FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 2, 2003
FY03-23
Learning with Nobel Laureates in Lindau
OAK RIDGE, TENN—Twenty eight outstanding graduate research participants are attending the 53rd international convention of Nobel Laureates in Lindau, Germany, June 30–July 4 to participate in activities relating to biology and medicine with Nobel Laureates.
The Department of Energy (DOE) is sponsoring 18 participants, Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) is sponsoring seven participants, and the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine and the University of Arizona are sponsoring the remaining three. All participants were selected from ORAU’s university consortium members and students working at federal facilities or universities funded by DOE and the U.S. Army.
Among the chosen participants are two University of Tennessee (UT) graduate students. Raynella Connatser is studying analytical chemistry, and Joshua Sharp, working at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), is studying genome science and technology. Sharp attends the Genome Sciences and Technology Graduate School, a joint program between ORNL and UT focusing on developments in biological and computational sciences resulting from genome sequencing efforts.
Since 1951, Nobel Laureates in chemistry, physics and physiology/medicine have annually convened in Lindau to have open and informal meetings with more than 400 students and young researchers from around the world. Participants from other countries such as Norway, Russia, Israel and Singapore will be present.
Participants are traveling to Washington, D.C., for a meeting at DOE headquarters on June 27. Then, they depart on an overnight flight to Frankfurt, Germany, where they are transferring to buses to take them to Lindau. On June 29, the students will tour Lindau, a historic medieval island city rich in western European culture and located at the common border of Austria, Germany and Switzerland.
The meeting begins June 30 with welcoming ceremonies and an evening dinner and gala. The following three days, Laureates will lecture on topics related to biology or medicine, including biochemistry, biotechnology and biophysics in the mornings.
In the afternoons, Laureates will preside over informal roundtable sessions. During lunches and dinners, Laureates will join participants at local restaurants for additional informal discussions.
On July 4, participants will travel by ferry to Isle of Mainau for the closing ceremonies at the baroque Mainau Castle, the residence of Swedish patron Count Lennart Bernadotte who began the Nobel Laureates program in 1951. That afternoon, U.S. participants will return to Frankfurt for the flight home or continue traveling through Europe on their own.
“I believe the overall experience will be very beneficial for my future career in science in that it illustrated to me the need for scientists in today’s world to be involved in more than just laboratory work,” said Nathan VerBerkmoes, a DOE-sponsored delegate to the 2002 Nobel Laureates meeting. “The Nobel Laureates discussed in great detail the need for scientists to become more involved in political life and in society as a whole.”
A Web site has been set up to post daily information while students are attending the meeting. Each day, photos and a summary of events will be posted. The URL for this year’s meeting is www.orau.gov/orise/edu/lindau2003. The Web site and travel arrangements for all participants are being administered by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, which is managed by Oak Ridge Associated Universities for the Department of Energy.
ORAU-Sponsored Participants
- Sara Aton, Washington University
- Denise Edwards, Alabama A&M University
- Jamie Frenz, Florida Atlantic University
- Kristopher Keuseman, University of North Dakota
- Denise Kothe, University of Alabama at Birmingham
- James Newcomb, Georgia State University
- Jonathan Vande Geest, University of Pittsburgh
DOE-Sponsored Participants
- Christin Carlson, Vanderbilt University
- Rachel Cohen, Pennsylvania State University
- Raynella Connatser, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
- Craig Conticchio, East Carolina University
- Natosha Finley, University of Cincinnati
- Michael Fuerstman, Harvard University
- Jason Jones, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
- Paul Lawrence, State University of New York at Stony Brook
- Ryan Olson, Iowa State University
- Summer Lockerbie Randall, University of Washington, Seattle
- Katie Reardon, Montana State University
- Kathryn Reinicke, Case Western Reserve University
- David Schmitz, Columbia University
- Joshua Sharp, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
- Jessie Shelton, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Rachel Shreter, University of California, Berkeley
- Richard Swatloski, University of Alabama
- Andrea Tu, University of California, Berkeley
U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine-Sponsored Participant
- Rachel Gross, Johns Hopkins University
- Alyssa Mansfield, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
University of Arizona-Sponsored Participant
- Kit-Iu Cheong, University of Arizona
The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) is a U.S. Department of Energy institute focusing on scientific initiatives to research health risks from occupational hazards, assess environmental cleanup, respond to radiation medical emergencies, support national security and emergency preparedness, and educate the next generation of scientists. ORISE is managed by Oak Ridge Associated Universities.