Location

The Autumn 1997 meeting of the Society of Rheology will be held at the Hyatt on Capitol Square in Columbus, Ohio, October 19 to 23, 1997. A mailer registration form from the Hyatt is enclosed in the July mailing. Rates are $112 (single or double, plus tax). If you do not have the Hyatt registration form, you can call them by phone. The telephone number (voice) is (614) 228-1234. Please announce that you are attending the SoR meeting.

The Hyatt is a 22-story, 400 room luxury hotel in downtown Columbus. The hotel is adjacent to the Art Deco Ohio Theater and the Columbus City Center, a three-story upscale mall with three major department stores and 121 specialty shops. The Hyatt on Capitol Square has an award-winning restaurant, two bar lounges, and the 6,000 square foot Governor's Ballroom. Facilities include a Penthouse Fitness Center with exercise and workout equipment, a sauna and whirlpool. Within blocks of the hotel are major corporate offices, the Columbus Museum of Art, and the Center of Science and Technology (COSI). The hotel provides complimentary downtown shuttle service. Weather in Columbus in October is generally pleasant with temperatures ranging from 45 to 65 ºF. but bring a raincoat just in case.

The Hyatt is holding 65 rooms for Saturday, October 18 and 130 for Sunday, October 19, 1997, and Monday, October 20. They will guarantee these reservations only until September 29, 1997. There is an Ohio State football game with Indiana on October 18th so hotel rooms in Columbus will be in very short supply that weekend. Please make your reservations as soon as possible and definitely before September 29, 1997.

Transportation

Port Columbus International Airport is fifteen minutes away from the Hyatt and is served by most airlines. Limousine service runs every half-hour and will deliver you to the Hyatt Capitol Square for $8.50. Taxis from the airport cost about $15.00. Valet parking is available at the hotel.

Registration

The registration fee includes program abstracts and admission to social events, exhibits, technical sessions, plenary lectures and the Bingham Award Address. The Bingham Award Banquet, held Tuesday evening, costs an additional $35 per person. Please purchase tickets for this event before the meeting. A Meeting Registration form is enclosed in the July mailing. Please complete it and mail it to: Rheology Meeting, 225 Mount Hall, 1050 Carmack, Columbus, OH 43210; (614) 292-4230. The registration fee may be paid by check or money order made payable to the Society of Rheology. Registrants paying by Mastercard or Visa may do so by FAX to (614) 292-0492. Registrations received after September 15,1997 will incur a late charge.

Registration material can be picked up and late registration will be held in the Legislative Foyer of the Hyatt from 6:00 to 9:00 P.M. Sunday, October 19 or after 8:00 A.M. on October 20, 21 or 22.

Welcoming Reception

T.A. Instruments will host a reception in the Legislative Foyer of the Hyatt on Capitol Square on Sunday, October 19 from 7:00 to 10:00 P.M.

Society Reception

Rheometrics, Inc. will host, with the Society, a reception at 7:00 P.M. on Monday, October 20th in the Ohio Statehouse Atrium, across the street from the Hyatt. The historic State Capitol Building has recently been restored to its original grandeur at a cost of $112 million. The building was completed in 1861 in Greek Revival architecture style. It is the eighth oldest working Statehouse in the nation. Abraham Lincoln's body was laid to rest in the rotunda of the Capital in 1865 on the way home to Illinois. Docent tours of part of the Statehouse will be scheduled during the reception.

Society Business Meeting

The annual business meeting of The Society of Rheology will be held in the Legislative Room of the Hyatt on Tuesday, October 21st, immediately after the last afternoon paper about 5:30 P.M.

Bingham Award Banquet

A reception will be held beginning at 7:00 P.M. on Tuesday, October 21st prior to the Bingham Award Banquet in the Governors Foyer AB of the Hyatt. Dinner will be served at 8:00 P.M. in the Governors Ballroom AB for those attending the banquet. Wine for the reception and banquet will be provided by Haake, Inc.

Poster Session

PAAR Physica USA, Inc. will sponsor a reception in conjunction with the Poster Session on Wednesday, October 22 at The Hyatt. This event will start at the conclusion of the technical session. Posters will be on display in the Legislative Room.

Exhibits

Vendors will demonstrate their products in the Congressional Room, which is near the conference rooms. Coffee will be served in this room. This area will be staffed half an hour before a coffee break until about half an hour after the break. Exhibits will also be open during the poster session Wednesday evening.

Accompanying Persons Program

An informal accompanying person program is being organized. It will begin with coffee at 10:00 A.M. on Monday, October 20th in the second floor lounge of the Hyatt. Docent tours are planned for the Columbus Art museum, the prize winning Wexner Center (on the Ohio State campus) with its deconstructionist architecture, and the elegantly restored Art Deco Ohio Theater. There will be no charge for the tours other than admission costs, and informal lunch arrangements will be planned.

Sightseeing

Some of the other sites in Columbus that attendees may want to visit are the world-famous Columbus Zoo, COSI (Columbus Science and Industry museum), the Downtown Shopping mall adjacent to the Hyatt Capitol Square Hotel, the new startlingly designed Columbus Convention Center, a replica of Christopher Columbus's Santa Maria, the Franklin Park Conservatory, and the Topiary garden recreation of Georges Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte."