Having the opportunity to attend a national conference has definitely been one of the highlights to my research experience over the last couple of years. Many of the people I talked to at this conference referred to the conference as "nerd heaven"-- which amused me greatly because so many people independently came up with that term. As a science aficionado myself, the conference was just that.

Many science societies participated in the conference: I went as a member of The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and joined The American Association of Anatomists. Inevitably, there was simply such a plethora of research projects from so many scientific fields that it was very difficult to decide what to see and which talks to attend. I was most excited to hear Andrew Fire from Stanford University, co-winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Craig Mello for their work with RNA interference in C.elegans.

It was very exciting to talk to professionals from my own field of work that understood all the little details to my project, and we were able to bounce ideas back and forth. Needless to say, I was able to learn about new aspects of my research project that I had not really considered yet, as well as come up with many new ideas of my own from viewing so many different projects. Having a chance to network with scientists from other parts of the world and exchange knowledge was one of the most important aspects of the conference. With my passion in science further fueled by being around all the enthusiastic scientists at the conference, I am happy to say that I am armed with new research ideas and ready to work them out! Thanks UBRP!

Alice Ferng, UBRPer in Dr. John Szivek's lab, Surgery/Orthopedic Research Lab