ASCB Newsletter - November 1999
| Women in Cell Biology Program | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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Monday, December 13 This program is designed to both demonstrate and discuss how to make the best case to secure your position, as well as how to request more resources, salary or space in your working environment.Successful and unsuccessful strategies will be highlighted through two light-hearted but realistic role-playing vignettes followed by a panel discussion with the role-players and the audience.The role-players are experienced members of the ASCB who themselves have been in negotiating positions before.Caroline Kane of the WICB Committee will moderate the panel discussion and questions from the audience.The program is designed to be of interest and relevance for junior, mid-career and senior scientists. |
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| Activities for Students & Young Scientists at the 1999 ASCB Annual Meeting | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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High School Program Francis Collins of the National Human Genome Research Institute of the NIH will discuss Reading Our Own Instruction Book: The Human Genome Project. Afterwards, students will have the opportunity to visit the exhibit halls, where they will enjoy special hands-on presentations by selected exhibitors. College Student Program Robert E. Jensen of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine will make a presentation on Mitochondrial Dynamics.Students will be invited to attend the Keynote Symposium following the presentation. Career Panel Frank Solomon of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology will moderate a discussion with several panelists who recently began an independent career in various sectors after training in cell biology. |
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| Announcements | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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ASCB Members Elected to Institute of Medicine William Brinkley - Baylor College of Medicine |
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| AXXS '99 | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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Achieving XXcellence in Science December 9-10, 1999 Access '99 is a workshop which aims to advance science by building the careers of all women in science, from the pre-doctoral stage to the senior scientist level. Anyone interested in women’s career issues is invited to attend. This workshop is being sponsored by the Office of Research in Women's Health Office of the Director at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in conjunction with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, other Institutes of the NIH and the American Society for Cell Biology and will be held December 9-10, 1999 at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., as a satellite meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology Annual Meeting. It is anticipated that participants in this workshop will:
To register or for more information contact: |
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| Classifieds | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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Postdoctoral Position. Laboratory Model:Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation in vitro: Mouse, Nonhuman primate and human ES cells.Focus: To induce directed, lineage restricted differentiation of ES cells in culture with particular focus on endoderm and pancreas differentiation.The project seeks to direct pancreatic lineage differentiation by manipulating in vitro culture conditions, by establishing a permissive in vivo growth environment, and by genetically modifying ES cells using a variety of methodologies.The long-term goal of the project is to develop an in vitro model system to study the mechanisms regulating pancreatic organogenesis and cyto-differentiation of islets of Langerhans and to derive homogeneous populations of insulin producing b cells.Desired Experience: facile with standard molecular biology techniques including Northern and Southern hybridizations, vector generation, retroviral gene transfer, ribonuclease protection assays, in situ hybridization.If interested, please contact: Jon S. Odorico, M.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison, (608) 263-0388. Postdoctoral Position. Molecular and cellular mechanisms in skeletal muscle regeneration and hypertrophy, Emory University, Atlanta. Muscle satellite cells are the postnatal muscle precursor cells that are responsible for normal muscle growth, muscle regeneration after injury and exercise-induced increases in muscle size. The functions of the satellite cell are crucial to normal human and animal growth, injury repair, muscle disease progression and muscle loss during disuse or aging.We study the molecular and cellular mechanisms that regulate the functions of satellite cells.Applicants should have a Ph.D. with background in cell or molecular biology or exercise physiology. Send CV and short description of research interests to: Dr. Grace K. Pavlath, Emory University School of Medicine, 1510 Clifton Rd., Dept of Pharmacology Room 5027, Atlanta, GA 30322, Fax: (404) 727-0365. Postdoctoral Position in Molecular Motors. A postdoctoral position is available immediately to study the role of light chains in the assembly and regulation of the dynein microtubule motor.The project will utilize Chlamydomonas flagellar dyneins as a model system and will involve both biochemistry/molecular biology approaches coupled with classical/molecular genetic analysis.Interested applicants should contact Dr. Stephen King, Department of Biochemistry, University of Connecticut Health Center, 263 Farmington Avenue, Farmington, CT 06032-3305. Chair, Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, College of Medicine and Public Health, The Ohio State University. The Department of Physiology and Cell Biology in the College of Medicine and Public Health at The Ohio State University invites both nominations and applications for the position of Department Chair. Candidates should hold the Ph.D. and/or M.D. degree, be committed to a balanced vigorous teaching and research program, have demonstrated excellence in research and scholarly activities, and possess proven leadership qualities. Nominations and/or applications should include a curriculum vitae with bibliography and the names of at least three references. Review of candidates will begin January 1, 2000 and continue until the position is filled. Salary is negotiable. Address applications to Caroline C. Whitacre, Ph.D., Physiology Chair Search Committee, Department of Molecu-lar Virology, Immunology and Medical Genetics, The Ohio State University, 2078 Graves Hall, 333 West I 01h Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210. The Ohio State University is an Equal Oppoftunity/Affirmative Action Employer. Women, minorities, Vietnam-era veterans, disabled veterans, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. Senior Electron Microscopy Technician. Refer to Job # 1829.The Cell Biology Department at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas is seeking an electron microscopy technician to join the staff of the campus-wide Microscopy and Imaging Services Center. Experience with standard tissue fixation, embedding and sectioning techniques for TEM and SEM is required. Experience with cryo-sectioning and immunogold staining and some experience with digital or confocal light microscopy is desirable. Salary commensurate with experience.Send CV and names of three references to: Dr. Kate Luby-Phelps, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX 75235-9039. Additional information regarding this position can be found on the web. UT Southwestern is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Postdoctoral Positions. #1) Developmental study ofCNS neurons, sensory ganglion and receptors in co-culture and transplantation experiments; #2) Plastic/regulatory changes in channels and receptors in degeneration and growth of synaptic endings in the CNS. Cell/molecular methods, immuno EM and confocal microscopy, cell culture, patch clamp. Project direction flexible, including transgenic mice; funded for vertebrate auditory system. Competitive salary. Research or Training grant. Contact: DK Morest, UConn Health Center, Farmington, CT 06030. Senior Research Associate or Research Asst. Professor Position is available immediately in the area of assembly, regulation and function of adhesive junctions. Applicants should have a strong background in cell and molecular biology, and the desire and ability to mentor more junior members of the lab.Technical support is available.Salary negotiable. Experience in transgenic mouse work desirable.Send or E-mail CV, names of three references and a description of research interests and career goals to Kathleen Green, Ph.D., Professor, Northwestern U. Med. Sch., Dept. Pathology,303 E. Chicago Ave. Chicago, IL, 60611. |
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| Letters To The Editor | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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Crying in the Workplace To the Editor: To the Editor: We were delighted to see the recent article in the WICB column [ASCB Newsletter, September 1999] about crying in the workplace, particularly since it focuses on situations which women scientists often encounter. Among the authors’ important points, they suggest anticipating and mentally preparing for an emotionally charged encounter, which is extremely useful, if one has the chance. They further suggest acknowledging that other people in the same situation have responded in the same manner. By our own experience, this can work. However, we disagree with the article's basic premise, that crying in the workplace is inappropriate and incompatible with success. We strongly disagree that "...in order to be successful in the work environment typical for most women scientists, women are well-advised to control their natural tendency to cry in response to emotions." We counter by suggesting that crying should be seen for what it is: a natural reaction to certain difficult events in our personal or work lives which cause grief or anger or fear. We should discourage the use of crying as a weapon in any setting. Similarly, we should discourage shouting or withdrawing, when these are used as weapons. Weapons are not called for in the work setting: under-standing, support, compassion and willingness to move on with the work are. But unlike shouting or withdrawing, a few tears can often relieve the emotional tension and allow both the affected person and her colleagues to get on with the work at hand. We all should strive to create work environ-ments which permit people's honest expression of emotion, and promote temperate expression and compassionate reaction. Why? Our own experiences, as people who have cried, and have seen colleagues cry in stressful situations, teach us that crying can actually be helpful, and not incompatible with success. Does this mean that crying in the workplace would be the norm? No, probably not. Crying would probably happen infrequently, because most of us prefer to keep our emotions out of the equation. When we do cry though, our coworkers should act with consideration and concern. That is the environment we want to create. -W. Sue Shafer and Richard L. Shafer –Thoru Pederson Optimizing the Family-Career Balance Dear Elizabeth: I am writing in regards to your article entitled, "Optimizing the Family-Career Balance" that appeared in the August 1999 issue of the ASCB Newsletter [WICB Column]. You may remember that we met when you gave your wonderful Fae Golden Kass lecture at Harvard Medical School this past year. In your article, you made some very useful suggestions to scientists as to how "to maximize their time with their children." Most of them were quite appropriate and helpful; I particularly liked the idea of eliminating music and the telephone when your children are in the car. On the other hand, I take strong exception to your suggestion to “eliminate everything imaginable that serves neither your family relationship nor your career [which] may include activities... like reading the newspaper, regular exercise or eating breakfast.” It is poor advice to suggest to someone who has so many demands that their well being should be their last priority. Demonstrating to your children that you value your own health and well being sends a strong message to them. You can hardly expect your children to adopt good habits, if you do not. The same is true of reading — be it the newspaper or even a novel — not just journals. Children learn by example. They will read, if the environment has nurtured reading. Last, and certainly not least, one can not expect to care for others if you haven’t cared for yourself. -Patricia A. D'Amore |
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| WWW.Cell Biology Education | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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The ASCB Education Committee calls attention each month to Web sites of educational interest to the cell biology community.The Committee does not endorse nor guarantee the accuracy of the information at any of the listed sites.If you wish to comment on the selections or suggest future inclusions please send a message to Robert Blystone.
These sites were checked October 19, 1999.Previous ASCB columns reviewing Educational web sites with the links to the sites may be found at trinity.edu —Robert Blystone for the ASCB Education Committee |
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| SACNAS Features Cell Biology | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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The ASCB was well-respresented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos & Native Americans in Science in Portland, Oregon last month. ASCB member Francis Collins, Director of the National Human Genome Research Institute of the NIH, gave the Keynote speech, reporting the availability of 90% of the DNA sequence of the human genome by spring of 2000 and the anticipation of the complete sequence by 2003. ASCB member Gerald Fischbach, Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders & Stroke of the NIH noted in another plenary talk that although the 1990s was "the Decade of the Brain," it will take a century to explore the information now being discovered. While encouraging students to become neuroscientists, he pointed out that previously dissimilar areas of study such as mental illness and neurologic diseases are merging as basic cell activity is defined. SACNAS President David Burgess of Boston College, Arturo De Lozanne of the University of Texas, Wilfred Denetclaw of the University of California, San Francisco, and Maria Elena Zavala of California State University, Northridge, all ASCB members, presented the annual symposium on cell biology; ASCB Councilor Lydia Villa-Komaroff of Northwestern University co-chaired the neuroscience symposium and Gene Vigil of the Center for Scientific Review of the NIH chaired a presentation on "Telemedicine and Virtual Hospitals in the 21st Century." The ASCB booth at the meeting, staffed by Minorities Affairs Committee members Dan Chavez of Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and Zavala, provided information about minorities programs and education. Poster sessions, meal times and the multi-tribal Pow Wow presented additional opportunities for ASCB members to network with students. SACNAS seeks to encourage Chicano/Latino and Native American students to pursue graduate education in order to obtain the advanced degrees necessary for research careers and science teaching professions at all levels. |
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| Varmus to Receive Public Service Award | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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Harold Varmus, Director of the National Institutes of Health, has been named to receive the 1999 ASCB Public Service Award. Varmus will receive the Award from ASCB Public Policy Chair Paul Berg at the ASCB Annual Meeting this December in Washington, D.C.He is being recognized for his extraordinary leadership and stewardship of the NIH, from which he has announced his resignation effective year-end to become President of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Before becoming NIH Director, Varmus served on the Joint Steering Committee for Public Policy and was Scientific Advisor to the Congressional Biomedical Research Caucus. |
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| Deshaies Slated for First ASCB-Promega Honors | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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Ray Deshaies of Cal Tech will receive the first annual ASCB-Promega Early Career Life Scien-tist Award at the ASCB Annual Meet-ing in December. Deshaies is recognized for his outstanding contri-bution to the cell cycle field using biochemical and genetic approaches in the yeast S. cerevisiae to dissect the mechanisms of the G1-5 transition and the exit from mitosis. The Award, which includes a cash prize, will be presented on Tuesday, December 14 at the Washington Convention Center. |
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| MBC Wins Publishing Honors Again | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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For the second consecutive year, Molecular Biology of the Cell was recognized for its visual excellence by the Printing Industries of America.MBC was selected from over 1,800 submissions to receive a Pewter Award in the 12th Annual Gold Ink Awards competition. The journal was cited for overall visual excellence, technical difficulty, print quality and difficulty of color separation. |
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| Gifts | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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The ASCB is grateful to those below who have recently given gifts to support Society activities: Josephine Clare Adams |
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| Grants & Opportunities | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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The Ford Foundation is offering postdoctoral fellowships for minorities for study in research-based doctoral programs in the life sciences, physical sciences, mathematics, engineering sciences, behavioral and social sciences, education and the humanities. Applicants must have completed a PhD or ScD degree between January 7, 1993 and March 1, 2000. Application deadline: January 7, 2000. Contact: Fellowship Office, National Research Council, 2101 Constitution Ave., Washington D.C. 20418; Phone: (202) 334-2872; Fax: (202) 334-3419; Email The Christine Mirzayan Internship Program of the National Academy of Sciences engages graduate and postdoctoral science, engineering, medical, veterinary, business and law students in science and technology policy and familiarizes them with the interactions between science, technology and public policy. The program will commence in both January (for 12 weeks, January 18-April 7) and June (for 10 weeks, June 5-August 11). Application deadline: December 1 for the January 2000 program, March 1 for the June 2000 program. Contact Email. Awards For Basic Research In Asthma for Investigators from All Fields. The Sandler Program for Asthma Research funds basic research in asthma. Investigators from other fields are encouraged to consider how their work may apply to the study of asthma. Innovation is sought, and risk is encouraged. The program will provide up to $2.3 million in new awards each year. Senior Investigators are funded at $250,000/year for three years; Junior Investigators at $125,000/year for three years. Application is open to investigators within the United States; deadline is March 1, 2000 for funding July 1, 2000. Contact (415) 514-0730 (Phone), (415) 514-0734 (Fax). NIGMS is co-sponsoring Bioengineering Research Partnerships. R01s will support basic bioengineering research addressing important biological or medical research problems. The partnership must include bioengineering expertise in combination with basic and/or clinical investigators. The National Science Foundation provides funding opportunities for Information Technology Research. Collaborative projects between computer and disciplinary scientists are particularly encouraged. For more information. |
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| Members In The News | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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Former ASCB President Elizabeth Blackburn of the University of California, San Francisco, is the recipient of the 1999 Association of American Medical Colleges Baxter Award for Distinguished Research in the Biomedical Sciences, recognizing outstanding clinical or laboratory research conducted by a medical school faculty member. David Irwin of the National Cancer Insti-tute of the NIH, an ASCB member since 1975, has been ap-pointed Vice President of Research Services at the St. Jude’s Children’s Re-search Hospital in Memphis. Tom Misteli of the National Cancer Insti-tute of the NIH, an ASCB member since 1994, was awarded the 1999 Gian-Tondury Prize for his elucidation of mechanisms underlying the coordination of transcription and pre-mRNA splicing in the mammalian cell nucleus. The Prize is awarded annually by the Union of Swiss Societies of Experimental Biology to promote research in morphological sciences. Mark McNiven of the Mayo Foundation, an ASCB member since 1986, will receive the 2000 R.R. Bensley Award from the American Association of Anatomists. |
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| ASCB Placement Service | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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The ASCB Placement Service continues to provide an informal, "user-friendly" setting at the Annual Meeting in which candidates and employers can meet, exchange credentials, and conduct interviews. Candidates complete a brief Information Form to register with the Placement Service, and provide times they are available for interviews during the Annual Meeting. Placement Service registrants have access to notebooks of Employer Position Forms, a poster area containing position forms from newly registered employers, and a message center that allows them to send messages to employers and receive messages and individual interview appointments from employers. Employers complete a brief Employer Position Form for each position they seek to fill. The Employer Reading Room provides access to copies of Candidate Information Forms in notebooks and hanging files (for their personal use) and clerks to schedule interviews. Message files are also available so that employers may receive candidate messages. Candidate and employer ads will be developed from the registration form for each registrant and will appear in the Placement Service Brochures. A Pre-meeting Brochure, containing ads for candidates and employers who preregister with the ASCB Placement Service, and an On-site Brochure, will be produced at the close of Placement Service registration on Monday and available Tuesday. Brochures are available to Annual Meeting attendees at the Placement Service, the ASCB Booth in the Exhibit Hall, ASCB information tables, and the ASCB National Office headquarters at the Convention Center during the Annual Meeting. Candidate and employer Placement Service Registration forms may be found on the ASCB website, or may be ordered from the ASCB. Please indicate number of copies required. ASCB Placement Service Hours Saturday, Dec. 11, 12:00 noon - 6:00 pm Registration Saturday, Dec. 11, 12 noon - 6:00 pm Employer Interview Scheduling Saturday, Dec. 11, 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm Interviews Sunday, Dec. 12, 2:00 pm - 7:00 pm ASCB Placement Service fees remain unchanged: Candidates Fees: Employer Fees: Preregistration deadline for the ASCB Placement Service is November 5. |
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| Symposium & Minisymposium Speakers & Schedule | ||
| 11/01/1999 | ||
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This listing is an update of the one published in the October issue of the ASCB Newsletter. Symposia Sunday through Wednesday are scheduled from 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM and 10:30 AM – 12:00 noon. Six Minisymposia run concurrently each of the same days from 3:30 PM – 5:45 PM.All sessions will be held in the Washington Convention Center.See the Annual Meeting Program or the ASCB website for more information. *indicates Chair or Co-chair Saturday, Dec. 11 Keynote Symposium (7:30 PM – 9:00 PM) Sunday, Dec. 12 Symposia Minisymposia Extracellular Matrix Assembly and Function Formation and Fusion of Vesicles Cytoskeleton Assembly and Dynamics Development of Organismal Polarity Localization, Stability and Transport of mRNA Monday, Dec. 13 Signaling and the Actin Cytoskeleton in Cell Motility and Adhesion Minisymposia Endocytosis Protein Translocation Across Membranes Regulation, Structure and Function of Cell Junctions Spindles and Spindle Poles Tuesday, Dec. 14 Visualizing Function: A Revolution in Electron Microscopy Minisymposia Cytoskeletal Motor Proteins Nuclear Structure and Nucleo-Cytoplasmic Transport Protein Turnover And Autophagy Mechanisms of Cell Duplication and Division Wednesday, Dec. 15 Cell Biology of Cancer Minisymposia Crosstalk Between Integrins and Other Receptors The Cytoskeleton in Polarity and Development The Cell Biology of Infectious Diseases Biogenesis, Positioning and Remodeling of Subcellular Organelles Drug Targets and Chemical Approaches to Biological Mechanisms |
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