Tours

The following tours will be available during the conference:




The W.W. Keck Foundation Free-Electron Laser Center

The W.W. Keck Foundation Free-Electron Laser Center is one of four university FEL centers in the United States and one of only nine such centers worldwide where scientific research is conducted. Vanderbilt has the only FEL in the world licensed for surgical operations on human patients. Laser surgery, monochromatic X-rays, and protein characterization are three areas where research at the Vanderbilt FEL is showing particularly promising results. Center management has identified four areas for growth: materials science, particularly the use of the FEL in nanotechnology research; laser surgery; proteomics, identification of the structure and function of proteins; and, in vivo imaging, using the FEL and monochromatic X-ray beams to image individual molecules in living animals.



The Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science

The Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science is at the cutting edge of research in the field of biomedical imaging techniques. From the earliest X-ray-- images to such modern imaging technologies as MRI and PET, imaging today plays a central role in patient management and care and provides crucial insights into the pathophysiology of many types of disease, such as cancer and neurological disorders. Biomedical imaging techniques have developed in recent years into a compendium of increasingly powerful technologies that are used not only for diagnosing diseases but also for the study of biological structure and function, of metabolism and physiology, and of fundamental molecular and cellular processes. At Vanderbilt, it is believed the greatest successes for imaging in the future will come from environments where the complementary natures of different imaging approaches are exploited, where experts in basic sciences and technical aspects of image formation and analysis collaborate closely with biomedical scientists who ask appropriate questions, and where the basic underlying science of imaging is fostered.