In order to be considered for the DSA and PSA when submitting a paper for presentation, the appropriate box must be checked on the paper submission website, and the email address of the person who will provide the required supporting letter must be provided. An e-mail will then be automatically generated and sent to that person, who will be asked to provide the supporting letter by e-mail. This e-mail must be received by February 22, 2008. All applicants will be notified of the outcome by e-mail by March 18, 2008. Unsuccessful applicants have the right to withdraw their papers by March 24, 2008.

The award consists of free registration for the meeting, a copy of the Proceedings, and invitations to the Sunday Opening Reception and the Presidential Reception. In addition, MAS provides a substantial contribution towards travel and lodging expenses. Applicants must be bona fide students at a recognized college or university at the time of the meeting. Awards are based on the quality of the paper submitted for presentation at the meeting. The applicant must be the first author of the submitted paper. Successful applicants must present their papers personally at the meeting in order to receive the award.

Applications consist of:

1) A supporting letter from a member of MAS, preferably a research advisor, attesting to the applicant's status;
2) A scientific paper for presentation, submitted according to the detailed instructions described elsewhere.

The award consists of free registration for the meeting, a copy of the Proceedings, and an invitation to the Sunday Opening Reception and the Presidential Reception. MSA will reimburse awardees up to $1,000 for travel (roundtrip, lowest airfare, USA) and student housing. Applicants must be bona fide students at a recognized college or university at the time of the meeting. Awards are based on the quality of the paper submitted for presentation at the meeting. The applicant must be the first author of the submitted paper. The paper must be submitted for platform presentation. Successful applicants must present their papers personally at the meeting in order to receive the award. The awardees are expected to attend and participate in the entire meeting. Former winners are ineligible for another award. The presidential student award category also includes the Erlandsen and Raleigh Awards.

Applications must consist of:

1) A supporting letter from a member of MSA, preferably a research advisor, attesting to the applicant's status;
2) A scientific paper for presentation, submitted according to the detailed instructions described elsewhere.

The Professional Technical Staff Awards (PTSA) were created to stimulate attendance at the Annual Meeting of MSA for professional technical staff who ordinarily might not participate in a national meeting, and to encourage supervisors to support their staff in professional activities. There will be up to four awards given, based on the quality of a first-authored paper submitted for presentation at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2008. The awards consist of free full registration for the meeting, a copy of the Pro-ceedings, and the Sunday Opening Reception event. MSA will reimburse awardees up to $600 for travel, lodging and other expenses. Applicants must be regular paid-up members of MSA at the time of applica-tion. Abstracts will be judged by the MSA Technologists' Forum. Successful applicants must present their papers personally at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2008 in order to receive the award. They are expected to attend and participate in the entire meeting. Former winners will not be eligible for another award.

In order to be considered for the PTSA, the appropriate box must be checked on the paper submission website, and the email address of the person who will provide the supporting letter must be provided. An email will then be automatically generated and sent to that person, who will be asked to provide a supporting letter by email. This email must be received by February 22rd, 2008. All applicants will be notified of the outcome by email by March 18, 2008. Unsuccessful applicants have the right to withdraw their papers by March 24, 2008.

A micrograph Competition sponsored by MSA is held at Microscopy and Microanalysis, with the purpose of promoting the innovative blending of art and science. The competition is open to all forms of microscopic imaging. Winners will be selected on the basis of artistic merit and general audience appeal. It is important, however, that the winning entries be scientifically significant. In particular, they must contain novel information useful in resolving a scientific issue and/or present established information in a way that dramatically enhances its comprehension or interpretation. A maximum of three awards will be presented. First Prize $200. A maximum of 2 runners-up: $50 each. The rules for entries are: 1) Any individual may submit a maximum of two entries. (No individual may win more than one prize). 2) Entries must have overall dimensions of 11 x 14 inches, can be mounted vertically or horizontally, and must be affixed to a stiff lightweight support, such as 1/4" foam board. Micrographs may be mounted so they have borders. 3) Each entry must have a separate text sheet with the title and a 200-word maximum description of the image including the technique and its scientific significance. It is recommended that the text be printed in 14-point Times New Roman font on a separate 8.5 x 11 inch sheet. The entrant's name, address, and image title shall be posted on the back of the 11 x 14 inch entry. 4) Entries must be brought to the meeting and mounted on the display boards by noon on Monday. Non-winning micrographs should be removed Thursday afternoon. Micrographs remaining on the display boards after 3pm on Thursday will be discarded. Winning micrographs will be incorporated into the MSA Traveling Poster Exhibit for 2008-2009, and will be returned to the owner during the summer of 2009. Winners will be announced at the meeting. Submitted micrographs remain the property of the entrants subject to the conditions above.

The contest embraces 11 classes representing various materials and methods of revealing structure such as microphotography, optical and electron microscopy, and unique techniques. Technical content is the most important ingredient. In general, an exhibit should tell a story about a problem and how it was solved. For complete requirements, detailed rules, and submission procedures visit http://www.internationalmetallographicsociety.org/contest.html or contact IMC Chair, Jeff Stewart (jeff@metallography.com)

All entries must be received by July 18, 2008 and should be sent to:
Sandia National Laboratories, Attn:
Alice Kilgo, Bldg. 701, Room 1327,
POSTER CONTEST SUBMISSION,
Mail Stop 0886, 1515 Eubank SE,
Albuquerque, NM 87123

The Microscopy Society of America values student members and recognizes that they are the future of both the society and the field of microscopy in general. MSA is therefore pleased to offer student bur-saries of $200 to registered students. The most important purpose of these bursaries is to encourage students to attend the annual MSA/MAS Microscopy and Microanalysis meeting, where these young scientists can meet and interact with the established microscopy community as well as assisting with the meeting.

Each bursary recipient will be expected to work for a minimum of 20 hours during the meeting and/or at the pre-meeting weekend events. A student may work up to an additional 20 hours, for a total of 40 hours. These extra hours will add to the bursary total at a rate of $10 per hour. The maximum bursary will therefore be $400. The duties will involve, but are not necessarily limited to, providing support in symposia (helping with audio-visual needs, maintaining an attendance count, and helping speakers set up for their presentation), staffing the MSA Megabooth, and monitoring use of the Internet Cafe. Applicants for the bursaries must be members of MSA or MAS, and enrolled as students at a recognized educational institution. All MSA or MAS student members are eligible for bursaries, including those who are recipients of MSA Presidential Scholars Awards and MAS Distinguished Scholar Awards. Eligible students may apply for bursaries when registering for the conference on the conference website, or at on-site registration. Bursaries are limited and early application is encouraged.

How it works:

The registration form for the meeting will have a check box indicating that the applicant is a registered student and is requesting a bursary. The check box will have a note beside it reminding the applicant that the bursary requires them to work at the meeting. Students who have applied for bursaries will receive letters from MSA explaining the conditions that they need to satisfy in order to receive the bursaries. The tasks at the meeting will be allocated by the Student Worker Organizers Sub-Committee of the Education Committee. When students pick up their registration materials at the meeting, they will receive assignment forms indicating the specific tasks they are to perform, and the person(s) they need to contact in order to carry out those tasks. Each stu-dent's assignment forms must be signed by all of the contact persons listed, indicating that all assigned tasks have been performed. Upon completion of assignments and submission of the signed forms, the bursary check will be issued by the appropriate representative at the registration desk.