AAAS Fellow

MCB AT YOUR MEETING: WORKSHOP: THE ROLE OF CROWDFUNDING IN THE STEM ECOSYSTEM

Crowdfunding as a way of raising money to support worthy causes is popular among charities and entrepreneurs, and recently has been gaining traction in scientific communities as a novel way to collect support and financing for research projects. The Georgia Institute of Technology is organizing a workshop in Alexandria, VA, on Oct.10. Titled “The Role of Crowdfunding in the STEM Ecosystem”. The goal of the MCB funded (MCB – 1745230) workshop is to stimulate conversation and provide an exchange of ideas about crowdfunding in the sciences.  Chaired by Dr. Morris Cohen, Assistant Professor at Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and former AAAS Fellow at NSF, the workshop is open to the public and free to all attendees.

The workshop will feature a wide range of expert speakers giving presentations, panel discussions, audience question-and-answer sessions, and three “fireside chats.” Workshop topics will include:

  • Reflections from scientists who have used crowdfunding;
  • Legal and financial implications for crowdfunding campaigns;
  • Crowdfunding factors that may lead to inclusion or exclusion within the STEM community;
  • Crowdfunding platforms in the academic sector;
  • Crowdfunding platforms in the private sector; and
  • Future directions for crowdfunding in science.

The workshop will also address scientific studies of crowdfunding as a social phenomenon, as well as application of crowdfunding in the STEM environment. Additionally, there will be opportunities to meet fellow scientists interested in crowdfunding and initiate dialogues on topics of concern.

The workshop will take place October 10, 2017 from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM at the Holiday Inn Carlyle at 2460 Eisenhower Ave, Alexandria, VA. More information can be found at Georgia Tech’s workshop website including an agenda, speakers’ bios, and registration information. Registration is free but space is limited, so if you are interested, sign up today!

 

Questions? Email the organizers at crowdfundingworkshop@gmail.com.

MCB PROGRAM DIRECTOR STEVEN CLOUSE NAMED 2016 AAAS FELLOW

Dr. Steven Clouse is standing in front of green trees.

Dr. Steven Clouse, a Cellular Dynamics and Function Program Director in the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences and Professor in the Department of Horticultural Science at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, has been elected a 2016 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS). Since 1874, the AAAS has bestowed this honor on select members for their “scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.” Dr. Clouse was nominated by peers in the Section on Agriculture, Food, and Renewable Resources “for distinguished contributions to the field of plant biology, particularly for pioneering studies of brassinosterorid signaling and plant receptor kinases.”

After receiving his Ph.D. from the University of California, Davis and completing postdoctoral work in plant molecular biology at the Salk Institute, Dr. Clouse began his independent research career in 1988 as an assistant professor at San Diego State University. At that time, a class of naturally occurring plant compounds termed “brassinosteroids” had been structurally characterized, but little was known about their molecular mechanism of action. In collaboration with Dr. Trevor McMorris and Dr. Michael Baker, experts in steroid chemistry and biochemistry at the University of California, San Diego, Dr. Clouse and his students cloned one of the first brassinosteroid-regulated genes and identified one of the first brassinosteroid steroid-insensitive mutants in plants. The launch of this research project was supported by a Small Grant for Exploratory Research (SGER) from NSF – the first of many NSF awards received over a 25 year period that were essential to developing a research program to determine the mechanisms of brassinosteroid action in plant growth and development.

In 1996, Dr. Clouse moved to North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He began a collaboration with Dr. Steven Huber, a kinase biochemist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Dr. Michael Goshe, an expert in proteomics and mass spectrometry at North Carolina State University, to determine the role of protein phosphorylation in brassinosteroid signaling. This work was supported by several NSF grants from MCB, culminating in two large Arabidopsis 2010 program awards that allowed the work to expand dramatically both in terms of the size of the group as well as new research avenues involving high throughput proteomic approaches.

When reflecting on his election as AAAS fellow, Dr. Clouse said, “I was very pleased that my peers considered our 25 year research effort on brassinosteroid action to be worthwhile. The success of the program was the result of hard work by more than 30 postdoctoral scientists and graduate students and being fortunate to have excellent collaborators, particularly Drs. Huber and Goshe. The initial belief of NSF program directors in the importance of our work and the continued and growing NSF support over the years was crucial for the success of the program, both in terms of research and training, and is greatly appreciated. I feel fortunate to be able to serve as an NSF program director near the end of my career, where I can perhaps contribute by identifying new projects that may continue to enjoy the long-term success that we experienced.”

Please join MCB as we congratulate Dr. Steven Clouse on his election to the rank of AAAS Fellow!

This work is partially funded by the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, Award #MCB – 1021363, #MCB – 0419819, and #MCB – 0742411.