Biophysical Society Bulletin | May 2023

Publications

Rangamani Appointed Next Editor-in-Chief of The Biophysicist

information from the noise.” The journal’s readership and the biophysics community look forward to seeing The Biophysicist continue to grow and evolve under Rangamani’s guidance. Biophysical Journal Launches Postdoctoral Reviewer Program Biophysical Journal has initiated a new Postdoctoral Reviewer Program, giving postdoctoral researchers in biophysics the opportunity to be mentored by one of the journal’s Editors, to learn the editorial process, and to complete reviews that will be used in deciding whether articles will be accepted for publication. The program’s aim is for postdoctoral researchers to learn early in their careers how to properly and constructively review a paper. This will help them to write their own papers, to know more about the editorial process, and to be better positioned to become an editor themselves one day! Applicants must be in a postdoctoral position during the 2023–2024 academic year and must provide 1) a CV, includ ing relevant publications (up to 4 pages), 2) a link to at least one paper on which the candidate was first author, 3) a can didate statement of reasons for wanting to participate in the program, 4) a letter of support from a current mentor (current Society member) highlighting the applicant’s readiness to be a peer reviewer, and 5) a second letter of support. Applications are being accepted now and are due by July 1. Successful applicants will receive instructions this summer and will begin their one-year term in September. It is hoped that postdocs will be excited to expand their skills by acting as a Postdoc Reviewer. If you know a postdoc who would be a good candidate, please encourage them to apply at www. biophysics.org/publications/biophysical-journal/bj-postdoc toral-reviewer-program. If you have any questions about the program or the application process, please reach out to BJ@biophysics.org. The Biophysicist Reaches Out to BPS Student Chapters Sam Safran , Editor-in-Chief of The Biophysicist , recently sent a letter to the BPS Student Chapters on behalf of the jour nal’s editorial board to make students aware of the journal and the ways in which they can participate in the publication,

The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce that Padmini Rangamani of the University of California, San Diego will be the next Editor-in-Chief of the Society’s education journal, The Biophysicist. The open access journal was launched in 2019 under the vision of the founding and current Edi tor-in-Chief, Sam Safran of the Department of Chemical and Biologi cal Physics of the Weizmann Institute

Padmini Rangamani

of Science, to highlight and nurture biophysics education, and its scholarship and development. Through academic Articles and more informal Reports (including a Student Forum), The Biophysicist brings fundamental concepts and techniques in biophysics education and related disciplines to a broad worldwide audience, as well as evidence-based pedagogical practice accessible to individuals at any level. After five years of establishing a successful trajectory for the journal, Safran will be passing the leadership baton this summer. The Society is immensely grateful for his contribution to the publications program. After a search process in summer and fall of 2022 conducted by the BPS Publications Committee, Rangamani was enthusi astically recommended as Safran’s successor and confirmed by BPS Council at the Annual Meeting in San Diego in Feb ruary. She currently studies the biophysics of endocytosis, theoretical developments in membrane-protein interactions, and the biophysics of dendritic spines. She credits luck and serendipity for helping to bring her to biophysics, when she was looking for a place where she could apply mathematical principles to biology. She will bring to the position the per spective of a researcher and educator in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering who considers the Biophysical Society her professional home. She also currently serves as an Editorial Board Member for Biophysical Journal and on the Society’s Committee for Professional Opportuni ties for Women (CPOW). When asked for her vision for the future of the journal, Rangamani said, “More than ever, now is the time for an education journal such as The Biophysicist to steer the conversation towards what matters most, creating a forum for best practices in education at all levels, and separating the

May 2023

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