2015 Fall Meeting at Saint-Gobain

  • 08 Oct 2015
  • 9 Goddard Road Northboro, MA 01532

Registration


Registration is closed



Join NESM for our annual Fall Meeting on Thursday, October 8th at Saint-Gobain! The meeting will consist of tours of facility, two technical talks and a buffet dinner. We look forward to seeing you there!


Meeting Schedule


5:00pm - 6:00 Tours, registration and

munchies


6:00pm - 6:50pm Dinner


6:50pm - 7:00pm Intro - Saint Gobain center director welcome with Jen Ross


7:00pm - 7:35pm Peter Foster


7:35pm - 8:10pm Kathy Aidala, PhD


8:10pm - 8:20pm Closing



Speaker Abstracts & Bios


"Active Contraction of Microtubule Networks" Peter Foster, Harvard University


Abstract: Many cellular processes, including cell motility, cell shape control, and cell division, are driven by cytoskeletal assemblies. It remains unclear how cytoskeletal filaments and motor proteins organize into cellular scale structures and how the molecular properties of cytoskeletal components affect the large scale behaviors of these systems. In this talk, I will describe recent work on how micron scale cytoskeletal filaments in frog egg extracts can organize on the millimeter length scale into networks that spontaneously contract, and how this contraction process can be understood through a combination of quantitative microscopy and theory. 


Bio: Peter Foster is a graduate student working in the laboratory of Dan Needleman in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University. Before beginning his doctoral program, he earned a B.S. in Physics and Mathematics at the University of Iowa. His research focuses on studying how the collective interactions of biopolymers and motor proteins gives rise to large length scale behaviors in biological systems. 



"Electrical, Mechanical, and Magnetic measurements using Scanning Probe Microscopy" Katherine Aidala, Phd Mount Holyoke College


Abstract:

While many are familiar with the basic capabilities of atomic force microscopy (AFM), few realize the full potential of the instrument.  My lab studies a variety of material systems with scanning probe microscopy.  We investigate charge carrier motion in organic semiconductors and colloidal quantum dots.  We study ferromagnetic nanostructures by passing a current through the metal tip to create a local circular field, and use magnetic force microscopy to measure the resulting magnetic states.  We probe the viscoelastic and poroelastic properties of hydrogels by applying controlled forces at specific locations, and study the adhesion of bacteria by growing biofilms on the tip and bringing them into contact with chemically modified surfaces.  I will highlight examples from my work while discussing how to think about novel and less frequently used capabilities of AFM. 


Bio:

Katherine Aidala is an associate professor of physics and the chair of the physics department and engineering committee at Mount Holyoke College.  She completed her undergraduate degree at Yale University in 2001, and received her PhD in applied physics from Harvard University in 2006.  She is the recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers in 2010, was named a Cottrell Scholar from 2009, and received the NSF CAREER award in 2010.   


Location: 

Saint-Gobain

9 Goddard Road

Northboro, MA 




© New England Society for Microscopy
Powered by Wild Apricot Membership Software