2009 GEM4 Summer School in Cambridge, UK "Mechanics of Extracellular Matrix Material and Cell-Material Interactions"

2009 GEM4 Summer School in Cambridge, UK
"Mechanics of Extracellular Matrix Material and Cell-Material Interactions"

This week long summer school will be the fourth in the series, following previous events at MIT (August 2006) and National University of Singapore (June-July 2007) and the upcoming event at Caltech (July 2008). The broad objective of the summer schools is to educate both new and experienced researchers and graduate students in the fundamentals of cellular and molecular biomechanics, and its applications in medicine. The summer schools are designed to provide an intense learning experience in a stimulating environment, and to facilitate interactions between engineers, materials scientists, biochemists, biologists and clinicians. The summer schools incorporate an emphasis on basic concepts and problem-based learning in cellular and molecular biomechanics, with integrated lectures, in-class discussions, case studies and hands-on experience.

The 2009 summer school will have a focus on the extracellular matrix and on cell-matrix interactions, particularly in orthopaedic applications. Themes of the recent summer schools include infectious disease (2006), cancer (2007) and cardiovascular disease (2008). Core teaching activities will bear similarities to those at previous summer schools, but the examples, case studies, laboratory work and research-oriented visits will be focused on the theme topic.

The summer school is expected to appeal to the following groups:
* Researchers from disciplines such as engineering, physics, chemistry and materials science, with plans to expand their activities to include a biomechanical focus;
* Medical researchers with a desire to learn basic biomechanical principles and to apply these principles in their clinical investigations;
* Students from both life science and physical science backgrounds with an interest in expanding their knowledge of cellular and molecular biomechanics.

Summer School Dates:
12 to 19 July 2009
The summer school will comprise 6 full days (13 – 18 July 2009). On 15 and 18 July 2009, there will be social outings in the evening.