:
I was not able to complete editing and preparation of the 1996 and 1997 reports for publication in December 1998 as planned. I have been working toward a March publication date, but recent events have caused that to change. In response to questions regarding costs and budgeting generated at the EC meeting early this month, I have submitted a proposal to produce a triple-issue covering 1996, 1997, and 1998 reports, to be published in June 1999. If this is done, the Society will save the cost of printing a separate issue for the 1998 reports in December 1999 - more than $6,000. Additional cost savings are possible through advertising revenue.

This is possible because the budget for the 96-97 issue was based on 82% of the size and cost of the 94-95 issue, which contained 148 incident reports. There are fewer reports for 96-97 than expected ( 97 rather than 120) and fewer 1998 reports than in most years (34 rather than 60). As a result, a triple issue containing about 131 reports is possible at a lower cost than the $10,000 spent on the 94-95 issue. This is possible because the mailing house expense is insensitive to the page count of the magazine. In addition, the cost to add 34 reports for 1998 incidents is small compared to the cost of printing a standalone 1998 issue. A triple issue 96-97-98 will fit in 48 pages, rather than the 52 used by the 94-95 double issue. Postage will be slightly higher than for 96-97 alone, but not significantly. A standalone 98 issue published in December 99 would cost at least $6,000 for printing and postage. I am awaiting quotes from potential printers, but initial discussions indicate that the total cost of printing and distribution for the triple issue will be under $9,000.

Further cost savings can be realized through aggressive sales of advertising in ACA, provided that such advertising is priced at market rates. I believe I can generate at least $5,000 in ad revenue if this is permitted. In that event, no funds from FY 99-2000 will be required for ACA, removing $5,000 from the proposed FY 99-2000 budget.

As a result, the net cost for publishing ACA 96-98 would be about $4,000, versus $14,000 for the combination of ACA 96-97 and a separate ACA 98 in December, or $13,000 for ACA 96-97 and half of the cost of ACA 98-99 encumbered in FY99-00, as provided for the in proposed ACA budget.

This proposal has the desirable side effect of making ACA totally caught up in June 99 - six months ahead of the normal distribution date for the 98 reports. Even if we continue the annual publication of ACA, the next issue (containing 1999 reports) would not be due until December 2000, halfway through FY 2000-01. If we go to every-other-year distribution, the next issue would cover 1999-2000 and would be published in December 2001.

Plans:
Complete preparation of 1996-97 material, and prepare 1998 material for publication in a June 1999 triple issue. If this proposal is not approved, I will be prepared to publish the 1996-97 double issue in April. In that event, 1998 material will be saved for a double issue with 1999 reports to be published sometime after June 2000.

Problems:
The advertising policy for ACA is not clear to me and needs review. I believe that ACA advertising should be treated separately from the News, because ACA is a Special Publication of the NSS (Acts 83-329 and 83-336). The NSS News advertising policy (Appendix V, Act 80-467) does not mention ACA, but if it is intended to apply to ACA there is no prohibition against setting specific rates for special issues or publications. I am conducting a market survey on advertising rates in similar publications and would like to base ACA ad rates on the results of that survey. I believe that this will result in significantly higher revenues from advertising. Using the current NSS News rates, ad revenue would not cover much more than the cost of printing the ad. That is one reason why I did not solicit advertising for the last ACA - it wasn't worth the time and expense. As stated in Appendix V, advertising is for the convenience of the members, not the advertisers. It should be priced to yield maximum revenue so that a significant portion of the publication cost is covered by advertising income. Once the rate survey is complete, I will submit a proposed rate schedule to the EVP and to the News Advertising manager for review and approval.

Kathleen H. Lavoie
Dean of College of Arts and Sciences and
Professor, Biology Department
University of Michigan-Flint
Flint, MI 48502-2186

Plans: Still interested in increasing involvement and awareness of links between NSS and AAAS. I am considering writing an informative letter for possible publication in the NSS News or the Bulletin that provides information and invites suggestions.

Progress: No action since last quarter. I did not attend the AAAS meeting this year.

Progress:
George Veni reports that all of the chapters for the booklet "Living on Karst" have been submitted to him and are undergoing the first rounds of editing and merging. Although we are significantly behind schedule on this, at least we are showing some progress. AGI recently released its new publication entitled "Sustaining our Soils and Society," and it is a very classy 8X10 glossy publication with abundant illustrations. The soils booklet is vastly superior to the first booklet on groundwater and gives NSS a lofty target. AGI and NSS can both be proud if we produce a booklet as nice as the soils publication.

Plans:
I intend to go to the AGI meetings during the American Association of Petroleum Geologists meeting in San Antonio this spring. Meanwhile, I will continue to do what I can to
encourage progress on the NSS-AGI karst publication, and to take care of any AGI related issues that occur.

Problems:
Although we are making progress on the NSS-AGI karst publication, our tardiness in delivering a product to AGI continues to be a black eye for NSS. The best way we can cure this problem is by producing a quality product in a timely manner. I realize that everyone who is contributing to "Living on Karst" is a volunteer, but this is an opportunity for geoscience-minded NSS members to cause non-cavers to view speleology as more than a "hobby science." I encourage the Board of Governors to take a more active role in prodding the contributors to the publication to do their editing work promptly. Perhaps this could take the form of a letter of appreciation from the BOG to the authors for efforts made to date coupled with gentle urging to keep working on the project.

PROGRESS:
Although I had airline tickets and housing arrangements in hand I could not attend the AAAS meeting in Anaheim in January due to a recent development on the home front. I guess it is said most parents survive a child's teenage years, only time will tell.

I am now fully moved over to a Lotus Notes System so my email address has changed to: dlchess@us.ibm.com. The system has the advantage of handling attached files and graphics.

I did notice that the AAAS changed the front end of their web page. It can be found at www.aaas.org Most of the information on AAAS resources can be found if you search long enough. The NSS has a page link in the Affiliates section and I sent the Webmaster a note to also include the NSS page link in the 'Other Scientific Societies Section'. I found a link for funding by foundations and various philanthropic groups.

The Section Secretaries are:
Dr. Carroll Ann Hodges (Geology/Geography)
U.S. Geological Survey
345 Middlefield Rd. MS 984
Menlo Park, CA 94024
(415) 329-5357
hodges@mojave.wr.usgs.gov

Dr. Marjorie L. Reaka-Kudla (Biology)
Dept. of Zoology
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742
(301) 405-6944
reaka@zool.umd.edu

The AAAS has many different fellowship programs for scientists and engineers at the undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate level including positions with Congress, The White House, Federal agencies (EPA, State Department) and with mass media organizations. For further information contact the Directorate for Science and Policy Programs at 202-326-6600. The deadline to apply for these programs is typically in mid January/February. These programs are approximately one year positions with stipends of $45-55K.

Program: Interns spend three months in Washington, DC, at the RAND-Science and Technology Policy Institute, beginning in June 1999, working on research projects related to science and technology policy in industry. Assignments vary depending on the interests and expertise of the successful candidates, as well as the Institute's research priorities. For a short overview, please click on overview.

Purpose: The internships are designed to provide a unique public policy learning experience, and a close-up look at the Washington, DC, technology policy community. The Institute is a federally funded research and development center, which provides research and objective analytical support to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).

Criteria: A prospective intern must be enrolled in a graduate-level science and technology policy or related program, and should have a Bachelor's degree in any physical, biological, or social science, any relevant interdisciplinary field, or any field of engineering. Applicants must be U.S. citizens.

Award: Two 1999 AAAS-RAND Science and Technology Policy interns will be selected. The internship stipend is negotiable with RAND, based on experience. Deadline for receipt of applications by AAAS is February 15, 1999.

For more information, please e-mail: scienc_policy@aaas.org or call us at
202/326-6700.
AAAS-RAND Science and Technology Policy Intern Program
1200 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20005
202/326-6700

Fellows spend one year on Capitol Hill working with Members of Congress or congressional committees as special assistants in legislative and policy areas requiring scientific and technical input. Two fellowships will be offered, with annual stipends of $48,000.

Fellow will work for one year in an environmental policy area, domestic or international, within the Congress, a relevant executive branch agency, or elsewhere in the policy community. Applicants must be U.S. citizens with a Ph.D. in any biological, physical, or social science, plus at least three years of relevant post-degree professional experience.

Fellows work in international affairs on scientific and technical subjects for one year, either in foreign policy at the U.S. Department of State or in international development for the U.S. Agency for International Development. One Fellow will be selected at State and approximately 12 Fellows will be selected at USAID. The annual stipend varies with experience, starting at approximately $48,000.

Fellows work for one year at either the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, providing scientific and technical input on issues relating to human health, economic, and environmental aspects of risk assessment or risk management. The annual stipend will be $45,000.

Fellows will work on issues related to defense policy, technology applications, defense systems analysis, and program oversight and management in one-year assignments in the offices of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology and the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Army Research and Technology. Assignments may involve interagency, congressional, or international activity. The stipend is $48,000.

Fellows work for one year at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's headquarters in Washington, DC, on an array of projects relating to science, policy, and the environment, including projects in risk assessment. The stipend is $46,500.

TECHNOLOGY POLICY AAAS/CRITICAL TECHNOLOGIES INSTITUTE SCIENCE & ENGINEERING FELLOWS PROGRAM

Fellows spend one year, working at the RAND Critical Technologies Institute, providing research and analytical support to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Issues involve research and development, technology transfer, international competitiveness, and related topics. At least one Fellow will be selected. Applicants must have a minimum of five years industrial experience, as mid-level or senior executives. Stipends are negotiable.

Home: (918) 333-5761
Work: (918) 336-9170
FAX: (918) 336-6407
E-mail: oksteele@aol.com

Progress:
Have awarded two Sara Corrie Grants. One was for $250 to Preston Forsythe for the Silvertip Montana Expedition this summer, and the other to Ron Simmons for diving gear.

Plans:
The committee is about to commence seeking additional funds to add to the Sara Corrie Fund.

Progress:
$250 award granted to Nancy Pistole for climbing gear for the Cueva Cheve expedition later this Spring.

Plans:
Motion on agenda for Joel Despain <Joel_Despain@nps.gov> to become the chair of the International Exploration Committee Chair.

Progress:
Two candidates have expressed interest in the position. I have not yet made a decision. There will be a motion on the Agenda for approval of an RAC Chair Nominee. Discussion in progress with Jill Yager on research in water filled caves in Cuba.

Editors:
1988 Mark & James Adler
1990 Scott Fee & Tom Willett
1991 Eileen C. O’Malley & Northern Indiana Grotto
1992 Jennifer Pinkley
1994 George Jaegers & Family
1998 James and Shelley Reyome
1999 James and Shelley Reyome

The recently published 1996 and 1997 Digest continue to sell at a steady pace as indicated by their respective inventories of 91 and 156 as of February 1, 1999.

The Speleo Digest web site was revamped due to the talents of Scott Parvin. The NSS News will print the "news release" in the near future while the same announcement was emailed to over 30 NSS IO Editors.

Progress: None (While the Reyomes are focusing their efforts on the 1998 Digest, the Series Editor is withholding newsletters.)

Progress: The selection process of materials for the 1998 Speleo Digest is, for all intents and purposes, complete except for anything that might stray in replacing what we cannot get from our original choices.

The response has been very good to our email requests for articles and photos. Members seem to understand the schedule we are on and are reacting accordingly. As a result we now have responses to approximately 90% of the emails we have sent, with about 2/3 of those responding including most or all of the material requested. The rest is promised, either by email or regular mail.

James & Shelley received their very first batch of newsletters on December 28^th (see Problems). Their Excel Spreadsheet indicates 401 articles, 224 maps, and 250 graphics forpossible inclusion in this Digest.

Plans: We have about 30 email requests yet to send and anticipate having them done by February 7. We have timeliness based upon the promises made and anticipate having everything we absolutely must have by February 28. What we get after that date we will insert as it comes if the material merits changing layouts, with March 15 being our tentative "lockout" date.

So far we have had to do next to no scanning and little typing but this will obviously change. We have a tentative selection for body text and will send a set of 10-15 sample pages to Scott Fee by February 15 for his approval. Our initial camera-ready goal is May 1, with an absolute latest of May 21. (This would allow printing and delivery by the July NSS Convention.)

Problems: Due to substantial changes in professional responsibilities, the prior Editor thought it was best to return the Digest materials in early January 1999 in order to facilitate the production of the 1998 Speleo Digest in a timely manner. The Series Editor contacted the 1999 Team who reviewed the proposed timetable and agreed to take on this project.

Progress: The US Cave section is done. I will leave it for my wife to ship the draft to you either Monday or Tuesday, February 23rd. George had previously submitted 156 pages which encompasses the US Cave Description section up through Kentucky for my review.

Plans: I should have the International section finished by the end of next weekend and I will try to get that in the mail the following Monday or Tuesday, March 2nd. I have a lot of bits and pieces of the remaining sections finished I just have to fill in some missing articles and DTP everything properly. That should take only a couple of weeks to complete. All of this is predicated that I get some time to work on everything but I think I am pretty much done with the crisis at work for awhile. I will do everything possible to wrap this up ASAP.

Problems: A significant number of graphics and photographs required rescanning in order to have a possible better print quality.

After Scott reviewed the aforementioned pages, it became apparent that a major publication was inadvertently overlooked. Scott contacted the editor who quickly gathered the material and sent it to George on a Zip Disk.

Progress: Progress has been slow this quarter due to working out of my office on the files. I have continued to finish up scanning some remaining articles, but the remaining scanning is mostly graphics (maps and filler art). I have mostly been working on layout of the chapters for which I have all of the articles and artwork ready. Unfortunately, I have been unable to move as quickly as I would like, and have been having some problems with graphics, so I only have about 5 chapters actually laid out (by chapters, I mean states).

Plans: I think the best thing for me to do is to complete the remaining scanning which I can easily do at work without too much trouble. If my layout progress doesn't pick up significantly by the end of next month (to the point where I feel I can complete the entire project by June) I will let Scott know that it will be best to find someone else to do actual layout.

Problems: I've been seriously thinking about my progress over the last few months, and due to not having a computer at home anymore, I really don't know if I'll be able to get all of the layout done by June (although I'd like to). This will be based on how fast I can get more actual layout completed. If I don't think I can finish in a reasonable amount of time, I'll contact Scott at that point and we can decide what to do with the files.

Progress: The typing is complete and the scanning is about 80% complete. Tom Rea has offered to do the layout, so I've sent one box of newsletters/files (approximately 80 articles with graphics) to him thus far. Tom wants to sift through my "reject" stack for more filler cartoons and pictures, so I can't really say how much more scanning that will entail.

Problems: The biggest problem is lack of DTP progress due to higher priorities without a close end in sight. This is fixed by having Tom do the layout. I also suffered a setback because I misplaced a disk with some files on it. However after further consideration I don't think I lost a significant amount, mostly fillers and a few article graphics. Tom will rescan these items.

Tom Rea Comments: I have received enough material for about 100 pages of digest, completely unedited. Eileen lost one ZIP disk which contained, maybe, 25 articles. These are being retyped and rescanned by Richard Honebrink. At this point I have no idea when the book will be completed.

Progress: Desktop publishing got into full swing after our October report. Tom Willett has shipped me the first 69 pages for proofing and indicates he has laid out additional pages which should take us up to the New Jersey chapter.

Problems: Tom’s business responsibilities halted most of our progress during January and early February.

Progress: We are on the final stage (so to speak) now. We have laid out approximately 1/4 of the Digest (maybe 1/5) and the layout continues. The graphics have mostly been rescanned and the majority of the editing of text has been done. The text will all be re-edited as the layout progresses. [As of February 2^nd, Mark and James had submitted over 100 pages of the US Caves Section for my review]

Plans: The best final copy date to Scott is the end of February. The worst date would be the end of March.

Problems: The major delay [during this period] has been the need to rescan almost all of the graphics. This has slowed us down dramatically. Had that not occurred, the book would be ready to go to press at this point in time. But, things happen . . . we keep plodding along . . . and it will get done.

Tom Rea (Committee Member)
Gale McCoy (Committee Member)
Barbara Ritts (Committee Member)

Progress:
We have now received all the materials for this book and are proceeding with layout and typesetting. The four peer reviews requested by the NSS in its contract with editor Klimchouk have been received. Final comments from the last reviewer are currently (Feb 99) being evaluated. The editors have already evaluated the other reviewers' comments and we are making minor changes to accommodate their suggestions.

Plans:
Our publishing contract with editor Klimchouk calls for the NSS to produce the book within one year after all materials have been received. Since we got the materials in January, this committee has informed Klimchouk that January 15,1999 will be considered the start of our one-year production cycle.

However, we’re reasonably confident this book will be done sooner, probably in October or November 1999. But neither we nor the editors want to rush the project and run the risk of mistakes.

Furthermore, some recent market research we conducted (described in the next paragraph) has convinced us that this book will be much more salable carrying a publication date of the year 2000 rather than 1999. So 2000, is the date we gave the Library of Congress on our application for the LC catalog number and will appear on our copyright page. Our plan is to begin pre-publication sales in May or June with a flyer to the prospects indicated below offering a discounted pre-publication price. Other parts of the promotion will involve reviews in several professional journals—including the Journal of Cave and Karst Studies—in the U.S.A, Europe, and Australia, among others. We will also have layout proofs of the covers and a good portion of the text completed before convention. These proofs––plus a big sheaf of order blanks ––will be on display at the Geology/Geography Session and the NSS bookstore.

Our latest Specifications and Estimate sheet for this book is dated February 19, 1999 (available on request to interested Directors via Email). This current revision was made to reflect some informal but detailed market research this committee conducted among the editors, authors, professionals in universities responsible for recommending books for library purchase, and others knowledgeable about the academic market for texts of this type. Those we queried were all familiar with the book or its major elements.

Our questions asked them to estimate how many copies would be sold to specific professional groups and libraries, such as—members of the NSS Geology/Geography Section, hydrogeologists, geomorphologists, engineering geologists, petroleum geologists, other earth scientists, government and environmental agencies, and college and private research libraries.

On the basis of this research, we reduced the size of the projected print run from 1,500 to 1,000. The cost analysis included in the Feb 19 estimate is based on new quotes for 1,000 copies received from eight printers in January 1999. At the request of the executive committee, we will also be requesting additional estimates from these eight printers for a quantity of 500 and 750 to see how these might affect the cost/profit equation.

We also did a little research into whether a paperbound book would sell as well as a hardbound cover in this market. The answer is an emphatic no. A hard bound book is expected for a quality text book. Furthermore, the savings (only 5–7%) would not make up for the potential loss in sales.

We had always assumed that hardbound was the binding of choice for this market, so our estimates and profit predictions have been based on that. One respondent put it this way: A $15 book may be softbound. A $50–60 book should be hardbound. Some libraries may buy an otherwise worthwhile softbound book. But they will then bind it at great cost. So the word "hardbound" in the flyer will often influence them in its favor.

Problems:
This book has considerable technical complexity, particularly the several hundred chemical and mathematical equations. So in addition to the editors, we are asking the authors to review their text and illustrations in final layout proofs. This will require more time than usual, but will help assure accuracy.

Progress:
We understand that the portions of the draft for this book have been reviewed by the NCRC and don’t meet their requirements yet.

Problems:
Multiple author books are always hard to whip out of the starting gate. So we’re experiencing the usual backups and restarts.

Even so, this book is worth waiting for because we believe it could be a good source of profit for the NSS. Besides the expected sales by the NCRC, this book has a good potential for significant additional sales of perhaps 2,000 to 3,000 more over a three to five year period. Crossover markets include rescue teams at several levels of county, state, and federal governments. We hope the new effort will bear fruit sooner than later.

Progress:
About 90% of this book has been received by the editors. However, there are still several of the usual complications that will cause delays, mostly those common to multi-author books.

Plans:
This committee’s production will be rescheduled to begin probably in the fall or winter of 1999. The book’s release would then take place in the spring of 2000, with pre-publication prices and promotion commencing in January or February of 2000.

With tight budgets, there has always been some discussion about the need for an NSS book on cave photography, since there is a current British book on the same subject, by Chris Howes. (FYI, he is writing an introduction to the NSS book.) Here is some of our thinking on this subject.

Next to exploration, taking pictures in caves is as the second most popular activity engaged in by NSS members. If you’ve squirmed through any grotto slide programs made up mostly of murky out-of-focus images, you may want to cheer the idea behind this book. Simply put, it’s to show NSS members how to take better pictures of the caves they visit. It’s written by 18 NSS cave photographers who explain in simple terms how to get better results. And if you’re optimistic, it may make a giant improvement in grotto programs and produce more good slides for the annual photo salon.

A direct comparison to Chris Howes’ book isn’t as straightforward as it might seem. While his book is very well written and beautifully illustrated, it tends to be more oriented to black and white photography (Howes’ specialty), than to color, the preference of most NSS photographers. For the information of any non-photographers, it’s generally agreed that color is easier for beginning photographers to shoot than black and white. This doesn’t mean they can’t learn from Howes’ book. But in general it is also a bit more technical than the NSS book will be.

It should sell very well to NSS members (1,000+ copies) if we can keep the price below $40 (we have the member price tentatively pegged at $37). Will it sell outside the NSS at the list price of $42? Probably not to any great extent—500 or so. Although the 32 page color section with 64 salon winning photos will help sell some copies (Howes’ book has eight color pages.) We have the first print run estimated at 2,000. But we are getting estimates for 500, 750, and 1000 to run the numbers again.

Progress, Plans, and Problems:
This book was once completely outlined, authors committed, and a schedule established. But for the past several years, the project has remained in limbo with nothing new to report. Current editor is gone. Another editor hasn’t been found. Nothing new was reported to this committee from the 1998 Section meeting at Convention.

So, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, we must make this point again. The NSS could reap a tidy return from a well written, authoritative book on cave management—a subject we ought to know a lot about. The help of Board members and others reading this report to encourage the Section or a motivated individual to take on the editorship and get this book written, is earnestly solicited.

Progress:
This book is making slow progress. We had some discussions with the editors at convention and have been copied on subsequent memos between the editors and contributing authors.

Progress:
No report was received. However, we understand that the book is still under development and making slow progress. According to the outline received, it will cover Carlsbad Cavern, Lechuguilla, Cottonwood, Three Fingers, Madonna, Virgin, and several other caves on Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Lincoln National Forest, and BLM lands.

Descriptions of each cave will include history, geologic setting, exploration, a map, and complete photographic coverage.

Plans:
When we receive enough of the manuscript and illustrations to judge the quality of the project more fully, we will get printing estimates and prepare a detailed Specification and Estimate sheet for the EC and Board.

If this book is done right and the photos match the expectations of the author, this committee is confident the NSS can produce a book to equal any done to date covering this beautiful caving area. Besides excellent sales to our members, this book could be quite popular at National Park Service Bookstores and bring in a modest profit for several years.

The fact is, this is a book that cries out to be created. If this writer and his photographic team run out of gas, this committee will try to find someone else to take it on.

Plans, Progress, and Problems:
To stimulate lagging sales of Cave Minerals of the World, this committee is recommending a tie in to the promotion for Speleology. In the announcement and flyer promoting that book, our plan is to offer a special NSS member price of $49 for CMW-2 and a combined member price of $90 for both Speleology and Cave Minerals if ordered at the same time. The non-member price in promotions outside the NSS will be $55 for CMW-2 and $100 for both books. A copy of the ad to appear in the May NSS news and JCKS is in preparation now.

This CMW-2 offer is a natural tie in since both books share a similar audience. We hope the special discounted price (regular member price is $65) or the two-for-ninety combination will generate new sales among NSS members.

With the miracle of hindsight, we’ve concluded that the member price may have been set too high for cavers. Sales were brisk to individuals when the $50 and $60 pre-publication prices were in effect. But they seemed to drop off when the $65 price went into effect. Anyway, it’s worth a try.

Progress:
This committee has been contacted by Ronald Kerbo, the NPS National Cave Specialist, to see if we might be interested in a new book on the caves of the National Parks. Needless to say, I said, yes, we would be very interested. This book could be very important for the NSS, because it can be sold alongside similar NPS guides in National Park bookstores nationwide. The idea for the book came from another NPS author whose book Underwater Wonders of the National Park System has enjoyed some sales success. (Just how much, we’re trying to ascertain now.)

Initially, Kerbo was working on the book under a contract with a commercial publisher. Among other things, it called for his royalties as author to be paid back into his NPS operating budget. But ultimately, this arrangement wasn’t agreeable to the NPS. So—with the consent of the publisher—the contract was canceled. His management is comfortable with the NSS publishing the book and with him writing the book on his own time at home. He will want to have a similar arrangement on royalties, assuming as we expect, that the book progresses to the point of executing a contract.

Underground Wonders will cover the seven major NPS show caves with history, descriptions, maps, and photos. In addition, back country caves open to cavers on a permit basis, such as several at Carlsbad Caverns NP, will be mentioned in a separate chapter.

Plans:
Kerbo will provide the outline, word count, and other details worked out with the previous publisher, plus drafts of a couple of chapters already done. Based on these, we will work out the page count, get printing estimates, and prepare a Specification and Estimate document for the book.

Problems:
Other than the fact that this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to publish an NPS guide book seems almost too good to be true, there are none so far.

With the agreement of the EC, this committee has purchased a Yamaha CDW-4-4-16 drive at a special MacWorld show price of $399 (Prices dropped from $600+ just recently.) This is a CR-RW drive that can make both recordable and rewritable compact disks.

In February we shipped to the NSS office eight CD-R’s containing two complete backup copies of the layouts and color illustrations for CMW-2 for archival purposes.

We will follow up soon with backup CD-R’s for On Rope., and other files maintained by this committee

For the edification of newer Board Members, here’s a quick look at what the NSS book publication program is all about. First off, you have to understand that it’s not a big program. At best, it might be termed modest, but ambitious.

It was set up back in 1982 to publish books of interest to NSS members—books that would most likely never see the light of day from main-stream publishers because the market is too small. As for the financial side, our mandate is that all NSS books should at least break even, and if possible turn a small profit.

To manage this program, a Special Publications Committee (comprised over the years of two chairmen and two to five members) was established and charged with these general functions:

Currently, the NSS has six titles in its book catalog. Arranged chronologically, these are:

You can see that our titles span a wide range of caving and speleological subjects, both technical and scientific. Four are how-to books—Caving Basics, On Rope, Cave Rescue Techniques, and On Station. One is scientific—Cave Minerals of the World. One is exploration—Cumberland Caverns. Of the two books in the pipeline that we have contracts with editors to create, one is scientific—Speleogenesis, the other is how to––On Caves and Cameras.

We also produced three conference proceedings in quantities of under 1,000 copies each:

So, the NSS publications program currently consists of six books. But if you add in new editions of existing books, symposia proceedings, and the history book, this committee has produced some 15 books over a 16 year period, or about one a year. During this period, how many authors with ideas for new books approached the committee? In my 12 years, I’d guess this also averaged about one budding author per year. And how many of these nascent ideas actually materialized into a final book? Only two. Most of the rest never even got to the table-of-contents or outline stage.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t a lot of good ideas out there for new caving books. But as anyone who has written a book can tell you, it’s a long hard road between the idea in your head and the ink on the printed page.

Louise D. Hose (Editor)
Department of Environmental Studies
501 Westminster Avenue
Westminster College
Fulton, MO 65251-1299

BOARD OF EDITORS
David Ashley (Life Sciences)
George Huppert (Conservation)
Vacent (Exploration)
Ira D. Sasowsky (Earth Sciences/Journal Index)
Marion O. Smith (Social Sciences)
Patty Jo Watson (Anthropology)
Betty Wheeler (Book Reviews)

ADVISORY BOARD
Penelope Boston
Horton Hobbs
David Jagnow
James Mead
Doug Medville
John Mylroie
James Nepstad
Margaret Palmer
Elizabeth White

Progress:
Volume 61, Number 1, is currently being laid out. It will be a slimmer issue than the last several issues but the quality should be high. We are publishing our first interior color graphics, an 11" x 17" version of the Cueva de Villa Luz map, drafted by Bob Richards. A grant from the Richmond Area Speleological Society to the primary author made this a no-cost venture to the Journal and the NSS. Many thanks to RASS! Volume 60, Number 3, was out on time and included the NSS Convention abstracts and the annual index for 1998. Kudos to Pat Kambesis and Ira Sasowsky, respectively, for making sure these materials were received by the Journal on time. Lastly, we are again under budget this year and are using the excess to update our version of Quark X-press, which Jim P. feels we are wise to do before the printer suddenly refuses to work with older version. We are also using the excess money to buy a CD recorder in order to archive the Journal. We should still have a $1500 - $2000 excess at the end of the fiscal year.

We had three excellent candidates apply for the position of Exploration Associate Editor. After consulting the Editorial and Advisory Committees, I expect to select one person before the next board meeting. Many thanks to Doug Medville, who is stepping down from the position. Also, with the new year, we thank Rane Curl, Andy Flurkey, and Will White, who are finishing three year terms on the Advisory Board. All three have been extremely valuable advisors to the Journal and I expect to continue consulting them in a sort of "emeritus" status. Doug Medville, John Mylroie, and Bette White have accepted three year appointments to the Advisory Board.

Plans:
It appears that no special issues will be ready for publication this year and that should make Volume 61 (1999) of the Journal a less expensive year as we expect a lower page count. It may also give us more time to work on the two areas that we haven’t given enough attention to: advertising and a website.

Problems:
Two important special issues are moving through the pipeline for appearances next year. One, a cave geomicrobiology symposium in conjunction with the 2000 NSS Convention is hoping to publish as the summer 2000 issue. However, a Guadalupe Mountains special issue based on the 1996 NSS Convention symposium is also planning to wrap up early next year. Since we can’t publish back-to-back special issues as we must allow the independent papers to be published in a timely manner, I need to work with the Guest Editors to resolve the timing issue. One possible solution is for the Guad Special Issue to come out in December 1999. They are planning a giant issue and this could be fiscally impossible unless we can find some outside grant money, which one of the guest editors (Harvey Duchene) has offered to seek. The other likely solution is for the Geomicrobiology special issue to come out in December 2000 and the Guads issue in April 2000, with a regular issue in August. If this happens and there is no outside grant, the Journal will be looking for a substantially larger budget line next fiscal year (00-01).

Dave Bunnell (Editor) (EVP: This address is the previous house)
320 Brook Rd.
Boulder Creek, CA. 95006

Bonnie Crystal (virtual Grotto)
Sharon Bravo (Proofreading)
Scott Fee (Advertising Manager)
Daniel Hazelton (Technology)
Dave Jagnow (Conservation)
Vacant (History)
Bill Klimack (In the Media)
Bob Springston (Newsletter Review)
Bill Cuddington (Techniques and Safety)
Peri Frantz (Down Through the Decades)

PROGRESS:
The News continues to remain within its budget, and I believe we should be finishing up the fiscal year in the black.

Features have been arriving at a steady rate and I've got a goodly backlog of quality features now. My arm twisting has paid off on several fronts in this regard.

We have a new feature, John Tudek's "Spelean Soapbox," devoted to more light-hearted pieces about caving.

PLANS:
Continue with the same format, which seems to be popular. More use of the color section to go with the feature article.

Upcoming features: A special issue on Lech "the second 50 miles." I've asked the Donald to get this together and he's agreeable. A feature on California's Hurricane Crawl Cave. A full issue devoted to the Black Hills Caves. Features on TAG, Australia, one on Mexico.

I also plan to introduce more product reviews, such as one for the new Tag-lite II, and new vertical gear.

PROBLEMS:
None that I know of. I'm waiting to see the real results of the new postage increase on our mailing costs. Also, I think that the NSS should re-evaluate the cost of foreign subscriptions (which cost the same as domestic), especially with postal increases. Are we losing money on that at $18/year?

Vince Kappler (Board Information)
Evelyn Bradshaw (Grotto Information)
Bill Bussey (Section Information)
David Taylor (Survey Information)
Office Staff (Members Listing)

PROGRESS:
In preparation for updating the manual contents, I have run ads in the NSS News requesting photo submissions, asking people to check their addresses, and have included an ad for the speleo-services directory. I have already begun receiving updates from folks, including the projects and surveys.

PLANS:
In consideration for the NSS budget crunch, I'm planning a black & white cover for the Manual. This should save a few thousand dollars in printing/production costs. I intend to hit a June 1 delivery schedule this year, as I'm not going to try and update the BOG list after the election. I will be sending reminders to people in charge of updating portions of the Manual in the next week. Rather than sending a copy of each section as it appeared previously, for the sake of streamlining the process I'm going to ask people to look at their respective section in the Manual and if it's ok or just needs very minor changes, to email me to that effect. If a major rework is needed, I'll send the text at that time for them to edit.

PROBLEMS:
No problems other than too much life and not enough time to live it!

Progress:
The following permissions/contacts/non-permissions were granted for reprinting NSS copyrighted materials:

WHO ORG. TYPE ORGANIZATION	REPRINT PERMISSION STATUS	REASON FOR REQUEST
Nancy Rueff Non-Profit Tampa Bay Area Grotto	Granted 10-27-98	Membership drive for grotto minus CDS in Florida (did not want to hassle the cave divers) List of Florida NSS Members
Jeff Bray NSS Grotto Monroe Co. Cavers	Granted 11-06-98	Use of NSS Logo in grotto newsletter
Kenneth Storey Non-Profit Speoarts Sub Section	Granted 11-17-98	Use of NSS Name and Logo for initial sub- section fund raiser on T-shirt
Clayton G Hodges Personal website	Granted 11-23-98	NSS Policy for Cave Conservation for a cave website
George Dasher Non-Profit WVSS	Granted 11-23-98	Use of Culverwell’s Schoolhouse drawings for use in book the Caves of Pendleton County
Bill Fieszel Profit	Granted 11-23-98	Hat Embroidery. NSS Member asked a hat be embroidered with the NSS Logo and his NSS number.
Art Fortini Non-Profit MRA Rescue Forum	Granted 11-25-98	MRA Rescue Forum. Reprint NEWS bolting articles from Safety and Techniques column.
Colleen Heraty Non-Profit Arbor Age Magazine	Granted 11-25-99	On Rope illustrations of knots
John Wilkerson Non-Profit MIG	Granted 12-28-98	NSS Membership list for those in the cavers in the Michigan Interlakes Grotto area for membership drive.
Brent Aulenbach Non-Profit SERA webpage	Granted 12/28/98	Guide to Responsible Caving, pp. 16-19 with modifications from Ed Sira
Scott Keith Non-Profit Dogwood City Grotto	Not Granted 1-1-99	Request for entire electronic NSS membership list to compare against grotto list. Exchange not continued by Scott
Jeffery Boarman Non-Profit Georgia College and State University	Granted 1-18-99	Copy pages of Caving Basics for training to be used for cave trips (one per semester) to Pettijohns and Tumbling Rock Caves.
Daniele Uytterhaegen Non-Profit Union Belge de Speleologie	Granted 1-25-99	NSS News, 1997, vol 55, 2, page 43 (below): "Bonnie Crystal in Sulphur Crystal Cave, Mauna Loa. The heavy crystal encrustations . . .
Roxane Heinze Non-Profit Goodman Theatre	Granted 2-9-99	Pictures from The Caves Beyond of Floyd Collins’ house and a cricket for a production of Tina Landau's and Adam Guettel's production of FLOYD COLLINS, 4/23-6/5/99 (missing authorization email message)
Paula Mitchell-Glore Non-Profit Louisville Grotto	Granted 2-9-99	Labels for partial NSS Members list (18 states) for Speleofest in Kentucky.
Paul Wynen For Profit Aboriculture	In Progress	Request for several diagrams and photographs from On Rope Chapters 2 and 3. This is an educational Aboriculture institution (but for profit)
Danny Brass For Profit	Granted 2-25-99	A derivative work of art (a carving) based on the NSS Logo as pictures in a non-caving art publication.