President’s Invitation

William H. Press

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the AAAS Board of Directors, it is my honor to invite you to join us in Boston for the 2013 AAAS Annual Meeting, 14-18 February. As you may know, this annual event is one of the most widely recognized global science gatherings, with hundreds of networking opportunities and broad U.S. and international media coverage.

The meeting's theme — The Beauty and Benefits of Science — points to the “unreasonable effectiveness” of the scientific enterprise in creating economic growth, solving societal problems, and satisfying the essential human drive to understand the world in which we live.

The phrase “unreasonable effectiveness” was coined in 1960 by physicist Eugene Wigner, who explored the duality of mathematics — both beautiful unto itself, and also eminently practical, often in unexpected ways. The scientific program will highlight the rich and complicated connections between basic and applied research, and how they bring about both practical benefits and the beauty of pure understanding.

Everyone is welcome at the AAAS Annual Meeting. Those who join us will have the opportunity to choose among a broad range of activities, including plenary and topical lectures by some of the world's leading scientists and engineers, multidisciplinary symposia, cutting-edge seminars, career development workshops, and an international exhibition. You and your family can also enjoy Family Science Days, a free event open to the general public.

The Annual Meeting reflects tremendous efforts from the AAAS sections, divisions, and committees, which I gratefully acknowledge. I also extend a personal thanks to the members of the Scientific Program Committee who selected and assembled the many excellent ideas and proposals into this outstanding meeting.

Please join us in Boston,