Conference Summary
Society for Neuroscience
November 3-7, 2007, San Diego, California

Adonna Rometo
PhD Candidate
Physiological Sciences GIDP

The Society for Neuroscience meets annually and brings together from across the world neuroscientists, giving them the opportunity to share in the scientific, intellectual, and technological advances at the forefront of neuroscience. With the gracious financial support from the Herbert E Carter Award, I attended the annual Society for Neuroscience meeting held in San Diego, California. This proved to be, on multiple levels, an excellent experience.

I presented my research at a session on the hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal axis. This afforded me the chance to interact one-on-one with experts in the field of reproductive neuroendocrinolgy. Being able to discuss my data, describe how it fits in with the existing literature, and answer a wide range of questions are great skills to have and presenting at SfN allowed me to hone these skills. In addition to conversations about the specifics of my scientific research, the dialogues also allowed for networking and discussions on my future plans and potential post-doctoral fellowships.

The Society for Neuroscience meeting offers a wide-range of topics expanding across the vast field of neuroscience. I was thus able to attend talks and sessions that covered a diverse range of topics. Some sessions related directly to my dissertation research and were incredibly useful in filling voids in my knowledge and clarifying questions. Other sessions were on topics that are of general interest to me. One particularly intriguing session was a lecture on "Dividing Cerebral Networks: The Split-Brain¡¨ given by Dr. Michael S. Gazzaniga, in which the history of research on patients with sectioned cerebral commissures was explored; and it was fascinating.

Overall, the Society for Neuroscience meeting was incredibly beneficial to me in my current role as a student, as well as my future role in the scientific field. I hope also to share the knowledge I gained with those with whom I interact, thus passing on the wisdom shared with me. I am extremely thankful to the Herbert E Carter Travel Award and the Graduate Interdisciplinary Program for their contribution to and investment in my future.