In Brief

Meet the Alumni: Melanie Nelson of Dart Neuroscience
Melanie Nelson, Kellogg School class of '98, program manager and group leader for information management at Dart Neuroscience, is the featured guest speaker at the next Meet the Alumni gathering Tuesday, August 2, 4 to 5 PM, in the Faculty Club.

Sponsored by the Career and Postdoctoral Services Office and the Network for Women in Science, the Meet the Alumni series features a casual setting and discussion format, covering such topics as career influences, transitions, and options.

While pursuing her PhD research in structural biology and protein engineering, Nelson became interested in informatics. Upon graduation, she joined Physiome Sciences as a scientist and database designer. Nelson later worked for GeneFormatics, applying informatics to the understanding of protein structure and function, and Science Applications International Corporation, serving as a consultant on pharmaceutical and biodefense projects.

Following a stint as associate director of informatics and project management at Ambrx, Nelson joined Dart Neuroscience, a San Diego technology and therapeutics discovery company concerned with brain health and cognitive function. In her current position, said Nelson, she can combine her interests in drug discovery research, scientific data management, and project management.

Registration for the Meet the Alumni session is required. Light refreshments will be served. For more information about the Meet the Alumni series and upcoming career-related events, contact Ryan Wheeler, rwheeler@scripps.edu or x4-7297, or visit the Career and Postdoctoral Services webpage.

Applications Due October 1 for California Postdoctoral Travel Award Program
Applications are due October 1 in the next round of the Scripps California postdoctoral travel award program. Presented by the Society of Fellows (SOF) and the Office of Career and Postdoctoral Services, the program is designed to provide postdoctoral associates an opportunity to present scholarly activities at scientific national or international conferences.

Up to three awards of up to $1,000 each will be awarded for conference-related costs (e.g. travel, housing, registration.

Previous SOF travel award winners are not eligible to apply. Other eligibility criteria, specific application procedures, and proposal guidelines can be found on the Career and Postdoctoral Services webpage .

Five Scripps Research postdoc volunteers are still needed to serve on the award selection committee. Postdocs not submitting an application and interested in award applications are asked to contact Ryan Wheeler.

Scripps California Recycling Program Expands to Include Ink/Toner Cartridges and X-Ray Film
Scripps California has expanded its recycling program to include printer ink/toner cartridges and x-ray film, the campus Environmental Services department (EVS) recently announced.

Ink and toner cartridges for printer, fax, or copier equipment now can be recycled by submitting an online work order or by phoning EVS at x4-2818. EVS will pick up the cartridges each Wednesday.

"Ink and toner cartridges [can] be hazardous to the environment if they are disposed of in the landfill and left to leak into the soil and groundwater," said Mario Osornio, EVS quality assurance and training coordinator. Additionally, said Osornio, plastic and metal materials used for the cartridge casings do not readily biodegrade. Recycling or re-using these materials will keep them out of landfills.

In addition, EVS will collect used and unused x-ray film from across the campus Monday, August 8 through Friday, August 12 in specially marked boxes located in campus building lobbies. The entire x-ray film discard, including paper frames, may be deposited in designated collection boxes. The x-ray film collection may be repeated every six months, according to Osornio.

Scripps California faculty and staff already recycle a variety of materials, including:

• Paper (computer paper, colored ledger, newspaper, mixed paper)
• Glass (beverage containers)
• Plastics "1" through "7"
• Aluminum (beverage containers, foil)
• Bi-metal (food containers, cans)
• Cardboard boxes
• Clean lab recyclables (empty, rinsed, dried glass & plastics)

For further recycle program details, contact Osornio or visit the Green Team webpage.

Library Tip: New EndNote X5 Version Available for Windows
Kresge Library staff is pleased to announce that the new version of EndNote, X5, is available for Windows. The Mac version will be released by Thomson-Reuters in late August or early September.

Version X5 contains some updated features, such as:

• A PDF view in the PDF & Quick Edit pane, located below the library view
• The ability to update a reference using a new "Find Reference Updates" tool
• A custom 6 field now assigned as the NIHMSID field
• The automatic substitution of fields when a chosen field is blank (this will be useful for citing NIHMSIDs when the PMCID is not yet available)

To download EndNote, go to the library's EndNote Guide at http://library.scripps.edu/endnote and click on "Download EndNote". Use your Scripps Research email login (without the "@scripps.edu" part) and password to begin.

Look for a "What's New with EndNote" handout coming soon for additional tips to using the new features on the EndNote Guide tutorial page.

EndNote training is available for groups or individuals. Please contact Angela Murrell, x4-8705 or amurrell@scripps.edu, to arrange a session.

Ten Tips to Overcome Procrastination
There it sits: your thesis, your grant proposal, or income tax return. You find yourself avoiding it at all costs. In fact, your car needs washing, your Facebook page needs updating, and your mother-in-law has missed hearing from you.

What keeps us from facing daunting tasks? Counseling and Psychological Services Center Director Daphne Lurie provides some helpful clues in her most recent "Ten Tips" article, where Lurie also provides useful suggestions to overcome procrastination. Download the article, available on the Counseling and Psychological Services webpage.

New English-as-a-Second Language Series to Begin
A new English-as-a-second-language class series will begin Tuesday, August 2, 2011. The class meets from 6:30 to 8:30 PM every Tuesday in the Immunology Building West Conference Room. The price for three months (12 classes) is $60. Each intermediate-level English class is divided into speaking and listening, idioms and vocabulary, and reading and writing. If you would like to improve your English communication skills as well as understand your friends and colleagues, movies, television shows, and the news, this class is for you. Instructor Cassandra Wadkins uses movies, games, television shows, grammar books, songs, drawing, and novels to teach standard American English. Have fun and learn English at the same time! For more information, leave a message at x4-2176.

Send comments to: mikaono[at]scripps.edu