Columbus, Friar, Porter, and Prince Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (RSABG) in California will host the Third International Conference on the Comparative Biology of the Monocotyledons (Monocots III) jointly with the Fourth International Symposium on Grass Systematics and Evolution (Grasses IV) on 31 March to 4 April, 2003. Past conferences have been successul gatherings that have resulted in widely referenced conference proceedings on the comparative biology and evolution of monocots, and stimulated the formation of new research initiatives and international collaborations. Monocots III/Grasses IV will offer a core program in systematics while integrating new and highly relevant advances in the disciplines of developmental biology and genomics, with an emphasis on data integration across molecular and morphological domains. Monocot researchers from around the world will assemble to share knowledge and results on the taxonomy, phylogeny, and classification of all groups of monocots, including the large families of grasses, sedges, and orchids, and to discuss recent advances in genome evolution of cereals and other monocots and floral development and evolution in these plants. Funds from the award will provide travel monies for young investigators (new faculty, graduate students and recent graduates mostly) and for scientists from developing countries. This and waiver of conference registration fees for these groups will help attract a large group of participants, to what traditionally has been a well-attended meeting drawing several hundred scientists.
