Five years have passed since the establishment of the Institute for Basic Science in November of 2011. To commemorate its 5th anniversary, IBS has prepared a variety of events in collaboration with overseas and domestic institutions including the Max Planck Institutes (MPI) of Germany, the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) of Japan and the Korean Association of Immunologists (KAI). The events, held as an IBS annual meeting, will afford attendees an opportunity to learn about the history and future vision of the innovative basic science institute.

The commemorative events begin with an opening ceremony at 10 a.m. November 17 in the Grand Ballroom of Hotel ICC, Daejeon, with about 400 guests. Professor Bruce Beutler from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center will deliver a keynote lecture. Prof. Beutler, with two colleagues, won the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering Toll-like receptors (TLR), proteins that detect pathogens.

▲ Keynote lecturer Bruce Beutler, the 2011 Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine

The opening ceremony will be followed by a round-table session consisting of a panel discussion and a press conference beginning at 1 p.m. under the theme ‘Fostering Basic Science & Korea’. Professor PARK Buhm-Soon from the KAIST Graduate School of Science and Technology Policy will open the panel discussion with a presentation entitled, ‘The history and meaning of IBS’. Panel members include KIM Doo-Chul, IBS President; Professor PARK, Hiroshi Matsumoto, RIKEN President; Alain Fuchs, President of the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS); George Sawatzky, Professor at the University of British Columbia; and Dietmar Vestwever, Director of the MPI for Molecular Biomedicine.

The discussion will cover myriad topics including: What does basic science mean to the development of a country and society; what has been the role of research institutes, such as RIKEN, CNRS and the Max Planck Society (MPG) in their own countries; and has the role changed in accordance with the demand of the society and times; how can research institutes and universities collaborate while differentiating oneself from the other; and what should be the vision of IBS.

Professors Axel Timmermann, University of Hawaii, and Andreas Heinrich, Ewha Womans University, will deliver inspiring lectures at 10 a.m. Friday, November 18 from the Hotel ICC.

IBS hosts joint conferences with MPI and RIKEN

IBS has made significant efforts to hold joint conferences with the MPI and RIKEN in commemorating its 5th anniversary. Together with the MPI, IBS will hold two conferences; Conference on Vascular Biology (November 17) and Conference on Material Physics (November 17-18). In conjunction with RIKEN, Conference on Recent Developments in Rare Isotope (RI) Physics will take place over the two days. The three conferences, held in the Crystal Ballroom of Lotte City Hotel, are expected to attract not only researchers from the three institutes but many domestic and overseas scholars from relevant fields, making the events more special.

▲ 2015 IBS Research Conference

The IBS-MPI Conference on Vascular Biology will feature 10 speakers including KOH Gou-Young, Director of the IBS Center for Vascular Research and Ralf H. Adams, Director of the MPI for Molecular Biomedicine. Nine speakers will attend the second IBS-MPI conference including Steve Granick, Director of the IBS Center for Soft and Living Matter and Mischa Bonn, Director of the MPI for Polymer Research.

Meanwhile, 10 speakers will participate in the IBS-RIKEN Conference to share latest research outcomes in RI physics and discuss how to discover future research topics. JEONG Sunchan, Director of Rare Isotope Science Project (RISP) and Hiroyoshi Sakurai, Chief Scientist of the RIKEN Nishina Center are among the speakers.

‘Art in Science’, a Science and Art Crossover Exhibition

A special exhibition will open at the conference hall of Hotel ICC during the annual meeting. Artists KIM Suyeon and SHON Kyung-Hwan will exhibit their artworks at the event, co-organized by IBS and the Deajeon Museum of Art. The exhibition, under the theme ‘Artworks from a scientific perspective’, is a combination of IBS ‘Art in Science’ and the museum’s ‘ARTIST’ (Art In Science & Technology), which represents the two institutions’ effort to merge science and art.

The two artists successfully created artworks out of research materials and scientific insights provided by IBS Research Fellow HA Changhyun from the IBS Center for Underground Physics, CHANG Sanghyeon from the IBS Center for Theoretical Physics of the Universe, KIM Young-Im and CHOI Jihoon from the IBS Center for Axion and Precision Physics.

▲ ‘Universal Block’ by Kim Suyeon

“Science and art are highly intellectual experiences, and thus combining them is a great opportunity for scientists and artists to gain new perspectives,” said the IBS President. “I hope this crossover project will inspire awe in many people and help engage them more in science.”

For further information and registration, please check http://www.ibs-conference.org