Comments from the Participants

Having the Laureates over for dinner was definitely brilliant. A truly unforgettable event. I am indebted to the sponsors and organizers of this event and grateful for having been a part of the group. No other meeting can put together such an explosive combination of students from diverse backgrounds and scientific branches.

I feel this trip and conference has made a major impact on my life both in and out of my field of study. I feel that this was a unique and valuable experience that I could not have made happen without this opportunity.

Being exposed to different cultures, languages, food, styles, etc. was eye-opening and fascinating. It has rekindled my desired to learn another language as well. It is difficult to describe how deeply this experience has effected me. Much more than I had anticipated.

It was good to see that the Nobel Laureates had something to say about environmental management, especially because persons with their influence can help the government to solve environmental issues. It was [also] amazing to see how scientist from different educational backgrounds had the same concerns on social problems.

Gunter Blobels discussion on protein trafficking had the most value for me since it is directly related to my thesis project. I really enjoyed the last round table on science's responsibility to the public. I think that this is a very important topic and will impact what research is funded in the future.

This was the part of the program that I most enjoyed. I attended discussions with laureates mostly in the field of medicine since this is my field of interest. Hearing about the processes that enabled these scientists to make their scientific discoveries and breakthroughs was very encouraging for me. I was very encouraged to hear of their struggles and frustrations and to know that science is not easy for anyone.

I felt that I made some connections with scientists that will benefit me when it is time for me to search for a post doctoral position as well as when I look for my first position. The international experience was also great. In medicine, we do not often get to meet researchers from other countries (unlike other fields that require more extensive travel). I found it very useful to meet foreign students as well as foreign researchers with interests similar to my own.

This was a fantastic experience for me. I cannot express well in words how this has impacted my vision of myself as a scientist. I hope that DOE continues to support students to go to this meeting. It will greatly improve the quality of science done in this country.

I learned that Nobel laureates have many of the same concerns that students have regarding issues such as intellectual property rights, stimulation of creativity, responsibility of scientists for their discovery, politics, copyrights, multiple authorship, the responsibility of science to humanity (especially regarding genetically modified foods, the environment, and the human genome project. The informal discussions gave students the opportunity to respond to the statements made during the morning sessions and discuss these complicated issues with them.

I attended all of the 'meet the Laureate' discussions and enjoyed each. The insight gained was based on the 'challenge' established in science. Almost all of the Laureates had mentioned that at one time or another, someone had told them that 'it can't be done'. They ignored that idea and did it anyway.

It was wonderful to share ideas and discuss research with students from around the country and around the world. It certainly expanded my horizons to learn about the cutting edge of research in biology and chemistry. I think it's also a tremendous benefit to be forced to explain your own research to other scientists. This helps foster a better understanding and appreciation for what you do. I also enjoyed hearing the opinions of the various participants in the meeting on such broad topics as the environment and the role of scientists in society.

Trivia: Out of 600 students, how many black student(s)were in attendance, and what were their name(s)?

This experience gave me a chance to establish long lasting friendships with persons who I would have probably never met. I was able to grow as a person and a scientist. I did not think for one minute it would be like this.

As for the international interaction, I found it to be stimulating. It felt great to socialize with people of other nationalities on a scientific and social level. Sometimes seeing is believing, and this interaction, mainly the respect factor, was important to me as a black scientist.

Three of the talks really stuck out for me. The first was Dr. Hewish’s talk on mapping the primordial universe. The concept of using microwave radiation to attack the distance-time problem was very fascinating. Dr Chu’s talk included some interesting techniques for single molecular manipulation using protein conjugated polymer beads and lasers. His conjugation techniques are the same as used in our lab, which reinforces the fresh light someone can shed on a problem when jumping disciplines. Finally Dr. Mullis’ talk focused on a new project that he is involved with using immunoassay technology. Again using techniques I am familiar with but applying them with ingenious new twist.

The American students I was able to meet during the trip will surely develop into a number of long lasting personal and professional relationships. This networking opportunity is priceless. The ability to meet other young professionals from such a diverse discipline background could not have happened at any other professional meeting. There is also no doubt that the effect that international travel has on students and young people. Being allowed to visit foreign places increases my own feeling for the US and allows me to recognize things I take for granted.

Definitely new friendships with many of the DOE sponsored students and with several students from Germany, Ireland, Scotland, and England. These friendships have a possibility of turning into collaboration in future projects.

Another interesting topic discussed was the social responsibility of scientists in influencing how their science is used in society. Although science has always affected civilization, society has only recently had to deal with issues of such magnitude as that which surrounds the technologies of nuclear energy, genetics, and other

The informal discussions with the Laureates were extraordinarily unique opportunities. Sitting across a table from a Laureate and discussing with them whatever comes to mind and asking them anything you want to ask them, was immensely fun and extremely interesting. I completely felt like a kid in a candy shop at these sessions.

I thought the round tables were fantastic. I thought the topics were very impressive, the individual presentations interesting, and the question and answer sessions unique. I really liked hearing what the laureates had to say on the big questions that they were trying to answer. They certainly gave me a lot of food for thought.

I felt the dinner sponsored by DOE was fantastic. I was able to sit at a table with Dr. Leon Cooper and Dr. Steven Chu and interact with them on a one on one basis. We talked about everything from science to politics and it was really exciting to have those conversations. This was by far the highlight of what turned out to be an amazing experience.

It was amazing to me to meet and interact with such intelligent and interesting students from all over. I do not often get an opportunity to talk at any length with people outside of chemistry about their research. This was a wonderful chance to gain some insight on what problems are considered important in other areas of science. I feel that I made some important contacts and friendships in the short time that I was in Lindau.

1) to Wayne & Priscilla for putting up with us and keeping us out of serious trouble. Please pass along my thanks to Dr. Hirsch and all the unseen faces involved in our trip!

The discussions with Stephen Chu and John Polanyi were the best of all that I attended. Stephen emphasized on knowing what your experiments can tell you and using that to infer what they can't and also on managing family and research. Polanyi's insights on the importance of speaking out on issues of importance like nuclear waste, ethnic cleansing, and other ethical topics was critical to hear. As scientists it is important not to forget that we are members of society at times and we show not be afraid to take a stand on tough issues.

The laureates discussed everything from their discovery, to views on basic research, to having a family while being a scientist, to how they view the current state of science education. Absorbing information and thoughts they had to offer provided me with a renewed sense of purpose for conducting basic research.

Making friends with other students who are not in my field and learning about the science that they do was an excellent opportunity that I will probably never get from any other type of conference.

In the rest of my career, I will get very little opportunity to interact with scientists in other disciplines as well as other areas of physics. This conference offered the best way to keep my scientific horizons broad.

I observed that most of the Laureates are working in a totally different area than where they received their prizes. It was exciting to see that this is a possibility in my future, particularly because I think that scientists too often become confined to their own field and lose the ability to work with people in other areas.

The talk(s) that had the most value for me were the two talks by Dr. Altman, because they introduced me to a method of gene inactivation that is completely novel, and although it may or may not work for me in the system that I'm using now, it could be very valuable to me in the future.

I also talked at length to a group of German students who very strongly believed that going to the US for part or all of their graduate work is the only way to be respected. They talked about wanting to go to the US to do REAL research. We discussed why this is. They value the fact that the work required at a US institution is very demanding, and that the hierarchy is set up much less strictly in the US so that even a graduate student can have the chance to follow up on something they personally are interested in.

Dr. Osheroff talked about this as well in the morning roundtable. The work that he and his advisors shared the Nobel Prize for was his idea during his PhD work. He was allowed free reign, and the German students that I talked to seemed to think that this would not be possible in their countries, where position is based on seniority, and not so much on merit, and where superior position is taken very seriously.

This was my first experience travelling to Europe. It was particularly interesting to me that without more than a few phrases, I think I could begin to pick up the language, and function well abroad. My husband and I were talking about doing Post doctoral research in Germany, as it is a great place to do both molecular biology and physics. This trip has removed my reservations about how we will deal with the language barrier, but has also allowed me to see what life would be like in a German lab and a German city.

Getting to meet such a diverse group of students from around the U.S. and the world could of only happened in one place, the 50th Meeting of the Nobel Laureates. This experience was priceless. Meeting students from other disciplines will be valuable in the future because previous well-defined lines between physics, chemistry, and medicine are ecoming fuzzy as science progresses into the 21st century. For example, computer simulations of the human body at an atomic and molecular level require an understanding of all three disciplines.

I made friends with many of the other American delegates from various areas of science, but I also made friends with many international students, and I plan to stay in contact with both groups. I did meet a few other students researching areas that are either closely related to mine or that I find fascinating, so it is possible that future collaborations may develop from this meeting. I think that international travel experience is crucial for understanding and being able to successfully communicate with people from other cultures, and this trip has certainly educated me directly and indirectly in this respect.

It was an experience to which words cannot do justice. Fun and instructional----the perfect combination!

This shouldn't be considered a "hard-core" science conference, which would require much more specialization and exclusion, but more of an opportunity for exposure. I began to see connections between many fields I had previously thought to be largely unrelated.

Hamilton Smith was at my dinner table one night. He showed me that a Nobel prizewinner is still a person like me. I talked to Smith over dinner, and he was personable and just not intimidating; it put the title of Nobel prize laureate within more reachable context.

The new friendships with the other Americans - just phenomenal. I would never have dreamed to meet so many such high quality people and scientists; this is a very significant part of the value derived from the meeting. The new friendships/contacts with Germans (and an Italian) that I made feels valuable too - I feel some importance to making international friends and colleagues my acquaintances. I hope we find good reason to stay in contact. One person I met, Italian, in a German university, is working on the experimental side of the same theory I work on. This should be very important.

By interacting with the Laureates at this conference, hopefully I can learn to approach the questions I ask daily in my research in a more creative manner and with a new perspective. If I can maintain this creative thinking not only during my Ph.D. studies but as I continue my research it will certainly have a positive and profound effect on my scientific career.

I found it inspiring to realize how many Laureates have chosen to use the influence they have as recipients of the prize to promote causes such as improved science education for young children, human rights issues, nuclear proliferation, etc. More importantly, I was glad that many of them were speaking out and involved in these causes long before they were Laureates. It reminded me that I have a duty to do what I can to better the world I live in, even if my voice isn't quite as loud as a Laureate.

I found the Tuesday lectures by Marcus and Cooper valuable because I am familiar with these Laureates' work, but they were speaking on topics I am not well versed in. In other words, because I know the "language" of their area and the way their specific field deals with questions, I was able to learn quite a bit about the topic they were speaking on, which was quite different from my expertise.

Meeting Nobel prize winners and hearing lectures from them was truly incredible. Meeting with the students, both international and American, however, was equally extraordinary. I have never been in a situation where I was surrounded by so many people of approximately the same age with such similar interests. It is unreal to think that a couple of weeks ago I was walking around a beautiful German town having discussions in a foreign language with random strangers about crazy topics like Quantum Electrodynamics, knowing that at any time the person responsible for the entire field may just as well be walking behind us. With respect to future collaborations, the possibilities are infinite. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve met some of the soon-to-be top scientists in the world. If I ever have a question that I feel a member of our group can answer I will have no problem calling them up.

Regarding the morning panel discussions, I particularly enjoyed the banter surrounding the topic of Chemistry and the Environment. Since I work with developing "green" chemistry, the opinions of the Laureates during the discussion were enlightening.

I made several contacts with other foreign students (not to mention the other 30 DOE students). I fully plan remaining in contact over the next several years. I've also considered exploring some research opportunities in Germany after I finish my studies at Tennessee.

I've attended many conferences in the past, however this one ranks among the most memorable. The amount of student-student and student-professor interaction was among the highest I've seen.

The three lectures I enjoyed the most were Professor Ting's, Professor Kohn's, and Professor Glaser's. The majority of the Physics lectures were reviews of certain subsections within Physics.

This aspect of the lectures was good because it gave me a better understanding of the other subfields in Physics (e.g. Solid State /Condensed Matter and Astrophysics). Professor Ting's lecture was very interesting because, one, he talked about a current experiment I had not heard about yet and, two, the experiment that he proposed is very clever. Professor Kohn's lecture was valuable in the fact that it is good to see how some of the theoretical structure used in Physics is also very applicable to theoretical work in Chemistry.

Professor Glaser's lecture was interesting because he is an example of someone who started out in Physics and was able to succeed in another field and it was informative to see one of the current fields of study in Biology.

During the Lindau meetings, I met some very nice students, American and international, and a representative from a research organization in the United States. Since the Lindau meeting was my first trip overseas, the meeting was that much more memorable. I met a number of international students from Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Conversations with the international students did not only broadened my understanding of other scientific research, but also cultural similarities and differences. The main impressions that I take with me from the Lindau meeting are the experiences that I shared with the fellow students.