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By Michelle J. Jones
Arizona Daily Wildcat
September 30, 1996
Evolution, grass and disease will be just a few of the topics discussed when an interdepartmental training group at the University of Arizona hosts a scientific symposium, bringing in speakers from as far away as London.The theme of the event is "The Phylogeny of Life and the Accomplishments of Phylogenetic Biology," and it will take place Oct. 11 through 13.
Phylogeny is the study of the origins and evolutions of different species, including humans, concentrating on the lines of descent that develop into what species we know today, said John Lundberg, director of the Research Training Group, which is hosting the symposium.
The Research Training Group combines the departments of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Geosciences, Entomology, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Biochemistry and Plant Sciences, and the divisions of Neurobiology and the Laboratory of Molecular Systematics and Evolution.
Twenty-three speakers will present findings of their research, including eight UA faculty members. The lectures will focus on the history of evolution and studying evolutionary changes.
The symposium is being funded mostly by a $1.5 million grant to the Research Training Group from the National Science Foundation, Lundberg said. He said it will cost about $15,000 for the travel, room and board expenses of the guest speakers.
A $100 registration fee will offset the costs of renting the Senior Ballroom and coffee breaks. UA students and faculty members may attend the symposium for a discounted fee of $25.
"We are expecting a little over 200 people. A lot more off-campus interest has developed in this than we thought," Lundberg said.
There will be a demonstration of the Tree of Life Project, an Internet database which is a chart of evolution, or phylogeny, based on the form of a tree, with roots and branches and different levels. The project was started by UA professors David and Wayne Maddison.
"What people can do with the tree is wander up the branches of the current view of the evolutionary tree of life. The first (Web) page went up in November 1994, and it has grown to over 1,000 pages which are based on computers around the country," David Maddison said.
Lundberg has authored a page on the Tree of Life Project based on his research on deep water fish in the Amazon River.
Although his project is not funded through the Research Training Group, it provides fellowships to many of the students that help Lundberg study the fish in his lab.
The group funds various research projects for graduate and postdoctoral students, including full-cost fellowships. The NSF recently renewed its grant for an additional $300,000 and five years.
"Before we got the renewal, we had thought the symposium might be a cap stone of what we've been doing, but now it will just be a benchmark and it will show the possibilities for what we can do in the next five years," Lundberg said.
More information and registration forms are available at the Research Training Group office in Bio Sciences West Room 224.
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