The U.S. National Committee on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (USNCTAM) invites proposals for organizing AmeriMech Symposia. AmeriMech symposia are intended to promote interactions among researchers in an area of contemporary interest in the mechanics of fluids and solids. It is expected that the symposia will address topics of a specialized nature, will be small in size (about 50 participants) with minimal cost, held in an informal setting, encourage participation of young researchers, and promote interdisciplinary ideas and discussions. This format allows for in-depth discussions and close interactions between participants. Such symposia are known to help assess the state-of-the-art and chart new directions for the future.

 

AmeriMech symposia should normally extend over two to four days, according to need and scope. The symposia are required to be held at a University campus so as to minimize costs. They are organized by two to three researchers with one of them being the Chair. The organizers are responsible for planning and conducting the symposium. The symposia should be organized in such a way that they promote vibrant, informal and informative discussions. AmeriMech symposia are intended to promote interactions among researchers in an area of contemporary interest in the mechanics of fluids and solids, especially those with the potential for impact on national priorities. The symposia are held in a single session format and ample time should be left for breaks and discussions. In many cases introductory or review lectures can be used to motivate and introduce the topic. The invited speakers should be a mix of established and emerging researchers including some from related fields who could provide new perspectives and ideas for advancing the subject of interest. It is desirable to set aside time towards the end of the symposium for a final discussion to identify new and emerging ideas to motivate future research. It is strongly encouraged to post the presentations from the symposium on a website so that they can be disseminated broadly. Proceeding papers of the presentations are not required. It may be worthwhile for the organizers to prepare a paper within a short time (1-2 months) after the conclusion of the symposium on the recent advances and research needs identified during the symposium to be published online and perhaps in an archival Journal. Papers may be collected from the invited participants and published as a special issue of a Journal after normal review procedure but this is left to the interests of the organizers.

 

Starting July 1, 2016, researchers interested in organizing an AmeriMech symposium for the 2017-2018 cycle are invited to submit a 1-page proposal by email with “AmeriMech” in the subject line to John Dabiri (jodabiri@stanford.edu) and Tarek Zohdi (zohdi@berkeley.edu) before August 31, 2016. The proposal should contain:

 

(i) title for the symposium

(ii) proposed dates (at least the month), location and number of days

(iii) anticipated number of participants

(iv) proposer’s (Chair) name, affiliation and contact information (phone number, email), and name(s) and affiliation of co-organizers

(v) a synopsis (~200 words) containing the need and timeliness of the symposia, objectives, topics of

interest and anticipated benefits; subjects for symposia that promote mechanics in emerging areas are encouraged.

 

Decisions regarding the USNCTAM’s sponsorship of the symposia will be provided by September 30, 2016 and the approved symposia will be publicized on its website. It is expected that the approved symposia will take place within 6-12 months from the time of approval. General guidelines for organizing a successful symposium will be provided to the organizers. The cost of holding an AmeriMech symposium should be kept low and has to be covered by the registration fee. USNCTAM anticipates sponsoring three to four  symposia per year. Seed funding to help with the organization of the symposia will be provided based on need (up to $4K). The organizers are encouraged to also seek support from other sources. Previous symposia include:

Website: http://users.ictp.it/~tmb/index2016.html