Conference: The Biology and Chemistry of Vision, Tucson, AZ, Summer 2003

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This is the ninth meeting of the series on the Biology & Chemistry of Vision, from the Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology (FASEB), which has met biennially since 1985, with varying topics each time to stress advances in the broad field of vision. Attendance ranges from around 120-160 scientists, with the specific inclusion of at least 10% of junior scientists. The conference is highly interdisciplinary in the approaches discussed, including molecular biology, physiology, biochemistry and genetics. In this particular conference, the stress is on photoreceptor cell components involved in development, visual transduction, dark adaptation, and cell maintenance. The format includes a combination of lectures, periods for extensive informal discussion, and ongoing poster sessions, emphasizing interactions between workers from different fields. The biennial timing allows a good perspective, and this year's focus on photoreceptors and genetics is well matched to the leading edges of visual research, with the welcome addition of evolutionary topics. The potential impact of this conference is high in several subfields of vision, because of the discussions at the talks and at the posters, where there are likely to be interactions and introductions essential to career development of young investigators. Broader impacts also include raising the interest and visibility of young investigators in visual neuroscience, and it seems likely lead to new kinds of collaborative interdisciplinary interactions.