SYMPOSIUM: Keynote Symposium on "New Biologists for the New Biology," ASCB Annual Meeting, December 1, 2007

美国细胞生物学学会年会主题研讨会“新生物学家为新生物学服务”将于2007年12月1日在华盛顿特区会议中心举行。在学会第47届年会开始之际，研讨会吸引了大约5000名与会者——科学家、教师、学生和博士后。普林斯顿大学生物物理学家William Bialek将阐述为什么一种新的、更统一的本科科学教育方法对于培养下一代科学家是必要的，以及如何实施这样的计划。为了实现真正定量生物学的全部承诺，培训必须改变。Bialek将概述他在普林斯顿共同开发和教授的一系列革命性课程的目标和影响。基于“对自然科学的综合定量介绍”，这个为期两年的课程由化学系、计算机科学系、分子生物学系和物理系联合提供。它展示了“对世界的数学理解作为一个统一的努力的探索”。它侧重于可概括的基本概念和关键方法，并“围绕统一我们对周围世界的理解的数学思想进行组织”。通过强调数学描述的价值，即使问题无法用数学方法解决，Bialek努力向他的学生传授数学和计算的复杂性，这远远超出了今天大多数本科生所能获得的。物理学家、伦斯勒理工学院（Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute）院长雪莉·安·杰克逊（Shirley Ann Jackson）在2002年出版的《无声的危机：美国科技人才的培养不足》一书中，对即将到来的退休浪潮和接受过培训或正在接受培训的接替他们的美国学生数量不足发出了警告。作为一名非裔美国人，杰克逊将阐述如何使美国科学多样化，提供灵感和有效的策略。她将分享她的个人故事和她的观点。她的目标是通过方法、教学法和观点的多样性来创造“事实上的多样性”。她将重点讨论如何实施这些措施，以及改进科学教育的方法。Bialek和Jackson分享了ASCB主题演讲的最终目标：打破学科之间的人为障碍，培养新一代科学家，以更好的理解、技能和经验来解决科学问题。他们都是成功地打破障碍实现目标的先驱，他们都将展示案例研究，戏剧性地说明我们如何改善下一代科学家的大学科学教育。与会者将受到启发，重新思考自己所在机构的本科和研究生课程，并被引导到可以找到大量有用教材的网站。他们将学习如何跨越将科学和数学学科与人文学科分开的传统院系界限，促进强大的互动。预计许多人将努力在自己的机构实施更统一的本科课程。除了眼前的事件，“ASCB通讯”专栏和网络广播将有助于传播主题并开始对话，这种对话将在未来几年持续下去。

The American Society for Cell Biology Annual Meeting Keynote Symposium, "New Biologists for the New Biology," will be held at the Washington, DC, Convention Center, on December 1, 2007. The Symposium attracts approximately 5,000 attendees -- scientist teachers, students, and postdocs -- at the start of the Society's 47th Annual Meeting.Princeton University biophysicist William Bialek will address why a new, more unified approach to undergraduate science education is necessary for producing the next generation of scientists and how such a program can be implemented. To achieve the full promise of genuinely quantitative biology, training must change. Bialek will present an overview of the goals and impact of the sequence of revolutionary courses that he co-developed and teaches at Princeton. Based on "an integrated, quantitative introduction to the natural sciences," the two-year sequence is offered jointly by the Chemistry, Computer Science, Molecular Biology and Physics departments. It presents "the search for a mathematical understanding of the world as a unified endeavor." It focuses on generalizable, fundamental concepts and critical methods and is "organized around the mathematical ideas that unify our understanding of the world around us." By emphasizing the value of mathematical description even when problems cannot be solved mathematically, Bialek works to impart a mathematical and computational sophistication to his students that is far beyond that available to most undergraduates today.Shirley Ann Jackson, a physicist and President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, sounded the alarm in her 2002 book, "The Quiet Crisis: Falling Short in Producing American Scientific and Technical Talent," about the looming wave of retirements and insufficient numbers of American students trained or in training to succeed them. An African American, Jackson will address how to diversify American science, providing inspiration and effective strategies. She will share both her personal story and her perspectives. Her goal is to create "diversity in fact" through diversity of approach, pedagogy, and outlook. She will focus on how to implement these, as well as on methods for improving scientific education.Bialek and Jackson share the ultimate goal of the ASCB Keynote: breaking down artificial barriers between disciplines and training a new generation of scientists prepared to address scientific problems with greater understanding, skill, and sophistication. Both are pioneers who have successfully broken down barriers to accomplish their goals, and both will present case studies that dramatically illustrate how we can improve college science education for the next generation of scientists. Attendees will be inspired to rethink the undergraduate and graduate curricula at their own institutions, and be directed to websites where a great deal of useful teaching material can be found. They will learn how to promote strong interactions across the traditional departmental boundaries that have separated scientific and mathematical disciplines and the humanities. It is anticipated that many will work toward implementing more unified undergraduate curricula at their own institutions. Beyond the immediate event, "ASCB Newsletter" columns and webcasts will help disseminate themes and begin a dialogue that should continue for years to come.