Marie Kerbeshian, vice president of technology commercialization at Indiana University Research and Technology Corp., is leading workshops and speaking at international conferences April 14-29 in China. She shares her thoughts about her final stop: Dalian, Liaoning Province, where she will speak at the BIG Life Sciences’ seventh annual World DNA and Genome Day.
Monday was the opening of the event, with industry scientists and academic scientists with translational research projects making keynote speeches all day. The highlight was a talk from chemistry Nobel Laureate Dr. Arieh Warshel (2013). Dalian is home to over 20 universities, and a lot of students are attending the conference.
Tuesday I joined a tour group with other attendees who did not have sessions today. Dalian is a very young city, just over 100 years old, and spent the first part of its life being fought over by the Russians and Japanese. It didn’t end up firmly with China until the end of World War II.
There are lots of open public squares and beautiful views of the ocean and mountains. Unlike everywhere else I’ve been in China, I saw very few bicycles and no motor scooters. It is too hilly for them to be practical for commuting. In July and August, Dalian becomes a destination for beach tourism from both southern China and Russia but once September arrives, the water is too cold for swimming.
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