The Polymers Gordon Research Conference (GRC), which will focus on highlighting emerging technologies in the polymer area, will provide an exciting forum for leading scientists and engineers from academia, industry, and government to discuss emerging multidisciplinary technologies that bridge traditional boundaries between polymer science and engineering. The GRC is a premier interdisciplinary conference (attendance in 2009 was 180) for the polymer science and engineering community and is offered every two years in the summer. The 2011 GRC is envisioned as an integrated educational forum for the most recent advances in polymer science and engineering, and the meeting subtitle is intentionally broad to bring together experts in diverse fields to address advanced technologies over a wide range disciplines. Such an educational forum is needed at this time to facilitate the collaborations and mutual understanding necessary to catalyze breakthrough polymer-based material solutions from the molecular to the device level. The objectives of the 2011 GRC include (1) dissemination of the most recent advances in polymer science and engineering, (2) education across multiple disciplines, (3) cultivation of collaborations across diverse disciplines, and (4) formation of professional networks.
The 2011 GRC will consist of ?mini-symposia? sessions on trends in adaptive polymers, utilizing biosystems in polymer science, biomimetic polymers, opto-electronic materials, utilizing polymers to access the nanoscale, new trends in polymer synthesis, supramolecular polymers, polymers for alternate energy, and emerging directions in polymer design. Each mini-session will include two discussion leaders and 2-3 invited research lectures in the discipline. The invited speakers are widely recognized as leaders in their fields and will deliver focused lectures with broad scientific appeal. Special attention was devoted to the development of a diverse program including under-represented groups, leading universities from across the nation, international participation, and demonstrated innovation across disciplines.
Broader Impact: A Graduate Research Seminar (GRS) will precede the GRC for the second time. The first Polymer GRS was hugely successful and many of the students who attended this meeting also attended the GRC. The preceding two-day conference includes only graduate student oral presentations, and students will be invited to remain for the subsequent GRC. A majority of the graduate students are expected to participate in the subsequent GRC. In fact there is a special mini session in the GRC entitled GRS Award Speakers in which two students who presented at the GRS will be allowed to present at the GRC. The choice of which two students are invited to talk at the GRC will be made by the students at the GRS. This forum will provide networking opportunities for some of our nation?s top graduate student researchers, including the cultivation of research collaborations and networks for subsequent careers. Broader impact will also involve outreach to industry and national laboratories. International participants will provide opportunities for impact on the international level and the cultivation of bridges to international research groups. A key metric for success will be the formation of a diverse program and the impact on diverse groups of scientists and engineers.
The Gordon Research Conference on POLYMERS was held at Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts, June 12 – 17. The Conference was well-attended with 179 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Of the 179 attendees, 103 voluntarily responded to a general inquiry regarding ethnicity which appears on our registration forms. Of the 103 respondents, 18% were Minorities – 5% Hispanic, 7% Asian and 7% African American. Approximately 26% of the participants at the 2011 meeting were women. The Gordon Research Seminar on POLYMERS was held at Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts, June 11 – 12. The Conference was well-attended with 59 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Of the 59 attendees, 36 voluntarily responded to a general inquiry regarding ethnicity which appears on our registration forms. Of the 36 respondents, 22% were Minorities – 8% Hispanic, 6% Asian and 8% African American. Approximately 29% of the participants at the 2011 meeting were women. In designing the formal speakers program, emphasis was placed on current unpublished research and discussion of the future target areas in this field. There was a conscious effort to stimulate lively discussion about the key issues in the field today. Time for formal presentations was limited in the interest of group discussions. In order that more scientists could communicate their most recent results, poster presentation time was scheduled. Attached is a copy of the formal schedule and speaker program and the poster program. In addition to these formal interactions, "free time" was scheduled to allow informal discussions. Such discussions are fostering new collaborations and joint efforts in the field.
