• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

Bioethics Shake-Up ................... 1 Annual Meeting Keynote ......... 1 LETTERPresident’s Column .................. 2 Annual Meeting Program ........ 5 VOLUME 27, NUMBER 3 March 2004 Cytokinesis Meeting .................. 6 LAC Meeting ............................... 7 Bush Fires Blackburn from WICB ............................................. 8 Call for Nominations .............. 10 Bioethics Council Public Policy Briefing ............. 11 Member Profile .........................14 Renowned cell biologist Elizabeth Blackburn of the University of Cali- fornia, San Francisco, who served as ASCB President in 1998, was Members in the News .............17 abruptly terminated from the President’s Council on Bioethics with a Gifts..............................................17 phone call from the White House. Letters to the Editor ............... 17 Blackburn had been outspoken in her insistence that the Council Grants & Opportunities ........ 18 consider the moral cost of forgoing potentially lifesaving research, and Classifieds..................................19 was frequently at odds with the Council Chairman, Leon Kass over how that science should be presented. Calendar .....................................20 Elizabeth Blackburn Blackburn and William May of Southern Methodist University, who had joined Blackburn in the opinion that stem cell research is an important and promising field of research that should be funded by the Federal government with appropriate oversight, were replaced by three new members. They include a doctor who has called for more religion in public life, a political scientist Micrographs who has effusively and publicly praised Kass and has called research in which embryos are destroyed, “the evil of willful destruction of innocent human life” and a Needed professor of government at Berry College in Georgia who warned in a conservative The ASCB is producing a publication that if citizens of the U.S. do not realize that abortion is wrong, then cell biology calendar to com- women will be compelled to abort genetically defective babies. memorate the Society’s 45th Blackburn has said that, “enlightened societies can only make good policy when anniversary and seeks it is based on the availability of informed information and reasoned, open discus- beautiful, high-quality im- sion. I was aware, in undertaking membership on the Council, that convincing the ages of cells from members. majority of other Councilors with strong opposing views that were grounded in For more information, see ideology and religion to moderate their positions would be difficult, time-consum- www.ascb.org or contact ing and perhaps not possible. Thus it was only with the initial strong, personal [email protected]. ■ assurances of the Council Chairman, and of the President of the United States him- self, that I was persuaded that the voice of science would be heard and integrated into the statements of the Council. I continue to feel that bioethical issues are impor- ASCB’s 2002 tant to every biologist and worthy of debate.” Continued, page 13 Calendar Kim, Nurse to Open Annual Meeting Merck Research Laboratories President Peter Kim, and Sir Paul Nurse, 2001 Nobel Laureate and President of The Rockefeller University, will open the 44th ASCB Annual 44th Annual Meeting in the Keynote Symposium on “Cell Biology—Ris- Meeting ing to Meet the Medical Challenges of the New Century.” The Keynote will be on Saturday, December 4 at 6:00 pm Program in the Washington Convention Center. A reception for all Peter Kim Sir Paul Nurse See page 5 attendees follows. ■ March 2004 1 The American Society for Cell Biology PRESIDENT’S COLUMN 8120 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 750 Bethesda, MD 20814-2762 Tel: (301) 347-9300; Fax: (301) 347-9310 [email protected]; www.ascb.org How to Choose a Place to Elizabeth Marincola Executive Director Meet Officers Harvey Lodish Harvey Lodish The first thing I did when efit of an early December meeting is that President I learned I was elected ASCB President was the Society can refuse the “attrition clause” Zena Werb President-Elect panic. That’s because I was told that the in hotel contracts. Were we subject to it, this Suzanne Pfeffer most important thing the Executive Com- clause would hold the Society financially Past-President Gary Ward mittee and Council would have to accom- responsible for any unsold hotel rooms in Treasurer plish over the next year was its reserved blocks. This Lawrence S. B. Goldstein pick sites for the annual meet- could result in a huge ex- Secretary There is a certain equity ings from 2010 through pense to the Society if un- to holding meetings in Council 2019. Fortunately I learned expected problems such as Helen Blau roughly equal proportion that the site selection process bad weather caused large- Juan Bonifacino on the East and West Anthony Bretscher was well underway by an scale cancellations. Of Coasts, but of course this Pietro DeCamilli excellent Site Selection Com- course any expense in- Peter Devreotes hurts the many vibrant cit- Linda Hicke mittee, chaired by Gary curred by the ASCB one way ies and biomedical com- Alan Rick Horwitz Borisy. The other members or another is a cost to its Kathryn Howell munities elsewhere. Daphne Preuss of the Site Selection Commit- members, through reduced Jean Schwarzbauer tee were Mary Beckerle, Carl programs or resources, or Janet Shaw Cohen, Suzanne Pfeffer, increased dues or fees, so Peter Walter Jerry Shay and Gary Ward and they were every member should be interested in the The ASCB Newsletter is published supported in their work by Trina Society protecting its financial risks in this twelve times per year by The American Society for Cell Biology Armstrong and Elizabeth Marincola from sort of way. the ASCB. My second question was why the ASCB Elizabeth Marincola The first question I asked was why the meeting has been shuttling back and forth Editor John L. Saville Society always meets in early December, es- between San Francisco and Washington. Production Manager pecially since this is near the end of the An advantage of this arrangement is that Nancy Moulding Production Assistant fall academic term at virtu- we were able to negotiate Kevin Wilson ally all universities. I savings by signing multi- Public Policy Briefing The ASCB Annual Meet- quickly learned that the year contracts with each of Ed Newman ing brings scientific ex- Advertising Manager ASCB has staked a “claim” these cities. Importantly, citement to the research John Fleischman to that general timeframe, both cities are easily acces- Member Profile communities where it and therefore has reason- sible by air and both have meets, as well as financial Deadlines for submission of articles able assurance that other large biomedical research and advertising materials: benefit to the local popu- societies will, in their own communities that insure a lation. Issue Deadline interest, avoid scheduling significant number of local May April 1 June May 1 their own meetings during attendees. Planning for July June 1 the same time period. Po- these meetings and their as- The ASCB Newsletter tential conflicts are most threatening with sociated costs is facilitated by returning to ISSN 1060-8982 regard to companies who also exhibit at the same buildings repeatedly. There also Volume 27, Number 3 other society meetings and on whom we is a certain equity to holding meetings in March 2004 depend for a considerable amount of rev- roughly equal proportion on the East and ©2004 The American Society for enue. Second, by meeting in the low sea- West Coasts, but of course this hurts the Cell Biology son for the travel industry, the ASCB can many vibrant cities and biomedical com- Postmaster: Send change of address to ASCB negotiate for the most favorable rates for munities elsewhere on the coasts and, im- Newsletter, American Society for Cell Biology, 8120 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 750, Bethesda, MD 20814-2762. both convention center and hotel room portantly, in the interior of the United rates. One important but non-obvious ben- States. 2 The ASCB Newsletter, Vol 27, No 3 As the Site Selection Committee began tion) of the convention center. As an ex- its deliberations, it became clear that there ample, Chicago was ultimately rejected be- were significant advantages to holding cause no one wanted to meetings in other cities. The ASCB Annual have to shuttle people be- Meeting brings scientific excitement to the tween downtown hotels The ability to come and research communities where it meets, as and McCormack Place. Part go easily and cost-effec- well as financial benefit to the local popu- of this reasoning is related tively is critical to main- lation. It enables more scientists and stu- to cost, as shuttles are taining the desirable sci- dents from the surrounding area to attend hugely expensive. But also ence-intense character without travel and hotel expenses. Less ob- important is the spirit of the of the meeting. vious, perhaps, are the education programs ASCB’s Annual Meeting, aimed at local high school teachers and which offers programs such students. as Exhibitor Showcases, In considering cities ASCB committee programs other than Washington and and especially posters, well Many business conven- San Francisco, the Site Se- into the evening hours. tions “shut down” in the lection Committee quickly Cell biologists tend to fill late afternoon so that at- adopted several key crite- their time at their meetings tendees can socialize ria. Overall cost was impor- talking about science. Many and eat and drink. tant, as it clearly was not of you may not realize that worth a significant rise in many business conventions registration fees to enable “shut down” in the late af- the Society to go to any particular city. Sec- ternoon so that attendees can socialize and ond, there had to be a large number of ho- eat and drink. (I have been to many such tel rooms within reasonable walking dis- meetings; indeed they are very different tance (six blocks was the working defini- from the ASCB meetings.) While cell biolo- March 2004 3 gists certainly socialize and eat and drink, be big enough for the number of partici- the Selection Committee felt that the abil- pants we project.

Load more

  20

Copy Link