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Dr. James Shigley is nothing if not candid.

"There are two types of people in this industry," he says matter-of-factly. "Those who are interested in research and those who aren't."

GIA's director of Research knows not everyone shares his passion for gemological research, but he hopes the inaugural GIA Gemological Research Conference will help remedy that.

The event, co-chaired by Shigley and Gems & Gemology (G&G) Editor Brendan Laurs, is set for Aug. 26-27 in San Diego in conjunction with the Institute's 4th International Gemological Symposium. It will feature 60 oral and numerous poster presentations from gemology and its allied sciences, including mineralogy and physics.

"We're trying to reach an academic audience," Shigley says. "We want to attract people from outside the industry who wouldn't normally come to a jewelry show. But there's also a lot of cross-fertilization that can occur, with people who work in the trenches of the jewelry industry meeting with the scientists. We're quite excited about that – it's a big benefit for gemology."

Gemology is a relatively new science that's experienced an incredible evolution in the last 20 years. To date, there's been no gemological research conference available for such wide-scale participation. That's what originally sparked the idea of a broad gemological forum for G&G Editor-in-Chief Alice Keller.

"Mineralogy and gemology have always been closely related, but in the last several years, gemology has overlapped more with other disciplines like geology, physics, chemistry and materials science," she says. "The challenge is gaining access to researchers from these other disciplines, so it's extremely important to gemology to have an open forum like this."

There have also been advancements in technology and instrumentation that, according to Laurs, were unheard of until recently.

"Gemology has become much more technical," he says. "We couldn't have dreamed of some of these things even a few years ago."

Shigley points to identification of irradiated diamonds as an example – they're not always detectable with standard gemological tests.

"If you worked in gem identification 20 years ago, you primarily used the same equipment that new students used," he says. "A lot of the instruments just weren't available. Now, techniques using advanced equipment – like Raman and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy – are part of routine testing in many laboratories."

Edward Boehm, a gemologist, geologist and owner of JOEB Enterprises & Lab Services, LLC, believes the time has come for a conference of this nature.

"The Conference will bring together the best gemologists, other scientists and dealers together to discuss and share their knowledge and concerns for the future of the industry," he says. "It will be a great chance to hear what others have to say and then apply those ideas to my own business and scientific pursuits."

In the interest of staying timely and focused, conference planners have determined six themes for the event: geology of gem deposits, new gem localities, gem characterization techniques, diamond and corundum treatments, laboratory growth of gem materials and general gemology. Shigley and Laurs have invited two experts to present talks on each topic (see photos) and left the remaining speaking slots open for other researchers, who are being selected on the basis of 400-word abstracts, or scientific summaries, they have submitted to the conference organizers.

"We want to emphasize new research and concentrate on new developments and cutting-edge technology," Laurs says.

Two field trips to some of the gem pegmatite mines in Pala, California, have also been planned for the Conference. Attendees will be treated to a behind-the-scenes look at the Pala International Showroom in Fallbrook, then venture to three private mines for underground tours by the owners.

"These mines are historical and very famous, but they're not publicly accessible, so this is a great opportunity. And with participation by the mine owners and laboratory experts, there should be some interesting and thought-provoking discussions," Laurs says.

Research gemologist Robert Kane, owner, president and CEO of Fine Gems International, has spoken at all three of GIA's Symposia and says he can't imagine missing this year's event and the associated research conference.

"Many of the world's gem experts will be there, which affords participants a unique opportunity to absorb what they have to say about a vast array of current gemological topics, but also the chance to speak one-on-one with these specialists in a very relaxed environment," he says.

"With 60 individual oral presentations and nearly 100 posters on virtually every aspect of gemology today, I believe the Conference will offer something for everyone. I can think of no other forum in the world that offers this on such a grand scale. In myview, attending the Gemological Research Conference is a must for everyone whose work involves identifying or buying gemstones."