By Laws

International Society for Stereology (ISS)

BY-LAWS (revised 1987-8)

Article I: Name

The Society shall have the name 'International Society for Stereology' (ISS). The seat of the Society is Stuttgart, West Germany, where it was incorporated in 1963. The ISS is a not-for-profit corporation.

Article II: Purpose

The purpose of the Society is to promote the exchange and dissemination of information, amongst persons of various scientific disciplines and countries, regarding Stereology - nominally the science of determining the spatial structure of materials - on the basis of sections and projections through the materials. Stereology also embraces the analysis of planar images per se, and three- dimensional probes of materials. A prime concern of the Society is all practical applications of Stereology. The ISS also promotes such associated fields as Image Analysis and Processing, Stochastic Geometry, Mathematical Morphology, Pattern Recognition, and Fractal Geometry.

Article III: Membership

Any persons willing to promote Stereology, be it by scientific investigation (theoretical and practical), teaching, education, or contributions of financial or other kinds, may become a member of the Society, upon application to the Secretary-Treasurer and payment of the appropriate dues, which are determined by the Board. Upon joining, he/she shall be issued with a copy of these Bye-laws.

Membership classes are as follows:
1. Regular Members. Besides individuals, this may include non-profit-making scientific institutions, hospitals and libraries, for which one representative has voting rights.
2. Student Members. Applications must be countersigned by the student's supervisor.
3. Sponsoring Members. Any person, institution, or commercial company pledging to support the Society with regular generous financial or other contributions may be so elected by the President. Reconfirmation by each succeeding President is necessary. Sponsoring Members shall have priority over non-members in staging scientific or commercial exhibitions at Society events.
4. Honorary Members. These are persons, not necessarily members, who have made distinguished contributions, scientific or otherwise, to Stereology and its advancement. They are elected by the Board, to which any member with voting rights can make a nomination. Dues are waived for an Honorary Member's lifetime. There shall be no more than ten living Honorary Members at any time.

Membership is by the calendar year, and dues are payable each January 1 for the year ahead. If a member wishes to resign he/she should give written notice to the Secretary-Treasurer not later than January 31 after the January 1 on which dues become payable. Membership is automatically terminated if dues become two years overdue. The Secretary-Treasurer must be promptly informed of any change of address. In special situations, where payment of dues by persons highly active in Stereology or for the Society causes problems, their payment may be waived by the President. Reconfirmation by each succeeding President is necessary. All references to "ISS Members" in the following relate to paid-up members, having no dues outstanding, and include those for whom their payment has been waived.

Article IV: International Congress and Assembly of Members

Every four years (in the years 1959 + 4n) an International Congress for Stereology (nICS) shall be staged. At each such Congress, an Assembly of Members shall be held, which shall be announced to the membership at least three months in advance, with a call for items for the agenda. The agenda, to be arrived at through the full consultation of the Board, shall be announced to the membership at least one month in advance. Additional items for the agenda can be accepted at the Assembly, if adopted by a simple majority of the members present. No item may have the effect of amending or changing these Bye-laws; such amendments or changes are covered by Article VIII. The Assembly shall be chaired by the President or, in his/her absence, by a Vice-President. Voting at the Assembly shall be restricted to members who are present, and shall be based on a simple majority of the members voting (i.e., ignoring those who abstain). The chairman only votes to settle a tie. Minutes of the Assembly shall be prepared by the Secretary-Treasurer, and circulated to all members. In addition, every four years in the intermediate years (1969 + 4m), a European Symposium for Stereology (mESS) shall be staged, which should be attended by all Board members.

Article V: Officers

The Board comprises the President, the Vice-Presidents, the Secretary-Treasurer and the Immediate-Past-President. It is responsible for the fulfillment of the scientific and business obligations of the Society. The President is responsible for the overall running of the Society. The President, after consultation with the other Board members, appoints the Presidents of the Organizing Committees of the International Congress and regional meetings staged under the auspices of the society. The Vice-Presidents represent the interests of the Society in various geographical regions covering the globe, and important areas of Stereology. The President may delegate power to Vice-President/s, particularly in matters concerning the region or field of the Vice-President. The President chairs the Board, acquaints the Board with current issues, ascertains its feelings on those issues, and on that basis makes decisions where appropriate. Contentious issues shall be decided by a simple majority of all Board members (including the President) voting, ties being decided by the President's casting vote. The Board may decide to refer certain issues to a vote of all members, either by mail (decided by a simple majority of those voting) or at the Assembly of Members (Article IV). The Secretary-Treasurer is responsible for the day-to-day admini-stration, and the finances (see Article VII), of the Society. He/she shall handle all membership business, using a standard computer software package, which shall be transferred, if possible, to the next Secretary- Treasurer. He/she shall keep a Record Book, to be used for recording election results, the names of all officers and appointees, the minutes of Assemblies of Members and Board meetings, all Board decisions, all financial statements and reports, decisions made by mail votes, and all other pertinent information. The current Record Book, together with all previous Record Books, shall be transferred to the next Secretary-Treasurer. The President and Vice-Presidents are elected by a secret mail vote of all members, to be completed at least three months prior to the Assembly of Members, and (with the Immediate-Past- President) shall hold office for four years from the January 1 following that Assembly of Members. The current Board shall decide the number and specialities of the succeeding Vice- Presidents, with the proviso that they shall number no more than six, and the election shall be called by the current President and Secretary-Treasurer. Nominations of members for these positions shall be made by the proposal and seconding of other members. Nominations may also be made by a Nominating Committee appointed by the Board. The written consent of each nominee is required. A President may only serve one four year term. Transfer from the old to the new Board should be completed before January 1. In particular, dues notices should be despatched by the new Secretary-Treasurer, to reach members before January 1. The Board may appoint additional officers to perform special functions; for example, regional representatives, convenors of special interest groups, secretary for publications and education officer. The Board also appoints the Editors and members of the Editorial Boards of its official publications. The four year terms of appointed officers are the same as those of the President and Vice-Presidents.

Article VI: Scientific Activities

The Society shall foster and support regional meetings, workshops and courses intended to promote Stereology through scientific interchange and teaching. The Society shall support and encourage publications in the field of Stereology and related sciences. Normally, in addition to an annual Newsletter compiled by the President, a biennial Membership Directory issued by the Secretary-Treasurer and a biennial Recent Literature List, each member shall receive other publications of interest, e.g. reports on recently developed Computer Software. The Board shall facilitate any scientific and educational activity promoting the goals of the Society. The Board may incorporate or affiliate the Society with other cognate organizations.

Article VII: Finances

The Secretary-Treasurer shall oversee and control the finances of the Society, and may process 'Minor' outgoings alone. 'Larger' outgoings must have the sanction of the President, and 'Very large' outgoings the sanction of the Board; it is for the Board to decide the respective cut-off points. The Secretary-Treasurer shall report the financial position of the Society to the Board at least once yearly, by July 1. The Board shall appoint an independent auditor of the Society's accounts, whose quadrennial report shall be delivered to the new President during the January in which he/she assumes office. The Secretary-Treasurer shall deliver a financial report covering his/her period of office at the Assembly of Members.

Article VIII: Amendments to the Bye-laws

Any changes, amendments or additions to these Bye-laws must be submitted by the Board to the membership in a secret mail ballot, and approved by a two thirds majority of the members voting. Proposals for such amendments may originate from the Board, or from a document, signed by at least ten members, transmitted to the President.

Article IX: Dissolution of the Society

Following proposal by the Board, the membership may decide, in a secret mail vote requiring a three quarters majority of all members voting, to dissolve the Society. In such a case, the assets of the Society shall be turned over to a suitable not-for-profit organization, with similar goals to those of the ISS, chosen by the Board.

R.E. Miles 2 May 88