SPIE 45th Annual Meeting 2000

SAN DIEGO, Aug 3 -- Attendance continued to grow at SPIE's 45th Annual meeting with an influx of students and exhibit-only walk-ins. Traffic at the exhibit was brisk for the second day in a row.
   Off premises activities also continued apace with the Annual General Meeting of the SPIE Corporation Tuesday night at the San Diego Marriott and the SPIE Fellows Luncheon. The General meeting attended to the business of the society and a report on its current state by the Society's president and an exchange of comments between members and their officers. The Fellows luncheon saw the introduction of 22 new Fellows.
   SPIE's annual meeting got underway Tuesday evening with an address by the society's president, Donald C. O'Shea, concerning the industry's need for education in the burgeoning area of optical communications and networks and DWDM technologies. O'Shea talked about new investments into building Technical Group forums and increasing the availability of education services online.
   The society's executive director Eugene Arthurs commented on the industry's inability to fill open positions and stressed the need to bring more students into the optics and photonics fields.
   SPIE treasurer Charles N. DeMund reported on the sound financial state of the society. DeMund said that SPIE will have more scholarship and grant resources at its disposal and will be able to better support technological advancements in the future.