Symposium EE, 'Solid-State Chemistry of Inorganic Materials VIII', was held Nov. 29-Dec. 3 at the 2010 MRS Fall Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts. Solid-state chemistry is a truly interdisciplinary field, attracting investigators from chemistry, condensed-matter physics, materials science engineering, ceramics, metallurgy, chemical engineering, and mineralogy/geology. It encompasses synthesis of new materials; preparation of materials in new forms (nanocrystalline, thin-film heterostructures, porous, etc.); investigations of the relationships between composition, structure and properties; as well as the application of cutting-edge characterization methods. The scope and importance of solid-state chemistry has grown not only with the discovery of new materials but also through the advancement of techniques for preparing and studying them, and in advanced computational predictions for structures and properties. The intent of the symposium was to provide researchers from academics, government, and industrial laboratories an interdisciplinary forum for interaction, discussion, and exchange of ideas on recent fundamental advances in solid-state chemistry and their impact on the development and application of inorganic materials.