2007 Gordon Research Conference on Elastomers, Networks, and Gels, July 15-20, 2007, New London, NH

戈登弹性体、网络和凝胶研究会议的目标是将感兴趣的科学家聚集在一起，他们的兴趣范围从聚合物凝胶到分子凝胶，从水凝胶到生物医用凝胶，从网络材料的化学合成到流变和结构特性。这次会议以前被称为弹性体GRC。会议扩大到包括网络和凝胶，这是因为认识到“弹性体”领域的成熟，并认识到有必要使会议恢复活力，同时又不失去其与交联材料的特性。本着这一开阔视角的精神，2007年的会议将强调化学和物理网络的基本原理，因为它们可能应用于新的网络系统、生物医学系统和工业弹性体。会议将于2007年7月15-20日在新伦敦的科尔比-索耶学院举行。国际和平组织在技术和组织上都有很高的资格来开展这一组织。他广泛发表了他关于网络和凝胶的原创作品，并经常参加本次会议。此外，他还担任过斯图加特大学(1969年至1971年)“KUNSTOFFKLOQUIQUM”的技术项目主席和阿默斯特聚合物加工学会会议的主席(与迈克·马龙共同担任主席)。弹性体、网络和凝胶是工业和生物科学蓬勃发展的活动中的重要材料。此外，尽管交联网络或弹性体作为一个努力领域的名义年龄，该领域仍有许多新的和令人兴奋的活动和发现。行业不仅在寻找新的材料，如液晶弹性体，而且电解凝胶的出现，如DNA凝胶，以及它们与生物系统的相关性，导致了凝胶特定领域的工作的复兴。此外，纳米科学使理解弹性体增强的新方法成为可能，这使得橡胶增强中尚未解决的问题，如佩恩和穆林斯效应的机制，得以重新研究。GRC以一种促进不同领域的研究人员之间的互动的方式将这些领域的知识聚集在一起，并通过提供与所有弹性体、网络和凝胶相关的理论和模拟会议来巩固互动。拟议活动的智力优点本次GRC的总主题将具有非常不同的知识领域的专家聚集在一起。没有比戈登会议更好的地方来讨论分子和超分子网络材料及其应用中常见的合成、物理和生物学概念。这激发了新的想法，并促进了因专业而分离的研究人员之间的互动。拟议活动的广泛影响拟议的计划在所涵盖的科学以及发言者的性别和年龄问题方面非常不同。对于经典的化学网络和弹性体，提出了网络行为的知识。人们对物理凝胶的了解要少得多，因为它们存在于生物学中。GRC将帮助将更成熟的弹性体和网络领域的知识转移到生物凝胶上。反过来，生物学的概念有望为网络研究注入新的理念。

The goal of the Gordon Research Conference on Elastomers, Networks, and Gels is to bring together scientists whose interests range from polymer gels to molecular gels, from hydrogels to biomedical gels, and from chemical synthesis of network materials to rheological and structural properties. This conference was previously known as the GRC on Elastomers. The broadening of the conference to include networks and gels results from a recognition of the maturity of the field of "elastomers" and the need to rejuvenate the conference without losing its identity with crosslinked materials. In the spirit of this broadened perspective, the 2007 conference will be organized to emphasize fundamentals of chemical and physical networks as they may apply to novel network systems, to biomedical systems, and to industrial elastomers.The conference will be held at Colby-Sawyer College in New London, NH, from July 15-20, 2007.The PI is highly qualified both technically and organizationally to carry out this organization. He has published widely his original work on networks and gels and has participated frequently in the present conference. In addition, he has served as the technical program chair for the "Kunststoffkolloquium" at the University of Stuttgart (1969, 1971) and the Chairman of the 1989 meeting of the Polymer Processing Society in Amherst (Co-chair with Mike Malone).Elastomers, Networks and Gels are important materials both in industry and in the burgeoning activities of the biological sciences. In addition, in spite of the nominal age of crosslinked networks or elastomers as a field of endeavor, there are many new and exciting activities and findings going on in the field. Not only is industry finding novel materials, such as liquid crystalline elastomers, but the advent of electrolytic gels such as DNA gels and their relevance to biological systems has resulted in a resurgence of work in the specific area of gels. Furthermore, nanoscience has made possible new approaches to understanding reinforcement of elastomers and this permits unresolved problems in rubber reinforcement, such as the mechanisms of the Payne and Mullins Effects, to be re-investigated. This GRC brings these areas of knowledge together in a way that promotes interaction among the researchers in the different fields and cements the interactions by providing sessions on theory and simulation that are relevant to all elastomers, networks, and gels.Intellectual merit of the proposed activityThe general theme of this GRC brings experts together with vastly different areas of knowledge. There is no better place than a Gordon Conference to debate the synthesis, physics, and biology concepts that are common to molecular and supra-molecular network materials and their applications. This stimulates new ideas and promotes interaction among researchers that are otherwise separated due to their specialization.Broader impacts of the proposed activityThe proposed program is very diverse with respect to the science covered as well as issues of gender and ages of speakers. Knowledge of network behavior is advanced for the classical chemical networks and elastomers. Much less understood are physical gels as they occur in biology. The GRC will help in the transfer of knowledge from the more established field of elastomers and networks to biological gels. In reverse, concepts of biology are expected to infuse new ideas into network research in general.