1. Name

The IEEE Communications Society Molecular, Biological and Multi-Scale Communications Technical Committee, abbreviated as MBMC-TC

2. Mission

The MBMC-TC facilitates and fosters research and education in the emerging area of molecular, biological and multi-scale communications.

3. Charter

The MBMC-TC achieves its mission through providing its members with

  • a forum that facilitates and promotes technical discussions, interactions and collaborations, and
  • a forum that facilitates and broadens its members’ professional opportunity.

The MBMC-TC serves engineers, researchers, scientists and educators who work in the interdisciplinary and dynamic area of molecular, biological and multi-scale communications.

This area of molecular, biological and multi-scale communications is highly interdisciplinary involving disciplines that are considered within the traditional IEEE ComSoc (e.g., communication and networking) and those that are typically considered outside the IEEE ComSoc (e.g., molecular and cell biology, synthetic biology, biological engineering and medicine). This area is also highly dynamic, as the disciplines and underlying technologies involved are progressing at a remarkable speed.

The MBMC-TC pursues the following activities to achieve its mission. It will

  • organize journal special issues as well as special sessions, symposia, tutorials and workshops in leading conferences,
  • encourage its members to publish in the venues that it organizes and also in the existing IEEE transactions and journals in relevant areas,
  • organize dedicated topical meetings and other events to identify innovative research challenges and facilitate collaboration among its members,
  • work closely with existing conferences and journals in relevant areas and participate in paper review process and session organization,
  • work closely with relevant societies within and outside IEEE,
  • coordinate with the IEEE Standards Association Working Group on Nanoscale and Molecular Communications to help transfer technologies to industry, and
  • disseminate its members relevant technical information of their interest.

4. Membership

A member is defined as anyone interested in furthering the mission of the MBMC-TC and who subscribes to the MBMC-TC mailing list. Anyone can subscribe to the MBMC-TC mailing list. Note that additional membership requirements of the IEEE ComSoc may apply.

5. Elected and Appointed Officers

There are three elected offices in the MBMC-TC, as described below. The elected officers appoint appointed officers (e.g., Conference Coordinator, Standards Liaison, Web Coordinator, and Advisory Committee) at their discretion. The term of an appointed officer is coincident with that of the elected officers.

5.1. Chair

The Chair performs the following tasks. He/She

  • sets the overall direction and policy of the MBMC-TC, in consultation with the other elected and appointed officers and MBMC-TC members,
  • coordinates the activities of the elected and appointed officers,
  • chairs the MBMC-TC meetings,
  • represents the MBMC-TC in Emerging Technologies Committee (ETC) meetings, and in other relevant IEEE Technical Committees (TCs),
  • initiates elections for vacant officer positions, and
  • participates in the MBMC-TC activities.

5.2. Vice Chair

The Vice Chair performs the following tasks. He/She

  • works with the Chair to help him/her to perform Chair’s tasks,
  • fulfills the duties of the Chair in his/her absence,
  • coordinates with the Conference Coordinator (appointed position), and takes an appropriate action where necessary, in consultation with the other elected and appointed officers and MBMC-TC members, and
  • participates in the MBMC-TC activities.

5.3. Secretary

The Secretary performs the following tasks. He/She

  • arranges for meeting facilities for the MBMC-TC meetings, arranges remote access capability to the meetings where available, and announces the meetings to the MBMC-TC members,
  • compiles meeting minutes, publishes the meeting minutes to the MBMC-TC members and maintains the archival record of the meeting minutes,
  • compiles a list of meeting attendees, publishes the list to the MBMC-TC members and maintains the archival record of the list,
  • coordinates with the Web Coordinator (appointed position) to maintain and archive the MBMC-TC web site and mailing list, and responds to questions regarding web pages and mailing list postings,
  • fulfills the duties of the Vice Chair in his/her absence, and
  • participates in the MBMC-TC activities.

6. Officer Elections

Officers are elected for the two year term. After serving the term as an officer, he/she must wait for at least one term before he/she becomes eligible again to serve as an officer. If an officer resigns before the term expires, a successor is elected to fill the remainder of the term.

Any MBMC-TC member may nominate any MBMC-TC member as a candidate to an elected office, including himself/herself. At the time of election, a candidate must be a member of the MBMC-TC and IEEE ComSoc. He/she must maintain the required membership throughout the time period when he/she serves as an officer.

The Chair announces the election and solicits nominations from the MBMC-TC members for a period of at least two weeks on the MBMC-TC mailing list. The Chair, as a member of the MBMC-TC, may also nominate candidates in consultation with other elected and appointed officers.

The Chair contacts the nominees to confirm their willingness to serve as an officer before issuing a ballot; candidates nominated must agree to serve to be placed on a ballot.

It is highly desirable that candidates are familiar with MBMC-TC and have been actively participating in MBMC-TC activities and on the MBMC-TC mailing list. It is also desirable to have at least two candidates for each office.

Each active MBMC-TC member has one vote. An MBMC-TC member is considered active if he/she attended 1 out of the last 2 MBMC-TC meetings. Elected officers regularly review the definition of active membership and may modify the definition with consultation with the appointed officers and MBMC-TC members. The candidate who receives the most number of votes is elected. Ties will be resolved by selecting a candidate randomly using a randomization algorithm.

A candidate may be considered for multiple offices. When a candidate is nominated for multiple offices, he/she may choose to be a candidate for all or a subset of offices for which he/she is nominated. If a candidate is elected for Chair, he/she is removed from consideration for Vice Chair and Secretary. If a candidate is elected for Vice Chair, he/she is removed from consideration for Secretary.

Voting is done over a period of two weeks after the Chair issues a ballot. Active MBMC-TC members cast their votes through an online system. When the voting period ends, the Chair promptly announces the election results on the MBMC-TC mailing list.

There is no quorum for the election.

7. Mailing List

The MBMC-TC mailing list is for discussion of a technical nature and discussion of issues related to the MBMC-TC mission and business. Those who wish to post on the MBMC-TC mailing list must follow the rules and policies of MBMC-TC mailing list, as described below.

The MBMC-TC mailing list is open to the following types of post, provided they are in areas that are likely to be of interest to the MBMC-TC members. Such posts may be posted without consulting the Secretary (elected office) or Web Coordinator (appointed position).

  • technical discussions,
  • faculty, post-doctoral, graduate and under-graduate student positions, and summer internships at academic institutions and government institutions,
  • Call for Papers (CFPs), Request for Information (RFIs), and Request for Proposals (RFPs), and
  • discussions related to the MBMC-TC mission and business.

The following types of post are reviewed by the MBMC-TC Secretary and/or by the Web Coordinator and may be forwarded at his/her discretion.

  • other postings of potential interest to its members, and
  • job position announcements, subject to the limitations of the IEEE ComSoc.

If you are not sure if your post is suitable for the MBMC-TC mailing list, please first check with the Secretary or Web Coordinator before posting.

The MBMC-TC adapts the following mailing list policy from the IEEE TCCC policies and procedures.

  • Posting to the MBMC-TC mailing list without explicitly including the list in the To: field is prohibited. In other words, do not include the MBMC-TC mailing address in meta lists, i.e., a mailing list consisting of other mailing lists, as this has been shown repeatedly to cause mail storms.
  • Postings to the MBMC-TC mailing list should be in plain text, i.e., no attachments. Additional information should be referenced via a URL pointing to the document. If attachments cannot be avoided, they should use open-standard document formats such as HTML or PDF.

Only MBMC-TC members can post to the mailing list. Posters to the MBMC-TC mailing list must identify themselves by true name and professional affiliation.

The MBMC-TC mailing list is not moderated.

The Secretary in coordination with the Web Coordinator archives the MBMC-TC mailing list.

The mailing list serves as the official membership list for the MBMC-TC.

8. MBMC-TC Meetings

The MBMC-TC meets regularly at a location that is convenient for its members and chosen from the major IEEE ComSoc conferences. It currently meets at ICC and Globecom.

The MBMC-TC meetings are open to the public.

The Secretary announces the meeting at least two weeks in advance on the MBMC-TC mailing list.

The Chair prepares the meeting agenda. Any MBMC-TC member may suggest meeting agenda items.

The Chair chairs the meetings.

The Secretary takes minutes and makes them available to the MBMC-TC members within one month of the meeting. He/she posts the minutes on the MBMC-TC web site and announces their availability on the MBMC-TC mailing list.

The MBMC-TC adopts Robert’s Rules of Order for its meetings unless otherwise specified.

9. Selected Areas in Communications (SAC) Track Chair for MBMC at ICC and Globecom

The MBMC-TC supports the SAC track focusing on molecular, biological and multiscale communications at each ICC and Globecom. For each ICC and Globecom, the elected officers of the MBMC-TC identify a SAC Track Chair at their discretion and nominate him/her to the ICC/Globecom organizing committee. The ICC/Globecom organizing committee considers the nomination from the MBMC-TC and makes the final decision.

The Chair solicits nominations from the MBMC-TC members for a period of at least two weeks on the MBMC-TC mailing list. Any MBMC-TC member may nominate any MBMC-TC member or members as a candidate for the SAC Track Chair, including himself/herself. The Chair, as a member of the MBMC-TC, may also nominate a candidate or candidates in consultation with the other elected and appointed officers. Within two weeks after the candidate nomination is closed, the elected officers of the MBMC-TC identify the most suitable SAC Track Chair candidate at their discretion after considering all nominations and nominate him/her to the ICC/Globecom organizing committee.

A candidate must be a member of the MBMC-TC and IEEE ComSoc, when he/she is nominated. He/she must also maintain the required membership throughout the time period when he/she serves as a SAC Track Chair. A candidate who served or has been selected to serve as a symposium chair or a SAC track chair in 3 of the 6 ICC/Globecom conferences prior to the conference in question is not eligible to serve as the MBMC SAC Track Chair for that conference. Additional requirements from the ICC/Globecom organizing committee may apply.

The SAC Track Chair performs the following tasks. He/she

  • Attends the TPC meeting of the ICC or Globecom for which he/she is appointed and coordinates with the TPC for the organization of the SAC track,
  • Appoints TPC members for the SAC track in consultation with the elected officers of the MBMC-TC,
  • Organizes the SAC track at the ICC or Globecom for which he/she is appointed, and
  • Reports the SAC track activities to the MBMC-TC.

10. Information Dissemination

The MBMC-TC maintains a mailing list and web site. They are accessible by the public.

11. Changes in Policies and Procedures

Any MBMC-TC member may petition to make changes in the policies and procedures. When a petition is filed, the Chair presents the proposed change at the next MBMC-TC meeting. If there are no objections, the change becomes effective. If there are objections, a vote is promptly held at the ETC-MBMC meeting. A simple majority is used to determine if the change becomes effective.

If a part of the policies and procedures on this page conflicts with the IEEE or IEEE ComSoc policies and procedures, the IEEE or IEEE ComSoc policies and procedures take precedence. The remainder of the policies and procedures on this page remains in effect.

Parts of the substance and texts of this document are influenced by the proven-to-work policies and procedures of other IEEE TCs such as TCCC.