Newswise — The largest and most dramatic addition to midtown Manhattan's eastern skyline in half a century will be officially unveiled on May 24 and 25, 2006, when NYU School of Medicine's Joan and Joel Smilow Research Center is dedicated. The 13-story, state-of-the-art research facility is the first major addition to the campus of NYU Medical Center in more than a decade.
Beginning at 1:30 PM on May 24th, at Farkas Auditorium at NYU School of Medicine at 550 First Avenue (bet. 30th and 33rd Street), distinguished scientists including Nobel Laureate David Baltimore, Ph.D., President of California Institute of Technology, Nobel Laureate Paul Greengard, Ph.D., the Vincent Astor Professor and Head of the Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience at The Rockefeller University, and Eric S. Lander, Ph.D., Director of the Broad Institute of MIR and Harvard, will give lectures at a scientific symposium in honor of the center's opening. A dedication ceremony will take place on May 25 at Farkas Auditorium (see address above) which will be followed by a reception in the lobby of the Smilow Research Center.
Located at the southeast corner of the campus, near 30th Street and the FDR Drive, the Smilow Research Center will house some 40 multidisciplinary research teams, a mix of current investigators and new recruits, dedicated to such fields as cancer, cardiovascular biology, neuroscience, dermatology, genetics, and infectious diseases. With more than 230,000 square feet of laboratory space, the Smilow Research Center is designed to enhance the interdisciplinary pursuit of translational medicine, which seeks to shorten the journey from laboratory bench to the patient's bedside by fostering collaboration and synergy among researchers that, in turn, accelerate the development of new treatments.
At the May 25 dedication ceremony speakers will include the Honorable Sheldon Silver, Speaker of the New York State Assembly; John Sexton, President of New York University; and Joel E. Smilow, the NYU trustee and benefactor for whom the building is named. Mr. Smilow, formerly President and CEO of Playtex, is Chairman of Dinex Group, LLC, a company he formed with the esteemed chef Daniel Boulud, which owns several celebrated New York restaurants.
"An academic medical center exists, above all, to produce the kind of knowledge that offers hope," said Robert M. Glickman, M.D., Dean of NYU School of Medicine and CEO of NYU Hospitals Center. "In that sense, the Smilow Research Center is the embodiment of our commitment to patient-directed research."
"Today marks the beginning of a new and exciting chapter in the history of NYU Medical Center," added John Sexton, President of New York University. "With its ingenious design, state-of-the-art equipment, and strategic location in the heart of New York City, the Smilow Research Center will attract some of the best and brightest from many fields."
To promote interaction and the sharing of equipment and ideas, the building's labs are separated by neither walls nor doors. Moreover, the building abounds with spaces conducive to scientific serendipity—from the formality of a 140-seat lecture hall and numerous conference rooms to the informality of a ground-floor café and courtyard.
Built on landfill that was part of the East River only a century ago, the Smilow Research Center posed considerable engineering challenges. Before the foundation could be laid, more than 60 million gallons of water had to be pumped out of the site. To keep the water out, engineers devised a system of 394 secant piles, or overlapping concrete cylinders—the first of its kind ever used in New York City. The secants, each measuring 30 inches in diameter, were drilled down to a depth of 55 feet around the perimeter of the site, forming a secure bathtub. They are coated with a crystalline waterproofing that expands to plug any holes that may form.
To the east, the Smilow Research Center commands sweeping views of the East River and beyond. From the northeast corner of one of the upper floors, the eye can take in breathtaking 220-degree vista that embraces the northern edge of the campus, the FDR Drive, the United Nations, the 59th Street Bridge, the boroughs of Queens and Brooklyn, and—along the way—the rolling river that is its constant companion.
COMPLETE SYMPOSIUM SCHEDULE:May 24, 2006, 1:30 p.m. (All lectures will last approximately 30 minutes)
David Baltimore, Ph.D. President, California Institute of TechnologyNF-KB—How can it be so multi-functional?
Ira Mellman, Ph.D.Chairman and Professor, Department of Cell Biology, Sterling Professor of Cell Biology and Immunology, Yale University School of MedicineA cell biologist views the immune response
Richard P. Lifton, M.D., Ph.D.Sterling Professor of Genetics, Internal Medicine, and Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry; Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Yale University School of MedicineGenetics, Genomics, and the Future of Medicine
Eric S. Lander, Ph.D. Professor of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Professor of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School; Director, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard; Member, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical ResearchBeyond the Human Genome Project
Hidde L. Ploegh, Ph.D.Professor of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Member, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical ResearchHost Pathogen Interactions: Cell Biology and (Bio)Chemistry
Paul Greengard, Ph.D. Vincent Astor Professor; Head, Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience,The Rockefeller UniversitySignal transduction pathways used by therapeutic agents and drugs
All journalists are invited to attend both events
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