2017 Molecular Mechanisms in Evolution Gordon Research Conference at Stonehill College Easton, MA

Gordon Research Conferences, East Greenwich RI

Investigators

Abstract

This project will support the participation of graduate students, postdocs, young investigator and underrepresented groups in the third Gordon Research Conference (GRC) and the first Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) on Molecular Mechanisms in Evolution. The GRS and GRC will be held at Stonehill College, Easton, MA on June 10-11, and June 11-16, 2017, respectively. The GRC and GRS will bring together researchers who will present and discuss the latest findings and diverse perspectives on the molecular bases of evolutionary change. The GRS, which is primarily attended by graduate students and postdocs, will feature oral and poster presentations accompanied by informal and formal discussions with around 60 attendees. Most of the GRS participants are expected to attend the GRC. The GRC will feature invited talks by the leading scientists in the field, and a selection of short talks from the abstracts, thereby offering young scientists opportunities for visibility and idea exchange. The GRC program will also include poster presentations accompanied by informal and formal discussions. The GRC and GRS will promote international and national collaborations between physicists and biologists of diverse disciplines to promote systematic and quantitative analyses of biological processes, intensified theory building, and deeper understanding of evolution in disease and basic biology. The GRC and GRS will provide networking opportunities, inspiration and connections for young scientists, as well as mentoring and perspectives on cutting-edge new research for young participants at a critical stage in their careers. The requested funds will be used to defray the costs of a diverse group of graduate students, postdocs, new investigators, women, and minority participants in the GRC and GRS. The main objective of the GRC and GRS is to provide conditions for major advancement in our understanding of fundamental questions in evolutionary biology. To reach this goal, the organizers will bring together scientists from different disciplines: molecular and evolutionary biology, physics, mathematics and medicine, in order to create an intellectual environment which catalyses original thought, and to initiate collaborations that go beyond the means and competencies of individual groups. This will also be the place for productive discussions of researchers with controversial viewpoints. Understanding evolutionary processes lays the foundation for comprehending the history of life on earth and of the mechanisms that produce its unity and diversity. The GRC and GRS sessions address a wide range of topics: origins of life, evolution of mutation and recombination rates, stress-inducible genetic variation, non-genetic variation and inheritance, phenotypic noise, evolution of novelty, evolution of complexity, cancer, aging, experimental evolution and evolutionary contingency. The themes of the GRC and GRS have been chosen to represent the key problems in the field and to stimulate the exchange of ideas between diverse groups of scientists. This is of greatest importance: without such a community researchers may be unaware of the important recent discoveries and cutting-edge technological developments outside their respective scientific fields. This project is being jointly supported by the Physics of Living Systems program in the Division of Physics and the Cellular Dynamics and Function Program in the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences.