ASGSB Volume 12, Number 1 Newsletter of the American Society for Gravitational and Space Biology Winter 1996

Dear ASGSB members: ASGSB GOVERNING BOARD Pauline Jackie Duke, President University of Texas Dental School In my speech at the 1995 ASGSB Banquet, I stated my Mary E. Musgrave, President-Elect goals for the year to be in- Louisiana State University creased communication, coop- Peter B. Kaufman, Secretary-Treasurer eration, collaboration, partici- University of Michigan pation, and activism. Several months into my tenure as Stanley Roux, Immediate Past President President, I find that events University of Texas, Austin are moving us toward these Donald R. Beem, Executive Director goals at a very rapid pace. AIBS COMMUNICATION-wise, we Daniel Cosgrove Pennsylvania State University are making great strides in moving bytes instead of atoms Stephen Doty (Necroponte, Being Digital). Hospital for Special Surgery The Board of Governors and Michael Evans the committee chairs are on e- Ohio State University mail, so communications and ASGSB President Jackie Duke addresses documents are being sent with- Annual Meeting participants Marian L. Lewis out expense of phone, fax, or University of Alabama, Huntsville snail mail. We are working on a way for you to check your address Norman G. Lewis at the annual meeting, and make any necessary updates at that Washington State University time. We are also working on having this information online, available only to the membership, and eventually, you will be able Terri L. Lomax Oregon State University to provide changes throughout the year. Also, you will be able to download an electronic ASGSB directory for your own use. Barbara G. Pickard The ASGSB web site is online at “http://www.indstate.edu/ Washington University asgsb”, and your help and suggestions may be sent to the web-site Kenneth A. Souza manager Tim Mulkey via the web site or e-mail NASA Ames Research Center “[email protected]”. Information about memberships, the society’s purpose and organization, jobs available, NRAs being Debra Wolgemuth prepared, and so on can now be found on the web site. Eventually Columbia University the Bulletin and the Newsletter will be online as well. Please let us CORPORATE MEMBERS know what you like or don’t like and what you want to see on the Boeing Defense & Space web. (continued on next page) Huntsville, AL

Lockheed Martin, Inc. Moffett Field, CA Mark Your Calendars Now!!

McDonnell Douglas Co. ASGSB 12th Annual Meeting Huntington Beach, CA Charlotte, NC

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF October 23-27, 1996 Thora W. Halstead preliminary info on page 3

ASSOCIATE EDITORS NEWSLETTER–Janet V. Powers 1995 Annual Meeting Highlights MEETING BULLETIN–Marc Tischler pages 4-12 ASGSB President's Letter (continued)

The use of e-mail and the World Wide Web ACTIVISM. A new policy of the Public Affairs also allow us to increase our communication Committee calls for the President or another ap- with other countries. This international inter- propriate person to respond to published articles action becomes increasingly important as we that are unduly critical of life sciences in space. move into the International Space Station Al- Such an article was published in Science on Nov. pha (ISSA) era. Information about ASGSB is 17, 1995 [Science 1995 Nov 17; 270:1108-10], and sent to similar societies in other countries, and the letter I wrote in response was published in the we distribute information about other meet- Jan. 26 issue [Science 1996 Jan 26; 271:432-3]. The ings in this country. This communication is unedited version of the letter can be found on the still very much informal, but I hope to get to the ASGSB web site. point where we are included on all mailing The issues that the Society is addressing at lists. If you are not cognizant of what other present are indicative of our maturation as a countries are doing in the realm of Space Biol- society and as a political force. At the next meet- ogy, you may miss some important work. ing of the Board, we will address the question of a mechanism for endorsements of positions by COOPERATION AND COLLABORATION. Fund- the Board. We will also formalize a procedure for ing difficulties may end up sabotaging our at- holding electronic meetings during the year as tempts to set up a meeting in another country, needed. The structure of the web site will be but while attending two international meet- outlined, and the mechanism by which the flow ings this summer (COSPAR, Birmingham, En- of information to the site can be controlled will be gland, July 14-21 and ESA’s Life Sciences Sym- discussed. posium, Trondheim, Norway, June 17-21), I hope to discuss possible mechanisms for in- Last fall, I referred to the beginning of the creased interactions. Officials of the Japanese Space Station Alpha era as a change in para- Space Society and of ELGRA (European Low digm—a phrase that has become popular in semi- Gravity Research Association) have been con- nars focused on training for success. A seminar I tacted to set up communication channels. attended equated a change in paradigm with the Planning for the 1996 annual meeting is acquisition of an additional piece of information. well underway, and we have already received Having read Thomas Kuhn’s “The Structure of commitments for the proposed session on space Scientific Revolutions,” I know that a change in station being organized by Bruce Wright. Chuck paradigm refers more to something like the Fuller, Chair of the Space Station Utilization change from a Ptolemic view of the world to a and Scientific Advisory committee, will speak Copernican one. To shift from shuttle era think- on current station plans, and on the animal ing to space station thinking is to experience a centrifuge that will be aboard ISSA. John David change in paradigm. Bartoe, of JSC’s Research Management Office, will speak on user input. The movement of ASGSB into the electronic community constitutes, I think, another change To increase PARTICIPATION in ASGSB, the in paradigm. No printouts, no faxes, no phone Membership Committee is doing mailings of codes, no envelopes, no stamps, no voice mail. registration information and the ASGSB bro- Like the slide rules used in my favorite scene chure to members of the new NSCORTs and from “Apollo 13,” our old ways of doing business Minority University Research Centers. Please are rapidly becoming obsolete. remember to request brochures to distribute at meetings you attend where people may be in- Sincerely, terested in learning about ASGSB. Jackie Duke 1995-1996 ASGSB President E-mail: [email protected]

2 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 Preliminary Information for 1996 Annual Meeting Abstracts Due July 1

The 12th annual ASGSB meeting will be held at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in Charlotte, North Carolina on October 23-27, 1996. Marc Tischler, Editor of the Program and Abstracts Issue of the ASGSB Bulletin, will compile and prepare this issue as he has in the past on computer using a laser printer so that it can be submitted camera-ready to the printer. We will continue to require that abstracts be submitted on computer disks. The postmark deadline for abstract submission is July 1, 1996. If an abstract cannot be submitted on disk, the postmark deadline will be June 19, 1996, to provide addi- tional time for retyping the abstract. Submitters may use the Mac programs Microsoft Word and WordPerfect “Mac” or IBM compatible systems WordStar, Word 4.0, and WordPerfect. Figures or tables to be included in the abstract need to be provided camera-ready at a 70% reduced size to fit into the final printed abstract form. Also keep in mind that each submitter may only be the first author on one abstract, but may be a co-author on an unlimited number of abstracts. Detailed information regarding format sizes, etc. will be provided in the next ASGSB Newsletter. The ASGSB appreciates the cooperation of its members in this endeavor—which will allow everyone to contribute to producing a high-quality ASGSB Bulletin issue while keeping costs at a minimum.

Space Station Workshop Planned Newsletter Articles Welcome for ASGSB Annual Meeting

Planning experiments for the International Space Thanks to all the contributors to this issue of Station Alpha (ISSA) will be a new experience for even the ASGSB Newsletter. practiced flight investigators. This session of the 1996 meeting, which is being organized by Bruce Wright, All ASGSB members are invited and encour- will serve to introduce members to various aspects of aged to submit materials that they feel would research on ISSA. be of interest to society members, including Since the first utilization flights are currently sched- meeting announcements, reports or summa- uled for 1999, it is likely that researchers will begin to ries, book announcements and reviews, brief see AOs and NRAs that request proposals to use ISSA. research highlights, member news, and edito- This session will discuss the station design and assem- rials. bly sequence; the onboard facilities (including the ani- mal centrifuge); the constraints on crew time, power, Please submit all materials to ASGSB, P.O. Box stowage, and sample retrieval that affect experimental 12247, Rosslyn, VA 22219; Fax: 301-295-5271; design; and the logistics required for preparation of an E-mail: [email protected] or experiment. The role of the international partners will [email protected] also be discussed. This session, designed after the extremely success- The deadline for input to the next issue of the ful “To Fly” workshop held several years ago, is ex- Newsletter is April 25, 1996. pected to provide information allowing attendees to compete successfully for slots on ISSA.

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 3 1995 ASGSB Awards The Orr E. Reynolds Distinguished Service Award was pre- sented to Peter B. Kaufman. This award is for distinguished service to the ASGSB. Peter has served as Secretary-Trea- surer for the past several years and we have tried to make him Secretary-Treasurer for life. His kind and cheerful sense of humor is always welcome at Society gatherings. Mary E. Musgrave, Ph.D. received The Thora W. Halstead Young Investigator’s Award, which was established in 1994 to honor a young scientist who exemplifies Thora's drive and enthusiasm for science, and who has made significant con- tributions to the field of space biology. Mary was a NASA Space Biology Research Associate at the Duke University Phytotron from 1986-87 and is now Associate Professor at Louisiana State University. She received the Perry Prize for outstanding Ph.D. research in Botany. Her research inter- ests are focused on understanding the constraints on plant reproduction in microgravity, and she has flown experi- ments on three shuttle missions. She has been an advocate of educational outreach and has conducted many teacher training workshops using Wisconsin Fast Plants. Gerry Sonnenfeld, Director of the NASA Space Biology Research Associates Program, took the podium to present a Peter Kaufman displays his sense of humor special award to Linda D. Barber to honor Linda for her after receiving the Orr E. Reynolds years of dedication to the Research Associates Program. Her Distinguished Service Award personal interest and emotional support for all the Program participants nurtured the comradeship that exists within the Program. Linda served from 1980, the beginning of the Program, until 1995, as Administrative Research Assistant. Gerry then announced the establishment of the Linda Barber Award for the Best Research Associate Publication. This award will be given annually to a NASA Space Biology Research Associate for excellence in the preparation of a peer-reviewed paper. Linda announced the first awardee-- Gregory Adams.

Mary Musgrave, recipient of the Thora W. Halstead Young Investigators' Award

Thora Halstead, former NASA Space Biology Program Director, Gerry Sonnenfeld, Research Associates Program Director, and Linda Barber, in whose honor the Linda Barber Research Associates Publication Award has been established

4 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 1995 Outstanding Student Awards

Animals/Bacteria Plants First Place: Britt Manfredi First Place: Timothy Lynch Second Place: John Gossett Second Place: Deborah Bishop Second Place: Michael Ryan Honorable Mention: Jeffrey Smith

Britt Manfredi, Martin Marietta sponsor representative Timothy Lynch, Michael Ryan, and John Gossett Marianne Steele, Jeffrey Smith, and Deborah Bishop

The Student Competition continues to attract many participants. Twenty-three students competed with poster presentations in two concurrent sessions, “Plants” and “Animals/Bacte- ria.” Marianne Steele of Martin Marietta Engineering Services, Inc. (Moffett Field, California), sponsor of the student awards this year, presented the awards. She described the 100-point selection process, which includes points for the student's selection of research, question answer- ing ability, and presentation. The judges received the abstracts before the poster sessions in order to review the abstracts and then interview the students during the sessions. Britt Manfredi (University of Colorado) was the winner in the Animals/Bacteria session for her paper entitled “Effects of microgravity on the growth and development of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms.” In the Plants session, Timothy Lynch (University of Vermont) won top honors for his presentation on “Plant cell division orientation under mechanical stress: the importance of strain-field geometry.” Each received a plaque and check for $125. In the Animals/Bacteria session, two second place awards were presented–to John Gossett (San Jose State University) for “Development and test of chewbars for use with paste diets” and to Michael Ryan (University of Buffalo) for “Pulmonary and cardiac blood flow and blood volume during graded water immersion.” Second place honors in the Plants session went to Deborah Bishop (Utah State University) for her presentation on “Lignin-associated peroxidases in superdwarf wheat.” Honorable Mention was awarded to Jeffrey Smith (University of Colorado) for “Three-dimensional polarity of clover root statocytes under nominal and microgravity conditions.”

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 5 1995 Annual Meeting Is Attendance Record for D.C. Meetings

Attendance at the 11th Annual ASGSB meeting reached 270 participants--the high- est ever for a meeting in the Washington, DC area. One hundred seventy four oral and poster presentations were made. This was the first meeting with undergraduate participation. Students from the Space Life Sciences Training Program (SLSTP) at- tended and presented posters in conjunc- tion with their faculty sponsors.

Debra Wolgemuth and Jackie Duke

SLSTP students Amy Snyder, Nirav Vakharia, Kennda Tom Scott, Dieter Volkmann, Martin Schreibman, Lynch, and Bryan Wohlwend and Cindy Martin

Hans-Jung Marthy, Clavel Benoit, Legué Valérie, Munco Takaoki, Yuko Takaoki, and Changhoo Chun and Ursula Marthy (foreground)

6 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 Millie Hughes-Fulford and John Kiss Stephen Chapes and Randy Duncan

ASGSB Reception on Capitol Hill October 26, 1995

Our second Reception on Capitol Hill took place on October 26, 1995 and pro- vided a fitting atmosphere for exhibiting ASGSB's advocacy role. The reception was sponsored by McDonnell Douglas, Huntington Beach, California. Marshall Porterfield and Mark Crispi take advantage of the congressional setting

Steve Cochran, Pat Russell, and Nina Allen Paul Green and John Outwater

Mark Deuser and Davis Richman talk with Caye Johnson (left) Kathryn Clark, Barbara Reiss, and Debra Reiss-Bubenheim

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 7 1995 ASGSB Banquet

Stan Roux spoke of his year as ASGSB President, during which the Society made major advances in Education. Highlights are the new ASGSB World Wide Web home page and the ASGSB Speakers Bureau. He talked of the 1996 Gordon Research Conference on Gravitational Biology, which is a high-profile conference emphasizing fast-moving research developments. We should attend with our good research papers to help promote more conferences in our areas of research. Stan passed the gavel to Jackie Duke, 1995- 1996 ASGSB President. Jackie pointed out that Joan Vernikos, Emily Holton, and Arnauld Nicogossian even though our name is the American Society for Gravitational and Space Biology, we are an international society. In the next five years, we plan to have an international meeting, and talks have begun with Dick Mesland of the European Space Agency regarding a joint meeting. Jackie also described plans for the 1996 meeting in Charlotte, NC, which will include a session on the International Space Station (see page 3).

Jackie Duke, Emily Holton, and Linda Barber

Paul Kuzeja, John Outwater, and Phil Lintilhac

Caye Johnson and Dick Mesland

Barbara Corbin and Megan Moran

8 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 and Business Meeting

Lyuba Serova, of the Institute of Biomedical Problems in Moscow, presented Emily Holton and Jackie Duke with handmade souvenirs from Russia to honor them as women Presidents of ASGSB. Serova is a pioneering researcher in space life sciences research, specializing in de- velopmental biology. She participated in the Cosmos biosatellite program for more than two decades and enjoyed the challenge of uniting the diverse research efforts during this interna- tional cooperation. We were honored to have her in attendance at the 1995 ASGSB meeting. Secretary-Treasurer Peter Kaufman an- nounced the results of the ASGSB President- Elect and Governing Board member elections, which were held during the business meeting. Mary Musgrave was elected President-Elect. Elected to the Board for three-year terms were Steve Doty, Mike Evans, and Debra Lyuba Serova, Institute of Biomedical Problems Wolgemuth. Continuing on the Board until Fall in Moscow 1996 will be Dan Cosgrove and Marian Lewis. Norman Lewis, Barbara Pickard, Terri Lomax, and Kenneth Souza will serve until Fall 1997.

Lyuba Serova (center) honors Emily Holton and Jackie Duke

Peter Kaufman, Bob Phillips, Nancy Phillips, and Danny Riley

Norman Lewis, Doug Gruendel, Chris Brown, and Thora Halstead

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 9 1995 ASGSB

The Annual Meeting contained symposia, oral scientific sessions, and poster sessions. The many excellent symposia and oral scien- tific sessions included—Mechanosensing and Mechanoloading Mechanisms; Biotechnology; Cell Biology; Physiological Responses to In- creased Levels of Carbon Dioxide; Spaceflight Experiment Results, including separate sessions on IML-2, NIH-R1, and Plant Development & Physiology; Hypergravity and Hypogravity; Ani- mal Physiology & Unloading Mechanisms; and Plant Growth & Gravity Sensing. In addition, poster sessions were held on the topics: Animal Gravity Sensing; Animal Regulatory Physiology; Animal Structural Systems and Muscle Physiol- ogy; Biotechnology and Cell Biology; Plant De- Sue Beem and Johniece Brooks are available to help meeting velopment, Growth and Genetics; Spaceflight Ex- participants with registration periment Results; Animal Development, Growth and Genetics; and Plant Gravity Perception. Many exhibits and demonstrations were also available for meeting participants to peruse.

Bruce Wright, Vernon Strength, and Bob Morrow

Space Hardware Optimization Technology exhibit

Gerard Heyenga (right) discusses his poster Dick Keefe and Don DeVincenzi take a break

10 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 Annual Meeting

Dean Murakami (right) discusses his poster Bob Phillips explains NASA space life sciences hardware. Rose Grymes (seated, right)

Glovebox is displayed at NASA exhibit. Phil Davies and Stephen Chapes

Dianne Babski explains SPACELINE, the new space life Greg Kaminski (right) demonstrates SPACELINE sciences online bibliographic database, to William Pickens to David Heathcote

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 11 ASGSB Education Booth Activities

The ASGSB Education Committee did another fabulous job of providing educa- tional information and resources to An- nual Meeting participants. Tim Mulkey contributed several com- puters and a copy of the ASGSB WWW site. Barbara Corbin set up the Videotape collection for previewing and also over- saw the demonstration of several interac- tive CDs. Tom Dreschel provided a nice display on SLSTP. Wisconsin Fast Plants sent a display of their Astroplants project and the Spuds-in-Space project at Uni- versity of Wisconsin. Cary Mitchell tries out an interactive educational CD Stan Roux displayed his prototype of the Speaker’s Bureau slide set on Gravi- tational and Space Biology of Plants, and it was previewed with an accompanying audio tape featuring Stan’s voice. Sev- eral NSCORT’s displayed materials in the booth, and Rose Grymes contributed many informational pamphlets on edu- cational opportunities within NASA. Door prizes contributed by Mains Associates (Life into Space books) and Dorothy Spangenberg/JSC (jellyfish-in- space video) were presented to lucky se- lected attendees to the Education dis- play. Thanks to all Education Committee members for a job well done! ASN Reddy at the Astroplants display provided by Wisconsin Fast Plants

NASA Establishes Minority University Research Center

NASA has established the first Minority University Research Center in Space Life Sciences at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia. The primary focus of the Space Medicine and Life Sciences Research Center (SMLRC) at Morehouse is to produce minority and women scientists with exceptional training in space medicine and gravitational biology research, and thus to address the shortage of minority scientists involved in gravitational biology research. Under the directorship of Dr. Gary Sanford, faculty at the Center will conduct research on effects of microgravity on cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and neuronal systems, using ground-based mod- els. The Center also plans to enhance research capabilities and experiences for existing faculty in space medicine, develop advanced graduate courses for a predoctoral biomedical program with a concen- tration in space medicine, provide postdoctoral training in space medicine and life sciences, and develop collaborative relationships with NASA, other universities, and private industry. For information on the Center, or to apply, contact Mr. John Smith, MSW, Associate Director, Space Medicine and Life Sciences Research Center, 720 Westview Dr., SW, Atlanta, GA 30310, or call 404- 752-1973 or FAX (404) 752-1978.

12 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 Space Biology Research Associates Program

NASA’s Space Biology Research Associates Program was established in 1980 to offer awards to scientists at the postdoctoral level to conduct Space Biology Research in a university laboratory or nongovernmental research institute providing a relevant research environment. In 1995, the requirement was added that each Research Associate spend a three-month period of the award at NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA. The program was started to develop a cadre of young scientists interested in conducting research in gravitational and space biology. Research Associates have conducted biological research in many disciplines, including animal and plant physiology, cell and molecular biology, developmental biology, immunology, and ecology. Funding for these awards begins between July 1 and October 1 of each year for two-year periods. U.S. citizens and permanent resident aliens with Ph.D., M.D., D.V.M., D.M.D. or equivalent degrees are eligible. Proposals are due each year by February 15. For more information on the Research Associates Program, contact Dr. Gerald Sonnenfeld, Depart- ment of General Surgery Research, Carolinas Medical Center, P.O. Box 28232, Charlotte, NC 28232; telephone (704) 355-7648, Fax (704) 355-7562, e-mail: [email protected]

New Research Associates

Friedrich J. Behringer, Ph.D. Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR Research Project: “Auxin distribution during gravity- and phytochrome- controlled stem growth.” Sponsor: Dr. Terri Lomax

Andrew C. Ertl, Ph.D. Center for Space Physiology and Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN Research Project: “Muscle afferents in microgravity.” Sponsor: Dr. David Robertson Dr. Ertl has begun his work at Ames, in conjunction with Dr. Alan Hargens.

Paul E. Mozdziak, Ph.D. University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI Research Project: “The effects of hindlimb suspension on the expression of muscle specific transcriptional regulatory factors.” Sponsor: Dr. Edward Schultz

In addition to the three new awardees, one second-year awardee remains in the program. Marsha L. Pilgrim, Ph.D. continues her work on “Role of a putative calcium ATPase in the gravitropic response in Arabidopsis thaliana” in Dr. Neil E. Hoffman's laboratory at Carnegie Institution of Washington in Stanford, CA.

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 13 ASGSB Committees

The standing committees of the ASGSB, all subject to appointment by the Governing Board, are as fol- lows: 1. Public Affairs (see Committee report summary)—Chair, Cary Mitchell 2. Education (see Committee report summary)—Mary Musgrave, Chair; Tom Dreschel, CoChair 3. Publications (see Committee report summary)—Chair, Thora Halstead 4. Long Range Planning (see Committee report summary)—Chair, Larry Garetto 5. Annual Meetings Committee—CoChairs, Stan Roux (as Immediate Past President) and Emily Holton (as Past Past President) 6. Awards—Chair, Pat Russell 7. Nominations–Chair, Mary Musgrave (as President-Elect). The slate of nominees for the 1996 Annual Meeting will include: President-Elect (two candidates needed), Secretary-Treasurer, and three Govern- ing Board members to replace members rotating off (six candidates needed) 8. Finance–Peter Kaufman 9. Membership–Don Beem 10. ASGSB representative to AIBS–Tom Scott

Long Range Planning Committee (LRPC) Emphasizes Coordination and Cooperation

Current members of the LRPC are listed below. The The following summary describes the most note- members of the ASGSB Committees (Publications, worthy actions of the committee: Membership, Education, Public Affairs, and Finance) • The incoming president should hold a meeting serve as ad hoc members of the LRPC. of the ASGSB Committee Chairpersons at the annual Current LRPC Members: Keith Cowing ’93*; Jackie meeting prior to the Board of Governors meeting to Duke, ad hoc; Marian Lewis ’93*; Thora Halstead, review the general issues of the organization. Jackie Emeritus; Richard Wassersug; Cary Mitchell, ad hoc *; Duke, 1996 President, agreed to hold such a meeting in Millie Hughes-Fulford; Emi1y Holton, ad hoc; Ruth 1996. Globus ’94; Peter Kaufman, ad hoc; Barbara Pickard • Last year, one of our actions was to have an ’94; Mary Musgrave, ad hoc; Larry Garetto ’94; Stan ASGSB page established on the World Wide Web. Roux Thanks to the efforts of Tim Mulkey, this has been * Members rotating off the committee as of this meet- achieved. Over the next year, we will be considering ing. the types of materials to be included on the page. We suggested that Tim be the ASGSB Web Manager. Larry Garetto accepted the appointment as chair • We discussed having an International meeting of the LRPC for 1996. Keith Cowing and Richard at three-year intervals. This meeting would be held in Wassersug have been re-appointed by Larry. Marian conjunction with a European meeting. Lewis will serve in an advisory role in 1996. One • The need to make policy and decision makers additional member, Alexandre Malouvier, was ap- cognizant of the need for life sciences research on pointed by Larry as Millie Hughes-Fulford (1993) and Space Station is evident. We discussed ways to make Cary Mitchell (earlier president) rotate off the commit- the membership more aware of our responsibility to tee. become knowledgeable. Jackie Duke informed us of a The purpose (charge) of the Long Range Planning Research Management Office of JSC that takes user Committee (LRPC) is to address issues related to fu- inputs (contact John-David Bartoe). ture direction of the organization. To achieve this, the • Questions for the Education Committee in- committee’s activities encompass general areas of the cluded the following: How can we get more student other ASGSB committees (Membership, Publications, involvement? How many universities are teaching Public Affairs, Education and Finance). The chairper- courses in Gravitational Biology or related subjects? sons of each of these committees also serve as ad hoc Should we approach the general membership about members of the LRPC along with the past president, bringing their graduate students to the annual meeting president and president-elect. Dr. Thora Halstead is (with posters)? an Emeritus member. Excerpts from Long Range Planning Committee meetings, October 26 and 27, 1995

14 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 ASGSB Public Affairs Committee Stresses Activism

At its 1995 meeting, the ASGSB Public Affairs • ASGSB members will be briefed on key legisla- Committee discussed several areas of future impor- tive issues and up-to-date information on NASA and tance to the Society, and also to the Space Life Sciences. Life Sciences budgets. Fact sheets and a 1-page brief of It was decided that the annual ASGSB meeting bulletized reasons why Space Life Sciences research is should become a forum for public dissemination of important to the taxpaying public will be provided to newsworthy items, in the form of news releases, press each Hill visitor. conferences, and various forms of media opportuni- The Board of Governors has been charged with ties. The committee chair is charged with the respon- drafting the procedure whereby the above public affaris sibility of working with the NASA Public Affairs Of- activities can be implemented, e.g., Who will do it? fice to set up these things. It was proposed that a room How will the Society pay for it? be designated at each meeting hotel for interviews, phone conversations, and media opportunities related You are invited to submit any ideas to the Committee to public affairs. Session chairs will be asked to select Chair, Cary Mitchell (E-mail: [email protected]) significant research reports for publicizing; and results of recent spaceflight experiments will be featured. Excerpts from Public Affairs Committee meeting, Oc- Specific science editors of high profile newspapers, tober 27, 1995 CNN, Space News, Science News, and meeting-specific Committee members present: Linda Billings, Keith or Washington-area media will be alerted of these Cowing, Emily Holton, Peter Kaufman, Bob Phillips, opportunities. The committee encourages the Board of Fred Sack, Ken Souza, Frank Sulzman, Debra Governors to discuss mechanisms for facilitating the Wolgemuth, Cary Mitchell information flow of newsworthy Space Life Science events and issues to a central collection point, and to incorporate this concept into the infrastructure of the Education Committee Discusses Society. The committee discussed how ASGSB, not NASA, Outreach, Action, and Student might respond to ethical issues and controversial hot Affairs topics that represent a threat to experimentation with plants and animals in space, such as might be encoun- The ASGSB Education Committee discussed a tered by animal rights groups, misinformed advisors, number of issues at its October meeting. and authors of articles deriding Space Station or fund- First, Tim Mulkey discussed his plan to revive the ing for Space Life Sciences. The committee suggests ASGSB Activity Manual and distributed forms to the that the Society President, or his/her delegate, be the group to aid in collecting projects to incorporate in the figurehead who responds to political issues, by what- manual. Because the activity on display in the Educa- ever means of communication is best suited to the tion Booth was so popular, it was recommended that need. The committee again asks the Board of Gover- next year’s booth expand along these lines. This would nors to decide the best mechanism for ensuring Society make a natural focal point for the development of the awareness of political issues, and also moved to incor- manual. Committee members were charged with gath- porate this into Society infrastructure. ering projects and forwarding them to Tim (Depart- Specifically, the committee decided that a policy ment of Life Sciences, Indiana State University, Terre statement must be drafted in support of animal re- Haute, IN 47809) for a prototype of the manual to be search in space, which needs to be sent to NASA displayed at the 1996 annual meeting. Administrator Daniel Goldin as a letter and may need Richard Friedman then discussed the Outreach to be published. Bob Phillips and Ken Souza will work subcommittee’s progress on developing a prototype with Jerry Fineg of the University of Texas, Austin on space biology kit that could be distributed nationwide. this document. In conjunction with Wisconsin Fast Plant’s creator Paul Since Public Affairs is the committee that will help Williams and National Science Teacher Association plan the next ASGSB Visit to Capitol Hill, the commit- president Marvin Druger, he has developed a proposal tee recommends that the following arrangements be to build inexpensive kits centered around plant made for the next Washington-area meeting: gravitropism exercises. These kits should be distrib- uted during the coming year and could be displayed at • Appointments will be set up with key Members next year’s Education Booth. and Staffers of the Appropriations and Authorization Committees. (continued on next page) • Committee memberships and voting records of Congressional Members to be visited will be provided.

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 15 Education Committee Subcommittee Mem- (continued from previous page) bership for 1995-1996 and Responsibilities of Subcommittees Several suggestions from the Student Affairs sub- committee were then discussed. Marcia Harrison’s NASA Resources: Obtain and publicize to the mem- proposal that undergraduates be allowed to publish bership information regarding the numerous official abstracts only in the bulletin was discussed. This had education resources that already exist within NASA already been discussed by the Publications Committee (such as Teacher Resource centers, Challenger Cen- which suggested that since the undergraduate research ters, NASA Select programming). would have a faculty sponsor, it should be able to Members: Tom Dreschel (chair); Steve Doty, Kristina appear in the abstracts already, as is done with the Guerra, Oscar Monje SLSTP students. The feeling was that the scientific quality of the Bulletin had to be upheld. Publications Video Education: Provide information about video- suggested that the issue Education could address is to tapes and CDs and how they can be obtained. determine how undergraduate attendance at the meet- Members: Marilyn Vasques (chairman); Barbara ings could be encouraged. One suggestion was that Corbin, Herman Vandenburgh undergraduates could be offered a lower registration rate in exchange for operating slide projectors during Educational Opportunities: Collect and collate infor- the sessions. Another idea was that the society could mation on the education opportunities, both official offer a limited number of undergraduate travel sti- (e.g., NSCORT) and unofficial, that exist in gravita- pends. The Education committee will consider mecha- tional and space biology research. nisms for increasing undergraduate participation at Members: Tim Mulkey (chair); Jim Guikema, Ken the meetings and make recommendations to the Gov- Pote, Eva Ray, Linda Young, Bob Morrow erning Board. David’s Klaus’ suggestion that the society recon- Student Affairs: Deal with concerns of students at sider the practice of having student competition through different levels of their education, who are working in poster format and return to oral presentations with the gravitational and space biology research, and provide addition of short papers to be handed in at the same information about student members to the member- time was then considered. The majority of committee ship at large. members present at the meeting were happy with the Members: Marcia Harrison (chair); David Klaus, poster format, and several members who had served as Dennis Rowley judges suggested that the volume of student papers would cause the reading of all the short papers to be an Speaker’s Bureau: Create slide sets for use in gravita- unreasonable additional burden on the judges. How- tional and space biology and coordination of the use of ever, the committee asked the Student Affairs subcom- these sets through regional NASA centers. mittee to return to the meeting next year with student Members: Stan Roux (chair); Dorothy Spangenburg, input on the short paper suggestion if the Student Randy Duncan, Caye Johnson Affairs subcommittee wants to pursue this idea. The Education Booth was a big success thanks to Outreach: Using space biology-related activities, ini- contributions by many people (see article on page 12). tiate a strategy to stimulate the interest in science in The Committee discussed plans for the 1996 booth and children and maintain that interest as the children age. wants to expand the displays on the educational out- Members: Richard Friedman (chair) ; Ed Miller, Cary reach projects. Keep this in mind as we go through the Mitchell, Stephanie Moore, Robert Nerem, Dennis coming year. We will need to begin lining up projects Rowley, Bruce Wright, Bonnie McClain, Marvin for display about four months prior to the next meeting Druger, Paul Williams in order to have our power and space requirements for the booth defined in time for the meeting organizers. A Excerpts from Education Committee meeting, October new chair for the Education Committee will be sought 27, 1995 during 1996 to replace Mary Musgrave at the 1996 Members present: Thomas Dreschel, Bob Morrow, annual meeting as she becomes president of the Soci- Tim Mulkey, Andrew Schuerger, Steve Doty, Megan ety! Moran, Richard Friedman, Barbara Corbin, Dorothy Spangenberg, Caye Johnson, Ed Miller, Rose Grymes, Mark DeSantis, Eric Davies, Nina Stromgren Allen, Gloria Muday, Jim Guikema, Herman Vandenburgh, Linda Young, Mary Musgrave, Marcia Harrison, Tim Mulkey

16 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 Publication Committee Agenda—Increasing Visibility and Improving Content of ASGSB Publications

The Publications Committee is chaired by Thora The ASGSB Governing Board named Tim Halstead. Committee members are Janet Powers Mulkey manager of the ASGSB WWW page and (Newsletter editor), Marc Tischler (Bulletin edi- he became a new member of the Publications tor), Stanley Roux (Speaker’s Bureau chair), Tim Committee. Both the Board and the Committee Mulkey (ASGSB World Wide Web manager), Jay discussed the approval cycle for WWW news. It Buckey, Ron Dutcher, Emily Holton, Abraham was decided that it would be most expeditious Krikorian, and Paul Todd. if news review and approval rested solely with Increasing visibility and access to ASGSB the ASGSB President. news was the primary topic addressed by the The material to be published in the Bulletin Committee at its meeting on October 27, 1995. was the other major topic discussed by the Com- One concern was the lack of name recognition of mittee. Future Gravitational and Space Biology the ASGSB Bulletin in the scientific community. Bulletins will continue to focus on the specific To overcome this, it was unanimously decided topic(s) of the meeting symposia, and each set that the Bulletin should in the future be named of papers on a particular topic will be preceded the Gravitational and Space Biology Bulletin. by a comprehensive review article on the spe- Ron Dutcher said that the SPACELINE publi- cific topic. Each annual issue will in this way cations database now includes bibliographic ci- provide a comprehensive and current update of tations to papers and abstracts from the ASGSB a scientific topic of importance to space and Bulletin. In this capacity SPACELINE acts as gravitational biology. distributor for Bulletin articles requested by the Research conducted by undergraduate stu- public. While ASGSB could charge a copyright dents can only be presented as poster/abstracts fee for the reproduction of its articles, the Com- at the annual ASGSB meeting by the faculty mittee decided not to do so at this time because it advisors of the students. The faculty member could be counterproductive and could inhibit must be the responsible first author, and the distribution of our scientific information. student’s name should be included in the list of Abe Krikorian brought up the importance of authors and identified as an undergraduate stu- having libraries carry the Bulletin. To encourage dent. this, he recommended that we offer libraries sub- The publication by ASGSB or some other scriptions at individual membership rates. He publisher of the papers and/or proceedings also volunteered to investigate having the Bulle- derived from symposia conducted with the an- tin referenced in a scientific periodicals direc- nual ASGSB meeting, but not sponsored by tory. He has already initiated steps to have the ASGSB, must be determined by the Board at the Bulletin included in Ulrich’s International Periodi- time they consider the approval (or rejection) of cals Directory. the symposia.

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 17 ASGSB Financial and Membership Report October 27, 1995 Crystal City, Virginia

Funds Membership Cash balance through 9/30/95 $127,624.45 Membership in the Society Cash deposits October 1-21, 1995 16,052.00 has the potential of 525 Cash balance 10/21/95 $143,676.45 members. Through October 21, ASGSB-AIBS acct no. 4538 (10/4/95) 10,468.56 1995, there are 377 active mem- Total cash 10/21/95 $154,145.01 bers, 141 inactive members, and 7 newly approved members.

The member categories and numbers are:

1995 Members (’95 dues paid) 1994 Members (’95 dues not yet paid) Approved Members Members 331 Members 110 (approved but dues not paid) Student Members 38 Student Members 20 Members 6 Emeritus Members 8 Emeritus Members 11 Student Members 1 Total 377 Total 141 Total 7

Total Number of Records 525*

Membership statistics for past years are:

Category 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995* Member 198 260 274 343 302 341 328 350 329 331 Student 23 26 40 61 36 57 59 50 39 38 Emeritus - - 3 3 4 6 6 9 7 8 Inactive member 10 11 31 3 105 83 102 61 117 110 Inactive student 1 0 6 4 29 19 27 29 29 20 Inactive emeritus ------1 - 1 11 New member 5 7 16 22 19 2 7 18 12 6 New student 2 5 3 4 5 2 1 3 2 1 Potential 239 309 373 440 500 510 531 520 536 525**

* To date ** Potential membership if all ’94 renew and all new pay ’95 dues

Donald R. Beem Executive Director, ASGSB

18 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 SPACELINE Is Now Online

SPACELINE, the online bibliographic database con- taining references to publications about life sciences research related to space, became available for search- ing in October 1995. This cooperative venture of NASA’s Life Sciences Division and the National Li- brary of Medicine (NLM) arose from NASA’s desire to consolidate the results of space life sciences research into a single, easily accessible resource. This resource not only lays the foundation for future space life sci- ences research, but also makes the results of this re- search available to the broader scientific and educa- tional communities. SPACELINE contains references pertaining to the health and productivity of humans in space, the physi- cal and psychological effects of gravity and the space environment on living systems, applications of space life sciences research, and exobiology. A variety of publication types are included. SPACELINE is similar in structure to MEDLINE, the best known of NLM’s databases. As with MEDLINE, a user account is necessary for billing purposes. The 96,000 records provide bibliographic information about each publication, including abstracts in most cases. New records are added weekly. The search vocabu- lary is NLM’s Medical Subject Headings, or MeSH. New terms specific to the space life sciences have been added to MeSH to facilitate searching. Unique features of SPACELINE include a Space Flight Mission field, which allows references to experi- ments conducted on particular space flights to be found, and a NASA Experiment Identifier Number field, which will permit cross-searching in the Life Sciences Data Archive when that database is made available to the public. The database contents are derived from several of NLM’s databases plus additional references indexed specifically for SPACELINE. NASA’s SPACELINE project staff, located at the Uniformed Services Univer- sity of the Health Sciences, are at work converting thousands of citations from NASA files for entry into SPACELINE. Check out the SPACELINE web page for additional information, including how to access SPACELINE. The address is: SPACELINE brochure page highlights space life sciences information retrieval capability http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/life/spaceline.html

You can also contact the project at: SPACELINE, Dept. of Physiology, USUHS, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814-4799. phone: 301-295-2482; fax: 301-295-5271; e-mail: [email protected]

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 19 NASA and Russian Space Agency Will Extend Shuttle-Mir Activities

Vice President Albert Gore and Russian Prime Minister Victor Chernomyrdin announced on January 30, 1996 after a two-day meeting that NASA and the Russian Space Agency (RSA) have agreed in principle to extend Shuttle-Mir activities into 1998. NASA will add two missions to Mir, bringing the total number of planned Shuttle-to-Mir docking missions to nine, while Russia will meet its commitment to deliver on schedule key elements used in the early assembly of the international Space Station. STS-90, which had not been previously designated as a Mir mission, will now dock with the Russian station. A second mission, a new flight to Mir, was added to the Shuttle manifest. Both will occur in 1998. It was also announced that U.S. William M. Shepherd and Russian cosmonaut Sergei K. Krikalev will be on the first team of crew members to occupy the international Space Station. A three-person crew will be able to live and work on the Space Station beginning in May 1998. They will be launched to the Space Station aboard a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur launch site in Kazakhstan. “The Shuttle-Mir program is already paying back benefits,” said NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin. “We are laying the foundation for construction of the international Space Station with these docking flights,” he said. “Mir is proving to be an ideal test site for vital engineering research and expanding our knowledge of the effects of long-duration weightlessness on people,” said Goldin. The details of these arrangements, including the technical and financial aspects, will be worked out in subsequent NASA/RSA negotiations beginning in March. The arrangements include the following:

• The jointly-developed Science Power Platform would be launched to the Space Station on the . The Power Platform includes solar arrays to power experiments in the Russian research modules, and attitude control equipment.

• Russia would modify the Soyuz space capsules to accommodate a larger percentage of the U.S. astronaut corps. The Soyuz will serve as the emergency return vehicle for crew members living and working aboard the Space Station through the end of construction in June 2002 when a new NASA-developed vehicle becomes available. Size restrictions of the Soyuz capsules currently would prevent nearly half of the U.S. astronaut corps from being eligible for tours on the Station.

• Russia would increase the payload-carrying capability of the Progress resupply craft by 440 pounds, and would develop a new resupply vehicle, called the FGB cargo vehicle.

• NASA would have opportunities for additional NASA to perform long-duration missions on Mir.

20 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 International Space Station Overview

The International Space Station will serve as a permanent laboratory in Earth orbit, allowing astronauts and researchers from many nations permanent access to the unique space environment. The plans are for it to be finished by 2002. It will be used for at least 10 years. Combining the resources and scientific expertise of 13 nations, International Space Station is the largest cooperative scientific effort ever. Contributions from the international partners provide more laboratory space, more power, more logistical options, and allow for a larger crew. International partners include the United States, Russia, European Space Agency (ESA) member nations (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom), Japan, and Canada. Beginning in 1997, the building process will begin. It will take about 36 trips from Earth. The US will make about 21 of those trips; Russian launchers will make most of the other trips.

Facts & Figures Wingspan End-to-End Width 361 feet (110.03 meters) Length 290 feet (88.39 meters) Mass (Weight) 924,000 pounds (419,126,4 kilograms) Operating Altitude 220 miles average (407.44 kilometers) Crew Size 6 people. Most will stay for about three months

Significant Dates Date Schedule Payload 11/97 First Element Launch FGB (on Proton rocket) 5/98 Capability for 3-person crew Soyuz 11/98 US Laboratory Launched US Lab Module 12/98 Space Station Remote Manipulator System (Canada) 2/99 First Utilization Flight International Standard Payload Rack 11/99 First Russian Research Module Launch Russian RM-1 3/2000 Japanese Lab Launch Japanese Experimental Module Pressurized Module 8/2001 Centrifuge Launch Centrifuge Accommodation Module (US) 9/2001 European Lab Launch Columbus Orbital Facility (ESA) on Ariane rocket 2/2002 Habitation Module Launch US Habitation Module 6/2002 Assembly Complete Crew Transfer Vehicle Full 6-person crew capability

For more information via the World Wide Web see http://issa-www.jsc.nasa.gov/

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 21 Space Shuttle Mission 1996 Launch Schedule

MISSION STS-75 MISSION STS-78 Target launch date: Feb. 22, 1996 [launched on Target launch date: June 27, 1996 schedule] Orbiter: Columbia (OV-102) Orbiter: Columbia (OV-102) Mission duration: 14 days (+2) Mission duration: 13 days/16 hours/14 minutes Primary payloads: Spacelab Life and Microgravity Primary payloads: Tethered Satellite System-1R; Science (LMS) US Microgravity Payload-3 Crew (flight number): 7 members Crew (flight number): 7 members Mission Commander: Tom Henricks Mission Commander: Andrew Allen Pilot: Kevin Kregel Pilot: Scott Horowitz Mission Specialist: Payload Commander: Franklin Chang-Diaz Mission Specialist: Richard Linnehan Mission Specialist: Jeffrey Hoffman Mission Specialist: Charles Brady Mission Specialist: Claude Nicollier (European Payload Specialist: Jean-Jacques Favier (French) Space Agency) Payload Specialist: Robert Brent Thirsk (Canadian Mission Specialist: Maurizio Cheli (European Space Space Agency) Agency) Payload Specialist: Umberto Guidoni (Italy) MISSION STS-79 Target launch date: August 1, 1996 MISSION STS-76 Orbiter: Atlantis (OV-104) Target launch date: March 21, 1996 Mission duration: 9 days (+1) Orbiter: Atlantis (OV-104) Primary payloads: 4th Mir Docking Mission duration: 9 days Crew (flight number): 6 members Primary payloads: 3rd Mir docking; First EVA by Mission Commander: William Readdy US astronauts outside Mir Pilot: Terry Wilcutt Crew (flight number): 6 up, 5 down Mission Specialist: Tom Akers Mission Commander: Kevin Chilton Mission Specialist: Jerry Linenger Pilot: Richard Searfoss Mission Specialist: Jay Apt Mission Specialist: (Lucid will Mission Specialist: Carl Walz remain on Mir until August) Mission Specialist: Linda Godwin MISSION STS-80 Mission Specialist: Michael (Rich) Clifford Target launch date: November 7, 1996 Mission Specialist: Ronald Sega Orbiter: Columbia (OV-102) Mission duration: 16 days MISSION STS-77 Primary payloads: ORFEUS-SPAS-2; Target launch date: May 16, 1996 -3 Orbiter: Endeavour (OV-105) Crew (flight number): To Be Determined Mission duration: 10 days Mission Commander: Ken Cockrell Primary payloads: SPACEHAB-4; Spartan 207/ Pilot: Inflatable Antenna Experiment; TEAMS Mission Specialist: Tamara Jernigan Crew (flight number): 6 members Mission Specialist: Thomas David Jones Mission Commander: John Casper Mission Specialist: Pilot: Mission Specialist: Daniel Bursch MISSION STS-81 Mission Specialist: Mario Runco Target launch date: December, 1996 Mission Specialist: Marc Garneau (Canadian Space Orbiter: Atlantis (OV-104) Agency) Mission duration: 9 days (+1) Mission Specialist: Andrew Thomas Primary payload: 5th Mir Docking Crew (flight number): To Be Determined

Update as of January 24, 1996

22 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 NASA Awards Life and Biomedical Sciences Research Grants

NASA has selected 46 proposals to receive two and Arny A. Ferrando, Ph.D., Shriners Burns Institute, three-year grants for conducting ground-based or space- Galveston, TX borne life sciences research, totaling approximately $15 Suzanne M. Fortney, Ph.D., NASA Johnson Space Center, million. Houston, TX The purpose of these grants is to encourage science Alan S. Gevins, Sc. D., EEG Systems Laboratory, San Fran- cisco, CA and technology research in the space life sciences. The Ary L. Goldberger, M.D., Beth Israel Hospital, Boston, MA grants funded through this annual NASA research an- Karl H. Hasenstein, Ph.D., University of Southwest nouncement support a program of research that con- Louisiana, Lafayette, LA ducts experiments on Earth and in space to provide the Eileen M. Hasser, Ph.D., University of Missouri-Columbia, basic understanding of the role of gravity in biological Columbia, MO processes. Bertold Hock, Ph.D., University of Munihen at Sponsored by NASA’s Office of Life and Weikenstephan, Freising, Germany Microgravity Sciences and Applications, Washington, Michael F. Holick, M.D., Ph.D., Boston University School of DC, this research offers investigators the opportunity to Medicine, Boston, MA Kenneth C. Jenks, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, take advantage of NASA’s life and biomedical sciences TX research facilities to improve the understanding of fun- Christian J. Lambertsen, M.D., University of Pennsylvania damental biological processes. By using access to space Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA as a research tool, this research will advance fundamen- Terri L. Lomax, Ph.D., Oregon State University, Corvallis, tal knowledge of the way in which weightlessness, ra- OR diation, and other aspects of the spaceflight environ- James C. Maida, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX ment interact with biological processes. These grants Patrick H. Masson, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madi- also seek to enhance the application of this knowledge to son procedures and technologies that enable humans to live, Gordon A. McFeters, Ph.D., Montana State University, Bozeman, MT work and explore in space and to benefit the health and Robert J. Peterka, Ph.D., Legacy Good Samaritan Hospital, well-being of people on Earth. Portland, OR NASA received 380 proposals in response to this Duane L. Pierson, Ph.D., NASA Johnson Space Center, research announcement. The proposals were subjected Houston, TX to a fully external peer-review through assembled pan- Marc D. Porter, Ph.D., Iowa State University, Ames, IA els made up of scientific and technical experts. The Hinrich Rahmann, Ph.D., University of Stuttgart- selected proposals represent the following areas: space Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany biology (16); space physiology and countermeasures Stanley J. Roux, Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin (11); environmental health (2); space radiation health David W. Rowe, M.D., University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, CT (3); space human factors (3); advanced life support (5); Mitchell B. Schaffler, Ph.D., Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, advanced extravehicular activity systems (1); advanced MI technology development (2); data analysis (2); and inter- Heide Schatten, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison disciplinary proposals (1). Martin P. Schreibman, Ph.D., Brooklyn College, CUNY, The scientists selected for NASA life sciences re- Brooklyn, NY search grants are: Daniel Serfaty, Alphatech, Inc., Burlington, MA Sergei I. Sukharev, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madi- Clarence P. Alfrey, M.D., Ph.D., Baylor College of son Medicine, Houston, TX Kwangjae Sung, Ph.D., NASA Johnson Space Center, Hous- Mark G. Allen, Ph.D., Physical Sciences, Inc., Andover, MA ton, TX Gordon L. Amidon, Ph.D., University of Michigan, Ann Arthur J. Sytkowski, M.D., Harvard Medical School, Arbor, MI Boston, Mary H. Barcellos-Hoff, Ph.D., Lawrence Berkeley Labora- MA tory, Berkeley, CA James G. Tidball, Ph.D., University of California, Los Wilhelm Becker, Ph.D., Universitat Hamburg, Hamburg, Angeles Germany Russell T. Turner, Ph.D., Mayo Foundation, Rochester, MN Volker Blüm, Ph.D., Ruhr-Universitat of Bochum, Bochum, Charles A. Waldren, Ph.D., Colorado State University, Fort Germany Collins, CO David P. Cadogan, ILC Dover, Inc., Frederica, DE Ronald L. Walsworth, Ph.D., Smithsonian Institution, Cam- Daniel J. Cosgrove, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University, bridge, MA University Park, PA Raymond L. Warters, Ph.D., University of Utah School of Brian L. Davis, Ph.D., The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT Cleveland, OH Randy O. Wayne, Ph.D., Cornell University, Ithaca, NY Daniel L. Feeback, Ph.D., NASA Johnson Space Center, Darrell J. Wiens, Ph.D., University of Northern Iowa, Houston, TX Cedar Falls, IA

NASA Headquarters Press Release 95-210 November 28, 1995 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 23 Opportunities

International Academy of Aviation IML-2 Medaka Fish Experiment Book & Space Medicine Invites Applicants Is Available for 1997-98 Scholarship

The International Academy of Aviation and A beautiful new book is available that describes Space Medicine now has a well established schol- the medaka fish experiment on IML-2. The First arship program, the aim of which is to enable Vertebrate Mating in Space—a Fish Story is available young physicians who are starting on a career in free of charge from Dr. Kenichi Ijiri, Radioisotope Aerospace Medicine to either attend a formal course Center, University of Tokyo, Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, of instruction in aerospace medicine or to work in Tokyo 113, Japan, FAX 81-3-3816-0422, a recognized aerospace medicine training or re- E-mail: [email protected] search institute for instruction and for research or [email protected] experience in the discipline. Dr. Ijiri was the Principal Investigator, and de- Applications are now being accepted for the cided to write this book to present the major find- ($10,000 US) scholarship to be awarded for the ings, even though all the analyses are not yet com- 1997-1998 year. For more information contact: Dr. plete. Filled with color pictures of the hardware and R. Auffret, Chair of the Scholarship Committee, the events in space and on the ground, pre- and Aeroports de Paris, Departement Medical, Orly postflight, the book is an excellent guide to how a Sud 103 94396, ORLY-AEROGARE CEDEX- space experiment is conducted. If you look closely FRANCE. Phone: (33) 1 49 75 79 90; Fax: (33) 1 49 at the group pictures, you will be able to find ASGSB 75 79 19. Closing date is June 1, 1996. member Mike Weiderhold.

NASA Puts Research Announcements Online

NASA's Life Sciences Division has released their NASA Research Announcements (NRAs) as of February 20, 1996. Information Dynamics, Incorporated (IDI), a Washington DC based NASA support contractor, put the NRAs online. Approximately 12,000 potential research proposers were notified of the electronic address via postcard and were asked to download the NRAs on their own computers. Those without Internet access were given a phone number to request paper copies. In the past, hard copies of NRAs were mailed to every potential proposer. The latest data shows that 53,578 pages of the NRAs have been previewed on the Internet with unique hosts totalling 1,829. To date (March 18, 1996), 1,372 Life Sciences NRAs have been accessed via the Internet and 225 hard copies have been mailed per request. In addition to saving paper and manpower, the online NRA concept has achieved a substantial postage cost savings to NASA of approximately $36,000. The required postage for the NRA hard copies is $3.00 each compared to $.20 for each postcard. Along with its subcontractor, Universities Space Research Association, IDI will be coordinating the peer review in response to these Announcements. See the Opportunities column on page 25 for specific information about the Life Sciences NRAs and how to access them electronically or request a hard copy.

Kate Hall Information Dynamics, Inc.

24 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 Opportunities

NASA Research Announcements (NRAs) Students Can Participate for Space Life Sciences in Shuttle/Mir Program

NASA's Office of Life and Biomedical Sciences Teachers—Involve your students in sharing the and Applications announces two solicitations for space excitement of the Space Life Sciences participation in life sciences research proposals. You are encouraged the U.S. and Russian space partnership. Activities to submit to any that are open in your area of science. will peak during the visits of the four U.S. astronauts A good response demonstrates scientific community to Russia, between March 1996 and September 1997. interest in space life science and helps glean more The Outreach effort will include: financial support from the NASA budget. Release date is February 20, 1996. 1) Science Lessons: A set of experiential science modules/lesson plans closely tied to the Fundamen- NRA 96-OLMSA-01A: Research Opportunities in Space tal Biology Investigations being conducted on Life Sciences. Proposals Due May 15, 1996 Shuttle/Mir. NRA 96-OLMSA-01B: Advanced Life Support and Envi- ronmental Technologies for Human and Exploration Devel- 2) Career Activities: Role modeling/career mentoring opment of Space. through electronic exchange with the scientists and Proposals Due May 15, 1996 engineers associated with the Shuttle/Mir program, to include biographies, daily journals, and interac- Proposals requested by these announcements may tive discussions. be for ground-based research or for limited types of spaceflight experiments designed for Shuttle middeck 3) Cultural Exchange: A cultural exchange between or for the earliest phase of utilization of the Interna- a broad range of American schools and their Russian tional Space Station. counterparts. These solicitations, including all necessary forms and the ability to file a letter of intent electronically, are To participate or for more information, check the available electronically via the Internet at: NASA Quest Server at:

http://peer1.idi.usra.edu http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/ShuttleMir.html

Paper copies of these announcements are available or write to: to those who do not have access to the Internet by Space Life Sciences Shuttle/Mir Outreach Coordinator calling 202-358-4180 and leaving a voice mail message. D. Duncan Atchison Questions regarding these announcements may Mail Stop 19-15 be addressed to Code UL/Life Sciences Division, NASA NASA Ames Research Center Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, Attn: Ms. Vicki Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000 E-mail: [email protected] Thorne; phone 202-358-2530; E-mail address: [email protected]

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 25 Life Sciences Calendar

April 1, 1996 Gravity and the Plant Cell, Orlando, FL (symposium sponsored by the Southern Section of the American Society of Plant Physiologists). Further information: Mary Musgrave, Dept. of Plant Pathology & Crop Physiology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803. (504) 388-1391.

April 11, 1996 International Space Station: The Next Logical Step. Live via satellite, 1:00 pm-3:00 pm EDT. Further information: Call 1-800-257-2579.

April 9-12, 1996 4th International Conference on Closed Ecological Systems, London, England. Further information: The Linnean Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London W1V 0LQ, United Kingdom. (0171) 434 4479; fax (0171) 287 9364.

April 14-18, 1996 Experimental Biology ’96, Washington, DC. Further information: FASEB Office of Scientific Meetings, 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814. (301) 530-7010.

April 14-19, 1996 17th Annual International Gravitational Physiology Meeting, Warsaw, Poland. Further information: Prof. Hilding Bjurstedt, Chairman, ISGP Council of Trustees, Environmen- tal Physiology Laboratory, Karolinska Institute, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden. +46- 8334012; fax +46-8339702.

April 30-May 2, 1996 Global Air & Space ’96 Conference and Exhibit, Arlington, VA. Further information: AIAA Meetings Department, 370 L’Enfant Promenade SW, Washington, DC 20024. (202) 646- 7400.

May 5-9, 1996 67th Annual Meeting of the Aerospace Medical Association, Atlanta, GA. Further informa- tion: Aerospace Medical Association, 320 S. Henry St., Alexandria, VA 22314. (703) 739- 2240; fax (703) 739-9652.

May 8-10, 1996 SPACEBOUND ‘96 (7th Canadian Microgravity Conference), Winnepeg, Canada. Fur- ther information: Spacebound ’96, Canadian Space Agency, 6767 Airport Road, Saint- Hubert, Quebec J3Y 8Y9, Canada. Fax (514) 926-4766.

May 19-25, 1996 20th International Symposium on Space Technology and Science (ISTS), Gifu, Japan. Further information: Joyce Browning, AIAA Headquarters, 370 L’Enfant Promenade SW, Washington, DC 20024. (202) 646-7563; fax: (202) 646-7508.

May 27-31, 1996 AGARD’s Aerospace Medical Panel Symposium on Selection and Training Advances in Aviation, Prague, Czech Republic. Further information: AGARD/AMP, 7 Rue Ancelle, 92200 Neuillly-sur-Seine, France. 33-1-47-38-57-60; fax 33-1-47-38-57-99.

June 17-21, 1996 Sixth European Symposium on Life Sciences Research in Space, Trondheim, Norway. Further information: Mr. L.O. Jansson, ESA, 8-10 rue Mario Nikis, F-75738 Paris Cedex 15, France. Fax 33-1-5369 7560.

July 8-11, 1996 26th International Conference on Environmental Systems (ICES). Further information: SAE, 400 Commonwealth Drive, Warrendale, PA 15096-0001. (412) 776-4841; fax (412) 776- 0002.

July 14-21, 1996 31st Meeting of the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR), Birmingham, England. Further information: AIAA Meetings Department, 370 L’Enfant Promenade SW, Washington, DC 20024. (202) 646-7400.

26 ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 July 14-19, 1996 1996 Gordon Research Conference on “Gravitational Biology: Mechanosensitivity, Calcium, and Adaptation,” Colby Sawyer College, New London, NH. Further information: M.J. Correia, Conference Chair, University of Texas Medical Branch, 7.102 Medical Research Bldg, Galveston, TX 77555-1063. (409) 772-2708; fax (409) 772-2964. E-mail: [email protected]

July 27-August 2, 1996 1996 American Society of Plant Physiologists (ASPP) Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX. Further information: ASPP 1996 Annual Meeting, 15501 Monona Drive, Rockville, MD 20855. (301) 251-0560.

August 4-8, 1996 47th Annual Meeting of the American Institute of Biological Sciences, Seattle, WA. Further information: AIBS Meetings Department, (202) 628-1599; fax (202) 628-1509.

September 8-13, 1996 44th International Congress of Aviation and Space Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel. Further information: Secretariat, 44th ICASM, P.O. Box 50006, Tel Aviv 61500. +972-3-5140000; fax +972-3-5175674/514-0077.

September 8-13, 1996 20th International Council of Aeronautical Sciences Congress, Sorrento, Italy. Further information: Leslie Tavenner, (202) 646-7454.

September 24-26, 1996 1996 AIAA Space Programs and Technologies Conference, Huntsville, AL. Further informa- tion: AIAA, 370 L’Enfant Promenade SW, Washington, DC 20024. (202) 646-7400.

October 16-19, 1996 National Association of Biology Teachers Annual Meeting, Charlotte, NC. Further informa- tion: NABT, (703) 471-1134.

October 23-27, 1996 12th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Gravitational and Space Biology (ASGSB), Charlotte, NC. Further information: D. Beem, Executive Director, ASGSB, P.O. Box 12247, Rosslyn, VA 22219. (202) 628-1500, x250. E-mail: [email protected]

May 11-15, 1997 68th Annual Meeting of the Aerospace Medical Association, Chicago, IL. Further informa- tion: Aerospace Medical Association, 320 S. Henry Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. (703) 739-2240; fax (703) 739-9652.

ASGSB NEWSLETTER 12 (1) Winter 1996 27 APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR GRAVITATIONAL AND SPACE BIOLOGY

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CRITERIA FOR MEMBERSHIP: Members: Experience and education in Society-related research areas. • Doctorate • Masters with 2 years experience • Bachelors with 4 years experience

Student Members: College student actively enrolled in an academic curriculum leading toward a career related to the Society’s purposes.

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR GRAVITATIONAL AND SPACE BIOLOGY P.O. BOX 12247 ROSSLYN, VA 22219 USA

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