Our early stars / Bengt Eriksson -- Nematological nebulae in Europe and the USA / John M. Webster and Seymour D. Van Gundy -- First catch your nematode! - the development of methods for recovering nematodes from soil / David McNamara -- Through nematode diversity to living soil processes - holistic studies aid progress / Gregor Yeates -- Nematode physiology : significant developments in the understanding of the biology of simple eukaryotic animals / Howard Ferris and Haddish Melakeberhan -- Molecular taxonomy of nematodes / Pierre Abad and Philippe Castagnone-Sereno -- A history of potato cyst nematode research / Ken Evans and David L. Trudgill -- Cereal cyst nematode complex / Roger Rivoal -- The science and art of soybean cyst nematode research / Terry L. Niblack and Don P. Schmitt -- Nematodes/viruses/plants : "a 32 year love affair" / Derek J.F. Brown -- Horticultural hazards : in and out of hot-water baths and other transient technologies / Simon R. Gowen and Philip A. Roberts -- The spread of nematology to developing countries : a case study / Michel Luc -- Contributions by Latin American nematologists to the study of nematode plant disorders and related impact on crop production / Rosa H. Manzanilla-López ... [et al.] -- Quarantine nematodes / David McNamara -- The pinewood nematode : a personal view / Helen Braasch and Manuel M. Mota -- History of the development of nematodes as biocontrol agents / Parwinder S. Grewal and Harry K. Kaya -- Dynamics of nematological infrastructure / Roland N. Perry and James L. Starr -- Nematology : dreams and visions of the future. A nematology dream : miscalculations, and false prophecies? / Ernest C. Bernard. Vision of nematology in Canada in the next 50 years / Guy Bélair. The future of nematode systematics and phylogeny over the next 50 years / Virginia R. Ferris. A nematologist's dream / Florian Grundler. My nematology dream / Paulo Vieira. The devil's advocate / Derek J.F. Brown. My dream, not a nightmare / Forest Robinson -- My dream of the future of nematology and chemical communication research - 50 years from now / Ekaterina Riga. C. elegans as a model system for space travel / Robert Johnsen and David Baillie