AIST
International Symposium 2002 "Bioinformatics
in the Post-Genomic Era"
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The AIST International Symposium 2002 "Bioinformatics
on the Post-Genomic Era" was held at the Tokyo
International Exchange Center on November 8th,
2002. The symposium received nearly 400 participants,
and a lively exchange of views took place during the
discussion sessions. The exhibitions and the reception
party were also well attended.
Currently, post-genomic research draws a great deal
of attention given its contribution to the elucidation
of the gene carrying information, so-called mechanism
of life. Post-genomic research can directly benefit
a wide-range of spin-off effects for health promotion
and the creation of a new industry that includes the
identification of causal agents of diseases and countermeasures
against them resulting in development of new drugs.
The main topic of the symposium was bioinformatics
utilized in post genomic research. The leading researchers
in each field attending from overseas spoke on its
current situation and future prospects.
The program was divided into three sections. Firstly,
Dr. Cameron, Joint Acting Head of European Bioinformatics
Institute, lectured on the complex process from a
data base construction to its application to the commercial
services for the end users. He also pointed out the
increasing importance of technology in the future.
In the afternoon session, Dr. Cantor from SEQUENOM,
Inc. introduced a high throughput "time of flight"
SNP analyser using the mass spectrometry technique
that helps to determine the medical relevance of single
nucleotide polymorphism (SNP). Following that, Dr.
Wright of Scripps Research Institute discussed proteins
which have no specific structure and are coordinated
only by interactions with other proteins. Finally,
Dr. Ress of the California Institute of Technology
gave a lecture on the possibility of predicting the
ultimate gene product, that is a three-dimensional
protein structure taken from primary gene sequences.
He furthered his discussion on the relationship between
the 3-D structure and its functions, and the possible
application of such information to the development
of new drugs.
The symposium has provided an opportunity to grasp
the current situation and issues of bioinformatics
in the post genomic era researches, and serves as
a guideline for future basic research and R&D
that leads to the creation of a new industry.
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The
4th Japan-Korea Joint Forum on Science and
Technology
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From Monday, November 18th to Wednesday,
November 20th, the 4th Japan-Korea Science and Technology
Forum was held with about forty participants from
both countries at the Tokyo International Exchange
Center. The forum was based on the Korea-Japan Agreement
on Cooperation in Science and Technology.
On the 18th, two keynote presentations
were made by Mr. Naotaka Oki, Vice-President of Japan
Science and Technology Corporation (JST), and by Dr.
Choi Soo Hyun, President of the Korea Institute of
Science and Technology, Evaluation and Planning(KISTEP),
followed by two separate sessions where lecturers
were given by specialists of life science and nanotechnology.
The subsequent discussion focused on the future scheme
of research cooperation. During the general meeting
held on the following day, the proposal for the scheme
was presented and adopted. Dr. T. Sakamoto, Deputy
Director of International Affairs Department of AIST,
and Mr. K. Yase, Deputy Director of Photonics Research
Institute (PRI),
attended the nanotechnology session as a coordinator
and a lecturer, respectively. On the 20th,
a lab tour was organized for the participants at the
National Institute for Material Science (MIMS) and
AIST.
Japan and Korea essentially reached an agreement on
proceeding with plans for cooperation in the above
two scientific fields.
http://www.aist.go.jp/aist_j/event/ev2002/ev20021118/old_ev20021118.html
(Japanese)
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International
Symposium on Technologies and Applications of Photoelectron
Micro-Spectroscopy with Laser-based VUV (Vacuum Ultra
Violet) Sources
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From Monday, December 2nd to Wednesday,
December 4th, 2002, the above symposium
was organized by the research group "Research
on Analyzing Technology of Materials and Devices by
Photoelectron Micro-Spectroscopy" lead by AIST.
The number of the attendees was more than 130 including
fifteen overseas participants.
The symposium covered the topics o f photoelectron
spectroscopy technology, plasma light source and extreme
ultraviolet optics technology, all of which are the
key technologies for making photoelectron micro-spectroscopy
a powerful tool. The invited speakers were the distinguished
scientists in their respective fields, and the contributed
papers were of the highest quality. The participants
listened intently to the talks in the different fields
and keen questions were deluged. There were enthusiastic
discussions at each poster exhibition booth. We believe
that the symposium offered an excellent opportunity
to exchange information on the latest achievements
in the different research fields, and that it will
accelerate research and the development of "born-in-Japan"
technology.
http://staff.aist.go.jp/t-tomie/eups-sympo/photos.htm
(Japanese)
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Paro
Debuts at Council for Science and Technology Policy
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On January 28th, during the 24th
Council for Science and Technology Policy held at
the Prime Minister's Official Residence, "Paro",
a seal-type robot developed by the Intelligent Systems
Research Institute of AIST, made its debut.
The current status and future prospects of robot technology
in Japan were reported and discussed at the meeting
as part of recent trends in science and technology
research. Paro of AIST was exhibited as one of the
tangible achievements of robotic research. Paro has
recently captured public attention as the world’s
most "therapeutic (healing)" companion robot.
(Photo: Cabinet Public Information Office)
http://www.aist.go.jp/aist_j/topics/to2003/to20030218/to20030218.html
(Japanese)
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On November 19th - 20th, 2002,
Korea Research Council for Industrial Science and
Technology (KOCI) and AIST held a joint workshop at
Cheju, Korea.
This workshop was based on the "Memorandum of
Understanding on Industrial Science and Technology
Cooperation" signed between the two institutions
in February 2002.
From the Korean side, about 50 people attended the
workshop including Mr. Won-Hoon Park (President of
KOCI) and Directors of KOCI’s seven subordinated
organizations.
The AIST delegation of 12 people was headed by Dr.Yoshikawa
(President), including Dr.Yoshikai (Trustee) and Dr.
Soga (Trustee). The workshop consisted of five sessions
where lectures and discussions focused on issues such
as research management, evaluation and collaboration.
On November 20th, Dr. Yoshikawa, Dr. Yoshikai,
Dr. Miyamoto (Director of International Affairs Department)
and Mr. Taniguchi (Senior Planning Officer) had a
meeting with Mr. Young-Bok Chae, Korean Ministe r
of Science and Technology, in order to exchange ideas
and opinions on research and development in industrial
technology.
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Australian
Minister of Science Visits AIST
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On December 18th, 2002, Mr. Peter McGauran,
the Australian Minister of Science, visited AIST Tsukuba.
During the meeting with Vice-President Dr. Hiraishi
and other AIST executives, the Minister eagerly asked
many questions about our new organization and management
policy, comparing AIST to similar organizations in Australia.
Afterwards, Mr. McGauran was shown the laboratories
of the Institute for Environmental Management Technology,
where he had a briefing on their research of the flocculants
for treatment of wastewater containing heavy metals.
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"Innovation
Center for Start-Ups" Kickoff Symposium
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On January 27th, 2003, a kick-off symposium
for the Innovation Center for Start-ups of AIST was
held under the theme of "Looking Forward Return
of Research System which enable Technical Resources
on the Development of Business Creation.
The opening address by Dr. Hiroyuki Yoshikawa, Director
of the Innovation Center for Start-ups (president of
AIST), was followed by speeches delivered by several
experts: "Expectation and Demand to Innovation
Center for Start-ups" by Dr. Kiyonori Sakakibara,
professor of Policy Management, Keio University; "The
Public Financing for Business Start-ups in Finland",
by Dr. Hannu Hanhijarvi, director of Life Science, Finnish
National Fund for Research and Development (SITRA);
"New Venture Business Models in the 21st
Century - A Message from Silicon Valley" by Mr.
Yuuji Ide, president and CEO of PIXERA Corporation;
and "What are needed for Start-up Businesses in
Japan ?" by Mr. Yoshihiro Ohtaki, president of
Bio-frontier Partners, Inc.
Additionally, Dr. Masanori Yoshikai, Deputy Director
of the Center gave a full description of the basic concept
of the organization as his closing remarks of the symposium.
The symposium provided a valuable opportunity to exchange
views on the necessities to set up a Japanese-type "Venture
(Business) Creation System" with more than 200
participants outside AIST. It assured us that we might
be able to be one firm step closer towards building
a " future of partnership" for this purpose.
http://www.aist.go.jp/aist_j/topics/to2003/to20030203/to20030203.html
(Japanese)
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