SPATIAL ANALYSIS & MODELING
STUDENT PAPER & EMERGING SCHOLAR PAPER COMPETITIONS

The Spatial Analysis and Modeling Specialty Group of the Association of American Geographers is announcing TWO PAPER COMPETITIONS for the 2002 AAG Meeting in Los Angeles. One competition will be a STUDENT PAPER COMPETITION for any research conducted while a student at an accredited university. The second will be an EMERGING SCHOLAR PAPER COMPETITION for anyone within six years of their Ph.D. degree award at the time of the 2002 AAG meeting. Each competition will have a total of $500 in prizes. The winner(s) will also be invited to submit the manuscript for publication in GEOGRAPHICAL ANALYSIS, subject to the standard review process of the journal.

Papers may be of a theoretical or applied nature. Papers will be judged on the following criteria:

1. potential contribution to the use of mathematical models, statistical techniques and other technological and computational approaches for analyzing spatial phenomena in any subfield of geography;
2. appropriate and sound use of methodology;
3. originality; and,
4. organization and written composition of the paper.

Submission Procedures:

1. STUDENT PAPER COMPETITION: The paper must be a single‑authored paper based on research primarily conducted while a student at an accredited university. The entrant need not be a student at the time of the AAG meeting. EMERGING SCHOLAR COMPETITION: The paper must be a single‑authored paper whose author is within six years of their Ph.D. award from an accredited degree program at the time of the 2002 AAG meeting.
   
   
2. An entrant may only participate in one of the two competitions in a given year.
   
   
3. Entrants will present their papers in an AAG session sponsored or co‑sponsored by the SAM specialty group. Persons wishing to enter either paper competition should notify either Chair Alan Murray (murray.308@osu.edu) or Vice-Chair Stuart Sweeney (sweeney@geog.ucsb.edu) shortly after the AAG’s August 31 abstract deadline so SAM officers can coordinate with the AAG to place competition papers in appropriate sessions.
4. A panel of three judges will review the papers before the AAG meeting. The winner(s), if any, will be announced at the SAM specialty group business meeting and at the AAG Awards Banquet; winners should be available to attend the banquet. The judges' decision, including the possibility of not awarding a prize, is final.
   
   
5. Four copies of the final version of the paper must be received at the address below by JANUARY 15, 2002. The cover page of the paper should contain the name, current affiliation, mailing address, phone number, email and "level" (for student paper competition; e.g., undergraduate, master's, Ph.D.) or place and year of Ph.D. degree (for emerging scholar competition). A second page should repeat the title and contain an abstract. No identifying information should appear anywhere else in the paper if possible.
   
   
6. Papers should be no longer than 35 double‑spaced pages, including tables, figures and references.
   
   
7. All entries should be submitted to:
   

   Stuart H. Sweeney
   Ellison Hall 3611
   Department of Geography
   University of California
   Santa Barbara, CA 93106-4060

Feel free to contact Stuart Sweeney if you have any questions about either competition.