"No,"
says Angelika Amon, an associate professor of biology at MIT, shaking
her head emphatically, "I don't spend much time on grant writing. I am
lucky that way." She smiles at the thought of her good fortune and
takes another sip from her can of Diet Coke before she continues.
I
note, with a mixture of relief and smug satisfaction, that it's her
second Diet Coke within an hour - it's comforting to see that even overachievers like Professor Amon have their little, human vices. After
all, one could easily be intimidated by her, considering that one of
America's most prominent medical research organizations has for years
been willing to bet serious money on this woman having the potential to
make significant contributions to science. The organization does this
because it "believes that science is facilitated best by providing
outstanding researchers with the resources and flexibility to follow
their scientific instincts and to pursue new opportunities as soon as
they arise." This somewhat unusual approach is not really astonishing,
given the visionary power of that organization's founder, one of
America's larger-than-life personalities and enduring legends.
bridges vol. 9, April 2006 / News from the Network
Alexandra Lerch-Gaggl, molecular biologist and confocal imaging specialist will
assume the position of assistant professor at the Medical College of
Wisconsin, Milwaukee, in the Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology,
and Anatomy. After completing her studies at the Paris-Lodron
University in Salzburg, she came to the Medical College as a
postdoctoral fellow in 2000 to continue her work in developmental
biology.
Dr. Lerch-Gaggl studies the role of factors involved
in ribosome biogenesis and nucleologenesis during early development.
Recently she has also been appointed director of the Bryant Imaging
Core Facility at the Medical College, which offers state-of-the-art
imaging techniques, using confocal microscopy, to all faculty and staff
of the institution.
Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Anatomy at the Medical College of Wisconsin: http://www.mcw.edu/cellbio/
"We strengthen science and the
humanities in Austria," is the corporate policy pledge of the FWF
(Austrian Science Fund) , Austria's central body for the promotion of
basic research. In so doing, the FWF is equally committed to all
branches of science and the humanities and is guided in its operations
solely by the standards of the international scientific community.
bridges vol. 9, April 2006 / News from the Network
The OST network of Austrian scientists abroad was established by the
Office of Science & Technology (OST) at the Austrian Embassy in
Washington, DC, and focuses on the outreach of government-related
agencies to Austrian scientists in North America. Its main objective
has been to support the scientific community with information and
specific advice wherever necessary and requested.
Encouraged by
the OST, an independent association - ASciNA (Austrian Scientists and
Scholars in North America) - was founded in 2002 with local chapters
being established throughout the US and Canada. For further information
about ASciNA, please visit www.ascina.at .
comforting to see that even overachievers like Professor Amon have their little, human vices. After
all, one could easily be intimidated by her, considering that one of
America's most prominent medical research organizations has for years
been willing to bet serious money on this woman having the potential to
make significant contributions to science. The organization does this
because it "believes that science is facilitated best by providing
outstanding researchers with the resources and flexibility to follow
their scientific instincts and to pursue new opportunities as soon as
they arise." This somewhat unusual approach is not really astonishing,
given the visionary power of that organization's founder, one of
America's larger-than-life personalities and enduring legends.
