New Orleans-The 33rd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB), held here from 11 to 15 December, began on a triumphant note : In his opening address, Harold Varmus, the new director of the National Institutes of Health, proclaimed ’that the scientific rabble [the bench scientists] has politely taken over the director’s office." And he made clear, in what was his first policy speech since taking off ice, that he intended to fight for recognition for basic research. That message went down well with his ASCB audience-all keen supporters of basic research, as the samplings of the meeting below attest.