What is the Lake Louise Tandem Mass Spectrometry Workshop?

Lake Louise is one of the premier spots within Canada noted for its exceptional beauty and natural habitat.  It is certainly one of Canada’s greatest attractions and the site chosen to host the annual workshop on tandem mass spectrometry.  The Lake Louise Workshop on Tandem Mass Spectrometry was initiated more than twenty years ago by a group of international scientists working in the field and supported by the worldwide industry providing the instrumentation.  The workshop continues to operate, now as a not for profit organization fully incorporated with officers, members and an organizational committee from several different countries, whose membership many of you will know. The organizing committee does have membership from scientists holding offices in the Canadian Society of Mass Spectrometry, the American Society of Mass Spectrometry  and other international mass spectrometry associations. In this regard the president of the Canadian Society of Mass Spectrometry, has an ex-officio appointment to the Lake Louise workshop organizing committee demonstrating the special relationship that exists between the two organizations.

As a science within Canada mass spectrometry has always had a significant place with excellent scientists choosing Canada as their place to work and publish.  Of course like any other science there will always be a need to form a collective to share ideas and discuss new advancements.  The Canadian Society of Mass Spectrometry(CSMS) provides an organizational structure that concerns itself with Canadian based scientists working in mass spectrometry.  It has its own constitution, terms of reference, bylaws and membership.  Many of the members of CSMS are also participants in the Lake Louise Workshop on Tandem Mass Spectrometry and some are members of the workshop’s organizational committee.  This is a good thing since the workshop annually provides a platform to present cutting edge research on tandem mass spectrometry conducted both within Canada as well as throughout the world.  In fact the original name of the workshop was the International Workshop on Tandem Mass Spectrometry held at Lake Louise, Canada.