LAW Abstract for plenary talk

[Kate Kirby <kirby@cfa.harvard.edu>]

Dear Scientific Organizing Committee:
     I hope you accept my late abstract for the
plenary talk for the LAW06 meeting.  My father just
died about 10 days ago after a significant hospitalization
so I have been unable to meet work deadlines in a timely
fashion.
     I am very sorry for this being late.  Please let
me know if this is a problem.
                  Cheers, Kate Kirby

%
% NASA LAW 2006
%
\documentclass{article}

\begin{document}

\title{Laboratory Astrophysics: Enabling Scientific Discovery and 
Understanding}

\author{ Kate Kirby }

\date{19 January 2005}

\maketitle

\begin{abstract}
       NASA's Science Strategic Roadmap for Universe Exploration
lays out a series of science objectives on a grand scale and
discusses the various missions, over a wide range of wavelengths,
which will enable discovery.  Astronomical spectroscopy is
arguably the most powerful tool we have for exploring the
Universe.  Experimental and theoretical studies in Laboratory
Astrophysics convert "hard-won data into scientific understanding".*
However, the development of instruments with increasingly high
spectroscopic resolution demands atomic and molecular data of
unprecedented accuracy and completeness.  How to meet these
needs, in a time of severe budgetary constraints, poses a 
significant challenge both to NASA, the astronomical observers
and model-builders, and the laboratory astrophysics community.
I will discuss these issues, together with some recent examples
of productive astronomy/lab astro collaborations. \\

*NASA Science Strategic Roadmap, May 26, 2005, at \\
  http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=16753

\end{abstract}

\end{document}