Our Marine Operations group is undergoing a routine "Business Systems Review" by NSF - a process that will take 6-9 months to complete, but that was begun this week with three days of meetings with NSF representatives. This is one more example of the ever-increasing oversight on management and expenditure of federal dollars that is being imposed from DC. We have to show that we have all the checks and balances in place to insure that we are doing a thorough and careful job of spending the tax-payers money according to federally-mandated policies. The final report should be completed in the late spring.
This year's new cadre of Earth Institute Post Doctoral fellows visited the Campus earlier in the week and received briefings from the leadership of all the units. The breadth of intellectual endeavor encompassed by this group was interesting and impressive - political science, civil engineering, biology, geology - all were represented.
A marathon Senior Staff meeting - considering five promotions and new appointments - consumed most of this afternoon before the inaugural Colloquium of the semester presented by Jun Korenaga from Yale.
It is, of course, September 11th today. None of us should let the day pass without finding a few moments to reflect upon the momentous tragedy that occurred on this day eight years ago. The consequences influence our lives in major ways today, and sadly it seems that this will remain so for many years into the future.
Summer seems to have ended - I just do not have much more to say about that!
Have a good weekend,
- Mike