In tribute to the character and accomplishments of Nat Sternberg, a thesis prize has been established in his name. Its purpose is to encourage young scientists who give early evidence of perpetuating the salient qualities that were Nat Sternberg's: skill, insightfulness, rigorousness and dedication to science. The Nat Sternberg Thesis Prize is a cash award given each year to a student for the most outstanding PhD thesis in the field of prokaryotic molecular genetics. The award will be presented at the annual Molecular Genetics of Bacteria and Phages meeting, at which time the recipient will give a seminar about his or her work. The amount of the award will be at least $1500, with the exact amount to be determined by the award committee and the fund manager. The award will provide a travel allowance over and above the $1500 prize. A brief introduction of the year's winner and the nature of the prize will be presented at the meeting by the Award Committee Chair or a designate. The 2001 meeting will be held at Madison, Wisconsin, from 31 July to 5 August. The nominee must have completed and successfully defended his or her PhD thesis within a 12-month period prior to 1 July of the year of the award. The nominee should be willing to report on the thesis work at the annual Molecular Genetics of Bacteria and Phages meeting. Nominations must come from the thesis advisor or a member of the thesis examination committee. Nominators should send the candidate's curriculum vitae together with a copy of the thesis abstract that indicates the significance of the work to the field. Include reprints or preprints of articles based on the thesis material and three letters of reference, one of which must be from the thesis advisor. These items should be packaged together and six copies sent to the member of the Award Committee whose areas of interest most closely correspond to the topic of the thesis (see below). Nominations must be received by 1 May (preferably sooner), prior to the Molecular Genetics of Bacteria and Phages meeting. Current members are: Susan Gottesman, Chair, NIH, USA; Alan Grossman, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA; Don Court; National Cancer Institute, USA; Catherine Squires, Tufts University School of Medicine, USA; Robert Simons, UCLA, USA; and Steve Busby, University of Birmingham, UK. Individual and corporate donations to the Nat L. Sternberg Thesis Prize endowment fund are welcome and may be made by contacting G. Morgan Browne, Administrative Director, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, PO Box 100, Cold Spring Harbor, New York 11724-2213, USA (tel: (+1) 516 367 8300). We acknowledge the generosity of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in administering the endowment fund, of DuPont Merck Pharmaceutical Company for supplying the initial seed money, and of the many private individuals who have provided additional support., For further information, see http://http://www.cshl.org/meetings/NSAWARD.htm or contact Susan Gottesman at: susang@helix.nih.gov