| 25th FUNGAL GENETICS CONFERENCE | [print this page] |
The Fungal Genetics Policy Committee invites you to attend the 25th Fungal Genetics Conference, sponsored by the Genetics Society of America. The meeting will be at the Asilomar Conference Center, Pacific Grove, California (near Monterey, California). The conference will open on Tuesday evening, March 17th with an Opening Mixer from 7:30 pm – 10:30 pm and end on Sunday, March 22 at 12:00 pm.
All meeting questions should be directed to Anne Marie Mahoney, GSA Meetings Manager, Mahoney@genetics-gsa.org, Genetics Society of America, 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, Maryland 20814, telephone: 301-634-7300.
Chairs of the Scientific Program:
|
Dr. Jay Dunlap Dept. of Genetics Dartmouth Medical School Hanover, New Hampshire |
Dr. Francine Govers Laboratory of Phytopathology Wageningen University The Netherlands |
Important Conference Dates:
|
Abstract Submission Site Opens |
October 27, 2008 |
|
Conference Registration Site Opens |
October 27, 2008 |
|
Financial Aid Application Deadline |
November 14, 2008 |
|
Perkins Fund Award Application Deadline |
December 15, 2008 |
|
Abstract Submission Deadline |
December 12, 2008 |
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Meeting and Housing Registration Deadline |
December 12, 2008 |
The abstract submission web site will be open from October 27, 2008 until December 12, 2008. Complete instructions for electronic submission of poster abstracts are available at the meeting web-site. If you encounter difficulties in submitting your abstract via the web, contact: Kevin McCluskey, PhD, Curator FGSC, at http://www.fgsc.net/contact.cfm.
The chairs have organized the plenary sessions. Each session will consist of five invited talks of general interest.
There will be four afternoons of concurrent sessions on a variety of topics. Twenty-eight sessions are planned and are listed in the tentative conference schedule.
Deadline for receipt of abstracts: December 12, 2008. All abstracts must be submitted via the web. Poster Sessions will be in the evenings, March 18-20. The size of the poster should not exceed 4 feet (111.8 cm) x 4 feet (111.8 cm). Two authors will share a 4-foot high x 8-foot wide poster board. No materials for making posters will be available at the conference grounds. We encourage photos of the authors be attached to posters to facilitate identification by new members of the group.
If you submit an abstract, you will be expected to bring a poster. Concurrent session organizers will have early access to the abstracts and may invite additional speakers from the abstract pool to speak. You are still expected to bring a poster if you are asked to give a talk. If you are an invited concurrent session speaker, you do not need to submit an abstract unless you are also bringing a poster.
Time is available in the early afternoons and Sunday morning for ad hoc meetings. Those wishing to convene such informal sessions should contact one of the scientific chairs.
The following equipment will be provided in all plenary, concurrent workshop sessions: a Mac computer loaded with PowerPoint, an LCD projector, laser pointer and a lavaliere microphone.
Presenters must arrive 45 minutes prior to the start of their session. Please have your presentation stored on a thumbdrive (PowerPoint format preferred). While both Windows and Mac OS formats will be accepted, Mac OS is preferred. Everyone’s presentations will be loaded on the meeting computer.
Awards will be given for the best poster presentations. Prizes will be given to the students or postdocs judged to have the best posters. Both scientific merit and clarity of presentation will be taken into account. The awards will be presented at the Closing Banquet on Saturday, March 21.
The National Academies has a useful web site concerning obtaining a visa (http://national-academies.org/visas). As part of new security procedures, many applications are being sent to the State Department in Washington where they are reviewed, with assistance from other agencies. Because of the number of visas being processed and the need to be thorough with the reviews, this can take as much as 3 to 4 months. Therefore, we advise scientists intending to come to the United States to apply for their visa as early as possible.
Some funds will be
available to support the participation of students and others that might
otherwise be unable to attend. Awards are generally limited to room and
board, although in special circumstances, travel assistance may also be
available. If you wish to be considered for such support, please submit the
Financial Support Application form. All applicants will be notified
of financial award decisions in time to register for the meeting. Deadline
for receipt of financial assistance requests is November 14, 2008.
Financial Support Application Form (Pdf,
Doc)
Monterey is the closest commercial airport to Asilomar. Taxis meet all arriving flights and cost approximately $30 per person. The airport is about 20 minutes from Asilomar. The closest major airports are, in order of convenience, San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland.
The Perkins Fund Award allows graduate students or postdoctoral scientists that utilize Neurospora as an experimental organism to attend the Fungal Genetics Conference or the Neurospora Conference. It is now time to solicit the fifth round of nominations for Perkins Fund Awardees.
As a result of your generosity, the fund can support two awards to attend the upcoming 25th Fungal Genetics Conference. Awards of approximately $400 each will go to one graduate student and one postdoctoral scientist. Nominations for Perkins Fund Awardees should be made in the form of a one-page letter from the candidate’s research advisor. This letter should include a 200 word description of why the individual’s work is exceptional. Up to two re-prints or pre-prints of published research may also be included with the nomination.
Evaluation of the nominations will be overseen by the Neurospora Policy Committee. The awardees will be notified prior to the meeting, and the award will be presented at the banquet on the final night of the meeting.
The nomination letter and any accompanying materials should be sent as a PDF via e-mail no later than December 15, 2008 to: Chair Neurospora Policy Committee, E-mail: Yi.Liu@UTSouthwestern.edu
Deadline for conference registration and housing reservations is December 12, 2008. Neither submission of an abstract nor GSA membership is required for attendance at the meeting. If you wish to join GSA, you may do so online at the GSA web site: http://www.genetics-gsa.org (click on GSA Directory/Membership in the menu bar).
Conference registration will be accepted via the Fungal Conference Online Registration website opening on October 27, 2008 or by mailing in the appropriate form. Payment may be made by Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover.
Registration Fees
|
GSA member/affiliate |
$225 |
|
Nonmember |
$385 |
|
Post docs |
$200 |
|
Post doc nonmember |
$305 |
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Student |
$170 |
|
Student nonmember |
$260 |
|
Accompanying Guest |
$0 |
For security purposes, letters of invitation can only be sent to individuals that have registered for the meeting. After you have registered, you will be given a link to generate a letter of invitation. If you have any questions, please contact Mahoney@genetics-gsa.org.
Roommate Bulletin
Board
An electronic bulletin board is
available on the online registration webpage to facilitate finding a
roommate. Registrants can post messages regarding what type of roommate they
are looking for (male or female to share a double, triple or quad) and the
participants will respond directly to the registrant.
Due to the popularity of the 2007 meeting, registration will be open to all, up to 1,000 people. To accommodate the increase, there will be a video/audio feed sent to Chapel which seats an additional 220 people. If limiting attendance is still necessary, first year graduate student registrations will be considered lowest priority, as there will be opportunities for them to attend a future meeting.
Asilomar Conference Center is located on 107 acres of forest, dune and beach at the tip of the Monterey Peninsula. Asilomar retains many of the original flora and fauna of the peninsula. Please go to www.visitAsilomar.com for detailed information about the area. The weather is brisk (40-60◦ F) with a possibility of rain. Bring warm clothing and a raincoat.
All Asilomar rooms have private baths. There are very few singles available. Requests for single rooms will be honored in the order received. All rates include meals, beginning with Tuesday dinner and concluding with Sunday lunch. No refunds are available for missed meals. Infants under age 2 years of age may stay in your room with no charge. Children from 3-17 years old are charged the special rate of $306 provided there is triple or quadruple occupancy with one adult in certain rooms. Otherwise, they pay regular rates. No pets are allowed on the grounds.
|
Housing Preference |
Fee |
Housing Preference |
Fee |
|
Single |
$990 |
Quadruple |
$450 |
|
Double |
$605 |
Children |
$384 |
|
Triple |
$460 |
|
|
Due to the increased size of the meeting a number of people will be housed at two hotels located across the street from Asilomar. The cost will be the same as staying on the Asilomar grounds. For those assigned to the hotel, an Asilomar meal card will be given to the attendee when they check in at the Conference Registration Desk.
Every attempt will be made to honor your housing request. Due to Asilomar room limitations it may be necessary to move you to a different rooming category. You will be charged accordingly.
If an attendee would like to bring a guest, the guest MUST fill in a registration/housing reservation form and indicate their roommate on the form. Please be sure that both people indicate each other as roommates. The guest does not need to pay a meeting registration fee.
Check-in begins at 3:00 pm on Tuesday, March 17 in the Administration Building. Check-out is noon on Sunday, March 22.
If you must cancel your housing, please advise Anne Marie Mahoney, GSA Meetings Manager, Mahoney@genetics-gsa.org immediately. Individuals who cancel after February 10, 2009 will not be entitled to a refund unless a substitution can be made.
There will be a Closing Banquet on Saturday, March 21. Please indicate your meal preference on the registration form. Anyone who is staying at Asilomar but not attending the conference can purchase a ticket for the banquet on Saturday night for $25. On Sunday, March 22, box lunches will be available. Please indicate on the registration if you would like a box lunch.
There are no phones in the rooms. The address and phone number is C/o Fungal Genetics Conference, Asilomar Conference Center, PO Box 537, Pacific Grove, CA 93950, Phone (831) 372-8016, Fax: (831) 372-7227.
For individuals who choose to make their own hotel reservation, a meal package is available for $235. This rate includes dinner on Tuesday, March 17 through lunch on Sunday, March 22 and the Asilomar facilities fee.