Workshop: Logistical Support for Conducting a "Nitrogen Ideas Lab"; December 2-7, 2012; Crewe, United Kingdom

氮素对植物的生长至关重要。少数植物物种有能力通过与固氮菌共生来固定大气中的氮；其余的植物需要通过土壤中存在的可溶形式的氮来获得氮。对于大多数作物来说，氮素利用率通过使用氮基肥料得到了提高。然而，人工肥料的应用成本很高，而且在发展中国家受到限制。此外，在集约农业系统中，施入作物的氮素没有得到有效利用，通过反硝化作用以径流或温室气体的形式流失，对环境造成有害影响。这些肥料的生产过程是能源密集型的，而且会导致温室气体排放。为举办名为氮气想法实验室(http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/nsf12579/nsf12579.htm)，的互动式五天讲习班提供了后勤和后续支助，这是国家科学基金会和生物技术和生物科学研究理事会之间的合作努力。该研讨会将于2012年12月3日至7日在英国柴郡的克鲁霍尔举行，其最终目的是将一个跨学科的科学家小组聚集在一起，他们将花费时间共同制定问题，产生新的想法，开发解决方案和行动计划，以制定创新的战略，以提高氮的利用效率。氮气创意实验室将包括30名受邀参与者、5名导师、5名项目总监和主持人。研讨会的一个独特特点是加入了公司知识创新，以帮助设计、开发和促进使用商标创造性问题解决(CPS)方法的研讨会。其愿景是，混合来自不同科学背景的研究人员将产生新的思维和新的方法，可用于在保持或提高产量的同时增加作物的氮素供应，从而减少对氮肥的使用。讲习班活动的预期成果将是成立跨学科和跨学科小组，这些小组将提出变革性的研究建议，解决有关作物氮素获取和氮素利用效率的重要问题。据设想，通过汇聚来自美国和英国的高素质研究人员，将形成强大的跨大西洋协同效应。

Nitrogen is critical to plant growth. A limited number of plant species have the capacity to fix atmospheric nitrogen through symbioses with nitrogen fixing bacteria; the rest need to obtain their nitrogen through soluble forms of nitrogen present in the soil. For the majority of crop plants, nitrogen availability has been increased through the use of nitrogen based fertilizers. However, application of artificial fertilizers is costly and is limited in developing countries. Moreover, in intensive agricultural systems nitrogen applied to the crops is not used efficiently and is lost as run-off into water courses or as greenhouse gases through denitrification, resulting in deleterious impacts on the environment. The process by which these fertilizers are produced is energy-intensive and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. Funds are provided for logistical and follow-up support to conduct an interactive five day workshop titled Nitrogen Ideas Lab (http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/nsf12579/nsf12579.htm), a collaborative effort between the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). The ultimate aim of this workshop, to be held at Crewe Hall, Cheshire, UK, December 3-7, 2012, is to bring together a trans-disciplinary group of scientists that will spend time together framing the problem, generating novel ideas, developing solutions and action plans "to develop innovative strategies to increase the efficiency of nitrogen utilization". The Nitrogen Ideas Lab will include 30 invited participants, five mentors, five program directors, and facilitators. A unique feature of the workshop is the inclusion of the company Knowinnovation to assist in the design, development, and facilitation of the workshop using a trademark Creative Problem Solving (CPS) methodology. The vision is that mixing researchers from diverse scientific backgrounds will engender fresh thinking and new approaches that can be used to increase nitrogen availability to crop plants while maintaining or increasing yield, and hence decrease the need for the application of nitrogen fertilizers. An expected outcome of the workshop activities will be the formation of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary teams that will produce transformative research proposals addressing important questions on nitrogen acquisition and nitrogen use efficiency in crop plants. It is envisioned that strong transatlantic synergies will be formed by bringing together highly qualified researchers from the U.S. and the U.K.