I had the joy of experiencing my first conference in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology held their annual meeting just blocks from the excitement of Bourbon Street, the notorious Café du Monde, and the magnificent Mississippi River. From January 5 to 9, 2003, I had the remarkable experience of attending talks, presenting a poster, and enjoying downtown New Orleans.

As I arrived in New Orleans late Monday night, I was exhausted but excited as I watched all the individuals gathered in the lobby of the hotel catching up with colleagues. The next morning I made an early start and met my advisor Dr. Randi Weinstein, Physiology, and a fellow UA undergraduate, Leo Bartik. We listened to a variety of presentations ranging in subject matter from locomotion, to the adhesive properties of gecko hairs.

I explored downtown New Orleans in my spare time. The location of the meeting was amazing because it was within walking distance to many popular New Orleans destinations. I made my way to the famous Café du Monde to sample the delicious beignets. Along the way I took in many of the sights in the French Quarter including a beautiful Cathedral in Lafayette Square and the many Voodoo and tourist shops.

I was excited and a little nervous to present my poster on a project I had worked on this past summer in Dr. Weinstein’s laboratory, involving crab muscle physiology and biochemistry. The project involved examining if high intensity stimulation of the extensor carpopodite, an important locomotor muscle, was correlated with a rise in inorganic phosphate; a postulated causative agent of muscular fatigue. I had the opportunity to explain and discuss our research with a variety of interested individuals.

I attended a variety of presentations including topics such as, ethanol production and its consumption, telomerase expression and lifespan, and stability models produced to examine the constraints in sprawled posture running.

Of special interest was a cemetery tour to one of New Orleans oldest and most famous cemeteries, St. Louis Cemetery #1. I learned the history behind the above-ground tombs and about the one year and one day rule that states a new individual cannot be entombed in the family tomb until exactly one year and one day after the previous family member was entombed. It is at that point that the old coffin may be removed with the remains of the individual being swept to the back of the family tomb to make way for another family member to be entombed. The tour was very informative, interesting, and surprising. I even got to make a wish on the tomb of a famous Voodoo priestess.

My trip to New Orleans was amazing. Attending the conference was a great learning experience and exploring the town was entertaining and informative. I would like to thank Carol Bender, Genevieve Kenney, UBRP, and Dr. Randi Weinstein.

Vanessa Klee, UBRPer in Dr. Randi Weinstein's lab, Physiology