ASPB members share a common goal of promoting the growth, development, and outreach of plant biology as a pure and applied science. This column features some of the dedicated and innovative members of ASPB who believe that membership in our Society is crucial to the future of plant biology.

If you are interested in contributing to this feature, please contact ASPB at info@aspb.org.

Membership Corner

Name: Gokhan Hacisalihoglu
Title: Assistant Professor of Plant Biology
Place of Work or School: Florida A&M University, Biology Department, Tallahassee
Research Area: Plant physiology and genetics, micronutrients, identifying and characterizing mechanisms and pathways used by model plants to regulate tolerance in response to stresses such as mineral deficiency. For further information and collaboration opportunities, please visit http://www.famu.edu/acad/colleges/gokhan/ or contact gokhan.h@famu.edu.
Member since: 1999

1. Has being a member of ASPB helped you in your career? If so, how?
An important aspect of ASPB is the continuing professional support it offers via conferences, leading plant journals, and online documents. Therefore, being an ASPB member has directly and indirectly helped me in my career. Also, ASPB has helped me stay on the cutting edge of my specialty area.

2. Why has being a member of ASPB been important?
ASPB provides a wide array of options for plant biologists. Members have the chance to present their research at annual conferences and network with their colleagues from around the world. ASPB is the voice of plant scientists.

3. Was someone instrumental in getting you to join ASPB?
Dr. Leon Kochian encouraged me to become an ASPB member and attend the Plant Biology 1999 conference in Baltimore.

4. What would you tell nonmembers to encourage them to join?
ASPB provides a wide variety of information for members. Its leading journals Plant Physiology and The Plant Cell give members cutting-edge plant research every month. The ASPB News keeps members updated through its bimonthly issues. ASPB organizes plant biology conferences and sponsors education and outreach programs. Members have many benefits, and they may vote, hold office, serve on committees, and publish in the journals at a reduced rate.

5. Have you found a job using ASPB job postings or through networking at the annual meeting?
No. However, I have found the ASPB Job Bank and conferences very helpful for careers in plant biology. Also, networking with colleagues and having ASPB in my résumé were pluses as well.

6. Have you hired anyone as a result of a job posting at the meeting or on our online Job Bank?
No, but I may in the future because it’s a great way to reach some of the best candidates in plant biological sciences.

7. Do you still read print journals? If so, where do you usually read them?
Yes, I do. I go to libraries to browse the most recent issues of my favorite journals. For most of my literature review, I use online journals.

8. What do you think is the next “big thing” in plant biology?
That is a difficult question to answer. I think the “smart plants” and “smart growth conditions” may be the next big thing. Engineering plants with multiple tasks and with abilities for self-watering and self-nutrition and the capacity to monitor temperature and other environmental conditions would be my favorite next “big thing.”

9. What person, living or dead, do you most admire?
The person I most admire is Dr. Leon Kochian, my Ph.D. supervisor at Cornell University. He has influenced my thinking more than anyone I have met in my scientific career. He helped me step back and think about the big picture at all times to solve the complex problems. He is an extraordinary scientist and adviser who continuously encourages and supports young scientists to build their own careers.

10. What are you reading these days?
Outside of science, I am reading two books at the moment: My Life by Bill Clinton and It’s Not About the Bike by Lance Armstrong. In science, I mostly read Plant Physiology, Science, and The Scientist. Also, I read grant proposal RFAs from different funding agencies because I am trying to start my plant research program in a predominantly undergraduate institution (Florida A&M University).

11. What are your hobbies?
I enjoy music and traveling and therefore different languages and cultures. Furthermore, I have always been interested in computers and the Internet.

12. What is your most treasured possession?
I try not to treasure possessions too much, although I would say my family and friends, but they are not my possessions. I have been fortunate enough to know many wonderful friends. Time is my next most treasured possession, because we have a limited amount of it.

13. What do you still have left to learn?
That’s really hard. I would say finding something joyful every day because joy is a positive decision and can be found everywhere without depending on external circumstances. Improving the nutritional content of seeds such as zinc and iron to help poor people in the developing world and learning to grow plants on Mars are high on my to-do list as well.