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Greetings from the Society President

With the yearÕs end drawing near, I hope that all members are in good health. Did you notice that this HP has been reformed? A click on the ÒEnglish VersionÓ button will open the English page. I hope that this will help our international communication. (Note)

Let me report our activities for the past several months.
Recently, two of our honorary members, Prof. Tomoko Fujii and Prof. Jiro Akabane, passed away. Prof. FujiiÕs essay collection ÒYume-oi no KiÓ (Tokyo Tosho Shuppankai) reminds me of her sensitive, delicate character. In addition, Prof. Ikuo Nishimoto of Keio University passed away at an early age of 47. I am sorry for his loss.

As for my scientific activities, I attended all local division meetings. I felt a great potential for activity at the local pharmacological meetings under the respective division directors. The Science Council of Japan has started its 19th term, and under the initiative of Prof. Masaki, the following members of the JPS became members of the Liaison Committee for Pharmacological Studies: Prof. Minoru Endo, Prof. Masao Endo, Prof. Junko Kimura, Prof. Yoshihisa Kurachi and myself. In this period in which the system of the Science Council of Japan will change, as will the system of the Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research, I hope these members will play an active part.

A directorsÕ meeting was held on December 13, and it was determined that the annual meeting of 2006 will be presided over by Prof. Mishina of the Kanto Division. As for the pending reform of the offices, we are planning to determine policies for the succeeding board, including: the unification of the offices into one in the Tokyo area; the seeking of a Òsoft landingÓ regarding the employment of staff members by neither increasing the burden on the finance of the society nor lowering the officesÕ clerical ability as exhibited so far; the revision of editorial work in this wave of change into electronic journals and the introduction of a new system under which the term of Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Pharmacological Sciences (JPS) will be 6 years or so; and the transfer of service related to the blue page of the Folia Pharmacologica Japonica and homepage to the Public Relations Committee.

Because of the new membership fee system that was established by the current Board, under which there is an option to not subscribe to the JPS, the circulation of the journal may drop dramatically, undermining its reputation as a journal. In particular, scientific councilors are urged to resume subscription to the JPS. We are considering an option in which members must pay for the journal even if they choose not to receive copies of it, and such copies will be contribute to overseas institutions. I hope you members will accept such an option.
So much for now, and I hope to receive your opinions.

End of December, 2003
Keitaro Hashimoto, M.D., Ph.D.
keitaroh@res.yamanashi-med.ac.jp

(Note) Transfer to our new HP is under way. The new HP will be available within this year. Please wait a little more. Thank you. (from HP coordinators)