The Committee on Public Information was highly gratified by the response to its publication of the Summaries of Scientific Papers presented at the last two meetings of the Association, according to its chairman, Dr. Bernard Pacella. Previously, these summaries, which are prepared by their respective authors for the press, were mimeographed by the Central Office, and distributed to selected representatives of the mass communication media, in addition to being made available to the membership and guests of the Association. The request for the Summaries increased tremendously, and it therefore seemed appropriate to have them printed in the form of a booklet; the charge of $1.00 for each booklet is a little below the actual cost of printing.
Authors are requested to summarize the essential contents of their papers in relatively non-technical language so that they can be understood by the average educated layman. Interestingly, many members felt that the Summaries more clearly described the material than the technical outlines contained in the program. Of further interest is the fact that all papers accepted by the Program Committee are included in the Summaries, (unless the author objects to its inclusion in the Summaries), whereas not all of them are subsequently published in the psychoanalytic journals.
Dr. Pacella advises that subsequent editions are planned for each meeting of the Association.