February 10, 2010   

This is the year to get the answers to those knotty problems you have in teaching genetics.  At the GENETICS 2010:  Model Organisms to Human Biology Meeting the Education and Outreach Workshop co-chairs, Pat Pukkila (Univ of North Carolina) and Beth DeStasio (Lawrence Univ) want to know your pressing teaching issues.  Whether it’s designing inquiry-based labs, providing context for genetics education, using bioinformatic tools in undergraduate courses, engaging students in large lecture courses, or some other problem, e-mail them your issue to discuss at the workshop. 

Policy

The Arabidopsis Information Resource, a database of genetics and molecular biology data for the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana is gathering community input on ways to address the loss of National Science Foundation funding for the database. More information is available here.

In a statement on February 1, 2010 after the release of President Obama’s FY 2011budget for biomedical research, Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) President Mark O. Lively applauded the increased funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science.  The President’s budget, increases funding to NIH from FY2010 by $1 billion "to support innovative projects from basic to clinical research," according to a press release issued by the Department of Health and Human Services.  Combined budget increases for NSF and DOE’s Office of Science amount to more than $750 million.

Resources

Learn.Genetics and Teach.Genetics are online resources developed by Louisa A. Stark and Kevin Pompei (Univ of Utah) that recently received the first Science Prize for Online Resources in Education (SPORE).  This award is the first of 12 that will be presented monthly to "web sites that best promote science education," wrote Bruce Alberts, Editor-in-Chief of Science.  These online resources for students, teachers and the public are designed to "address the need for genomic literacy."  Stark, a member of the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) received the Society’s Award for Excellence in Human Genetics Education in 2008.

FASEB recently launched Horizons in Bioscience, a one-page publication that "describes scientific discoveries on the brink of clinical application and the pathway of discovery leading to the current day," according to Carrie Wolinetz, Ph.D., FASEB’s Director of Scientific Affairs and Public Relations.  The first in this series is on "How Biomedical Research Provides Fertility Hope to Cancer Survivors."  Hardcopies are available free of charge to FASEB society members by contacting the FASEB Office of Public Affairs at (301) 634-7650.

Other Meetings

Brush up on your French and enjoy the Mediterranean coast along with fantastic science at the Human Genome Meeting (HGM), focusing on "Next Generation Genomics and Medicine," May 18-21, 2010 in Montpellier, France.  Past GSA Board member Mike Snyder (Stanford Univ) joins many colleagues from the American Society of Human Genetics as a speaker at this meeting.  The HGM is organized by the Human Genome Organisation (HUGO).

February 17, 2010
MOHB: Abstract Submission Opens

February 24, 2010
MOHB: Registration Opens

March 1, 2010
Deadline: The GSA Excellence in Research Journalism Award

Have You Renewed Your Membership for 2010?
If not, renew today!

GENETICS

February Issue

Do you have a brief announcement to submit to GSA e-News?
E-news items include news about GSA members -- new position, book publication, awards or grants received and obits; short policy items; brief research news items and grant programs; and, award nomination announcements. Deadline for next issue: February 17, 2010.

Send items to Phyllis Edelman, pedelman@genetics-gsa.org or society@genetics-gsa.org.