Category Archives: Epernicus

2009 Epernicus EPAC meeting

It was great seeing our customers and other thought leaders at our executive product advisory council meeting this week in Boston.  It was pretty incredible having so many people from top pharma and science organizations in one room talking about social media and really digging into the benefits and challenges.  Just finished going through the feedback forms — feedback has been very positive and and the most common suggestion was that we make the meeting longer next time.  Special thanks to GSK, Genzyme and the Broad Institute for your great case studies.  A few photos from the event:

posted by Cameron Snider, VP Business Development

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Epernicus Launches Private Social Networking Solutions for Companies

We are excited to tell you about a new development at Epernicus – the creation of internal social networking platforms for pharma companies and non-profit research institutes. This new venture was inspired by companies who liked what they saw on our public site and realized they needed a community like Epernicus inside their institution.

Many companies and research institutes have thousands of researchers spread across multiple locations. As you might imagine, enabling effective communication and collaboration among researchers and between internal business units can be challenging. Social networking platforms can facilitate these interactions by enabling people to easily locate, learn about, and contact each other. They can also accelerate serendipitous interactions which, in turn, can speed up the path to discovery and development.

The private internal versions of Epernicus are highly tailored to fit the specific culture and needs of institutions ranging from non-profit research organizations to pharmaceutical companies to medical device companies. Our platforms can also be molded for companies outside the traditional biomedical research space.

You can learn more about Epernicus Solutions and see a brief slide show at http://solutions.epernicus.com/. Please contact us at http://solutions.epernicus.com/contact.php with questions or comments.

posted by Vivek Murthy, Chairman

Searching BenchQs

One of the features we’ve most often been asked about via the Epernicus feedback form is the capability to search BenchQ threads.  While this functionality was not prioritized for early releases of Epernicus, we quietly introduced this feature last month.  We’re now indexing all BenchQ questions (and corresponding replies), and return results only for those questions which you are permitted to view.

Click here to try a BenchQ search for “PCR” and learn from the collective knowledge on Epernicus.

Thanks for your continued feedback, and for helping us to make a better Epernicus.

posted by Ezra Freedman, CTO

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Niche Social Netwoks — PC Magazine

Epernicus was recently featured on a list of “10 Cool Niche Social Networks” by PC Magazine. While I’m not sure how I feel about us making the same list as MuggleSpace (a network for people who love Harry Potter), I do believe there is significant value to social/professional networking platforms that do a really great job of addressing the needs of a certain group of people. One of our core tenets has been that researchers are a unique bunch (with concepts like one’s scientific genealogy being a strong part of our culture, for example) whose needs can only be addressed via a networking platform that understands the way science works.

Other specialized networks mentioned on the PC magazine list would include Shelfari for book collectors and Bottletalk for wine aficionados. Members of both of these networks have very specialized knowledge across a number of categories.

By the way, given the popularity of Harry Potter, I wouldn’t be surprised if MuggleSpace were the most popular site on this list ;).

posted by Mikhail Shapiro, Co-founder

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Good article on Social Networking in Science in Bio-IT World

Bio-IT World recently published a great article on social networking for scientists. It explains the benefits of scientific social networking and why you need specially-built networks like Epernicus to do it right.

http://www.bio-itworld.com/issues/2009/mar-apr/keeping-science-connected.html

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Top Scientific Breakthroughs of 2008 – The Votes Are In!

At the start of the year, Epernicus members cast their ballot for the top scientific breakthroughs of 2008. Below are the three candidates which received the most votes.

#1. GROWING A NEW ORGAN FROM A PATIENT’S OWN STEM CELLS

Thanks to stem cell research, people with failing organs may not need to wait for a donor or take harsh medications that prevent their immune systems from rejecting transplanted tissue. One of the greatest examples of regenerative medicine — the science of building or fixing body parts — took place in 2008, when doctors removed some cells from a 30-year-old woman with tuberculosis and used them to grow a new trachea, replacing a segment that was destroyed by the bacterium. They took stem cells from her bone marrow, layered them onto a decellularized trachea from a deceased donor, and surgically implanted it in the woman. Four months later, Claudia Castillo could breathe well and showed no signs of the side-effects that patients have when they receive an organ from someone else. (Source: Wired Science)

# 2. REPROGRAMMING CELLS

This year, scientists achieved a long-sought feat of cellular alchemy. They took skin cells from patients suffering from a variety of diseases and reprogrammed them into stem cells. The feat rests on a genetic trick, first developed in mice and described 2 years ago, in which scientists wipe out a cell’s developmental “memory,” causing it to return to its pristine embryonic state and then regrow into something else. Researchers achieved another milestone this year when they prompted mouse cells to make the leap directly from one mature cell into another – flouting the usual rule that development of cells is a one-way street. These achievements could be an important step on a long path to treating diseases with a patient’s own cells. (Source: Science)

# 3. TURNING WATER INTO FUEL

Companies like Nanosolar and Solyndra slashed the cost of solar energy, but we still need a clean way to store all this power. Daniel Nocera of MIT has an elegant solution: Use electricity to break water into hydrogen and oxygen, store it in separate tanks, then recombine the gases in a fuel cell when you need power. While this process normally takes a lot of energy, Nocera and his team found a catalyst that makes the task of splitting H2O remarkably easy. It could prove to be an efficient storage mechanism for energy harvested by solar cells and wind farms. (Sources: Wired Science, Science)

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Reflections on 2008

I remember sitting in the Epernicus office a year ago, staring out over a thick blanket of December snow and wondering what the next few months had in store for us.  Epernicus was in its infancy in those days.  Our mission was bold but untested.  Our portfolio of assets was thin.  It included a basic web application, 2 office chairs, 1 file cabinet, 4 enthusiastic founders, and a whopping 20 members. 
 
Over the next several months, we held focus groups, built and rebuilt many parts of the site, and refined our vision for what would make high quality, high utility scientific network.  During this time, it was the input of many of our members, friends, and colleagues which shaped our ideas and the eventual platform. 
 
Since we opened our virtual doors this past summer, we’ve seen scientists join from over a thousand institutions in 57 different countries.  Epernicus members have added nearly 20,000 assets and have built rich profiles that are helping colleagues learn about their skills and accomplishments.  It’s been very gratifying for us to see the community grow.  We’ve also appreciated all the feedback that we’ve gotten along the way through emails, focus groups, and our member advisory council.  Our members’ feedback – both complimentary and constructive – has been a key factor that has made Epernicus one of the leading scientific networks. 
 
We have come a long way in one year; but we also know that we have a long way to go.  Our core mission remains the same: to enable scientists to find the people and resources they need to advance their research. 
 
In 2009, we have set an ambitious agenda for ourselves.  Our focus will be on helping scientists showcase their talents more effectively while also facilitating more productive exchanges between researchers.  We want Epernicus to be a resource that scientists can go to whenever they want to learn about a colleague, find a specific skill, or ask a question to their community.  As it has been from the beginning, the input of our members will be a critical part of ensuring success. 
 
Happy Holidays from everyone on the Epernicus Team!  We’re looking forward to 2009!
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