Faculty Members Speak At Boston Conference

BOSTON--More than 1,500 scientists, including several Harvard faculty members, convened at the Hynes Convention Center this weekend to share scientific research techniques and to pool ideas at the second annual Science Innovation Conference.

The meeting, sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) was designed to focus on specific approaches to research rather than broad data and discovery presentation.

"This is a meeting for the average bench scientist," said Robin Y. Woo, meetings director for the conference.

She added that she wanted the conference to produce many innovative and impromptu ideas--those which she described as worthy of jotting down on a napkin in a college diner. "I hope this will be a meeting that would produce a lot of napkins," she said.

Most of the presentations featured specialized discussions about techniques ranging from DNA sequencing to patent searching to group behavior in robotics.

Included among the speakers were several researchers representing Harvard--both the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the Medical School.

Mallinckrodt Professor of Chemistry George M. Whitesides '60 presented his research on organic interfaces, boundaries between organic molecules which interact with each other.

The strength of an interface can determine the degree to which a protein binds to its receptor or the strength of a bond between a solid and an adhesive. Studying the exact makeup of interfaces. Whitesides said, is a valuable tool in both materials science and engineering.

Medical School researcher calibrated on subjects such as nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, cloning of cell surface receptors and muscle cells.

Other presentations examined larger research projects. Much debate and discussion centered upon the Human Genome Project, an international endeavor with the goal of mapping the entire human genome and sequencing the billions of DNA base pairs which exist in the nucleus of each human cell.

Knowing the exact sequence and structure of every gene in the human body would enable scientists and doctors to study the roles of specific genes thought to cause diseases, according to Francis S. Colins, director of the National Center for Human Genome Research at the National Institutes of Health.

"I believe that the Human Genome Project is the single most important scientific endeavor that mankind has undertaken," said Collins. "There's...plenty of opportunity for creativity, innovation and advancement."

In addition to the medical applications of the Genome Project, scientists discussed the technical problems involved in characterizing such a large volume of DNA and presented techniques which are being developed to increase efficiency and decrease cost.

Woo said she hopes that the meeting will fuel communication between scientists and rekindle a fervor for research.

"We don't talk to each other enough," she said. Woo added that the meeting's objective was "to remind us why we all went into science--of the thrill of discovery.

In addition to the medical applications of the Genome Project, scientists discussed the technical problems involved in characterizing such a large volume of DNA and presented techniques which are being developed to increase efficiency and decrease cost.

Woo said she hopes that the meeting will fuel communication between scientists and rekindle a fervor for research.

"We don't talk to each other enough," she said. Woo added that the meeting's objective was "to remind us why we all went into science--of the thrill of discovery.