COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & SCIENCE

The Next Gen Conversations: Albany @ Tech

The 21st Albany Conversation in Biomolecular Stereo dynamics is the 1st Next Generation Conversation: Albany @ LATechJune 11-15, 2024Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana.

Join us for the 2024 Albany Conversation on June 11-15, 2024.

REGISTER NOW

Registration includes all meals, coffee breaks, housing, a shuttle to and from the Shreveport Regional Airport [SHV] and Monroe Regional Airport [MLU] publication of abstracts. Meals also include the “Big Feast.”

The Next Generation Conversations: Albany @ Louisiana Tech

Professor Ramaswamy H. Sarma selected Louisiana Tech University to host the Next Generation Conversations thanks to the University’s location and internationally renowned Physics program. Professor Ramaswamy will attend as a special guest of honor, and the keynote lecture will be delivered by Professor Wilma Olson of Rutgers University. Wilma has attended all previous Conversations. As with earlier Conversations, leaders from around the world at the Next Gen. Conversations will present posters and give talks on current developments in the following areas of structural biology.

Cryo-Electron Microscopy Nuclear Pore Complex- Transport between the Nucleus and the Cytoplasm
Protein Dynamics in the Living Cytoplas Nuclear Pore Complex- Transport between the Nucleus and the Cytoplasm
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins: Evolution and Function Drugs: Design and Discovery
Multiscale Genome Organization DNA: Nanotechnology
Nucleosomes and Chromatin Big Data, Machine and Deep Learning
R Loops and Genome Dynamics Sequencing & Structural Dynamics: Single Molecules

 

Contact the Conference Organizers

Conference Schedule

Time Event
12:30-16:30 Check-In/Shuttles Run
16:30-19:00 Welcome Dinner
19:00-21:00 VIP Dinner
Speeches by Chairs
Meet with Community Donors

Time

Event

Before 8:00

Breakfast Buffet

8:00-10:00

Session 1/Chair 1

10:00-10:30

Coffee Break

10:30-12:30

Session 2/Chair 2

12:30-14:30

Lunch

14:30-16:30

Poster Session I

16:30-19:00

Dinner

19:00-21:00

Session 3/Chair 3

Time

Event

Before 8:00

Breakfast Buffet

8:00-10:00

Session 4/Chair 4

10:00-10:30

Coffee Break

10:30-12:30

Session 5/Chair 5

12:30-14:30

Lunch

14:30-16:30

Session 6: Grad Talks/Aux Chair 1

16:30-19:00

Dinner

19:00-21:00

Session 7/Chair 6

Time

Event

Before 8:00

Breakfast Buffet

8:00-10:00

Session 8: Postdoc and Early Career/Aux Chair 2

10:00-10:30

Coffee Break

10:30-12:30

Poster Session II

12:30-14:30

Lunch

14:30-16:30

Session 9: Slide Show
History of the Albany Meeting
Keynote Address

16:30-21:00

“The Big Feast” Dining Event

Time

Event

Before 8:00

Breakfast Buffet

8:00-10:00

Network Booths

10:00-10:30

Coffee Break

10:30-12:30

Community Talk
Reception

12:30-14:30

Farewell Lunch

14:30-16:30

Check Out
Shuttles Run

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Wilma K. Olson

Headshot of Albany Conversations @ Tech Keynote Speaker Wilma K. OlsonWilma K. Olson is the Mary I. Bunting Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Rutgers University at New Brunswick, NJ, where she has served as Founding Director of the Rutgers University Center for Molecular Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry. A graduate of the University of Delaware before receiving her doctorate from Stanford University under the mentorship of Paul Flory, Wilma has found success in her theoretical and computational work surrounding nucleic acid conformations, properties, and interactions. With a highly-cited publication library, including seminal works on nucleic acid base-pair geometry, sequence-dependent deformability, and advancements in database and computational modeling methods, Wilma is considered to be a pioneer in computational biopolymer research. Current research endeavors include covalently-closed forms of DNA, new computational models of protein-nucleic acid interactions, and advancing methods in generating and analyzing locally constrained forms of DNA and RNA. Numerous accolades have followed her throughout her successful research career, including holding Alfred P. Sloan and John Simon Guggenheim Fellowships, acting as Vice-President of the International Union for Pure and Applied Biophysics (2005-08) and President of the Biophysical Society (2002), and being elected as a fellow of the Biophysical Society, the American Physical Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Other Invited Speakers

Manidipa Banerjee, Indian Institute of Technology at Dehli

Michal Brylinski, Louisiana State University

Marcia Fenley, Florida State University

James Gomes, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi

Samuel Landry, Tulane University

Rajendra Joshi, Centre for Development of Advanced Computing

Aditya Mittal, Indian Institute of Technology at Delhi

Tapan Kumar Nyak, Indian Institute of Technology

Ranjith Padinhateeri, Indian Institute of Technology

Binay Panda, Jawaharlal Nehru University, DTU

Samuela Pasquali, Descartes University of Paris

Saumya Patel, Gujarat University

Montgomery Pettitt, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston

Michele Di Pierro, Northeastern University

Elizabeth Pierce, University of Arkansas

Remo Rohs, University of Southern California in Los Angeles

Durai Sundar, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi

Karen Vasquez, University of Texas at AustinJeff Wereszczynski, Illinois Institute of Technology

William C. Wimley, Tulane University

Lynn Zechiedrich, Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas

About the Conference Facility

Outside of the Integrated Engineering and Science Building

The Albany @ Tech: Next Gen Conversations will be held in the Integrated Engineering and Science Building (IESB) on Louisiana Tech’s Ruston campus. The IESB is a 130,000-square-foot facility that houses the University’s first- and second-year Engineering and Science courses, research labs, space and equipment for hands-on education, a large indoor atrium, and an outdoor amphitheater for outreach activities and celebrations. The three-story facility is located on the large lot east of Tech Pointe. It spans along Homer Street from Dan Reneau Drive to Texas Avenue.

 

 

GumboFest at Louisiana Tech's IESBGathering in the IESB

Map showing distance between the student center, Legacy Park Apartments, and the Integrated Engienering and Science

1 ) Directions to IESB
32°31’34.7″N 92°38’37.4″W
Ruston, LA 71270

2) Directions to The Cafe’
32°31’37.2″N 92°38’53.9″W
Student Center, 305 Wisteria St, Ruston, LA 71272

3) Directions to Legacy Park Dorms
32°31’27.8″N 92°38’41.3″W
100 Wisteria St, Ruston, LA 71270

Frequently Asked Questions

Where Can I Park?

Can You Help Me Find Directions to the Conference?

Where Am I Staying?

I Plan to Arrive Early or Late. What Do I Need to Do?

Where Do I Register and Gather My Stuff at the Beginning of the Conference?

How Do I Register for Special Needs Accommodations?

How Should I Submit My Abstract?

Where Can I Print My Poster?

Tell Me About Ruston.

Where Can I Park?

If you drive to campus, we will provide you with a temporary parking pass when you check in. This temporary parking pass will allow you to park in the lot next to the IESB and at the Legacy Park Apartments. The Legacy Park Apartments are within walking distance of the IESB, most of Louisiana Tech’s Ruston campus, and shops and eateries in Downtown Ruston.

Can You Help Me Find Directions to the Conference?

Conference Coordinates

Regional Airports (drive time):  MLU (45min), SHV (60mins)

International Airports (drive time):  DFW (5hrs), MSY (5hrs), LIT (3hrs), JAN (3hrs)

Shuttles to MLU and SHV will be provided during the conference.

Where Am I Staying?

We’ve opened up Louisiana Tech’s Legacy Park apartments for you. Legacy Park apartments consist of multiple two-bedroom, one-bath apartments and are located on the east side of campus along California Avenue. The complex is also composed of 10 townhome apartments, which are four-bedroom, two-bath apartments that house a total of eight residents.  These townhomes have a spiral staircase and beautiful large windows at the ends of the buildings.  Some of our townhomes are reserved for our LLCs, including the Bridge to Bulldogs program and our Office of Multicultural Affairs.  All apartments in Legacy Park are fully furnished with twin XL size lofted beds, a couch, chair, desk, dresser, and wardrobe. Legacy Park is made up of Harper and Pearce Commons.

The Legacy Park Apartments are within walking distance of the IESB, most of Louisiana Tech’s Ruston campus, and shops and eateries in Downtown Ruston.

Amenities
  • Wifi and wired internet
  • Washer and dryer included
  • Central AC/Heat (controlled in unit)
  • Outdoor patio
  • Kitchen with full-size refrigerator and stove/oven combo
  • One bathroom with two sinks
  • Dresser
  • Desk w/ chair
  • Wardrobe
  • Chair
  • Couch or Loveseat
  • Coffee/End Table
  • 80″ L mattress (Twin XL)

While you’re staying in the Legacy Park Apartments, you’ll be subject to Louisiana Tech’s on-campus living regulations.

If you require housing accommodations based on a disability, you must register with the Office of Disability Services.  Documentation will then be sent to the Assistant Director of Residential Life so that appropriate accommodations can be made for you based on recommendations from the Office of Disability Services.  Completion of paperwork does not guarantee specific accommodations.  Please contact the Office of Disability Services at 318.257.4221 or visit Wyly Tower 318.

I Plan to Arrive Early or Late. What Do I Need to Do?

If you plan to arrive early or late, please contact the conference organizers at albany@latech.edu so that they can coordinate pick up and drop off.

Where Do I Register and Gather My Stuff at the Beginning of the Conference?

You’ll check in to the conference at the Kingtools Atrium of the College of Engineering and Science’s Integrated Engineering and Science Building.

How Do I Register for Special Needs Accommodations?

The Integrated Engineering and Science Building (IESB), Legacy Dorms, and many of the shops and restaurants in downtown Ruston are within walking distance from one another. Parking will be available outside of the Legacy Dorms and the Integrated Engineering and Science Building. If you need drop-off service or other accommodations, please contact the conference organizers (albany@latech.edu).

How Should I Submit My Abstract?

Taylor and Francis will collect and publish abstracts in the Journal of Biomolecular Structure and Dynamics. You should have received an abstract template after you register. If you did not receive the template, contact albany@latech.edu.

Where Can I Print My Poster?

You can print your posters at Office Depot in Ruston.

Screenshot of Experience Ruston website

Tell Me About Ruston.

Ruston is a small city with a college-town atmosphere, and its downtown shops are within walking distance of the University and the IESB. Several other eateries are located along California Avenue, also within walking distance of both the IESB and the Legacy Park Apartments.

Learn more about Louisiana Tech University on the University’s website.

Learn more about dining and shopping in Ruston at our Ruston-Lincoln Convention & Visitors Bureau website, Experience Ruston. You can also download a PDF guide to events, attractions, and more at the website.

Albany Conversations History

In 1979, Professor Ramaswamy H. Sarma invited a few of his scientific colleagues for a Conversation at the State University of New York in Albany. Since then the Albany Conversations on Biomolecular Structure and Dynamics have continued every other year at SUNY. The Conversations now include about 250-300 scientists from over 20 countries. Each five-day Albany Conversation began on a Tuesday in early June (of an odd year) with a welcome dinner and celebration, a Russian-Israeli party on Thursday night,  evening addresses by one or two Nobel Laureates, and a Big Feast on Friday.  Scientific sessions for each Conversation covered a wide range of computational, theoretical, and experimental aspects of biomolecular structure and dynamics. Speakers ranged from budding students to world-renowned experts. Posters were displayed for the duration of the meetings and served as conversation starters.  International collaborations were forged and several Nobel Laureates can trace their career development to the Albany Conversations.

After 20 Conversations spanning a 40-year period, Professor Sarma is retiring and seeking to hand over the Conversation to the next generation. A critical element of the success of the Albany Conversations has always been an environment, isolated from distractions, that supports extended conversations and fosters lasting relationships. After careful consideration, Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana, was identified as providing an ideal setting for continuing the Conversations.

Past Albany Conversations

Past Albany Conversations

Past Albany Conversations at Louisiana Tech

Albany Conversations at Tech

Sign up for the Conversations Listserv