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Singapore 2024: A Country Unlike Any Other
I had the pleasure to visit and explore Singapore last month together with Education Chair Kei Yamada, ISMRM Interim Director Anne-Marie Kahrovic, and Meetings Manager Sandrine Milanello. We toured the centrally located Suntec Convention Centre so that we can plan the layout of different scientific, educational, ISMRT, member-initiated, and other sessions. You are in for a treat when you visit Singapore! 
5.6 million people of diverse backgrounds and cultures (particularly Chinese, Malaysian, Indian, and British) in just 700 square kilometers. My favorites were (1) wandering through the Gardens by the Bay, with its different tropical plants and attractions; (2) walking along the waterfront and trying to count the ships in the world’s busiest port; (3) exploring the temples, mosques, and streets of Little India and Chinatown; and (4) eating the endless variety of foods!
The Annual Meeting Program Committee (AMPC) is working hard to complete an excellent education program. Our different disciplines are combining to form the Clinical Focus Meeting, entitled MRI: Transforming Diagnosis & Care in Trauma, which will bring together clinicians and scientists to deepen our understanding of the critical aspects surrounding injured patients and explore current and innovative MR imaging approaches in trauma. Session topics will include mild traumatic brain injury, spinal cord and bone injuries, pediatric trauma, and a debate on the role of MRI in acute body trauma. Basic science areas will explore existing and new MRI approaches in the setting of trauma.
The AMPC is also working on many different aspects of the meeting as we prepare for the abstract submission site to open in October. As we build sessions, we continually aim to select speakers and moderators who represent the diversity of the society—whether it be geographic, training, specialty area, gender, or career stage. You can greatly help this effort: (1) by keeping your ISMRM member biography and information current by going to “+My Profile” after logging in at the member site; and (2) by responding to the calls for volunteers for moderators and abstract reviewers, which you can expect very soon!
Finally, some important highlights of our meeting. We are pleased to announce the call for Member-Initiated Sessions due 20 October 2023. Repeat It With Me: Reproducibility Team Challenge aims to raise awareness of the importance of reproducible science, by reproducing studies in past ISMRM abstracts. We encourage you to register your study on the challenge website before February 2024. Clinical Translation: Unmet Needs pushes teams to propose, develop and demonstrate solutions to high-impact clinical needs, with final submissions in February 2024. For both challenges, we highly encourage you to additionally submit an abstract on 08 November 2023 for consideration for the main scientific program.
Next month, we will share instructions and tips for the 2024 abstract submission, as well as meeting updates based on your excellent comments and suggestions in the annual survey responses.
Brian Hargreaves, Ph.D.
2024 Annual Meeting Program Chair
