The movements of early films as material artifacts—across formats and from producers and distributors to collectors and archival institutions—have shaped the histories that have been written.

The need for greater attention to such provenance is especially vital in view of the growing dissemination of films in digital media as well as their recycling and repurposing in experimental practice.

How might we connect the material provenance of a print to cultural and aesthetic history?

What can provenance reveal about the cultural circulation and influence of ideas, images, styles, technologies, and patents; film heritage; and the privileging of certain works over others?

These are among the issues that will be addressed by “Provenance and Early Cinema: Preservation, Circulation, and Repurposing,” a June 13 to 16 conference that is a collaboration of Domitor (the international society for the study of early cinema), George Eastman Museum, and the University’s Humanities Center, Film and Media Studies Program, and Departments of Art and Art History, English, and Modern Languages and Cultures.

A pre-conference graduate student workshop, “The Nitrate Touch,” will also be held from June 11 to 12.

The conference will feature 55 presentations in 18 panels over four days. It will also feature two evenings of screenings of rare early films from the collection of the Moving Image Department of George Eastman Museum.

Click here for more details.

The University has joined with the University at Buffalo and Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center to form a powerful new drug discovery partnership that aims to convert the institutions’ scientific breakthroughs into viable pharmaceuticals for commercialization — and strengthen the region as a hub for life sciences research and development.

The Empire Discovery Institute (EDI) will be an independent, nonprofit entity that will identify promising drug candidates and move them toward clinical trials. The EDI will help researchers at the three institutions conduct preclinical testing of promising compounds discovered in their labs. Researchers will also receive assistance in designing new drugs for drug targets they have identified through their work.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that the new partnership will receive $35.4 million in funding over five years from Empire State Development, in addition to $12 million worth of in-kind support from the partner institutions.

“New York is home to world-leading institutions producing cutting-edge research, advancements, and breakthroughs in human health,” Cuomo said. “The Empire Discovery Institute will harness New York’s wealth of academic capital and provide the resources needed to bring life-changing discoveries out of the lab and into the economy, generating new jobs, new companies, and new investments in the growing life sciences sector.”

Judith Dunn, a former vice president of pharmaceutical giant Roche, has joined EDI as its first CEO. Dunn brings 25 years of pharmaceutical development experience to upstate New York, having served as global head of clinical development for Roche and head of the company’s Innovation Center.

“Biopharma companies are increasingly dependent upon academic research for the development of new drugs. Rochester and Buffalo academic institutions provide a strong foundation of research and development in critical life science fields,” said Mark Taubman, CEO of the University of Rochester Medical Center. “We are deeply grateful for Gov. Cuomo’s leadership and the opportunity to bring the University of Rochester’s rich history of biomedical innovation to partnerships with industry. Together, we can nurture a vibrant and growing life sciences economy in the region.”

Read more here.

The University’s Center of Excellence in Data Science is actively seeking proposals to fund during May 2018 to June 30, 2019.  The goal of the center’s Collaborative Research Program is to stimulate economic growth in New York state by promoting technology transfer from our universities to companies operating in the state.

Accordingly, strong preference is given to proposed projects involving a NY industry partner that is actively engaged with the project, financially sponsoring the research, and/or providing assessment of economic impact of the project.

The center is a NYSTAR (Empire State Development Division of Science, Technology and Innovation) designated Center of Excellence (CoE) funded by NY state.

Read more here.

Daniel Savage, Optics, “A Non-Ablative Technique for Femtosecond Laser-Based Refractive Correction: Development, Efficacy, and Tissue Effects.” 2 p.m. June 8, 2018. Ryan Case Method Room (1-9576 Medical Center).  Advisors:  Wayne Knox and Krystel Huxlin.

Chi-Wen Lo, Pathology, “The Role of Serpin B13 Antibody in Regeneration of Pancreatic B-cells.” 2 p.m. June 6, 2018.  Medical Center | K-207 1-6408. Advisor: Jan Czyzyk.

Alyssa Kersey, Brain and Cognitive Sciences, “Developmental Continuity in the Neural Representations of Number.” 1:30 p.m. June 11, 2018. 269 Meliora Hall. Advisor: Jessica Cantlon.

Lauren Rice Walling, Microbiology & Immunology, “Specificity determinants of homologous VapBC toxin-antitoxin systems.” 11 a.m. June 12, 2018. Medical Center | K-207 1-6408. Advisor: Scott Butler.

Pei-Lun Weng, Pathology, “Progenitor cell contribution to maintenance and regeneration in salivary gland and olfactory epithelium.” 1:30 p.m. June 20, 2018.  Medical Center | K-307 3-6408. Advisor: Catherine Ovitt.

Maxime Junior Jean, Microbiology & Immunology, “The Dichotomy of Curaxin Compounds in HIV-1 Latency.” 3 p.m. June 20, 2018. Medical Center | K-207 2-6408. Advisor: Jian Zhu.

Today: Deadline to submit applications as supplements to the Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s CTSA U01 grant. To learn more, contact the Research Help Desk.

Today: Deadline to apply for pilot funding (up to $50,000 per award) from the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience for basic science and translational projects that advance understanding of both normal and abnormal brain functioning and for basic, clinical and translational projects that specifically support research on Autism Spectrum Disorder. For more information and to download the RFA, click here.

Today-June 3: “Frontiers in Virtual Reality,” the 31st Center for Visual Science Symposium. Memorial Art Gallery. Click here for a list of speakers, and details about registration.

June 2: “An ‘Un-Meeting’: Addressing the Opioid Crisis through Translational Science.” 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saunders Research Building Atrium. Hosted by the Clinical and Translational Science Institute and the Center for Leading Innovation and Collaboration. There is no cost to attend. Register here by Wednesday, May 23.

June 6: “Searching Sound through Vocal Imitation,” presented by Zhiyao Duan, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineer. Data Science Summer Colloquium Series, Goergen Institute for Data Science. Noon to 1 p.m., Wegmans Hall 1400. Open to all faculty, staff, students, and community members. Lunch included.

June 7: AS&E workshop for young investigators. Overview, resources, and tips for successful proposal development and submission to multiple funding sources. Panel discussion with University faculty who were recently awarded young investigator/early career awards or served on panels.  Noon to 2 p.m. Room 403 Frederick Douglass Building. Lunch provided. Space is limited. RSVP by May 31 to Toni Heininger at antonia.heininger@rochester.edu

June 11-12: “The Nitrate Touch,” graduate student workshop in advance of conference on provenance in early cinema (see June 13-16 below). Click here for more details.

June 13-16: “Provenance and Early Cinema: Preservation, Circulation, and Repurposing” conference. 55 presentations in 18 panels over four days plus two evenings of screenings of rare early films from the collection of the Moving Image Department of George Eastman Museum. Click here for more details.

June 13: “When Computer Vision Meets Audition: From Cross-Modal Generation to Audio-Visual Scene Understanding.” Chenliang Xu, assistant professor of computer science. Data Science Summer Colloquium Series, Goergen Institute for Data Science. Noon to 1 p.m., Wegmans Hall 1400. Open to all faculty, staff, students, and community members. Lunch included.

June 20:  “When Can a Computer Improve Your Social Skills?” M. Ehsan Hoque, interim director of the Goergen Institute, assistant professor of computer science, and Asaro Biggar (’92) Family Fellow in Data Science. Data Science Summer Colloquium Series, Goergen Institute for Data Science. Noon to 1 p.m., Wegmans Hall 1400. Open to all faculty, staff, students, and community members. Lunch included.

June 22: Deadline to apply for pilot and feasibility awards of up to $50,000 for innovative applications of technology (e.g. novel use of electronic health record data, wearable sensors, digital tools, human-machine interfaces, etc.) in research with human participants to yield new insights into clinical neuroscience. The Center for Health + Technology (CHeT), in conjunction with the Ernest J. Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience. For more information and to download the RFA, click here.

June 27: “Identifying Differences in GPUs Using Performance Data.” Sreepathi Pai, assistant professor of computer science. Data Science Summer Colloquium Series, Goergen Institute for Data Science. Noon to 1 p.m., Wegmans Hall 1400. Open to all faculty, staff, students, and community members. Lunch included.

July 11:  “Information Flow in Music.” David Temperley, professor of music theory at the Eastman School. Data Science Summer Colloquium Series, Goergen Institute for Data Science. Noon to 1 p.m., Wegmans Hall 1400. Open to all faculty, staff, students, and community members. Lunch included.

July 18:  “Physics of Complex Systems.” Gourab Ghoshal, assistant professor of physics. Data Science Summer Colloquium Series, Goergen Institute for Data Science. Noon to 1 p.m., Wegmans Hall 1400. Open to all faculty, staff, students, and community members. Lunch included.