Monday, June 2, 2003

WRITER: Phil Williams, 706/542-8501, phil@franklin.uga.edu
CONTACT: Paul Schroeder, 706/542-2384, schroe@uga.edu

COMBINED MEETING OF MINERALOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA,
CLAY MINERALS SOCIETY TO BE HOSTED BY UGA IN JUNE

ATHENS, Ga. – Two national geology groups will combine for a meeting sponsored by the University of Georgia June 7-12. "Classic Clays and Minerals" will bring together many of the top scientists in the field for symposia, field trips and keynote speakers. The joint meeting of the Mineralogical Society of America and the Clay Minerals Society will take place at the Classic Center and the Georgia Center for Continuing Education.

"We have purposely designed the meeting to provide an intimate, focused and relaxed atmosphere for the exchange of ideas among an interdisciplinary group," said Paul Schroeder of UGA’s geology department. "In particular, we look forward to a new wave of information on planetary materials, microbial mineral formation, nanoparticle technology and medicinal applications of minerals."

Coinciding with the conference will be a symposium honoring Vernon Hurst, an internationally known scientist who spent most of his career at UGA and is best known for research in economic geology, industrial minerals processing and kaolin genesis. Hurst himself will give the Pioneer in Clay Science Lecture.

There will be speakers from universities and businesses all over the country and from as far away as France. Field trips will include visits to several areas, including a two-day visit to the kaolin district in middle Georgia near Sandersville.

The Clay Minerals Society began as the Clay Minerals Committee of the National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council in 1952, in response to the need for a formal way to hold national clay conferences. By 1962, the Clay Minerals Committee had become strong enough to stand on its own, and the Clay Minerals Society was incorporated. The journal Clays and Clay Minerals was first published in 1964.

The Mineralogical Society of America (MSA) was founded in 1919 for the advancement of mineralogy, crystallography, geochemistry and petrology, and promotion of their uses in other sciences, industry and the arts. It encourages fundamental research about natural materials; supports the teaching of mineralogical concepts and procedures to students of mineralogy and related arts and sciences; and attempts to raise the scientific literacy of society with respect to issues involving mineralogy.

For information or to register, visit www.gly.uga.edu/CMS2003.

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