THIS EXCITING CONFERENCE HAS MET SINCE 1982 TO DISCUSS HOW LIVING ORGANISMS CAN EMERGE SPONTANEOUSLY WITHIN A NON-LIVING UNIVERSE. THE BREADTH AND COMPLEXITY OF THE TOPIC STAND TO GAIN MUCH FROM AN INTERNATIONAL IN-PERSON MEETING THAT TRANSCENDS DISCIPLINARY BOUNDARIES IN ORDER TO CREATE FRESH PERSPECTIVES. PLANNING FOR 2016 USES THE PRESTIGIOUS GORDON CONFERENCE IDENTITY TO DELIVER SUCH A MEETING. IN PARTICULAR THE RESEARCH REQUIRED TO UNDERSTAND LIFE'S ORIGINS OCCURS AT A POINT WHERE MULTIPLE SCIENTIFIC DISCIPLINES MEET. CHEMISTS BIOLOGISTS PHYSICISTS GEOSCIENTISTS PLANETARY SCIENTISTS ASTRONOMERS METEORITICISTS MATHEMATICIANS AND COMPUTER SCIENTISTS ARE AMONG THOSE CONTRIBUTING TO PROGRESS. COMBINING THE FINDINGS OF EACH DISCIPLINE INTO A COMPOSITE NARRATIVE PRODUCES MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCIENCE. THE ORIGINS RESEARCH COMMUNITY HAS ALREADY COME FAR IN THIS ENDEAVOR. MORE CHALLENGING IS TO EXTEND THESE CONNECTIONS INTO TRUE INTERDISCIPLINARY WHEREIN THE INSIGHTS OF ONE RESEARCH COMMUNITY INFLUENCE THE INTERPRETATION OF DATA AND QUESTIONS BEING ASKED BY OTHERS. THE FORTHCOMING GORDON RESEARCH CONFERENCE WILL EXPLORE THIS TRANSITION FROM MULTIDISCIPLINARY TO INTERDISCIPLINARY. IT WILL VISIT THE TRADITIONAL ARRAY OF TOPICS FROM LUCA TO THE NONLIVING UNIVERSE. IT WILL EMPHASIZE HOWEVER SPEAKERS WHOSE WORK CROSSES TRADITIONAL DISCIPLINARY BOUNDARIES. IT WILL CREATE SPACES WHERE SCIENTISTS FROM DIFFERENT DISCIPLINES ARE CHALLENGED TO BUILD BRIDGES OF KNOWLEDGE BETWEEN THEIR RESPECTIVE AREAS OF EXPERTISE. THIS INSTANCE OF THE CONFERENCE ALSO PROVIDES NOVELTY BY REINSTATING A 2-DAY SEMINAR (THE GRS) PRECEDING THE GRC THAT IS RESTRICTED TO EARLY-CAREER SCIENTISTS. IT THEN LEVERAGES THIS SEMINAR BY CHALLENGING THE EARLY-CAREER SCIENTISTS TO DISCUSS AND CONSOLIDATE QUESTIONS TO BE BROUGHT FORWARD INTO THE MAIN CONFERENCE THROUGH SESSION HOSTS WITHIN THE GRC. BOTH THE GRS AND GRC PROGRAMMING LEVERAGE A SIGNIFICANT PRESENCE FROM DIVERSE NASA PROJECTS (ASTROBIOLOGY CAN TEAMS MIRS POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIPS MISSIONS) WITHIN A MUCH BROADER CONTEXT OF THE NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH COMMUNITY. SPECIFIC RELEVANCE TO NASA AND ITS PROGRAMS IS FOUND LARGELY WITHIN THE 2008 ASTROBIOLOGY ROADMAP GOAL 3 (GOAL 3-UNDERSTAND HOW LIFE EMERGES FROM COSMIC AND PLANETARY PRECURSORS...) SPECIFIC CONFERENCE SESSIONS ALSO SPEAK TO ROADMAP GOALS 1 2 4 AND 7. BEYOND THIS SPECIFIC PRESENTATIONS SPEAK TO MISSION WORK (MOST NOTABLY THOSE CONCERNED WITH MARS EUROPA ASTEROIDS COMETS AND THE MOON).