Third Foundations of Molecular Modeling and Simulation Conference FOMMS 2006

In view of the growing importance of molecular modelling, as a part of its activities, the Molecular Modeling Task Force of CACHE initiated the FOMMS conference series in 2000 to promote the applications and development of computational quantum methods, molecular science, and engineering simulation. Two very successful conferences were held at Keystone Resort, Colorado in July of 2000 and 2003. The third FOMMS conference was held at Semiahmoo Resort, in the Pacific northwest of the United States in July of 2006. The FOMMS conference series is the premier conference focused on new development and applications of computational molecular-based technologies.

The 2006 meeting featured new focus areas in biological applications and educational methods as well as the previous conference themes of multiple time scale and mesoscale methods, advances in modelling and simulation, nanoscience and nanotechnology, reaction engineering, polymeric materials and future vision.

The Editors of Molecular Physics and Molecular Simulation (and the publisher Taylor and Francis Ltd) were sponsors of the FOMMS 2006 Conference and this is the second time the FOMMS proceedings have appeared in Molecular Physics 1 and Molecular Simulation 2. After been reviewed and edited to the usual high standard, contributed papers are being published as special issues of the two journals. As will be apparent from the work collected in these issues, there is an excellent balance between review material introducing the various topics, and new developments in the area of modeling and simulation. While the papers appearing here are only a small fraction of the oral and poster contributions presented at the conference, they nevertheless provide an excellent overview of the conference.

The FOMMS conference was co-chaired by Joe Golab and Clare McCabe, facilitated by CAChE corporation and sponsored by the Computational Molecular Science and Engineering Forum of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.