BiophotonicsWorld.org is a global online resource for biophotonics initially developed by the NSF Center for Biophotonics Science and Technology (CBST) and the Canadian Institute for Photonics Innovations (CIPI). It is our hope that this website will be shaped by its users, to fit their needs and those of the entire community of biophotonics enthusiasts all over the world. The portal aims to become the social knowledge network that leverages both vetted information and social content to create a collaborative community for the worldwide biophotonics community. Scientists from academia, industry, and government, physicians, students, researchers, business professionals, entrepreneurs, funding agencies' representatives, educators, and anybody interested in biophotonics and its applications can communicate and collaborate via this web portal.
The Biophotonics4Life Worldwide Consortium (BP4L) connects nodes of biophotonics researchers, educators, organizations, companies, and other enthusiasts to better harness global talent and resources and focus them on the most important end-user needs. The 21st century is undoubtedly the century of the photon, and the developing field of biophotonics has already started to deliver on its promise. Initial funding for the BP4L Consortium was provided by the National Science Foundation as a supplement to the NSF Center for Biophotonics Science and Technology headquartered at UC Davis, in Sacramento, CA.
A node (or regional hub) is loosely defined as a geographic location where significant biophotonics research groups and activities are concentrated; each node is represented by 1-2 Node Leaders. The Node Leaders represent their regions/nodes at Consortium meetings and vice-versa, they represent the Consortium at a local/node level. Researchers from various regions of the world will generally consider themselves affiliated with the node that's closest to their lab/organization.
The need for a coordinated, worldwide consortium became apparent during the first International Congress on Biophotonics (ICOB, Sacramento, CA, February 2008). The Congress brings together researchers, faculty, physicians, other end-users, representatives from funding agencies, and others to discuss important developments and create roadmaps for the development of biophotonics to meet healthcare and research challenges. The Congress (ICOB) occurs every two years; the Consortium aims to keep the community informed and involved in between Congresses by collaboration and communication among Node Leaders and by using BiophotonicsWorld.org as a knowledge repository and the communication conduit for biophotonics researchers and users everywhere.
Some of the things you can currently do on BiophotonicsWorld.org are listed below. However, the portal is shaped by its users, so we appreciate any comments and suggestions you might have.
To get the most out of this website, we recommend that you register and login (free). To open an account (register), you must receive an invitation from a current account holder. You can then login to BiophotonicsWorld.org with your user name and password or your OpenID if you have it added to your account.
We are continuously working on improvements and new features for the BiophotonicsWorld.org portal, to make it more useful. Your active participation, comments and suggestions on current and new features will make the site more useful to the whole community.
