Thanks to everyone who’s submitted session suggestions on the Science Online London wiki – we’re busy making progress with putting together this year’s programme, details of which will be announced very soon.
But first, we’d like to give you details of how to attend this year’s conference.
What is Science Online London?
If you’ve not attended before, Science Online London (SoLo) is an annual opportunity to meet other people interested in how science is carried out and communicated online. This year we’re being hosted at the Wellcome Collection Conference centre where we’re looking forward to two days of discussions, learning new skills and networking. Whether you’re a technologist, librarian, science communicator, or academic researcher, we aim to have something of interest for you.
For more information on the topics discussed at last year’s conference, check out our collection of video archives, Storify storyboards and blog posts written by attendees. You can also catch up with the related SoNYC monthly discussions that we’ve been co-organising in NYC.
How can I get a ticket?
This year we’re releasing tickets in 3 batches, the first of which go on sale at noon (UK time) on Friday 7th September via our Eventbrite page. The second batch will be released the following week on Wednesday 12th September at 3pm UK time. Details of the third, and final, batch will follow.
Tickets are £75 – the same price as last year – which includes breakfast, lunch and other refreshments during both days of the event.
As the conference has sold out every year, we recommend buying your ticket as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. We’re strictly limited to a maximum of 225 attendees this year.
What if I’m hoping to be running a session?
This year we’re asking for one or two session coordinators per discussion session or workshop and these coordinators will receive complimentary tickets. If we’ve already been in touch with you and you’ve agreed to coordinate a session, please don’t purchase a ticket; we’ll be sending out details of how to claim your complimentary tickets separately.
If you’ve got any questions about organising sessions and whether you qualify for a complimentary ticket, please do get in touch.
What about the programme? What can I expect?
The theme of this year’s event is “Connections”. From online outreach to linked data, metadata to social networks, how we link together ideas, who we reach and how well we cooperate is becoming ever more important in online science. On its fifth anniversary, this year’s conference celebrates the friendships and collaborations we’ve made so far, and looks forward to what can be achieved in the future.
The programme includes multiple sessions in three distinct tracks:
- Scientific communication and outreach: Sessions in this track focus on communicating science to a broader audience, whether through blogs, mainstream media or specific engagement projects. Discussions will include examples of international initiatives, writing tips and how to maximize and measure the impact of your efforts.
- Scientific tools: Sessions in this track focus on the use and development of online tools for scientists. Tools that can be used to visualize data, improve data sharing and measure research impact are among those to be discussed and demonstrated, providing a showcase for tools for different stages of the research cycle – from reference managers to data sharing to communication tools and eBooks.
- Scientific policy: Sessions in this track focus on issues that impact the way science is carried out and communicated online. From campaigns about science politics and open access to crowd-funding of scientific projects, these discussions will cover the challenges and responsibilities of being a member of the scientific community.
How do I get there?
The Wellcome Collection Conference Centre is at 183 Euston Road, next to King’s Cross and St Pancras International stations, which are served by National Rail, First Capital Connect and London Underground.
You can also use the Hammersmith and City, Piccadilly, Northern, Circle, District, Metropolitan and Victoria Underground Lines. Many bus services stop on Midland Road and Euston Road.
View Science Online London 2012 in a larger map
Fringe Events
In addition to the main programme, there will also be fringe events on Saturday 10th November, including a hackday and some opening night social activities. We’re especially delighted to be working with the Story Collider, a science story-telling initiative originally from NYC, as they launch their London series. More details on these events and others to follow in due course.
Science Online London (SoLo) and Science Online NYC (SoNYC) are community events co-organised by nature.com for the discussion of how science is carried out and communicated via the Internet. They are independent of ScienceOnline which organises a similar series of events in the US.
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