World Tai Chi & Qigong Day is excited and honored to have Dr. Shin Lin, Professor of Cell Biology, Biomedical Engineering, & Integrative Medicine; Director, International Alliance on Mind/Body Signaling and Energy Research; at University of California at Irvine, as this NEW Medical Science Page contributor and editor. His vision of integrating the profound gifts of Tai Chi, Qigong, and mind/body medicine into society at all levels, through scientifically uncovering their myriad benefits, is perfectly in-line with our vision at World Tai Chi & Qigong Day. About Dr. Shin Lin: In 2006, Dr. Lin was asked by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to Chair a Think Tank working group of scientific experts to evaluate the state of research on "Energy Medicine" (is there such a thing as "Qi"?). Earlier this year, the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services appointed Dr. Lin to a 4-year term on the National Advisory Council on Complementary and Alternative Medicine (see press release at http://nccam.nih.gov). The Council is responsible for giving top level advice to NCCAM on funding of specific research grants as well as general directions for future support in the broad area of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (~$130 million in 2008). While at the latest National Advisory Council meeting last June, Dr. Shin learned of a detailed report on the status of research on "meditation" prepared by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) on behalf of NCCAM. This report, citing over 800 papers published in English, included Tai Chi and Qigong as 2 of the 5 most studied forms of "meditation" in the world! NCCAM is placing high priority on funding in this general area (see statements on their website). As a follow up to the AHRQ report, NCCAM, together with sister units of NIH (National Cancer Institute and National Aging Institute) and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (their equivalent of NIH), held a small meeting on "Meditation for Health Purposes", which Dr. Lin participated in last month . That meeting, consisting of relevant research experts and government representatives, reaffirmed the high priority the biomedical branches of the U.S. and Canadian government will place on future funding of research on Tai Chi/Qigong and the other types of meditation. As a member of the National Advisory Council, Dr. Lin is advocating, in his position as a member, that Tai Chi and Qigong receive as much attention as the other forms of popular meditation (i.e., transcendental meditation, mindful awareness meditation, and Yoga) when it comes to research funding from NCCAM in the future. This Fall, Dr. Lin will be the Co-Chair of the 11th World Congress on Qigong and Traditional Chinese Medicine to be held in San Francisco Sept.18-20. This event will have a great deal of coverage on the developments at NCCAM as described above. Dr. Lin hopes everyone can make it to the coming World Congress on Qigong. (Visit the website for event details). Dr. Lin recently volunteered to be the next chief organizer for WTCQD in the Irvine area and another exciting development is that the University's Susan Samueli Center for Integrative Medicine at University of California, Irvine, will be the main sponsor of the event to be held on UCI's campus in 2009. For the first time, the event will be expanded to include lectures and scientific demonstrations on the healthful benefits of Tai Chi and Qigong, in addition to the usual performances and activities held at other WTCQD venues in the past. Dr. Lin's WTCQD plans are fulfilling a long time dream of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day, that the medical science community would utilize this spectacular global event each year, as a platform to gain more public/media attention for the emerging medical and scientific research on Tai Chi and Qigong. It is so exciting to be in a place where we can honor the gifts of Chinese culture, Tai Chi and Qigong, by publicizing the emerging scientific research unveiling the profound benefits these high mind/body sciences offer humanity, and at a time in human history when they are most needed. World Tai Chi & Qigong Day would like to personally thank Dr. Shin Lin here, not only for being a part of this Medical Science page, but for all his important work in the fields of Tai Chi, Qigong, biochemistry, and mind/body medicine.