2019, Number 2-3
Physiology without Borders: US and Cuban scientists meet in space
Dorta-Contreras AJ
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Language: English
References: 3
Page: 76-76
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Over 400 delegates from 28 countries gathered recently in Havana for the 2nd Pan-American Congress of Physiological Sciences (May, 2019). It was quite an event, the level of science attesting to the quality of participants from the world over. The conference attracted more US scientists to Cuba than any other in the field of medicine over the last several years: 228. I find this number particularly noteworthy amidst the pressures they faced to keep them from coming.However, such robust US participation was no accident: the event’s International Scientific Committee encouraged it, and the US delegates themselves were clearly determined to attend despite the rumor-mongering, the new restrictions announced by the White House and the added bureaucracy of traveling to Cuba—even legally. One by one the obstacles to their participation were overcome and so they joined other prestigious scientists from Latin America and the world, including Cubans. Unfortunately, several NASA specialists were prohibited from attending the Satellite Symposium on Space Physiology—which proved to be one of the most fascinating sessions.
REFERENCES
Connors MM, Harrison AA, Akins FR. Living Aloft: Human Requirements for Extended Spacefl ight [Internet]. Washington, D.C.: NASA Ames Research Center, Scientifi c and Technical Information Branch, National Aeronautics and Space Administration; 1985 [cited 2019 Jun 11]. Available from: https://history .nasa.gov/SP-483/ch2-3.htm