AP-S turnstile

As you negotiate your way through the maze of eleven parallel sessions planned for each day of the 1989 AP-S/URSI Symposmm, you can\´t help wondering sometimes if the subject matter is getting altogether too specialized and if too many papers are being presented. To gain some perspective on the issue, consider the annual meeting of the Popular Culture Association and the American Culture Association, held this year in St. Louis during April 5-8, 1989. Over 1,300 papers were presented, with topics ranging from "Towards a Gastrointestinal History of American Civil War Veterans" to "Cultural Statements in Taiwan Betel Nut Packaging." (The Atlantic, April 1989)