Visit Us in October

The Academy's Frontiers of Science Program has a busy month ahead, bringing you a wide and diverse range of events in the life, physical, computer, and environmental sciences. Remember that your NYAS membership means free registration for any of the following events. Learn more about these and other events at www.nyas.org/events.

Life Sciences

Oct 7, 2008 Biotechnology and Pharma: Evolution and Adaptation
Organized by the NYAS Science Alliance, an expert panel will address the impact of science, regulation, business, and society on the current state of drug development and its designs for the future.

Oct 20, 2008 Genome Integrity Discussion Group
Junior and senior researchers at NYC-area institutions present new data on chromosome biology and function, and on the interface between chromosome integrity and cell cycle regulation.

Oct 21, 2008 Accelerating CNS Drug Development with Molecular Imaging
Learn about the advantages and pitfalls of current methods, and learn about successes in the use of PET tracers for developing novel therapeutics.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Oct 3, 2008 New York Computer Science and Economics Day (NYCE Day)
Local researchers with interests in computer science, economics, marketing, and business will gather to discuss the economics of Internet activity.

Oct 10, 2008 3rd Annual Machine Learning Symposium
Hear about new approaches to designing computer intelligence from scientists from the NYC area's academic, government, and industrial institutions.

Oct 22, 2008 Soft Materials: Microfluidics
Learn about new devices for channeling and measuring small volumes of fluids.

Nov 6, 2008 Credit Crisis: Actions Taken and Lessons Learned
Stephen Figlewski (Stern School of Business), Gregory Hopper (Goldman Sachs), and Petter Kolm (Courant Institute, NYU) will discuss ramifications of the latest developments on Wall Street.

Environmental Sciences & Sustainability

Oct 9, 2008 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Is Gore's 100% Renewable Energy Challenge Achievable for New York City?
Al Gore challenged America to commit to producing 100% of our energy from renewable, clean, and carbon-free sources in 10 years. What would it take for New York City to achieve this goal?

Oct 15, 2008 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Zero Net Energy Building: Reality or Fiction
Experts believe that improving energy consumption in buildings will be an important element of reducing carbon emissions. This meeting is the first of a four-part series on how to do it.

Take Our eBriefings Survey

Have you used the Academy's eBriefings lately? We'd like to know what you think. Please take our survey before October 31. It will take only a couple of minutes and will help us to serve you better as we make some improvements to our Web site over the coming months.

The NYAS Web team has completed our coverage of the spring 2008 season. Recent highlights include eBriefings on integrative physiology, vaccine development for neurodegenerative diseases, government approaches for promoting green building, and the role of quantitative strategies in causing the current market crisis. We have also just published an eBriefing on neuroscience and music, documenting a recent conference held at McGill University, one of the world's leading centers for studying the subject. New eBriefings on the current season of NYAS meetings should begin appearing later this month.

Two new volumes of the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences are also now available. Circulating Nucleic Acids in Plasma and Serum V reports on progress in developing diagnostic techniques using DNA and RNA fractions. Recent Advances in Clinical Oncology looks at new developments in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. See more at www.nyas.org/annals.

Science & the City Events Series

Mad scientists, plagues, technology run amok. For as long as there has been film, screenwriters have looked to science for inspiration, some more accurately than others. This month, the Imagine Science Film Festival showcases films that effectively incorporate science into a compelling narrative while maintaining credible scientific groundings. The Academy hosts the opening night celebration on October 16, bringing you a panel of scientists and filmmakers to discuss the relationship between science and the cinema with moderator Ira Flatow from NPR's Science Friday.

On October 23 Science & the City, in partnership with the NYU School of Continuing and Professional Studies, also presents an evening with psychologist Gary Marcus. Marcus is the author of Kluge: the Haphazard Construction of the Human Mind, and will explain why the brain is less a fine-tuned machine than a hugely complex Rube Goldberg device.

Looking ahead, register early for The Science of the Five Senses, a series designed to convey state-of-the-art scientific knowledge about how humans perceive our environment, through presentations that integrate science and art. Speakers include Christof Koch, Leslie Vosshall, Daniel Levitin, Harold McGee, Roseanne Cash, and Apollo Robbins. Click the link above and scroll down for more information.

You can also experience past Science & the City events with the Science & the City Podcast. Our most recent edition features Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek, who recently discussed his hopes for the Large Hadron Collider at the Academy.

Viva Mexico...
& the Academy!
Last week I saw first hand the power that the scientific community can have in inspiring hope in our society. Read more about Mexico City's "Science & Innovation Week," as well as the Academy's new elected Board of Governors. >>