Events and Orientation

Opening Plenary Session
Sunday, January 3 The Plenary Address, “Reflections of a twentieth-century biologist“, will be given by Dr. John Pearse, Past President of SICB, and will take place at the Convention Center.

Sessions-Symposia-Social Events
The 2010 Annual Meeting for the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB) is an educational and research forum for investigations of biology on a broad comparative scale. The meeting will include many symposia and special programs in addition to hundreds of contributed papers in divisional and topical sessions. Watch the SICB Web site for Schedule of Events updates and the posting of abstracts in November, 2009.

Social Events
The Welcome Reception will be held at the
Seattle Sheraton Hotel immediately following the Plenary lecture.

Special Events

• • 2010 Howard Bern Lecture
    
    Carl B. Schreck
    2010 Howard Bern Lecturer

    This year we are pleased to announce that Professor Carl B. Schreck, PhD, Leader of the Oregon Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Oregon State University, USA, will be presenting the Howard Bern Lecture (Tuesday, Jan. 5, 6:30 PM). The title of his presentation will be “Haruspication: Why Is The Endocrine System So Similar and Why Is It So Dissimilar Amongst Fishes?” Dr. Schreck was selected as one of our foremost comparative endocrinologists to present the Howard Bern Lecture in January 2010 at our annual SICB meeting. During his long and productive career, Carl’s research has contributed to theoretical and applied fish biology by integrating a number of fields including molecular biology, physiology, genetics, and behavioral ecology. Of all of Carls many accomplishments, perhaps the most significant is his development of a performance concept of stress responses, which provides an integrated conceptual framework for understanding how fish genetics, endocrinology and development dictate adaptive responses to environmental stressors like contaminants, water temperatures, and oxygen levels. In other words, he illustrated in simple terms how fishes and the environment are linked and provided tools to measure their health and fitness.

    The Howard Bern Lecture has been an excellent forum for presenting the newest breakthroughs in comparative endocrinology, recognition of one of the foremost founding fathers of Comparative Endocrinology and an excellent platform for promoting the journal General and Comparative Endocrinology. See below for the information about the lecture and see previous Howard Bern Lecturers at http://www.sicb.org/divisions/dce.php3#bern

• • The George A. Bartholomew Award lecture “From comparative physiology to evolutionary biology through animal bioenergetics: practicing the Krogh principle in South America” will be held by Dr. Roberto Nespolo, Associate Professor of Science, Universidad Austral de Chile, on Monday, Jan. 4 at 6:30 PM.

• • NSF will participate in the 2010 meeting. Their exact program is TBD at this time.

• The John Moore Lecture this year will be given by Dr. Bruce Alberts, University of California, San Francisco (Wednesday, Jan. 6, 6:30 PM). The title of his presentation will be “Science education for all: what scientists must do to fulfill John Moore’s legacy“.

Grad Student/Post Docs Welcome and Meeting Orientation
Sunday, January 3, 2010, 5:30 pm. “How to get the most out of your SICB meeting.”

• How to find relevant talks/posters during the meetings
• How to find everyone at the meetings
• How to approach a “big guy or gal”
• How to enter or leave a room/move between rooms
• How to plan your meeting
• How to get involved in SICB or attend business meetings and the importance of attending the meetings (exposure, recognition) This will be followed by a lightning round of first timers’ questions.

Workshop: Implementation of the Grand Challenges
Wednesday, January 6, Noon to 3 pm.
This workshop is the beginning of discussions about how to implement the Grand Challenges. The speakers will include Executive Board members from six other societies, plus the representative authors from the Grand Challenges papers from Integrative and Comparative Biology.

Phylogenetics for Dummies Workshop
The Phylogenetics for Dummies Workshop will be held Tuesday night ONLY starting at 7:30 in Room 619. Please follow this link for more information.

Graduate Student Workshop
As in previous years, there will be a Graduate Student Workshop prior to the Society-Wide Evening Social on Wednesday, January 6.

CAREERS OUTSIDE OF TRADITIONAL ACADEMIA

For the Seattle 2010 meeting, the Student/Postdoctoral Affairs Committee (SPDAC) has responded to recurring suggestions from its constituency over the last several years to convene a workshop on the topic of job opportunities outside of traditional academia. Many excellent jobs today have a combined government-and-academic emphasis, while others may represent a fusion of academic and private interests. Still others, such as careers within museums or aquaria, typically have extremely strong ties to academia. This year’s workshop will explore these avenues for the student and postdoctoral SICB members and will include a panel of professionals who represent these kinds of careers. In addition to a brief presentation by each of the panel members, there will be an opportunity for discussion and to ask questions of the panelist.

Welcome to Seattle Reception
The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology welcomes you to Seattle with a reception on Sunday, January 3, at the Sheraton Seattle. The Welcome Reception will follow the Plenary lecture held at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center. Light snacks will be provided.

Companion Orientation/Continental Breakfast
All registered companions are welcome to join an informal gathering on Monday, January 4, from 9:00-10:00 am. A knowledgeable local person will be on hand to let you know about some of the many fascinating facts and sightseeing opportunities in Seattle.

SICB Society-Wide Evening Dessert Social in Honor of Students and Postdocs
Join your fellow SICB members for a Society-Wide Social on Wednesday, January 6, from 8:00-9:30 pm. Coffee, desserts and fruit will be served and a cash bar will be available.

SICB Business Meeting
The SICB Business Meeting will take place Wednesday, Jan. 6, from 5:15 – 6:15 pm.

American Microscopical Society
AMS members are invited to meet for their yearly luncheon. The Keynote Lecture with speaker Judith Winston titled, “Life in the Colonies — the alien ways of colonial organisms,” will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 5, from 7:00-8:00 PM.