Conferences and Education

Six Tips for Getting the Most from Your Next Conference

  1. Sit at the front during talks: Even if this is not your style (or especially if this is not your preference), this will help you feel more involved in the talk.
  2. Take copious notes: Whether you need them or not, taking notes during presentations helps focus the mind.
  3. Rate all speakers for content and presentation: This is a way to keep yourself alert as well as help yourself think critically about talks' content. For the best presentations, it will also give you notes about style or techniques to integrate into your next talk.
  4. Break away: People tend to attend conferences with colleagues, co-workers, and friends - people they already know. But during talks and at meal times, try and sit with people you don't know. You are bound to learn something new, whether it is about work in your field, how other institutions function, or how different people approach questions relevant to your work.
  5. Be excited about your science: If you're excited about your science, others will feed off of that excitement. Whether it is during a formal talk, a panel discussion, a poster session or just talking to people in the hallways, keep in mind that you are selling your science. Also remember that everyone is being bombarded with talks and research: the enthusiasm you muster will go a long way to getting peoples' attention.
  6. Size matters: Small meetings often have a singlemindedness about a particular subject that can benefit all participants. There are likely to be fewer competing sessions at small meetings, and you can probably actually meet the speakers, instead of stand in line.

Courtesy of The Scientist

Current Conference
csb2009
CSB2009
Keynote Speakers:
Jonathan Eisen, David Haussler
Invited Speaker:
Vijay Pande
Previous Conferences
csb2008
CSB2008
Keynote Speaker:
Matthew Scott
Invited Speakers:
Clyde Hutchison, Eric Lai, Robert Murphy, William Swope
csb2007
CSB2007
Sharing Matters
Keynote Speakers:
Terence Hwa, Mike Levine, Chris Somerville
Invited Speakers:
Philip Bourne, John Dehlin, Adam Godzik, Christina Leslie, Pavel Pevzner, Kimmen Sjölander, Kavitha Venkatesan, Marian Walhout, Shannon Williamson
csb2006
CSB2006
It's a Small World After All
Keynote Speakers:
Drew Endy, Marvin Frazier, Mark Musen
Invited Speakers:
Mark Ellisman, Trey Ideker, Eric Jakonsson, Simon Mercer, Jean-Christophe Olivo-Marin, Christina Smolke, Lincoln Stein
csb2005
CSB2005
Connectivity Matters
Keynote Speakers:
Russ Altman, Sydney Brenner, Jacob T. Schwartz
Invited Speakers:
Michael Ashburner, Larry Goldstein, Ron Kikinis, Isaac Kohane, Srikanta Kumar, Daniel Rokhsar, Sharon Settnek
csb2004
CSB2004
Complexity Matters
Keynote Speakers:
Philip Green, Benoit Mandelbrot, Gene Myers, Ron Shamir
Invited Speakers:
Hamid Bolouri, Michael Eisen, Jim Kent, Paul S. Meltzer, Sandy Shaw, Stephen Wong
csb2003
CSB2003
Speed Matters
Keynote Speakers:
Christian Burks, Marvin E. Frazier, Richard Karp
Invited Speakers:
Philip Bourne, Jehoshua Bruck, Eric Davidson, Sorin Istrail, Peter Karp, Jun Liu, Michael Waterman, Stephen Wong, John Wooley
csb2002
CSB2002
Size Matters
Keynote Speakers:
Leroy Hood, Russ Altman, Bernard Palsson