August Newsletter

Now that we're in the second half of the 2019 competition season, the deadlines are starting to ramp up, special offers from our sponsors are starting to ramp down, and teams are getting busier and busier! 

This month, we have new stories on the iGEM blog to share. Also, Giant Jamboree registration is now available, with open calls for volunteers and judges for the event. Please feel free to forward any of this information to your peers who may be interested.

Read on to learn more about what's new this month.

In this issue...

• Checklist for teams: Make sure you're on track this August
• Register now for the Giant Jamboree
• Last chance to claim some offers from iGEM's partners
• Find an upcoming team meetup near you!

When does Human Practices matter?

Direct Link: https://blog.igem.org/blog/2019/8/7/human-practices-matters-at-every-stage-of-your-igem-project

Register now to attend the Giant Jamboree!

Regular registration for the Giant Jamboree will end on August 31 at 11:59PM EDT. All teams must have at least one team member registered by this date to secure a presentation session. The cost of registration will increase after August 31, don't miss out!

Direct Link: https://2019.igem.org/Giant_Jamboree/Register

The August checklist for teams

• Make sure you're on your team roster
  The team roster is used to print participation certificates, and determine section for collegiate teams. Team rosters will be closed to edits after September 13, 11:59PM EDT. Be sure to review your team rosters and make sure they are up-to-date well before the deadline!
  Note: High school team members must submit participant consent forms and click on the link in the verification email to be added to their roster. The full name and username must match your account on iGEM.org for the consent form to be processed.
   
• Check your inbox for messages from the safety committee
  iGEM's safety committee are currently reviewing safety forms and notifying teams of any gaps in information. It is important to respond to the safety committee in a timely manner to comply with the rules of the competition. Make sure to check the email inbox of the address indicated in the Safety Form for your team.
   
• Register at least one team member for the Giant Jamboree
  Teams who wish to present at the Giant Jamboree MUST register at least one student team member by August 31 to secure a presentation session for the team.
   
• Apply for your visa
  The current travel situation into the United States of America remains uncertain and approval of your visa application may take a long time, even if your peers receive their visas quickly. We strongly encourage all Giant Jamboree attendees to apply for visas early as possible. Read more about travel visas. 

From the Measurement Committee

Thanks to all the teams trying out our measurement protocols and sending in their data for validation! We encourage teams to send their results in for validation and comment on their experience with the protocols! 

With your feedback, we’ve updated the Plate Reader Fluorescence protocol with gain setting advice and the Plate Reader Abs600 protocol’s recommendation about path length correction. We’ve changed the protocol calculation spreadsheets to clarify where data from your experiments go, and added examples for each recommended protocol. Remember to use the same instrument settings when combining protocols. Some teams reported saturation in their standard curve measurements. This is common; if it only affects a few measurements your curve should still work well.

Finally, teams have asked for advice about a standard curve dye compatible with red fluorescent proteins. We’re excited to announce the committee will be investigating to make recommendations to teams - watch this space!

Email HQ to get your team meetup listed on the meetups page!

Find a Collaboration

• iGEM Plant Teams and Plant Modelling Collaboration - Team Stony Brook
• Insulin Project Collaboration - Team ULaVerne Collab
• Escape Box – Europe - Team TelHai-Migal Israel
• iGEM contact address directory - Team UNSW Australia
• Help us collect the information on phosphorus content in domestic sewage worldwide and interim treatment methods - Team Nanjing-China 
• iGEM Lab Olympics - Team Stony Brook

Email HQ to get your collaboration request listed on the collaborations page!

With Thanks to iGEM's Partners for 2019

Benchling iGEM Training Webinar

Join the Benchling team at 10am PT/1pm ET on Tuesday, August 13 to learn the ins and outs of Benchling's Molecular Biology and Notebook applications, and to learn how they can help your team collaborate more efficiently. We'll show you how to get started on Benchling, walk through a molecular biology workflow, and share some of our favorite tips and tricks. We'll also have time for Q&A. 

Register below to join us for this webinar. Even if you're in a different time zone or you'll be busy, register now to automatically receive an email with the recording.

Direct Link: https://benchling.zoom.us/webinar/register/2615633156292/WN_MeUB77NlRxOPliNUf_tKHQ

Don't forget...

• IDT giving FREE 20kb of custom DNA as gBlocks® Gene Fragments OR Alt-R® CRISPR Genome Editing products to ALL teams. Register by August 30.
• GenScript offering 20% off synthesis and cloning services to all teams
• Benchling giving complimentary Benchling accounts, with Benchling Sync, and 10 GB of extra space
• 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