Cardiovascular experts attending the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2014 should come prepared to keep up with the conference’s rapid pace. The event, taking place November 15-19 in Chicago, will hold several high-speed presentations that break down the biggest topics in heart science.

“The Next Best Thing in Cardiovascular Science (at Lightning Speed)” session will feature 16 individual presentations on major innovations in the field, each lasting a maximum of five minutes. The complex subjects, ranging from “The Next Generation of Lipid Lowering Drug Therapies” to “Targeted Molecular Imaging of Atherosclerosis: The Next Best Thing in Cardiovascular Imaging (CVRI),” will all get the same fast-paced treatment, giving attendees a conference’s worth of information in less than an hour and a half.

The discussions of late-breaking clinical trials also promise to deliver speedy information and analysis, with presentations on topics such as “Treatment of Structural Heart Disease.” The whirlwind presentations put a new spin on medical education, shaking things up for experts used to more academic presentations.

The Week Ahead:

November 14-17: The American Institute of Chemical Engineers is taking a “work hard, play hard” approach to its Annual Student Conference in Atlanta. It will blend learning and fun with events that include the Student Bash, the Chem-E-Car Competition, and ChemE Jeopardy.

November 21-23: The National Council for the Social Studies is highlighting the importance of community involvement with this year’s annual conference theme: the Civic Mission of Schools. The Boston-based event will promote civic participation with a “Legacy Voices of Civil Rights Heroes” session, which features the daughter of Fred Korematsu, the grandson of Cesar Chávez, and a descendant of both Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington talking about their famous ancestors’ lives, legacies, and how attendees can continue to advance their initatives.

Down the Line:

November 22-25: The American Academy of Religion will help move religious studies into the digital age during this year’s annual meeting in San Diego. The Humanities and Technology Camp (THATCamp) Workshop will bring scholars and techies together to learn how to incorporate digital technology into teaching and research, with possible workshop topics covering academic blogging, social media in the classroom, and web-based class projects. In the same vein, the Religion and Media Workshop will examine the intersection of religion, media, and culture.

Plus, President Jimmy Carter will participate in a discussion on “The Role of Religion in Mediating Conflicts and Imagining Futures: The Cases of Climate Change and Equality for Women.”

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