This year marks the 50th meeting of the conference, an annual showcase of a scientific field that gave birth to laser technology and weather and aircraft radar systems. Molecular spectroscopy is the study of the basic interactions between electromagnetic radiation, such as radio and microwave frequencies, and molecules. Basic spectroscopy provides detailed information about a molecule by allowing scientists to study the radiation it emits or absorbs.
Scientists can study molecules in space, for example, to learn more about the formation of stars.
Speakers at the conference will include Neal Lane, director of the National Science Foundation, and Gerald Iafrate, director of the Army Office of Research. More than 300 physicians, scientists, family members and other experts in the field of mental retardation will meet at Ohio State University next month to develop the first-ever guidelines for prescribing psychiatric medications for the mentally retarded. However, Reiss said, physicians prescribing psychoactive drugs for these patients are often poorly trained about mental retardation. The upcoming conference will address this problem. After the conference, the reports of the committees will be compiled into a handbook of consensus expert opinion on the appropriate use of each medication for people with mental retardation.