NUCLEAR MEDICAL AND IMAGING SCIENCES TECHNICAL COMMITTEE (NMISTC)

Final plans for the 2003 Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference (NSS/MIC) are well underway. Dr. Ralph James (Brookhaven National Laboratory) is the General Chair of the Conference. Dr. Uwe Bratzler (CERN) is the NSS Program Chair. I would like to congratulate Ralph and his colleagues for the outstanding job they have done in organizing this year’s NSS/MIC meeting. The Conference will be held in Portland, Oregon at the two Doubletree Hotels, which are located on the famous Columbia River. (Conference dates and more detailed information can be found in another article in this issue of the Newsletter.) Dr. Michael King (University of Massachusetts) is MIC Program Chair this year; he has been working very hard to ensure that the MIC portion of the meeting will be a great success - scientifically, educationally and socially.

The NSS/MIC meeting is the premier nuclear medical imaging conference in the world; this year it is continuing to grow, with nearly 400 abstracts being submitted. The meeting presents a wonderful opportunity to relax and visit with old friends, and meet new colleagues on an informal basis. The Conference’s Short Courses provide an excellent forum for those that are new to the field to quickly acquire the tools they need to perform more proficiently. This year we will be presenting the Young Investigator Medical Imaging Science Award. Mike will be introducing some innovative and exciting activities at this year’s MIC meeting. Perhaps one of the most innovative ideas will be the venue for the traditional MIC Banquet: A Dinner Cruise along the Columbia River. There will be lots of on-board activities such as wine tasting, music, etc. The ship can carry about 350 people. Since space is limited, I urge everyone who wants to attend the MIC Banquet to register and purchase their tickets as soon as possible.

In 2004, NSS/MIC will return to Europe for the second time, this time to Rome. Alberto Del Guerra (University of Pisa) is the General Chair of the Conference. Plans are progressing very well and a web site has been established (http://nss-mic-rtsd-2004.df.unipi.it/). Please visit this web site for further information. There will be enormous floor space for posters so that they can remain up for the entire MIC meeting.

In 2005, NSS/MIC will be held in Puerto Rico; this will be the first time that the meeting will be held in the Caribbean region. Tom Lewellen (University of Washington) is the General Chair. The MIC Program Chair is Simon Cherry (University of California, Davis). They have selected a beautiful resort outside of San Juan, the El Conquistador; it has nearly everything in the way of outstanding convention, dining and social facilities. It even has its own private island! They hope to be able to offer many more student travel grants for the 2005 NSS/MIC meeting. Both the Rome and the Puerto Rico meetings are exciting new venues for the NSS/MIC meetings. Be sure to mark your calendars early, submit an abstract and plan to attend.

The Nuclear Medical and Imaging Sciences Technical Committee (NMISTC) includes NPSS members who are interested in scientific and educational activities that promote the fields of nuclear medical and imaging sciences. The activities of the NMISTC are managed by the Nuclear and Medical Imaging Sciences Council (NMISC), consisting of 15 elected members-at-large that serve for three years. Five new Council members are elected each year.

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the support and contributions of the following elected NMISC members whose terms expire at the end of this year: Eric Frey, Marijana Ivanovic, Paul Marsden, Bradley Patt, and Lawrence Zeng. By now, you should have received your ballot for electing the five new members to the NMISC; please be sure to vote and return your ballot before the deadline date.

Finally, I would like to close on a personal note. I will complete my tenure as NMISC Chair at the end of this year. I would like to thank the members of the NMISC and of the entire membership of the nuclear and medical imaging sciences community for their support, suggestions, and constructive criticism. I hope that I will have the opportunity to serve our members again in the not too distant future. The IEEE NPSS functions mainly with the help of its volunteer members. It is because of the hard work and active participation of volunteers from the medical imaging community that the NMISC has been able to organize markedly successful MIC meetings. These meetings have attracted the best and brightest nuclear medical imaging engineers and scientists in the world.

Magnus Dahlbom (University of California, Los Angeles) is NMISC Vice Chair and Chair-Elect; I am confident that he will serve our medical imaging community effectively, and I wish him success during his term in office for 2004 and 2005.

Ronald Jaszczak, Chair, NMISC, can be reached at the Department of Radiology, DUMC-3949, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710; Phone: +1 919 684-7685; Fax: +1 919 684-7122; E-mail: rjj@dec3.duhs.duke.edu.

Ronald Jaszczak
NMISTC Chair

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