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This month's feature LES 2008 Spring Meeting & LES International Conference 10 Ways To Get The Most Out Of Your Spring Meeting Get ready! The LES (USA & Canada) Spring Meeting and the 2008 International Conference—the first joint meeting of its kind— is coming to Chicago. Start by scouring your Meeting Brochure online. Then, get registered! Here are a few tips to consider for those who want to make the most of their Spring Meeting opportunity. In Memoriam John Woodley, LES Past-President 2000-2001 John Woodley passed away peacefully at Providence Villa on Tuesday, January 29, 2008 after a long and valiant struggle with Multiple Systems Atrophy. 6'4" of brain and brawn, of kindness and common sense, John was a towering presence in the lives of his family and friends.
From humble beginnings on a farm in Northumberland County, he graduated from Engineering at Queens University in 1970 and became a Canadian Patent Agent in 1973. In the years that followed, John rose to international prominence as an expert in the patenting of inventions in fields of chemical engineering, biotechnology and health care inventions which memorably included the Cystic Fibrosis gene, the early on-set Alzheimer's gene, the Muscular Dystrophy gene, and the cloning process which created "Dolly." He co-authored "Hughes and Woodley on Patents" and the World Intellectual Property Organization's "Guide on the Licensing of Biotechnology," and served as the President of the LES (USA & Canada) in 2000- 2001. Uncounted hours of John's time were spent in the mentoring of young patent agents and licensing professionals around the world. Equally at home in the barn and the boardroom, John never met a person or a tractor he did not like. He knew a lot about everything. He could reduce the most complex technology to the elementary. He could build a house and plough a field. If it was mechanical, he could fix it. He could explain and correct your faulty tennis stroke or ski technique at a glance. He could dance to Strokin' It. He had an inexhaustible supply of energy, goodwill, patience and power tools. And no end of inappropriate jokes, in which sheep and bears always figured prominently. He was irrepressible and irresistible. John is survived by his adoring wife, Rita, who brought joy to his life and whose devotion and strength sustained him in his long and difficult illness, his children, Anne and JJ., his step-son Ben, his grandchildren Sierra and, his sister Donna, his admiring partners at Sim & McBurney, and an international host of friends and colleagues who will miss his commitment, his wise counsel and that booming laugh. A memorial service for John was held at Jubilee United Church, 40 Underhill Drive, Toronto on Monday, February 11, 2008. John's family has asked that, in lieu of flowers, his friends and colleagues consider a contribution in John's name to the Parkinson Society Canada (1.800.565.3000). Foundation News: 2006 Winner of the LES Foundation Competition: 2007 Winner of the LES Foundation Competition: 2007 Runner Up in the LES Foundation Competition: Silicon Valley Local Chapter
Presents To Sandia Labs The Silicon Valley Chapter of LES provides various outreach programs throughout the greater San Francisco Bay Area. Laura Santos, an active LES member with Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore, California, requested that we provide a speaker who can talk about and educate an audience on the new patent laws pending in the U. S. Congress. On February 20th, Co-Chairs, Larry Udell and Dr. James Fergason presented the program for an hour-and-a-half on the lab site. It was attended by staff both from Sandia and also Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, besides video conferencing with Sandia's New Mexico facility. Dr. Fergason is the inventor of LCD (liquid crystal display) technology and the holder of over 150 U. S. patents and 500 foreign patents. He was admitted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1998 and in 2006 was the recipient of the Lemelson- MIT award, which is the richest prize in the country for inventors. Besides a black-tie ceremony in Chicago, Dr. Fergason received a check for $500,000. Professor Udell and Dr. Fergason have been friends and associates for several decades and have provided speeches for several organizations including the U. S. Patent Office. Since the focus was entirely on the pending legislation, it prompted numerous questions from the audience, which was comprised of lawyers, scientists, researchers and technology-transfer personnel. Larry took the opportunity to talk about the LES stand on the legislation and the Chapter's 8th anniversary being celebrated on March 19 with an all day conference hosted by Hewlett-Packard at their world headquarters in Palo Alto. The presentation was very well received and another great example of an LES chapter outreach. |
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