Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory was
founded in 1890 at an interesting time
It was founded on land that used to be a
whaling village
Big thing in the 19th century were
Darwin's ideas and then
the beginnings of teaching them through biology labs
Soon thereafter in 1900 when
Mendel's laws of genetics were rediscovered
the Laboratory took a major turn to become the first institution to focus solely on genetics
and this led the direction for the next 125 years
I think there's a fun spot for almost everybody in
biology, certainly in molecular for the Lab
the modern molecular biology
developed in Cold Spring Harbor
People have had some of the most enjoyable thought experiments walking the grounds here
When you walk around the campus, visit scientists in their different labs, you can feel that spirit of
enthusiasm, inspiration,  excitement and an eagerness to share knowledge
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory has made a major effort to start a new cancer therapeutics initiative
that enables our scientists to take the research that they're doing far beyond
what they would have normally done it in
the past and this is also being facilitated
by an extraordinary relationship that we just started this year with the local and largest
health system on the East Coast of the the United States the North Shore-LIJ Health System
This affiliation allows Cold Spring Harbor science to be
discussed with clinical oncologists in the health system
with the explicit intent of coming up with new treatments for cancer patients
or new diagnostic approaches for cancer patients including early detection
Because of the dynamic nature of the faculty at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
we're constantly recruiting very bright young scientists
one of those newest young scientists is
Dra. Camilla dos Santos
We know for over 50 years now than an early age of pregnancy decrease the risk of breast cancer
by thirty to forty percent and
that includes all sub-types of breast cancer
So we are trying to look for
factors present in cells after pregnancy
that decrease the chance of
style to turn into cancer cells
As a cancer survivor myself I really
appreciate the opportunity
to talk with scientists to about cancer related genes
My ambition is to find new ways, new drugs, new therapeutic strategies
that women can take at any age and decrease their risk of developing breast cancer
One of the great example of how a scientist can pick-up on a completely new direction is Dr. Mike wiggler
Mike wiggler has had a really transformative
effect on the understand
of the genetics of diseases that aren't
simple, most of all autism
Up until then pretty much people were looking at
inherited mutation
and Mike suggested going the "De Novo" route and
that has opened up a whole new way of looking at the autism incidence
There's a lot of disease that's caused by new mutation
the kid has some disorder or disability that
is not an either parent there's no history in the family
and these children were not being studied, even though this was clearly a very rich area of genetics
He believed that would be a meaningful cause of autism and he turned out to be right on the button
There's really no other place, that I know of, that has this combination of fantastic scientists on the campus
but also this convening ability to bring other groups here
for some of the best meetings that occur anywhere in the world
Cold Spring Harbor has a sort of placed themselves in the center of both great science and great education
The broader educational programs of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory including our meetings & courses
and the Banbury program have a very big impact on science
Most important part of Cold Spring Harbor education
is the scientists educating each other in effective ways
the way to really make progress to get
lots of smart people to focus on the same issues
and Cold Spring Harbor does
all of that
It is also the center for almost all of the top meetings throughout biology
so you can stay in one place and the world biology comes to you,  so to speak
Right now we're the guardians of this institution and we want to build it
we want to help it continue in the future
it's made so much of a contribution
The last 125 years of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory has really been the development
and the evolution of this extraordinary institution
for the next hundred and twenty-five years and beyond what I think we really need to do
is to become the center where the brightest minds and the best scientists in the world
can come to work in a unique culture and
we can provide the resources
to enable them to do that science
Cold Spring Harbor is the environment where you can go and have a walk with a couple of other scientists
and hear things that you would never hear anywhere else and which change your life
