MIPS/RSL/ISIS Retreat 2009

MIPS attended the two-day 5th annual MIPS retreat. Ninety-three people attended the two-day 11th annual RSL/ISIS Retreat, which ended on Thursday, September 17th. Agendas for both retreats are available on the retreat website at http://stanfordradretreat.pbworks.com/Agenda.

MIPS
After meeting on the beach for lunch on Tuesday, MIPS retreat attendees began an extensive photo treasure hunt, which lasted until the following day. Participants were required to take photos that were humorous, creative, and appropriate as well as that included the most number of strangers and team members as possible in the picture. Please see the winning photos below.

Opening remarks were delivered by Sam Gambhir, MD, PhD, the Virginia and D.K. Ludwig Professor of Radiology and Bioengineering followed by "MIPS Faculty Words of Wisdom" given by Drs. Craig Levin, Michael Lin, Michael Moseley, David Paik, Brian Rutt, and Michael McConnell. Based on each speaker's personal experiences, these 10 minute talks addressed topics such as the work-life balance and how to succeed on the job. The retreat also included Breakout Sessions with 11 different groups, which discussed topics including mentorship, social networking, space issues, and professional growth. Other highlights included remarks by Keynote Speaker Steve Haddock, PhD, a marine biologist studying bioluminescence and zooplankton at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute who spoke about bioluminescence in marine life. Through videos, he demonstrated how marine life use their natural bioluminescence in the deep sea to avoid predators and attract prey.

MIPS/RSL/ISIS
On Wednesday, all three groups overlapped and shared in several retreat activities followed by a bonfire, karaoke/music jam, and jeopardy game, with categories specific to Stanford Radiology. There was also an RSL/ISIS photo contest in which participants submitted photos in three categories: special effects with no manipulation; unusual; and nature. The three winners' photos are included below. Retreat attendees participated in "Pie in the Sky" presentations, sharing their ideas regarding the future challenges, solutions, and directions of Radiology, as well as in "Elevator Pitches," 60 second talks explaining their research. Highlights included the State of the Department presentation by Dr. Gary M. Glazer, chair of Stanford Radiology and Emma Pfeiffer Merner Professor in the Medical Sciences.

RSL/ISIS
On Thursday, Keynote Speaker Fei-Fei Li, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science, gave a talk entitled "Telling Stories of the Visual World: Perception and Computation" in which she described some goals of her research such as understanding human visual intelligence by applying computational tools as well as building intelligent visual algorithms for machines and robots. Other retreat events included a presentation by Dr. Shreyas Vasanawala, assistant professor of radiology, entitled, "A Day in the Life of a Radiologist" and workshops by Dr. Brian Hargreaves, assistant professor of radiology (research), "Making Meetings Effective"; Drs. Gary Glover, professor of radiology, and Kim Butts Pauly, professor (research) of radiology, "How to Write and Read a Recommendation Letter"; and Drs. Rebecca Fahrig, associate professor (research) of radiology; Kim Butts Pauly; and Norbert Pelc, professor of radiology and bioengineering, "Finding a Work/Life Balance."

The retreat ended with the judging of the RSL/ISIS photo contest (please see winning photos below); and a tour of the Stanford Hopkins Marine Laboratory.

WINNING MIPS PHOTOS

WINNING RSL/ISIS PHOTOS
"Nature" Category Winner (Wendy Baumgardner, RVT, LATg)

"Special Effects" Category Winner (Norbert Pelc, ScD)

"Unnatural" Category Winner (Wendy Baumgardner, RVT, LATg)

For prior blog retreat articles, please access the following:
Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford (MIPS) Retreat 2008 ; Radiological Sciences Laboratory (RSL) Retreat 2008; 2007 MIPS Retreat ; 2007 RSL Retreat; and 2007 RSL Post-Retreat Update .