Brown University Professor Will Take Helm Of Cell Biology Society

Susan A. Gerbi, a professor of biology at Brown University, has been elected president of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB). Although she does not officially take the helm of ASCB until mid-November, at the society's 32nd annual meeting in Denver, Gerbi has already identified four activities she hopes will keep the society vigorous.

The first development Gerbi wants to see is increased subscriptions and advertising revenue for the society's journal, Molecular Biology of the Cell, which is now in its third year of publication. Gerbi says the response from society members to the journal so far has been encouraging, but she sees room for more improvements.

The second focus for Gerbi is an increased dedication to influencing lawmakers in Washington, D.C. She notes that ASCB, along with three other societies (the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Biophysical Society, and the Genetics Society of America), has...