Fifth Salzman Symposium, Nov. 18

The Foundation for the NIH and the virology interest group announce the fifth annual Norman P. Salzman Symposium to be held on Thursday, Nov. 18. During the symposium, an award will be presented to recognize an outstanding research accomplishment by a postdoctoral fellow or research trainee working in the field of virology at NIH. The award honors Salzman's 40-year career and his accomplishments in mentoring young scientists.

The theme of this year's symposium will be "Early Host Defenses Against Viral Infection," with presentations by a variety of scientists, plus the 2004 Salzman Award recipient. The symposium will be held at the Cloisters chapel from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with lunch served to registered attendees. To register, visit http://www.nih.gov/sigs/vig/ and select the "Special Items" link. Space is limited.

Symposium on Therapeutic Oligonucleotides

The therapeutic oligonucleotide interest group will hold its 7th symposium, "Therapeutic Oligonucleotides: Transcriptional and Translational Strategies for Silencing Gene Expression," on Dec. 13-14. The meeting will be held in Masur Auditorium, Bldg. 10 from 8 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. each day. In addition to scientists from NIH, FDA/CBER and Georgetown, speakers will be coming from Stanford, Yale, Harvard, UC-San Francisco, Rutgers, the University of North Carolina, City of Hope, University of Texas, University of Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh, University of Alabama, the Albert Einstein Cancer Center and the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center. Biotech companies from the U.S., Canada and Europe will also be represented. Speakers are also coming from the University of Paris; University of British Columbia; the RIKEN Yokohama Institute, Japan; and medical research centers in Russia and Poland. Registration is required; visit www.palladianpartners.com/7thNIHOligoSymposium. Contact Dr. Cho-Chung, yc12b@nih.gov, for more details.

Holiday Auction Set, Dec. 3

The Clinical Center's department of laboratory medicine will hold its 32nd annual Holiday Auction fundraiser on Friday, Dec. 3 in Bldg. 10, Rm. 2C310, which is the department's conference room and library. All proceeds benefit the Patient Emergency Fund and Friends of the Clinical Center.

Organizers welcome volunteers and donations of items, and remind donors that their contributions are tax-deductible. There will be a white elephant sale table, bake sale, pizza lunch and silent auction. The bake sale, with coffee and tea and other goodies, begins at 9 a.m., followed by the silent auction and white elephant sale at 10. Pizza will be served at 11:30 a.m. and the silent auction ends at 2 p.m.

To make donations or volunteer call Sheila Barrett, (301) 496-5668, Norma Ruschell, (301) 496-4475, or Meshaun Payne, (301) 496-3386.

Sugar Maples Removed for Road Work

It was the last autumn glory for 11 sugar maple trees that were cut down Oct. 19-21 along North Drive, adjacent to Bldg. 31B. Due to a planned realignment of North Drive to better fit between Garage 10 and Bldg. 31C, the trees had to go, said Lynn Mueller of NIH grounds maintenance. "We already have 7 trees as immediate replacements, but they will be planted further up North Drive towards Bldg. 15K," he said. "There will be a major re-landscaping effort around Garage 10 and, of course, Bldg. 33 when that nears completion."

FAES Holds Insurance Open Season

The FAES Health Insurance Program is conducting open season from Nov. 1-24, and 29-30. The program is open to those who work for or at NIH in full-time positions but are not eligible for government plans. This includes NIH fellows, special volunteers, guest researchers, contractors and full-time temporary personnel. The minimum enrollment period is 3 months. Benefits and/or changes take effect Jan. 1, 2005.

Open season is for those who did not enroll when first eligible and for current subscribers to make changes. Appointments are required to make changes to medical coverage but not for dental enrollment. FAES offers CareFirst BlueCross/BlueShield PPO and a voluntary dental plan through Cigna.

More information may be obtained from the FAES web site at www.faes.org or from the FAES business office, Bldg. 10, Rm. B1C18. To schedule an appointment, call (301) 496-8063. FAES is open Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

New Hospital Needs Volunteers

The new Clinical Research Center's Office of Volunteer Services is recruiting employees who are interested in volunteering to assist patients, families, guests and visitors locating specific areas in the new building. Hours volunteers are needed are: 7-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m. These hours are before and after many tour of duty hours and therefore may be convenient for an employee. If interested, contact Andrea Rander, (301) 496-1807.

Use or Lose Reminder

Don't forget to officially schedule your "Use or Lose" annual leave no later than Saturday, Nov. 27. Questions concerning "Use or Lose" leave should be directed to your human resource office or other program official designated by your institute or center.

NIH-Duke Training in Clinical Research

Applications for the 2005-2006 NIH-Duke Training Program in Clinical Research are available in the Clinical Center, Office of Clinical Research Training and Medical Education, Bldg. 10, Rm. B1L403.

The NIH-Duke program, implemented in 1998, is designed primarily for physicians and dentists who desire formal training in the quantitative and methodological principles of clinical research. The program is offered via videoconference at the CC. Academic credit earned by participating in this program may be applied toward satisfying the degree requirement for a master of health sciences in clinical research from Duke School of Medicine.

For more information about course work and tuition costs, visit http://tpcr.mc.duke.edu. Email queries about the program may be addressed to tpcr@mc.duke.edu. The deadline for applying is Mar. 1, 2005. Applicants who have been accepted into the program will be notified by July 1, 2005.

Wednesday Afternoon Lectures

The Wednesday Afternoon Lecture series — usually held on its namesake day at 3 p.m. in Masur Auditorium, Bldg. 10 — takes the day off on Nov. 17, but returns on Nov. 24 with a talk by Dr. Kari Stefansson, board chairman, president and CEO of deCODE genetics Inc., of Reykjavik, Iceland. The lecture is titled, "Genetics of Common Disease."

There is also no talk scheduled for Dec. 1.

For more information or for reasonable accommodation, call Hilda Madine, (301) 594-5595.