2017 Photosynthetic Plasticity: From Environment to Synthetic Systems, July 16-21, 2017; Newry, Maine

几千年来，动物已经开发出各种方法来摄取光合作用固定的碳作为营养来源。此外，通过光合作用过程产生的大部分生物质被埋在地壳中并转化为化石燃料（石油），这些燃料今天为我们的大多数发动机提供动力，支持多种人类活动，并为人类使用的几乎所有产品的制造提供所需的材料。在包括食物和能源在内的资源变得有限的环境中，我们必须了解光合作用，以便我们能够提高作物产量，生产新的更好的生物燃料，并开发各种有价值的生物产品。对光合作用的深入了解将有助于建立粮食和燃料安全，并适应人类未来的需求。光合作用戈登研究会议将包括具有一系列专业知识的研究人员，并促进变革性想法和新颖项目的发展。为了增加这次会议的影响力，我们将其与戈登研究研讨会相结合，该研讨会几乎完全由学生和博士后研究员组成（约80名学生和博士后研究员）;这些年轻的研究人员将成为未来几代人在该领域的领导者。目前，在42名确认的发言者/讨论领导者/组织者中，有16名是妇女，超过三分之一的受邀发言者是初级教员（助理教授，初级科学家，博士后和同等学历）根据他们最近的小说选择（经常是突破性的）结果和他们的能力，有效地沟通，信息和建立互动网络。含氧光合作用成为一个主导过程，地球~2.5 BYA，通过O2生产和CO2封存塑造大气。它捕获阳光的能量来氧化H2O并产生化学键能和还原当量，可用于将CO2固定到糖，淀粉和油中。此外，它是我们星球上最主要的过程之一，提供支持几乎所有生命系统的食物和燃料。关于光合复合物的结构、对光合功能至关重要的特定催化活性、叶绿体的生物发生以及影响光合效率的许多非生物和生物因素，仍然有许多谜团。光合作用的概念基础也很广泛，借鉴了从量子力学到生态系统生物学等众多学科的知识;它从学科之间的整合中受益匪浅。光合作用也是独特的，因为它涉及发生在飞秒到天/年时间域的事件，并在进化过程中不断调整，以适应不同的环境，从接近沸腾的温泉沃茨到北极苔原的寒冷条件。这次戈登研究会议将探讨光合作用的动态本质，它适应明显不同的环境条件的机制，以及它可用于支持人类活动的潜在方式。它将包括具有一系列专业知识的研究人员，促进讨论，刺激变革性想法和新颖项目的出现，这些想法和项目消除了学科之间的边界，以创建关于光合能量转换的知情和独特的研究。

Over the millennia, animals have developed various methods to ingest photosynthetically-fixed carbon as a nutritive source. In addition, much of the biomass generated through photosynthetic processes was buried within the Earth's crust and converted into fossil fuels (oils), which today powers most of our engines, supports a multitude of human activities and provides materials needed for the manufacture of nearly all products used by humans. In an environment in which resources, including food and energy, are becoming limited, it is imperative that we understand photosynthesis so that we can increase crop yields, produce new and better biofuels, and develop a variety of valuable bioproducts. A deep understanding of photosynthesis will help establish both food and fuel security and accommodate the future needs of man. The Photosynthesis Gordon Research Conference will include researchers with a range of expertise and promote the development of transformative ideas and novel projects. To increase the reach of this conference we are coupling it with a Gordon Research Seminar, which is comprised almost exclusively of students and postdoctoral fellows (about 80 students and postdoctoral fellows); these young researchers will serve as leaders in the field for future generations. Currently 16 out of the 42 confirmed speakers/discussion leaders/organizers are women and over 1/3 of the invited speakers are junior faculty (Assistant Professors, junior staff scientists, postdoctorals and equivalents) selected on the basis of their recent novel (often groundbreaking) results and their abilities to effectively communicate that information and build interactive networks.Oxygenic photosynthesis emerged as a dominant process on the planet ~2.5 BYA, shaping the atmosphere through O2 production and CO2 sequestration. It captures the energy of sunlight to oxidize H2O and generate chemical bond energy and reducing equivalents that can be used to fix CO2 into sugars, starches and oils. Furthermore, it is one of the most dominant processes on our planet, providing food and fuel that supports nearly all living systems. There are still many mysteries concerning the structure of photosynthetic complexes, specific catalytic activities critical for photosynthetic function, the biogenesis of chloroplasts, and the many abiotic and biotic factors that impact photosynthetic efficiency. Photosynthesis is also broad in its conceptual foundations and draws upon knowledge from numerous disciplines ranging from quantum mechanics to ecosystem biology; it strongly benefits from integration among disciplines. Photosynthesis is also unique as it involves events that occur in the femtosecond to day/year time domains, and is continually tailored over evolutionary time to function in different environments ranging from near boiling hot spring waters to the frigid conditions of the arctic tundra. This Gordon Research Conference will explore the dynamic nature of photosynthesis, mechanisms by which it has accommodated markedly different environmental conditions, and potential ways in which it can be used to support man's activities. It will include researchers with a range of expertise, fostering discussions that stimulate the emergence of transformative ideas and novel projects that dissolve borders between disciplines to create informed and unique research on photosynthetic energy conversions.