The Actinides Conferences have been organized every four years since the first was held in 1977 in Baden-Baden, Germany. This year's meeting was held in Hayama from November 4-9 and provided a forum to discuss all science and technology related to the study of actinide elements. The meeting format consisted of 20-30 minute paper presentations and a poster session each evening. Featured symposia included Bioscience, Solution Chemistry, Environmental Behavior, Management, and Remediation, and Nuclear Fuel Technology and Thermophysical Properties.

Having participated in the initial stages of some work to study the effects of bacterial interactions with uranium, I was particularly interested in paper and poster presentations in sessions of the Bioscience symposium. Notable speakers included Professor Bruce Honeyman of the Colorado School of Mines and Dr. A.J. Francis of Brookhaven National Laboratory. Professor Honeyman, in addition to presenting data on uranium binding to bacterial surfaces, also made a conscientious effort to point out current limitations in the studies that exist in bacterial-actinide interaction studies and what shortcomings need to be addressed by members of this research community such that data can be compared across laboratories and more efficient progressions in the science take place. Dr. Francis was one of the first to propose that bacteria could exert fundamental controls on the speciation and solubility of actinides in the environment, and his presentation was therefore a good opportunity for me to listen to the thoughts of one the prominent researchers in this area of science.

Taking place in the evening, poster sessions provided the opportunity for interested persons to interact individually with the presenter during the designated social hour. My poster presentation was scheduled during the Environmental Behavior, Management, and Remediation Poster Session and was entitled, "Incorporation of Cesium and Strontium in Uranium(VI) Silicates." I found this experience to be enjoyable and it was a good opportunity to meet others interested in this field as well as practice thinking through my own interpretation of data and answering questions concerning different aspects of my work.

Because of the somewhat isolated setting of the conference, most meals were taken at the hotel/conference center complex and this also afforded time to meet other conference participants, many from other countries, and learn of their views and perspectives on topics both in and out of science.

The International Christian University (ICU) was founded just after WWII on the outskirts of Tokyo. Formerly a factory for the production of bombers and as legend has it, the birthplace of the “kamikaze” idea, several of the buildings on the site still have the appearance of aircraft hangars and concrete bunkers. Established with funding from a diverse range of international sources, the mission of the university is “to act as a bridge for students between Japan and the rest of the world.” This is accomplished in part by exposure to professors from a multitude of countries and classes are held in both Japanese and English. The university offers bachelors and masters degrees in a number of liberal arts and scientific disciplines.

Invited by a family friend in the university's Institute for Educational Research and Service, I was given the opportunity to meet with students and faculty in the Natural Sciences Division and present a seminar on the general area of environmental chemistry. About 30 senior undergraduate students majoring in the natural sciences and several faculty members attended my talk. Before arriving in Japan I was told that environmental concerns are beginning to be recognized by younger generations and that there is a great deal of interest in environmental science. I began with a brief introduction to the subject of environmental chemistry and then presented background slides to several ongoing projects in our laboratory. Briefly, these included work on elucidating oxidation mechanisms of chromium(III) in highly alkaline solutions, radionuclide incorporation and bacterial interactions with uranium solid phases, and methods for the determination of radionuclide partitioning to environmental particulates. My objective was to show how the fundamental principles learned in chemistry can be applied to a wide range of problems encountered in natural and anthropogenic surroundings.

Following the presentation, students were encouraged to ask questions. Somewhat shy at first, once some braver students overcame this and the questions began, I was impressed with the way students were able to articulate their concerns and with the amount of thought that had gone into the questions. They asked about gender issues in science education, the economics of environmental quality, and also about educational opportunities for foreign students in the United States. Several students came up afterwards to chat informally and it was refreshing to see their obvious enthusiasm and curiosity in issues concerning the environment.

In the evening I went to dinner with a group of faculty members from the Natural Sciences Division. They were a diverse group of people, with research areas ranging from plant genetics to polymer chemistry and represented the countries of Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Scotland, and Armenia. They were very friendly and welcoming and made a point of asking about my work and relating theirs to me, which made for an enjoyable conclusion to the visit.

Overall, I consider the trip successful both from a cultural and scientific standpoint, especially since one of the IGERT goals is to span cultural and national barriers. My research of a multi-disciplinary focus, is in the same area as that being actively pursued in other nations. The meeting and interaction of other researchers from around the world as well as academic researchers and students in Japan was for me a valuable educational experience.