In Brief
Holiday Wishes
On behalf of all of us at the Biophysical Society, happy holidays to you and your families. Thank you for being an active member of the Society and supporting our efforts in 2023. Here’s wishing you a safe and happy holiday season!
Congress Adjourns for 2023 with Spending Bills Incomplete
In what is unlikely to have been a surprise to anyone, the House and Senate have officially adjourned for 2023 without completing work on the 12 appropriations bills necessary to complete the budget process. As you know, Congress agreed to a ‘laddered’ continuing resolution (CR) to maintain current funding levels for government operations in mid-November. This approach, unlike anything passed in previous years, splits the CR into two sections – the covering Agriculture, Energy-Water, Military Construction and Transportation-HUD and expiring on January 19. The second, covering all other agencies and actions including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF), expires on February 2.
House Speaker Mike Johnson sought these extensions as a way to buy more time to finish the fiscal year 2024 spending bills. The clean CR does not provide deep spending cuts or border security provisions sought by certain conservatives nor does it provide emergency supplemental funding which have been negotiating points. With neither the Labor, Health and Human Services nor the Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bills completed before the adjournment, Congress will have a short window in which to work before NIH and NSF run out of funds.
Annual Meeting 2024: Policy & Advocacy Dinner Meet-Up
Sunday, February 11 at 6:00PM
Are you interested in science policy, science policy careers, the BPS Congressional Fellowship or the work of the Public Affairs Committee? Then join us for a dinner meet-up on Sunday night. Gather by the Biophysical Society booth in the Main Hall and go out to dinner with like-minded colleagues, members of the Public Affairs Committee and BPS Director of Advocacy and Public Affairs, Leann Fox. Join us for a evening of food and conversation. Attendees are responsible for covering their individual expenses. Additional meet-up opportunities at the meeting can be found on the Professional Development portion of the Annual Meeting website.
Annual Meeting 2024: Opportunities for International Collaboration
Sunday, February 11 from 2:30PM to 4:00PM
Science has long been considered a unified endeavor. Why? Because the methods, reasoning and search for answers are universal, regardless of the language spoken or country you live in. To that end, as an international organization, the Biophysical Society strives to explore, expand and protect opportunities for international collaboration, education and research among members of the biophysical community. Join the Public Affairs Committee (PAC) as we discuss the various opportunities for researchers to work in a global, collaborative environment. This session will explore everything from international fellowship opportunities to funding mechanisms designed for global partnerships.
Panelists:
Annual Meeting 2024: All About ARPA-H: Exploring Opportunities at the New Agency
Monday, February 12 from 1:00PM to 2:30PM
The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) will be entering its second full year of operation. Join the Public Affairs Committee (PAC) as we learn more about the fledgling high-risk, high-reward research agency, how the structure will continue to form, exploring what opportunities exist and how does that fit into the larger research funding sources available to biophysicists.
Speaker:
Annual Meeting 2024: Inside NIH: Using Technological Developments for Solving Biological Problems
Tuesday, February 13 from 2:00PM to 3:30PM
The National Institutes of Health (NIH), with its 27 Institutes and Centers, can cause researchers moments of pause as they navigate where their research is best applied. While each Institute and Center has its own distinct focus of research, there is a considerable amount of overlap and coordination that does occur – particularly in biophysics research. Join the Public Affairs Committee as we welcome Program Directors from the National Institute on General Medical Science (NIGMS), the Center for Scientific Review (CSR) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to talk through the intricacies of roles they play in the grant process, the broad array of opportunities that are available for biophysicists and the technology development opportunities that are available to researchers throughout the Institutes to enhance and expand research.
Panelists:
-
Christina Liu, National Institute of General Medical Sciences
-
Thomas Cho, National Institute of General Medical Sciences
-
Ashley Barnes, National Institute of General Medical Sciences
-
James Mack, Center for Scientific Review
-
Anowarul Amin, National Cancer Institute
-
Eric Johnson Chavarria, National Cancer Institute
-
Mark Damico, National Cancer Institute
Annual Meeting 2024: Inside Perspectives and Opportunities: NSF Grants
Tuesday, February 13 from 3:30PM to 5:00PM
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is one of the largest federal funders of biophysical research each year alongside the National Institutes of Health. Through the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, scientists continue to advance basic and biomedical research. Join us for an insider’s perspective on the various divisions offering grant funding within NSF and learn how to put together a strong grant application. This session is a great opportunity for new and early career investigators,
Panelists:
-
Engin Serpersu, Molecular Biophysics, Molecular Cellular Sciences Division
-
Jaroslaw (Jarek) Majewski, Molecular Biophysics Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences Core Programs (MCB)
-
Ishita Mukerji, Molecular Biophysics, Synthesis Center for Molecular and Cellular Sciences (SCMCS)