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June Newsletter
In this issue...
- Beyond the competition - upcoming events and speaking engagements
- Connect and collaborate - fulfill a silver medal criteria
- Upcoming competition deadlines - June 28
- New resources - picking fluorescent proteins, microscopy help
- Exclusive offers from iGEM's partners
- Upcoming dates and team meetups
With teams starting work all over the world, June is the month of making connections! Meetups are being planned, collaborations are forming, and teams are sharing their excitement on social media. Connecting with other iGEMers around the world is an important part of the iGEM experience - take advantage of all that your peers have to offer.
This month we also have important members of iGEM's community making speaking engagements all around the world, as well as newly published resources for both teams and our iGEM community. Read on to learn more.
Connect and Collaborate with the iGEM Community
Collaborating with fellow iGEM teams is part of the iGEM experience - and part of the Silver medal criteria. There are few different ways that you can connect with other teams to set up collaborations:
- Meetups: We already have 18 meetups on the calendar before the Giant Jamboree... and the list is still growing! You can check out if there are any meetups organized near you to attend, or post about your own meetups.
- Collaborations Bulletin: Look for collaborations being offered by other teams, or advertise a collaboration of your own.
- Social Media: Connect on Social Media! Join us on Facebook, Instagram (@iGEM_HQ), and Twitter (@iGEM)! (Be sure to tag your photos with #iGEM2019; we'll be collecting them to show off at the Giant Jamboree.)
- Team Map: Look here to find which teams are near you that you can contact for potential collaborations.
(This is a Google Maps link. If you have trouble accessing Google Maps, click here to browse the team list on igem.org)
First competition deadlines: June 28
1. Preliminary Safety Form Due: iGEM expects all teams to think about possible risks from their project. You need to think about how your work might cause harm to yourselves, your colleagues, communities, or the environment. The purpose of the Safety Form is for everyone, including the iGEM safety committee, to know you are doing your project safely and securely.
An initial version of this form, with as much information as possible, is to be provided by the team by June 28, 11:59PM EDT. Any team member may fill this in and save the form for submission. The form does not need to be signed off by the PI until September 13.
Direct Link: https://2019.igem.org/Safety/Final_Safety_Form
2. Project Inspiration and Descriptions Draft Due: The project inspiration and description is used to provide some background on what your team has been working on so far, what you hope to accomplish, and what inspired your team to choose this project. It can provide other teams the opportunity to see what you're working on so they can reach out for collaborations or troubleshooting if they are exploring a similar topic. For the first time, this is a deliverable and bronze medal criteria.
A preliminary draft should be posted on your Team Wiki Description page (example URL: https://2019.igem.org/Team:TeamName/Description) by June 28, 11:59PM EDT. The final version is due by the Wiki Freeze on October 21.
Beyond the Competition: Events and Speaking Engagements
Sam Weiss Evans, Executive Member of the iGEM Human Practices Executive Committee
June 11, 2019
BAE Systems Export Control and Compliance conference
Keynote talk: “The limitations of export controls for addressing security concerns in emerging technology”
Piers Millett, iGEM Director of Safety and Security
June 12-13, 2019
Participating in a meeting of the White House NSTC-Interagency Working Group on Biological Data Sharing, where he will talk about iGEM's experiences in biological data sharing and biosecurity.
Learn more about the IWGBDS Workshop
See what else we're up to #BeyondTheCompetition:
Direct Link: https://igem.org/Beyond_the_Competition
New iGEM Resources
Which fluorescent protein should you use?: There are so many fluorescent proteins to choose from, it can be hard to know which one to you use for your project. There are many considerations to take, including how you will use them, the properties of the protein, and how their properties can influence your results. Check out the Measurement Committee's guide on how to find the best fluorescent proteins for your work.
Are you using microscopy in your project? There is a group of microscopy specialists on the Measurement Committee, with experience in widefield and confocal fluorescence microscopy, image processing and analysis, and image data presentation. Recommended reading for best practices in microscopy: A beginner’s guide to rigor and reproducibility in fluorescence imaging experiments.
If you have specific questions don’t hesitate to email measurement [AT] igem [DOT] org. Include "Microscopy –" in the subject line for a faster response time.
Direct Link: https://2019.igem.org/Measurement/Resources
Upcoming Dates to Consider
Upcoming Team Meetups
- June 13-14: iGEM meetup for teams and supervisors
- June 14: Congress iGEM Green Biotech
- June 22: The US_AFRL_CarrollHS Meetup
- June 22: French iGEM Meetup
- July 5-7: German iGEM Meetup
Email HQ to get your team meetup listed on the meetups page!
With thanks to iGEM's partners for 2019
Twist Bioscience is offering every iGEM 2019 team complimentary 10 kb of Gene Fragments. Synthesis will be performed in monthly batches; Submit requests by June 12 to be included in the next round.
Join Promega for an exclusive iGEM Ask the Experts Live Q&A Webinar Series where Promega's experts will answer your questions about ligation, transfection and transformation. Next webinar: June 27
Don't forget...
- IDT giving FREE 20kb of custom DNA as gBlocks® Gene Fragments OR Alt-R® CRISPR Genome Editing products to ALL teams
- Twist Bioscience offering complimentary 10kb of Gene Fragments. Next ordering deadline: June 12
- GenScript offering 20% off synthesis and cloning services to all teams
- Promega iGEM Ask the Experts Live Q&A Webinar Series: June 27, July 23, August 20
- MathWorks giving complimentary MATLAB software (includes 13 products) and technical support to all teams
- Opentrons offering $2000 off a team's first OT-2 Robot
Missed something? See our newsletter archive to read previous issues
