GORDON CONFERENCE ON DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY

请为1999年戈登发育生物学研究会议（伊丽莎白·罗伯逊和芭芭拉·迈耶共同主办）提供部分资金支持。戈登会议长期以来一直被认为是发育生物学的主要会议，聚集了大约150名杰出的高级和初级科学家，讨论了发育和细胞分化领域的最新进展。戈登发育生物学研究会议在其近三十年的历史中，一个主要的优势是它有意跨越各种各样的实验系统。选定的发言者不仅代表一些最活跃的团体，而且也代表有能力就其本身和其他主题进行有益讨论的个人。这次会议的概念并不是试图把这个领域覆盖得很薄，而是挑选出一些特别活跃或有希望的领域。九个主要会议中的每一个都旨在介绍在各种不同生物的发展中重要的特定类别的现象。通过将研究不同发育系统和实验方法的科学家聚集在一起，演讲和讨论自然会导致对结果进行更批判性的分析，以及对潜在机制的新问题。戈登会议的第二个主要优势是地理位置上的隔离，使与会者在五天的时间里可以近距离地进行讨论，而不会受到附近滑雪场或城市的干扰。会议形式将包括简短的演讲（15-20分钟），然后是讨论（至少10分钟），主题从早期轴的形成和细胞信号传导到进化和基因调控。会议时间的很大一部分将保留到会议开始之前，以确保最新出现的工作能够在会议上提出。通过最大化正式讨论和非正式互动，戈登发育生物学会议将有助于确定该领域的现状和未来。

Funds are requested for partial support of the 1999 Gordon Research Conference on Developmental Biology (Elizabeth Robertson and Barbara Meyer co-organizers). This Gordon Conference has long been recognized as the major meeting in Developmental Biology, bringing approximately 150 outstanding senior and junior scientists for discussions of the recent advances in the field of development and cell differentiation. A major advantage of the Gordon Research Conference on Developmental Biology over its nearly three decade history is that it intentionally spans a wide variety of experimental systems. The speakers chosen represent not only some of the most active groups, but also individuals with the capacity to generate useful discussion of their own and other topics. The concept of the meeting has been not to try to cover the field thinly, but to pick areas of exceptional activity or promise. Each of the nine major sessions are designed to present specific classes of phenomena important in the development of a wide variety of different organisms. By bringing together scientists working with different developmental systems and experimental approaches, the presentations and discussions naturally lead to a more critical analysis of the results, as well as new questions about the underlying mechanisms. A second major advantage of the Gordon Conference is its geographical isolation, keeping participants in close proximity for five days of discussion without the distractions of nearby ski-slopes or cities. The conference format will consist of short talks (15-20 minutes) followed by discussion (10 minutes minimum), on topics ranging from early axis formation and cell signaling to evolution and gene regulation. A significant fraction of the session time will be kept uncommitted until near the time of the conference to assure that the latest-emerging work can be presented at the meeting. By maximizing both formal discussion and informal interactions the Gordon Conference on Developmental Biology should help to define both the present state and future of the field.