Conference Announcement:The Bio-Era: New Frontiers, New Challenges4-7 December 2002 This century has been designated as the "Century of Biology" and it has already started off with a big bang with the successful mapping of the human genome. This post-genomic era brings about endless possibilities in the advancement of biomedical sciences and the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic treatment for health and disease. Coupled with bioinformatics and biomolecular engineering, this can bring about better precise early detection of diseases such as cancer and the personalised prescriptions of appropriate drugs. Furthermore, with the advances in nanotechnology, the concept of "laboratory on a chip" will soon become a reality. The proliferation of knowledge and technique in isolation and expansion of stem cells will enhance and complement the development of tissue and organ engineering. This field will be exploited further with emerging technology in bioprocessing and new biomaterials. Advances in biomedical imaging and together with robotics and elegant navigation systems allow surgeons to perform operations with procedures that are minimally invasive and with pinpoint accuracy. New and exciting possibilities in life sciences, in particular the area of biomedicine, are developing. We are standing at the threshold where the new frontiers where new challenges in biological and medical engineering. This Congress allows us to bring together participants in their respective fields of expertise for discussions, interactions and collaborative development of our theme for the Congress. Let us share in the visions and challenges of this new Bio-Era. On behalf of the organising committee of the International Congress on Biological and Medical Engineering, I extend our warmest welcome to you. This congress is a joint meeting of the 5th Asia-Pacific Conference on Medical and Biological Engineering and the 11th International Conference on Biomedical Engineering. The Faculties of Medicine and Engineering of the National University of Singapore and the Biomedical Engineering Society (Singapore) jointly organise it. Asia-Pacific Conferences on Medical and Biological Engineering (APCMBE) are held once every three years under the auspices of the Asia-Pacific Working Group of the International Federation on Medical and Biological Engineering (IFMBE). The previous conferences were held in Tokyo, Beijing, Taipei and Seoul. The APCMBE meetings have provided excellent platforms for interaction and networking among members in the Asia-Pacific region. The coming conference will be held in conjunction with the series of Biennial International Conference in Biomedical Engineering (ICBME) held in Singapore. The ICBME meetings have attracted participants from about 30 countries; the proceedings have been of high quality. As such, it is envisaged that the combined meeting will generate excellent scientific interactions as well as developing friendship across countries and disciplines. The program will be exciting, with prominent invited speakers each in their field of expertise. The Scientific Program will have plenary lectures and keynote lectures. Our theme for the congress is "The Bio-Era: New Frontiers, New Challenges". We believe that in this Century of Biology, Bioengineering will face new challenges and it will require the cross-linking of different disciplines in biomedicine, science and engineering to bring the field to new frontiers in medicine and health care. Important dates
For more information, please contact:
ICBME 2002 Conference Secretariat
James Goh PhD |
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