Welcome to DCPB 2002. Hope you've all celebrated those unique days of 02-02-2002 and 02-20-2002, especially at 20:02. Times like that won't appear again for quite a while.
Our 2002 meeting in Anaheim was a great success, starting off with the introductory talk by Bob Full and followed by excellent symposia, contributed papers, lively poster sessions, and various field trips to places like Venice Beach, Disneyland or the Aquarium for biodiversity studies. Many thanks to the DCPB-sponsored symposia organizers and to Michelle Wheatly and Jon Harrison, our DCPB Program Officers who coordinated the Anaheim program so well.
Bartholomew Award: Congratulations to Sönke Johnsen, this year's
Bartholomew Award winner. Sönke is an outstanding young
investigator, and he delivered an absolutely superb talk on his
research on gelatinous zooplankton, "Optical Adaptations to
Aqueous Environments: Hidden In Plain Sight". In these days of
PowerPoint
® Presentations and PhotoShop
®
Phantasies, Sönke reminded us that while visual aids are
sometimes helpful, the real power of a talk lies in the ability of
the speaker to totally engage the audience on a personal basis.
Thanks to the snowstorms in the southeast and luggage lost in the
Atlanta airport, Sönke arrived in Anaheim with no slides and
wearing a Swarthmore-garnet sweatshirt, courtesy of Delta Airlines.
You gave us a great presentation, Sönke, and set high standards
for next year's award winner. In addition to the award and the
opportunity to address his colleagues at the SICB meeting, Dr.
Johnsen also received a generous cash prize from Sable Systems.
Student Awards:
Compliments are also in order for the winners of the DCPB
Best Student Poster and Talk Competition. Congratulations to all of
you and good luck in your graduate studies. J. P Ianowski, McMaster
University, won the Poster award ("Evaluation of Na:K:2Cl
cotransport across the basolateral membrane in Malpighian (renal)
tubule cells of
Rhodnius prolixus"), judged by Ross
Ellington, Linda Mantel and Al Bennett. The Best Student Talk award
was split among Caren E. Braby, Hopkins Marine Station ("Larval
settlement success and physiological adaptation in the patchwork
distribution of introduced and native bay mussels (
Mytilus
spp.) in the central CA hybrid zone"), Keith P. Choe,
University of Florida ("Compensation for hypercapnia by a
euryhaline elasmobranch in fresh water: roles of gills and kidneys"),
and Donna Folk, University of California, Irvine ("Ion
regulation and water balance in
Drosophila melanogaster
selected for enhanced desiccation-tolerance"). Honorable
mention went to Paul L. Dudas, University of Connecticut ("Urate
transport by chick,
Gallus gallus, renal proximal tubule
epithelium"), Ryan M. Pelis, University of Connecticut ("Active
sulfate secretion by the intestinal epithelium of winter flounder is
through anion exchange for chloride"), and Chugey A. Sepulveda,
Scripps Institute of Oceanography ("The swimming energetics of
the eastern Pacific bonito (
Sarda chiliensis): One step closer
to understanding the tuna-bonito relationship"). Judges for the
student talks were Shirley Baker, George Bourne, Steve Hand, Charlie
Hunter, Valerie Pierce, Mason Posner, Steve Roberts, Bob Roer,
Jonathon Stillman, and Art Woods. Thank you, judges, for volunteering
your time at the busy meeting, and special thanks to Jon Harrison,
DCPB Program Officer, for organizing such a topnotch group of judges.
Officers and Elections: The new Secretary of DCPB is Mary Chamberlin. Congratulations to you, Mary. We also extend sincere thanks to Steve Hand and Jeannette Doeller, Chair and Secretary for the previous two years, for the excellent leadership and service they have each given the Division. Steve will be serving for another year as Past Chair on the DCPB Executive Committee, and we welcome his help.
Meetings: There are several upcoming meetings of interest to DCBP members: APS Intersociety Meeting (San Diego, August, 2002), SICB annual meeting (Toronto, January, 2003), and the Sixth International Congress for Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry (Mt. Buller, Australia, February, 2003). See the Message from the
Program Officer for details regarding these meetings.
SICB
DCPB BUSINESS MEETING MINUTES, January 3, 2002
Recorded
by Jeannette E. Doeller, past secretary for DCPBThe
meeting was called to order by DCPB Chair Steve Hand. He announced
the election results- Mary Chamberlin was elected secretary, term to
start at the end of the annual meeting. Steve said thanks to Barney
Rees for running for office and thanks to Jeannette Doeller for
serving as secretary for the past 2.5 years.
Bill Zamer, Program Officer of the Integrative Animal Biology (IAB)
program at NSF, discussed funding success rates - 14% recommended for
funding in IAB, 24% recommended for funding in the Ecological and
Evolutionary Physiology program. The lesson from the IAB fall panel
is that "persistence pays off" - of the 12 proposals
recommended for funding, 8 were resubmissions and 4 had been
submitted 3 times. The NSF budget has been increased by 8%. NSF needs
reviewers, panelists and rotating program officers. If interested in
serving in these ways, please email your program officer (addresses
on the website
www.nsf.gov).
Contact your program officer with hot news about your research - for
example, let NSF know ahead of time of publication in Science,
Nature, PNAS. Also, include in annual and final reports important
firsts that have been funded by NSF - this may affect program
budgets.
Steve introduced Nora Terwilliger, IUBS/IUPS representative. Nora passed
out brochures about the upcoming IUBS ICCPB meeting in Australia in
February 2003. SICB DCPB has co-sponsored this meeting throughout the
years (the previous one was held in Calgary, Canada, 1999). A new
event will occur in the 2003 meeting - the Knut Schmidt-Nielsen
lecture, with George Somero as speaker. The website for this meeting
is
www.zoo.latrobe.edu.au/iccpb.
The venue is a ski resort in summer, accommodations ranging from low
price dormitories up to chalets.
Nora
attended the IUPS meeting in Christ Church, August 2001, as the DCPB
representative. IUPS has been restructured to included 9-10
commissions. DCPB has submitted a number of names for service as
commissioner. The next IUPS meeting will be in San Diego 2005, held
in conjunction with the Experimental Biology meeting. Nora introduced
Lou Burnett who also serves on the National Organizing Committee for
the IUPS. Lou indicated that although the 2005 meeting program is in
the early planning stages, he and Nora have made sure there are
comparative physiology topics on the program. Walter Boron is the
chair of the Program Committee, and Barbara Block is a member. There
will be opportunities for symposium development for this meeting.
Steve
introduced Marvalee Wake, SICB President. She thanked all attendees
as participation is essential for the society ("service in a
controlled manner is good"), and she encouraged anyone to become
involved at the division and society-wide levels. If interested in
serving, contact Steve Hand (
shand@lsu.edu).
She introduced several other individuals involved in the society -
John Wingfield, President-Elect, Brett Burk of Burk Associates, and
Ron Dimmock, SICB Treasurer - for questions and answers. The current
meeting has about 1200 registrants, same as in Chicago, the largest
meeting in recent history. Al Bennett, chair of the membership
committee, indicated the society has 2100-2200 members, same as last
year, with the grad student/post doc category remaining fairly
constant. Marvalee thanked Al and committee members for a
letter-writing campaign this summer aimed at increasing membership.
Steve
introduced Jon Harrison, DCPB Program Officer. Jon indicated that
there are two DCPB-sponsored or co-sponsored symposia at this
meeting. Also, there are 21 candidates for the Best Student Talk
competition, and 10 candidates for Best Student Poster, and 13 judges
- thanks to those willing to serve this way. The approved DCPB
symposia for Toronto are: "30 Years of Biochemical Adaptation: A
symposium in honor of P.W. Hochachka", organized by Raul Suarez
(Peter: "You're kidding!!"); and "Comparative and
integrative vision research" organized by Sönke Johnsen,
Todd Oakly, and Mason Posner (see
Message from
the Program Officer).
Jon
solicited input about power-point presentations at the meeting. Is it
reasonable for the session chair to be responsible for making sure
computers are available? The general consensus was yes. Perhaps all
information could be provided on CD, or emailed to session chairs
before the meeting, who would then burn the session on a single CD.
However, compatibility of computers and preparations may be a
problem. Jon thought Mac and PC platforms should be available.
Jon
asked for opinion concerning the inclusion of an undergraduate
student registration category, and an undergraduate student
competition, either division- or society-wide. The general consensus
was that these are good ideas.
Steve
mentioned the upcoming APS meeting in San Diego, August 2002,
co-sponsored by SICB DCPB
(
www.the-aps.org/meetings/aps/san_diego/home.htm). Jim Hicks invited all to come.
Steve
introduced Jim Hicks, the new Editor-in-Chief of Physiological and
Biochemical Zoology. Jim indicated that the editorial offices, now in
Irvine, are up and running, with Associate Editors Al Bennett and Tim
Bradley. Because he has just assumed office, he had no statistics to
present at the meeting, but discussed four changes in the journal.
1) There is a minor change in the journal cover reflecting the unique
niche of PBZ - a subtitle "Ecological and Evolutionary
Approaches".
2) All submissions and reviews will be done online, although things can
still be sent through the mail. In about a month, you will be able to
log in to the PBZ server for information. Conversion to PDF will be
done at Irvine.
3) There will be a double-blind review system - reviewers are unknown to
authors and vice versa. This is more common in the social sciences;
PBZ will try this as an experiment.
4) The Invited Perspective has always been around, but Jim wants more
submissions here. Anyone with ideas can contact Jim (
jhicks@uci.edu).
Steve
introduced Peter Hochachka, Editor of Comparative Biochemistry and
Physiology. Peter indicated that CBP is now back on track and
expressed gratitude to SICB for support. The current turnaround time
is about 10 months. Acceptance rate is 60-65%, similar to AJP.
Manuscript quality has increased as has number of submitted
manuscripts. CBP is also affiliated with 8 other societies. SICB
could publish abstracts of the annual meeting in CBP - Elsevier Press
does this at cost. Pat Walsh is now co-Editor with Tom Mommsen and
Peter.
Steve
indicated that SICB has asked that members provide feedback
concerning the website and divisional webpages. If anyone has
suggestions or questions, contact Craig Frank, chair of the
electronics communication committee (
frank@fordham.edu).
It was pointed out that although the website has been much improved,
the Personal Schedule selection for the annual meeting was not as
useful as it could be.
All
divisions have been encouraged to reword bylaws to handle unexpected
office vacancies. Steve read the new wording for vote. During
discussion, it was suggested the new wording should indicate that
appointed officers fill out the term to keep election cycles intact.
New wording now reads: "In the case when a divisional office is
unexpectedly vacated, the current Nominating Committee will recommend
to the Chair an interim officer who will be appointed to serve the
remainder of the term." Vote was unanimous in favor of new
wording.
The
meeting was opened for discussion:
Timing
of the poster sessions is bad, interfering with evening activities.
However, because this is one of few meetings at which graduate
students have a chance to make an oral presentation, contributed
papers should not be eliminated. Suggestions: contributed paper
sessions could end at 3PM and poster sessions could go from 3-5PM;
evening poster sessions could be supplemented with refreshments;
contributed papers and poster sessions could be scheduled at the same
time, creating conflicts but there are always conflicts - "this
is the price we pay for being in an integrative society, and it's a
good price". In a straw vote, there was only one vote to
eliminate contributed papers.
The
program format is not ideal, using a non-sequential numbering system.
Suggestions: this is the time to lobby the new SICB Program Officer
Stacia Sower (
sasower@cisunix.unh.edu).
Any feedback about topical organization of presentations should be
sent to Jon Harrison (
j.harrison@asu.edu)
or Stacia Sower.
Steve
thanked Tim Bradley, rotating off as Past DCPB Chair, for all his
work, and he thanked Nora for becoming the new DCPB Chair. At the end
of the meeting, Steve becomes the Past Chair. Nora presented Steve
and Jeannette with covers of the new Hochachka and Somero Biochemical
Adaptations book (the books themselves are on order). Many thanks to
the division for such a great gift! Nora discussed the rising
prominence of comparative and integrative physiology in other
societies such as APS.
After
a brief intermission, Steve introduced the 2002 Bartholomew Award
winner, Dr. Sonke Johnsen. Dr. Johnsen was presented with a
certificate of recognition and other prizes, and then gave the
Bartholomew Lecture entitled "Hidden in Plain Sight".
ELECTION
OF OFFICERSWe
are holding elections for DCPB Chair-elect and Program Officer. The
electronic ballots will be distributed during the summer. Please be
sure to vote when your ballot arrives!
Chair Elect Candidates
Donna
L. Wolcott
Current
Position: Associate Professor, Department of Marine, Earth, and
Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC.
Education:
B.A. (1965) UC Riverside, Biology; Ph.D. (1972) UC Berkeley,
Developmental Biology.
Professional
Experience: Postdoctoral Fellow (1972-73) Toxicology, NCSU;
Visiting Lecturer (1974-75) North Carolina Central University;
Research Assoc. NCSU (1980-86); Visiting Associate Professor NCSU
(1986-96); Director of Undergraduate Programs, Department of Marine,
Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences (1994-); Associate Professor NCSU
(1996-); Research Associate, Smithsonian Institution (1998-)
SICB
Activities: Member since 1980. Secretary, Div. Invertebrate
Zoology, 1995-97. Co-organized symposium with Guy Charmantier,
"Ontogenetic Strategies of Invertebrates in Aquatic
Environments", Chicago, 2000.
Other
Memberships: AAAS; American Geophysical Union; American Society
of Limnology and Oceanography; American Women in Science; The
Crustacean Society; Phi Beta Kappa; Sigma Xi; Panel member, National
Science Foundation, Physiological Processes-1990.
Research
Interests: Physiological ecology of aquatic and terrestrial
crabs. Physiological and behavioral constraints and strategies in
the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus, with emphasis on
reproduction, foraging, and molting. Identification, through field
observation, of environmental stressors; study of morphological,
behavioral, biochemical and developmental adaptations to stress.
Dispersal and recruitment and its effect on population structure and
life history strategies. Nitrogen excretion and limitation in decapod
crustaceans.
Statement
of Goals: The Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology
represents the "culture of science" at its best. As much as
we might relish the relative solace that the lab bench provides,
research, and particularly its extension into teaching and outreach,
is not a solitary enterprise. The Society provides its members with
tools they need to address intellectual, ethical, and social
obligations. The SICB annual meetings provide opportunities for
sharing our own research, exposure to new research findings in both
related and far-flung research areas, interactions with both
well-established colleagues and those just embarking on a career in
science, and help with doing a better job of educating our students
and the general public. The recent strengthening of interdisciplinary
symposia and better coordination between societies, and the financial
health of the Society, have placed the Society to continue into the
21st Century as a dynamic entity, useful to its members
and to society at large. Since only active members derive benefit
from SICB, and vice-versa, my goal would be to encourage renewed
participation by inactive members in the society and its meetings,
and to inspire new scientists to join. If financially feasible,
discounted registration fees for first-time meeting participants
might be a powerful incentive.
Donald
L. Mykles
Current
Position: Professor, Department of Biology, Colorado State
University, Fort Collins.
Education:
B.A., University of California, Santa Barbara (1973); Ph.D.,
University of California, Berkeley (1979).
Professional
Experience: Muscular Dystrophy Association Postdoctoral Fellow
(1981-1983); Postdoctoral Fellow, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
(1979-1983); Research Associate, ORNL (1983-1985); Assistant
(1985-1988), Associate (1988-1993), Full Professor (1993-), Colorado
State University. NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award (1989);
Fulbright Scholar and Guest Professor, University of Heidelberg
(1991); Fulbright Intercountry Visitor to the U.K. (1991); Associate
Editor, The Journal of Experimental Zoology (1994-1999);
Distinguished Research Fellow at Bodega Marine Laboratory, University
of California, Davis (1998); Editorial Board, Comparative
Biochemistry and Physiology, 2002-2004.
SICB
Activities: Invited speaker in four SICB symposia (1985, 1990,
1998, 2000); DCPB Nominating Committee (2001).
Other
Memberships: The Crustacean Society; American Microscopical
Society; American Society for Cell Biology; Sigma Xi, American
Association for the Advancement of Science; American Society for
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Society of General Physiologists.
Research
Interests: Regulation of molting and limb regeneration in decapod
crustaceans using cellular, biochemical and molecular biological
methods.
Goals
Statement: I have been a member of ASZ/SICB for twenty-five
years. The DCPB is a major forum for integrative and comparative
biologists nationally and internationally. As Chair, I would support
and foster programs and meetings that promote the exchange of ideas
and techniques across the broad spectrum of biological diversity and
organization. This can be done in conjunction with other divisions in
SICB, as well as with comparative biochemistry and physiology
societies in other nations. DCPB should continue its involvement with
the International Union of Physiological Scientists (IUPS) and the
International Union of Biological Scientists (IUBS) in organizing
international meetings. We must also redouble our efforts to include
students and junior faculty in SICB meetings and governance; their
participation is key to a vital future for the Society.
Program Officer Candidates
Richard
Lyle Londraville
Current
Position: Assistant Professor of Biology, University of Akron
Education:
B.S., Marine Biology, Long Island University, Southampton Campus
(1987);
M.S.,
Zoology, University of Maine, Orono (1989); Ph.D., Zoology,
University of Maine, Orono (1994).
Professional
Experience: Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University, Hopkins
Marine Station (1994-1996); Assistant Professor of Biology,
University of Akron (1996-present).
SICB
Activities: Active member and meeting participant since 1988;
Session Chair, Thermoregulation, 1996 SICB meeting,
Albuquerque, NM.
Other
Memberships: AAAS; National Association of Biology Teachers
Research
Interests: My lab studies cell function in relation to
temperature and most of our work has focused on proteins in animals
with different body temperatures. Recently, we have been studying
the hormone leptin in fish and lizards. Leptin may influence a suite
of traits, from onset of reproduction to endothermy, and we hope to
understand its role in the evolution of vertebrate fat metabolism.
Goals
Statement: As program officer for DCBP, I would encourage all of
our members to use symposia as a way to recruit new members to the
division and to SICB. For example, I would support symposia that
highlight the application of emerging technologies (e.g. advances in
engineering, genomics, and proteomics) to problems in comparative
physiology and biochemistry. Students initially attracted to a
technique would hopefully get hooked on a broader question. I would
also work with SICBs Education Council to organize
education-based sessions targeted for our division. Because
comparative physiologists dip into many disciplines for their
research, they are often the best prepared to teach introductory
Biology classes. Many campuses are dramatically changing the way
these introductory classes are taught, often with NSF-sponsored
grants. These introductory classes are excellent opportunities for
recruiting students to comparative physiology, and therefore I think
our members would be well served to learn about advances in biology
education.
Michael
Hughes Dickinson
Current
Position: Williams Professor, Department of Integrative Biology,
UC Berkeley;
Professor
of Bioengineering, California Institute of Technology (Starting
7/1/02).
Education: Sc. B., Neural
Sciences, Brown University (1984); Ph.D., Zoology, University of
Washington (1989).
Professional Experience:
Consultant, Boeing Aircraft Corporation (1986); Visiting Scholar,
Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics (1991); Postdoctoral
Fellow, Roche Institute of Molecular Biology (1990-1991); Assistant
Professor, Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, University
of Chicago (1991-1996); Associate Professor, Department of
Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley (1996-1999);
Professor, Department of Integrative Biology, University of
California, Berkeley (1999-present).
SICB
Activities: Invited participant in four SICB (ASZ) Symposia:
Evolution and Nervous Systems (1991); Aquatic Locomotion: New
Approaches to Invertebrate and Invertebrate Biomechanics (1995);
Muscle Properties and Organismal Function: Shifting Paradigms (1996);
Swimming
and Flying in Nature (2002).
Other
Memberships: Society for Neuroscience; International Society of
Neuroethology
Research
Interests: In my lab, we attempt to study the flight control
behavior of insects simultaneously at several levels of analysis,
from the physiological properties of individual neurons and circuits,
to the skeletal mechanics of wing motion and the production of
aerodynamic forces. This multi-leveled approach is challenging, and
yet rewarding, since novel insight is often gained by addressing a
problem simultaneously from several perspectives.
Goals
Statement: As program officer for DCPB, my goal would be to
broaden the depth of the division by recruiting researchers from
areas traditionally outside the SICB community. In recent years, many
bright and energetic individuals have emerged from the fields of
genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, biophysics with a keen
interest in applying their experimental and analytical tools toward
systems-level problems. I believe that the DCPB symposia represent
excellent means of cross-fertilizing research in these more
reductionist disciplines with the organismal approaches represented
by the SICB membership.