A seminar on "Practical Approaches to Earthquake Prediction and Warning" was held in Tokyo and Tsukuba, Japan on November 7-11, 1983. This was the sixth seminar on earthquake prediction in the framework of the U.S.-Japan Cooperation in Science Program, a series that was initiated in 1964. The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science and the National Science Foundation of the U.S.A. sponsored the seminar. The U.S. Geological Survey gave substantial additional support by sen ding a number of scientists to the seminar. C. H. Scholz, Columbia University, and T. Rikitake, Nihon University, were the co-convenors on behalf of the U.S.A. and Japan, respectively. 23 Japanese and 23 American delegates and observers took part in the seminar. Forty papers were presented during the three days of scientific sessions at the Interna tional House of Japan, Roppongi, Tokyo, November 7-9. The other two days were spent on a field trip to Tsukuba Science City, where national laboratories engaged in earthquake prediction research and other aspects of earthquake hazard reduction have been established by several agencies of the Japanese Government. The program of the scientific sessions was organized according to the following topics: 1. The national programs of Japan and the U.S.A. 2. Theory and long-term earthquake prediction. 3. Strain and stress. 4. Observation systems. 5. Various precursors. 6. Social response, public policy and earthquake engineering."

Physical and chemical studies of the earth and planets along with their sur roundings are now developing very rapidly. As these studies are of essentially international character, many international conferences, symposia, seminars and workshops are held every year. To publish proceedings of these meetings is of course important for tracing development of various disciplines of earth and plane tary sciences though publishing is fast getting to be an expensive business. It is my pleasure to learn that the Center for Academic Publications Japan and the Japan Scientific Societies Press have agreed to undertake the publication of a series "Advances in Earth and Planetary Sciences" which should certainly become an important medium for conveying achievements of various meetings to the aca demic as well as non-academic scientific communities. It is planned to publish the series mostly on the basis of proceedings that appear in the Journal of Geomagnetism and Geoelectricity edited by the Society of Terrestrial Magnetism and Electricity of Japan, the Journal of Physics of the Earth by the Seismological Society of Japan and the Volcanological Society of Japan, and the Geochemical Journal by the Geochemical Society of Japan, although occasional volumes of the series will include independent proceedings. Selection of meetings, of which the proceedings will be included in the series, will be made by the Editorial Committee for which I have the honour to work as the General Editor."

Physical and chemical studies of the earth and planets along with their sur roundings are now developing very rapidly. As these studies are of essentially international character, many international conferences, symposia, seminars and workshops are held every year. To publish proceedings of these meetings is of course important for tracing development of various disciplines of earth and plane tary sciences though publishing is fast getting to be an expensive business. It is my pleasure to learn that the Center for Academic Publications Japan and the Japan Scientific Societies Press have agreed to undertake the publication of a series "Advances in Earth and Planetary Sciences" which should certainly become an important medium for conveying achievements of various meetings to the aca demic as well as non-academic scientific communities. It is planned to publish the series mostly on the basis of proceedings that appear in the Journal of Geomagnetism and Geoelectricity edited by the Society of Terrestrial Magnetism and Electricity of Japan, the Journal of Physics of the Earth by the Seismological Society of Japan and the Volcanological Society of Japan, and the Geochemical Journal by the Geochemical Society of Japan, although occasional volumes of the series will include independent proceedings. Selection of meetings, of which the proceedings will be included in the series, will be made by the Editorial Committee for which I have the honour to work as the General Editor."