Events

For many centuries improving the resolution of light microscopy meant perfecting lenses and other optical elements, a strategy whose limits became evident with the discovery of the diffraction barrier in 1873. (...) At the turn of this century, the diffraction barrier was radically overcome, and it became clear that lens-based fluorescence microscopes can resolve features down to the molecular scale. At its most fundamental level, this breakthrough in resolution is based on the fact that tiny features in the sample are no longer discerned by the focusing of light. (...)

ASCB is an inclusive, international community of biologists studying the cell, the fundamental unit of life. We are dedicated to advancing scientific discovery, advocating sound research policies, improving education, promoting professional development, and increasing diversity in the scientific workforce.

The next Facility Managers Meeting aimed at people running or working in light microscopy facilities will be held at the University of Liverpool. From very humble beginnings, we have grown to a much more significant and influential community of facility managers. Numbers of attendees have grown 10 fold since the first meeting in 2006 as more and more facilities have opened. We now represent one of the best organised facility groupings in the UK if not indeed the world. (...)

The Biophysical Society was founded in the 1950s to lead the development and dissemination of knowledge in biophysics through many activities including meetings, publications, community outreach, and career placement. The Society members, of which there are currently over 9,000, work in academia, industry, and government agencies worldwide. Membership is open to scientists who have educational, research, or practical experience in biophysics or an allied scientific field (excerpted from the Biophysical Society’s Constitution and Bylaws).

The origin of the FOM conference series lies in the three-dimensional imaging capabilities of confocal microscopy, together with the associated 3D image processing. (...) The last years especially have seen the successful realization of sub-Abbe resolution optical imaging by a number approaches to such a degree that the term nanoscopy has been rightfully been introduced. (...) The FOM conferences constitute an effective meeting point for developers and users working in this rapidly evolving field, playing an important role in the dissemination of information about new developments.

Cell Mech is a conference that has been organised every other year in Europe for the last 15 years. The conference series gathers biologists, mathematicians, physicists and engineers to discuss various aspects of cell mechanics. It has a strong focus on fostering interactions between students and established PIs in the field. The workshop format offers ample time for interactions and presentation of new or unpublished work. This year will bring together people interested in biological forces from different origins (osmotic forces, cytoskeletal forces, compressive force from the microenvironment...) to foster a more integrated view of cell mechanics.

ELMI conferences were established as a unique networking opportunity providing exchange of information between European scientists working in the field of light microscopy and the manufacturers of microscopy equipment. They have become a regular meeting place of scientists who develop and apply advanced light microscopy in their research, as well as becoming a crucial conference for imaging networks and people working in imaging facilities.

The Sfµ meeting aims at bringing together a wide community of scientists who develop or make use of electron, photon, scanning probe and atom probe microscopies. The scientific program consists of twelve symposia: four dedicated to life science, four focused on materials science, and four joint symposia (life and materials science). This congress is synchronized with the spring meeting of GN-MEBA, providing the opportunity for shared discussions.

FEMS - FEDERATION OF EUROPEAN MICROBIOLOGICAL SOCIETIES We are FEMS, a pan-European scientific body campaigning to get science - and microbiology in particular - on the European agenda. Set up in 1974 to promote microbiology across Europe, today we are a growing coalition of 53 Member Societies from 38 countries. We bring together around 30,000 professional microbiologists who are exploring microbiology and working to translate that knowledge into impact on the ground, and we are working with similar organizations elsewhere to make our network global. We publish five microbiology journals and organize a biennial congress for microbiologists around the world. Our community can apply for fellowships, grants and/or support when organizing or attending meetings and we work together with these and other partners to track, promote and recognize excellence in microbiology.

This course is designed primarily for research scientists, postdoctoral trainees, core facility directors/staff and graduate students working in the biological sciences. Biologists and physicists alike seeking a comprehensive introduction to microscopy and digital imaging will benefit greatly from the course. This 9-day course is limited to 24 students to ensure a truly interactive, hands-on experience. It consists of interrelated lectures, laboratory exercises, demonstrations, and discussions that will enable the participants to obtain and interpret high quality microscope data, to understand and assess potential artifacts, to perform quantitative optical measurements, and to generate digital images for documentation and analysis that accurately present the data. The course also places a strong emphasis on appropriate sample preparation, including choice of fluorescent probes and fluorescent proteins, and tissue clearing and refractive index matching. Particular emphasis will be...