The word “late-breaking” invokes an image of a breaking news story, often accompanied by lower thirds that convey urgency and the sense that it is not something to be missed. Up until the advent of 24-hour television, programming interruptions were restricted to very urgent news events and a few other special circumstances. While it is understandable that the importance of Late Breakers has increased dramatically since their introduction, it is worth asking if the pendulum has overswung and if a great deal of hype is associated with them now.
Late-breaking abstracts are based on new data that have become available after the general abstract submission deadline. They are intended to provide exposure and recognition for research that is timely, exciting, and potentially of high impact to the neuroscience community.
Although the research presented in these sessions is not likely to have immediate clinical application, it should be able to advance our understanding of the field and help lay the groundwork for future work that may be ultimately of significant clinical relevance. The research should also be original or innovative, as opposed to merely confirmatory or a direct extension of previously reported findings.
Only three Late-breaking abstracts will be selected for oral presentation at the conference. The rest will be presented as either paper or virtual poster presentations in specific poster stands. Unless they are accepted as a late-breaking abstract, all other abstracts must be scientifically focused and align with one of the meeting’s Theme A-J. If an individual is listed as the presenting author on multiple abstracts, only one will be considered as a late-breaking abstract.