Are you a creative, articulate and web-savvy plant scientist looking to connect with other like-minded folks? We need your help to nurture and grow Plantae, the online community for the global plant science community. We are looking for individuals who are interested in becoming highly engaged by creating and curating content, facilitating and hosting discussions and … Read more Applications now open for the 2020 Plantae Fellows program
The Plant Science Research Network attends two conferences each fall to support undergraduate research and education: SACNAS and ABRCMS. Connecting undergraduate students to research opportunities in the plant sciences is a goal of the PSRN, which curates resources to support student research, careers, and connection to the plant science community. If you were not with … Read more Plantae Internships and conference updates from the PSRN
The word transparent has multiple meanings. For us scientists, we might first think of a solution in a tube or vial being transparent, defined by Merriam-Webster as “having the property of transmitting light without appreciable scattering so that bodies lying beyond are seen clearly”. As in, did your chemical dissolve? But the transparency to which … Read more President’s Letter—The Transparency Project
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has released a new solicitation as part of the Understanding the Rules of Life (URoL) Big Idea, entitled Understanding the Rules of Life: Microbiome Theory and Mechanisms (URoL:MTM). In the this cross-directorate effort, NSF plans to invest between $12 million and $15 million to better understand the theoretical and mechanistic … Read more Funding Opportunity: NSF Releases New Microbiome Solicitation Under Rules of Life Big Idea
On October 17, the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Biotechnology, Horticulture, and Research held a hearing to review the implementation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s 2018 Farm Bill research programs with testimony from Deputy Undersecretary for Research, Education and Economics Scott Hutchins. This hearing comes after the Farm Bill was reauthorized in December … Read more Hearing Update: House Agriculture Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Implementation of Farm Bill Research Programs
ASPB and Conviron are delighted to announce an exciting opportunity to nurture the next generation of plant scientists. Open to exceptional undergraduate and graduate students studying plant biology, the ASPB Conviron Scholars program delivers an experience intended to serve as a foundation for a career in plant science. Applications welcome from any country. Students who … Read more Conviron Scholars 2020 – Applications Now Open
It is proposed that ASPB establish a new section that is organized around Early Career Researchers (students, post-docs, scientists in transition, and generally anyone who self-identifies as an Early Career Researcher). The creation of this section will benefit ECRs currently within the society by establishing a formal means of communication among the ECR leadership, as … Read more Support the Creation of an Early Career Researcher Section of ASPB
BY ANDREAS MADLUNG University of Puget Sound For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be a teacher. I wanted to focus my career on working with students; designing curricula, lesson plans, and lab activities; and passing on my excitement about living things to anyone who might share this interest. While in graduate … Read more Halfway to Establishing the New Primarily Undergraduate Institution Section
Rockville, Maryland, October 21, 2019 – The American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) is pleased to announce the appointment of Blake C. Meyers to serve as editor-in-chief of The Plant Cell beginning January 1, 2020. The Plant Cell publishes novel research of particular significance in plant biology, especially in the areas of cellular biology, molecular … Read more Press Release – Blake Meyers Appointed Next Editor of The Plant Cell
The survey results are in, and over 88% of Phenome 2019 attendees would recommend this conference to their colleagues! So we are pleased to invite you to the fourth annual Phenome conference, Phenome 2020, which will be held from February 24-27, 2020 at the Tucson Convention Center in Tucson, AZ. You asked and we listened: … Read more Registration and Abstracts Are OPEN for Phenome 2020!
October 2019 Washington Update – Prepared by Lewis-Burke Associates, LLC for the American Society of Plant Biologists Following their Town Halls in September, the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Reintegrating Biology Initiative has announced the next phase of the process. Reintegrating Biology will convene four “Jumpstarts”, two and a half-day workshops to “develop new and innovative … Read more NSF Announces Next Phase of Reintegrating Biology Initiative
October 2019 Washington Update – Prepared by Lewis-Burke Associates, LLC for the American Society of Plant Biologists Employees of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) and Economic Research Service (ERS) have begun work in Kansas City, with the first report-to-work date occurring on September 30. Although the agencies have begun to hire new … Read more NIFA Relocation
The activity of this gene controls the timing of esterification in grain, which is related to storage and nutritional qualities of bread wheat and other grains. This work provides insight into the timing and control of esterification, related to storage and nutritional qualities of bread wheat and other grains. ASPB is pleased to announce the … Read more Press Release – Gene Responsible for Lutein Esterification in Bread Wheat Identified
The ASPB program committee is inviting proposals for one-hour workshops to be held during Plant Biology 2020 in Washington, D.C., July 25-29, 2020. All ideas are welcome, but the preferred areas of focus for the workshops – intentionally broad – are: Technical Development and Innovation Professional Development Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion The committee encourages submissions … Read more Plant Biology 2020 Call for Workshop Proposals!
By Rob Last, Michigan State University, and Mary Williams, Features Editor, The Plant Cell “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” Attributed to Margaret Mead (1901–1978), American cultural anthropologist Whether or not Dr. Mead actually uttered this quote, the words … Read more President’s Letter – Be the Change
The American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) and the Plant Science Research Network (PSRN) are pleased to pass along an Action Alert released by the American Society for Agronomy (ASA), the Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), and the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) in support of new legislation introduced by Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL). The … Read more Action Alert: America Grows Act
It’s Peer Review Week (#PeerRevWk19) ! What better time than now to blog about how two of ASPB’s journals (The Plant Cell and Plant Direct) have approached open peer review? In 2018, Nature published a Comment titled “Publish Peer Reviews” (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-06032-w). This Comment references an open letter (http://asapbio.org/letter) signed by two of ASPB’s own: the Editor-in-Chief of The Plant Cell, … Read more ASPB and Open Peer Review
View the full RFP and apply by October 31, 2019. In the United States, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and other stakeholders have called for transformation in undergraduate biology education via the Vision and Change report. The core message of the Vision and Change initiative is a … Read more Request for Proposals – Transforming Education in Plant Biology 2020
We’re excited to announce the publication of The Plant Cell’s latest Teaching Tool, “Computational Image Processing in Microscopy,” by Adrienne Roeder, available without subscription at Plantae.org (and in the October issue of The Plant Cell). The age of big data includes sophisticated imaging datasets. Computational image processing is essential for extracting quantitative information from these … Read more New Teaching Tool “Computational Image Processing in Microscopy”
For Day 4, we change up the schedule! Look for our plenary symposium in the afternoon today, starting at 3:00 PM in the Grand Ballroom! Today’s Highlights: Last chance to check out the posters! 7:00 AM–3:00 PM in Hall 2. The PUI Business Meeting begins at 7:00 AM in Room LL21AB At 7:30 AM join … Read more What to Expect Tuesday at Plant Biology 2019