The Phytochemical Society of North America will have its 50th anniversary meeting from December 10 through 15th, 2011, on the big island of Hawaii. The society has a long tradition in the study of plant biochemistry, chemistry, natural products (whether for commodity chemicals, food and fiber sources, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and other bioactive substances). The meeting, being a very special celebration, is anticipated to attract a very broad range of researchers drawn from worldwide locations. This is also reflected in the international composition of our organizing and scientific program committees. We are now finalizing speakers for the PSNA 50 conference which has a variety of scientific themes, including biofuels/bioengineering, transcriptome profiling, metabolism and metabolomics, and new characterization technologies/methodologies. A most important part of our PSNA 50 conference is to provide opportunities for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to present their research findings and exchange ideas with scientific colleagues. In this regard, the bulk of the funding in support of this conference is anticipated to come from sponsorships (industry, foundations, and so forth) and registrations which are currently underway. It is essential, however, that we strongly encourage the participation of both young graduate students and postdoctoral fellows at our historic …

Light matter interactions have led to a great part of our current understanding of the universe. When light interacts with matter it affects the properties of both the light and the matter. Visible light, being in the region that the human eye can "see," was one of the first natural phenomenon we used to learn about our universe. The application of fundamental physics research has spilled over into other fields that were traditionally separated from physics, being considered two different sciences. Current physics research has applications in all scientific fields. By taking a more physical approach to problems in fields such as chemistry and biology, we have furthered our knowledge of both. Nanocrystals have many interesting optical properties. Furthermore, the size and properties of nanocrystals has given them applications in materials ranging from solar cells to sunscreens. By understanding and controlling their interactions with systems we can utilize them to increase our knowledge in other fields of science, such as biology. Nanocrystals exhibit optical properties superior to currently used fluorescent dyes. By replacing molecular dyes with nanoparticles we can reduce toxicity, increase resolution and have better cellular targeting abilities. They have also shown to have toxicity to cancer and antibacterial …

Daily newspaper from Denton, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.

Daily newspaper from Denton, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.