The interest surrounding the Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST-10) conference has been huge. Some 500 people have registered for the conference, which is being held at Malmö University during 25-27 June.
Among the attendees are science communicators, reseachers, science journalists and librarians from countries including Japan, the US, New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, Iraq, Brazil as well as Europe.
“Scientific research is part of the society that surrounds it. If the two are separated, both will stagnate. On the other hand, a rich exhange between science and society makes them both grow and develop. A good example of this is the research and debate in society today on the topic of sustainable development,” says Lena Wollin, head of information at the Swedish Research Council.
The list of interesting speakers at the conference is long, and includes names such as:
– Larry Sanger, founder of Wikipedia and currently editor of Citizendium magazine, a new Wikipedia project based on expert opinion in order to raise the quality of the magazine´s content.
– Carl Johan Sundberg, the Swedish founder of Euroscience Open Forum, and an never tiring driving force in the area of science communication.
– Diego Golombek, a researcher who is the host of his own TV show in his native Argentina when he is not writing books, articles or holding public lectures.
– Anja C. Andersen, winner of the prestigious Descartes Prize for Research in 2007, is well known as an excellent science communicator for the general public, as well as an enthusiastic advocate for women´s involvement in science.
Key seminars during the conference include:
• Framing climate change and other controversial science communication topics
• European trends and challenges in science journalism
• Medical messages in the media — reliable information or science for sale?
• Visualisation in science and public communication
• The Public Engagement of Science and Web 2.0
• Evaluating public engagement in science: Why, How, And For Whom?
The programme includes some 70 seminars focusing on a wide range of topics — from young people´s attitudes to knowledge, to food and health, but also how science and politics are linked.
The PCST-10 conference takes place in Malmö and Lund, as well as Copenhagen, during 25-27 June. Most of the seminars are held in Malmö University´s Hurricane building.