Sigma Xi - University of Maryland Chapter
Fall 2003 Newsletter
Winter Meeting - 16 October 2003
ow that Hurricane Isabel has run its course, we can take advantage of the ensuing peace and calm (and electricity!) by continuing our tradition of a joint Fall dinner/lecture meeting with the District of Columbia (DC) and Food & Drug Administration (FDA) chapters of Sigma Xi. This year's meeting will be held on Thursday, 16 October 2003, in the “new” section of the Animal Sciences Building on the University of Maryland College Park campus. The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. with a buffet dinner in the Concourse, followed by a presentation at 7:30 p.m. in the lecture hall (Rm. 0408). Our guest speaker will be Dr. Ronald Rodriguez of Johns Hopkins University, who will talk about “The Future of Gene Therapy for Prostate Cancer.”
Dr. Rodriguez is with the Brady Urology Institute at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. He obtained a B.S. in Life Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. in Cell Biology and M.D. in Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. He has been the recipient of many awards, which include the McDermott Scholar in Science and Engineering from MIT, the American Federation for Clinical Research Award for Research Excellence, the Sigma Xi Award for Thesis Excellence in Biomedical Sciences, and the CaPCure Young Investigator Award.
Dr. Rodriquez's primary clinical interest is in urological oncology including malignancies of the prostate, bladder and kidney. In addition, he is a fully-trained, basic scientist with an active research laboratory. He is currently involved in the development of experimental therapeutics for urological malignancies, such as the treatment of advanced prostate cancer with gene therapy vectors.
Please see the enclosed reservation form for more information. It should be an enjoyable evening, and we hope to see you there!
200 Initiation & Awards Banquet
he UM Chapter of Sigma Xi's 2003 Initiation & Awards Banquet was held on 6 May 2003. After dinner, we were treated to an interesting and provocative talk by Dr. Rita Colwell, Director of the National Science Foundation. Dr. Colwell described several of the exciting recent advances in science such as the creation of antihydrogen, the development of femtosecond laser amplifiers, and the potential for bio-engineered crop plants, then discussed the implications and ramifications of new “national security”-related policies such as restrictions on international visas and proposed limitations on scientific freedom. She urged us as researchers and scientists to get involved in helping to shape these policies, and cautioned us that “[i]f we do not become active partners in crafting the policies that involve and affect our work, it will be done without our insight, reason, and wisdom.”
New members initiated at the banquet included Amanda Ackerman, Raymond Brooks, Matthew Dykas, Robin Cook Hill, Christopher Hoffman, Anne Innis, Danielle Kelleher, Jeong-Nam Kim, Marnie Layton, Saeed Moghaddam, Michael Quinn, Mary Lynn Searing, Aisha Michel Sexton, Pamela Toschik, Qi Wang (Associate Membership), Frank Attard, Britta Leverentz, Amy Soli, Eric Soli (promotion to Full Membership), and Jinshui Fan, Iqbal Hamza, Nancy Heiser, Alfred Krall, Leah Waks and Tiebing Zhang (Full Membership). Awards were also presented to the following individuals: Barbara Shaw Perry (2003 Pelczar Award for Excellence in Graduate Study) and Jane Dusselier (2003 Phi Delta Gamma Graduate Fellowship for Interdisciplinary Scholarship).
Fall Sigma Xi GIAR Deadline - 15 October 2003
s many of you know, Sigma Xi's Grants-in-Aid-of-Research (GIAR) program has been providing undergraduate and graduate students with valuable educational experiences for more than 80 years. By encouraging close working relationships between students and faculty, the program promotes scientific excellence and achievement through hands-on learning. This year the Fall deadline for GIAR applications is 15 October 2003. The GIAR committee is scheduled to meet in early December, and applicants will be notified about funding by the end of December. More information is available at the GIAR website: http://www.sigmaxi.org/programs/giar/index.shtml