FROM THE SECRETARY GENERAL
Secrétaire général de la Société Royale des Sciences de Liège, Institut de Mathématique de l'Université de Liège, Bât. B37, Grande Traverse 12, B-4000 Liège 1, Belgique, +32-4-3669371, +32-4-3669547, srsl@guest.ulg.ac.be
1The Royal Society of Sciences, of Liege, organises, regularly, lectures and conferences - the next one will take place in November 2004, it will fill up an issue of our Bulletin - and its membership grows with effective. Our corresponding members, respectively from Liege or from outside Liege. The Bulletin has regularly published, every year, about 400 pages of original papers or of lectures in all the fields generally considered scientific (Biology, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Mathematics and Physics).
2Of course, the publication of the Bulletin is sometimes delayed because the manuscripts don't reach us as regularly as we could wish. However, in 2004, once again, the 400 pages will, most probably, be reached.
3But our Society is confronted with a problem that many other similar Societies meet. The price of paper is ever higher, just as the price of postage, they all increase sometimes with important leaps. Simultaneously, the financial income either disappears (one of our sources) or melts like snow under the sun (20 % to 50 %, depending on the origin of the money). The subscriptions of our effective members have not changed for years but our experience is that if they do increase, the number of members' resignations increases too. Therefore the Society decided to stop the publication of its Bulletin on paper; it will publish only on Internet. We are in the process of negotiating the procedure. Of course you will be informed of the future of our publication.
4In 2003, the Society elected the following effective members : Ms Michèle DE SOUTER (Chemistry) , Mr. Moreno GALLENI (Biochemistry), Mr. Paul GERARD (Mathematics), Mr. Jean -Henri HECQ (Oceanology), Mr. André LUXEN (Physics), Mr. Edouard POTY (Paleontology), Mr. Marc THIRY (Cell Biology), Ms Jacqueline VANDER AUWERA (Geochemistry).
5A new corresponding member joined the Society: Mr. Thierry COURVOISIER (Astrophysics, Geneva).
6In 2003 , the Chairman of the Society was Professor Pierre LECOMTE (Mathematics) and the Society elected Professor Jean-Pierre THOME as the Chairman for 2004.
7The Society regretfully announces the disappearance of its following members, in 2003:
8Mr R. HAGEDORN (Geneva, CERN), Mr. J. SCHELL (M.P.I. Koln and U. Gent, Molecular Biology) Mr. I1ya PRIGOGINE (Brussels, Chemistry), Mr. A. VAN DE VORST (Liege, Physics) and Mr. B. RYBAK (Paris, Biophysics and Physiology).
9Liege. June and July 2004,
10J. AGHION