It is with great sadness that the ACA shares the passing of longtime ACA member Dr. Ian David Brown, who died peacefully on June 29, 2026, at the age of 94. Known simply as David to his friends and colleagues, he leaves behind an extraordinary legacy that has shaped the field of crystallography for generations.
The American Crystallographic Association is pleased to recognize its newest class of ACA Fellows. Election as an ACA Fellow is one of the Association's highest honors and recognizes members whose contributions to the advancement of crystallography or its applications are scientifically or socially distinguished. Fellows may be recognized for excellence in research, teaching, technological innovation, service to professional societies, leadership in academia, industry, or government, or for outstanding efforts in communicating science to broader audiences.
The American Crystallographic Association (ACA) is pleased to announce the recipients of three of its highest honors for 2027. These awards recognize outstanding achievements in crystallographic research, structural science, and diffraction physics, as well as the individuals whose work continues to advance our understanding of the structure of matter.
One of the ACA’s most important responsibilities is ensuring that our Annual Meetings provide outstanding scientific experiences while remaining financially sustainable, accessible, and engaging for members. After an extensive site selection process spanning several years, we are delighted to announce the locations of the ACA Annual Meetings through 2029:
For more than fifteen years, ACA members have looked forward to one of the Association’s most unique and engaging traditions: the ACA Puzzle.
Each quarter, we highlight a new collection of book reviews exploring a wide variety of topics and perspectives. Whether informative, thought-provoking, or simply enjoyable, these selections reflect the broad interests of our community and may inspire your next great read.
The ACA Newsletter, a.k.a. RefleXions, is a mainstay of communications in the structural sciences community and holds a special place among social media platforms and other background noise. It has evolved since its inception by the esteemed Dr. Jenny Glusker in the 1960’s, including moving from print editions to a digital only format. The latter was spearheaded by previous editor Dr. Paul Swepston and is noted to have saved the society large sums by circumventing printing and mailing charges.
It is a tremendous honor to serve as the new President of the American Crystallographic Association. I look forward to working with our outstanding community and continuing the ACA’s tradition of scientific excellence, collaboration, and collegiality.
Celebrating Excellence in Structural Dynamics: Elina Elvelo Recognized at the 2026 BCA Meeting
If you’ve attended an ACA meeting, you probably know that I travel with what I jokingly call my “unpaid labor” — also known as family members. What started as immediate family support has evolved, and for the past two years my mother has joined me, faithfully working the registration desk.
ACA is pleased to share a recent update from corporate partner STOE & Cie GmbH. STOE has announced a new partnership with Advanced Measurement Instruments (AMI), which has acquired a majority interest in the company.
The American Crystallographic Association is pleased to share news from our publishing partnership with AIP Publishing: Structural Dynamics is entering a new chapter with the appointment of Mark Wilson as Editor-in-Chief.
Earlier this month, the American Crystallographic Association convened Special Interest Group (SIG) officers, new leaders, and members of Council for a focused discussion on the future of SIG engagement and the long-term strength of the Association.
Each quarter, we feature a new collection of book reviews covering a wide range of topics—some thought-provoking, some purely for enjoyment, and all well worth your time. This small but mighty selection is designed to spark curiosity and may even inspire your next visit to the library or bookstore. We are grateful to Jeanette S. Ferrara, MFA, who contributed all of this quarter’s reviews.
And just like that, we are at the start of December, and I’m writing my last President’s Column for RefleXions. I find it hard to believe how quickly the year went by. It has been an honour to serve you all as President during our 75th Anniversary year. This year has been one of ups and downs, challenges and opportunities, and was highlighted by our Annual Meeting in Lombard.
The American Crystallographic Association is deeply grateful to Virginia Pett, who is concluding her service as ACA Historian. Virginia’s dedication, care, and steady leadership have played a vital role in preserving the history of our Association and ensuring that ACA’s legacy remains accessible to current and future generations.
Earlier this month, we hosted a We’re Listening session to discuss the results of the Future Meetings Survey. The conversation was thoughtful and productive, and it gave us valuable context beyond the survey data alone.
I recently had the opportunity to attend the 7th Latin American Crystallographic Association and 27th Brazilian Crystallographic Association (LACA-ABCr 2025), which was held between October 14-17, 2025, in Fortaleza, Brazil. I was looking forward to this meeting for some time and learning more of research across the structural sciences community in the broader Americas.
CSD Communications is a way to share small molecule crystal structures directly in the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD) without requiring an associated scientific publication.
We are pleased to share that the American Crystallographic Association (ACA) has been invited to participate in a new national initiative — REV UP, led by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and funded by the AIP Venture Fund.
