The International Symposium on Foraminifera series is a quadrennial gathering of foraminiferal micropaleontologists and biologists from a variety of disciplines. It is supported by international foraminiferal groups, and is open to all who are interested in foraminifera and related topics. The meeting is September 5 to 10, 2010, at the University of Bonn, Germany. One aim of FORAMS 2010 is to allow specialists who would not otherwise normally be in contact to meet and exchange ideas. For example, foram micropaleontologists and geneticists commonly have different professional societies that meet at different times, yet some members of these two groups share common interests, for example in systematics. The meeting has its own website which has been operational for over a year at www.forams2010.uni-bonn.de/. The Organizing Committee believes that the continued interest of students is critical to the health of the field. This proposal requests support for the attendance of US students at the meeting. These funds may be used for registration and travel, including housing. Grantees would be selected on the basis of merit, and appropriate attention will be paid to the need to support minority groups and women. Selection would be made by a Selection Committee appointed by the Board of Directors of the Cushman Foundation for Foraminiferal Research, Inc.
The Cushman Foundation for Foraminiferal Research, Inc., was awarded a grant of $10,000 to support the attendance of US students at The International Symposium on Foraminifera in September, 2010 (also known as FORAMS 2010). Based on past experience, the Organizing Committee expected that about 60 students of which 10 were US students, attended the meeting held in Bonn, Germany. Student awardees were selected on the basis of merit, and appropriate attention was paid to the need to support minority groups and women. Selection was made by a Selection Committee appointed by the Board of Directors of the Cushman Foundation for Foraminiferal Research, Inc. Ten students were selected and they each gave a paper and attended other scientists presentations. The American students mixed with a truly international group of just over 200, representing Germany, France, Egypt, UAE, Italy, Spain, England, Israel, Chile, Argentina, and several other countries. They heard reports covering living and fossil foraminifera, including topics such as how many species of foraminifera are there?, genetics, biostratigraphy, ecology and paleoecology, use in environmental and seismic work, and various other miscellaneous topics. The contacts the American students made and the exposure to the work of others from around the world increased their competence as scientists and the network of their scientific colleagues.
