Editorial
December 1994 by Greg Grant
The one inescapable thing about the end of the year is that the next year
will soon start. The ABRF has had a very productive 1994, including the
first Beckman-ABRF Award for Outstanding Contributions to Biomolecular
Technology, the first full year of activity for our two newest research
committees-Carbohydrate Analysis and Good Laboratory Practices-and the
hatching of plans for our first independent meeting. The momentum gained
from these and other activities will make 1995 even better.
At the top of the list for 1995 is the transition in the Executive Board.
Please join me in welcoming Elizabeth Fowler and Thomas Andersen as your
newest Board members. Both have a long and impressive history of
contributing to the success of our association. To make room, Steve Carr
and Ron Niece will be leaving the Board at the expiration of their terms.
Both have had a very positive impact on the success of the ABRF, and we owe
each a very special thanks for their energy and counsel during their
tenure.
The success of the First Beckman-ABRF award and the stature of its
recipient, Frederick Sanger, makes it a very tough act to follow. The
selection of the second award recipient will be a very challenging task. It
is also one in which each member is invited to participate. The call for
nominations is described in this issue of the newsletter, and we hope that
you will all give serious consideration to submitting a nominee.
The new year also brings a new source of support for the research
activities of the ABRF in the form of a three year grant award from the
Department of Energy. The NSF grant that has partially supported our
activities over the last three years expires at the end of 1994. Through
the efforts of John Crabb and all our research committees, we have been
successful in gaining continued outside support for these activities from
the Health and Environmental Research division of the DOE.
Two major ABRF meetings will also be held in conjunction with the Protein
Society this year. The first will be with the European Protein Society
meeting in Davos, Switzerland in May, and the second will be the annual
meeting in Boston in July. This meeting will mark the tenth anniversary of
the ABRF. Also look for our annual ABRF workshop at the ASBMB meeting. This
year the topic will be nucleic acid technologies.
Finally, although it will culminate in March of 1996, most of the planning
and preparation for our first independent meeting will occur in 1995. It is
fitting, I think, that this major techniques-oriented meeting will be the
kick-off for the next ten years of our association.
Return to the The ABRF Home Page
Created: 27th July 1995
Last modified: 27th July 1995