The American Institute of Physics is a not‐for‐profit membership corporation chartered in New York State in 1931 for the purpose of promoting the advancement and diffusion of the knowledge of physics and its application to human welfare. Leading societies in the field of physics and astronomy are its members. AIP's activities include providing services to its Member Societies in the publishing, fiscal, and educational areas, as well as other services which can best be performed by one operating agency rather than dispersed among the constituent societies.