Skepticamp.org!

by podblack on February 25, 2009

Go on, head on over! Start one up! http://skepticamp.org/

This site features all the upcoming events, an archive, all the details you’ll need to start, host, coordinate and organise your very own – and the support network to make it successful! By the way – SkeptiCamp Colorado 2009 is on Saturday, May 9th – so check it out if you’re over there and take part.

What is SkeptiCamp?

SkeptiCamp is an international* network of participant generated skeptic conferences.

It’s a new kind of BarCamp, an ‘unconference’ whose content is provided by the attendees themselves. Where barcamp focuses on technology, SkeptiCamp instead focuses on science, critical thinking, pseudoscience, paranormal claims, alternative medicine and the hundreds of topics of interest to skeptics.

An essay describing the role of the user-driven conference in skepticism can be found here: http://is.gd/bxnN (in PDF and abridged audio)

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Tagged as: bar camp, Cool stuff, links, new site, organisation, rationalism, Reed Esau, skepticamp, SkeptiCamp site, Skepticism

{ 9 comments }

AndyD February 25, 2009 at 9:30 am: Be sure to let me know when you’re organising one of these things in WA

Do we need to bring our own tent?
Reed E February 25, 2009 at 11:32 am: Thanks Podblack!

We’ve wanted skepticamp to have a site of our own for the longest time. The wiki had been proving to be too much a barrier to at least some potential participants. It was find for the tech-savvy, but frustrating and complex otherwise.

But it wasn’t clear how to best solve that problem. It took some thinking.

We hope this new site will tear down those barriers — to make it dead simple to register to participate without dealing with either wiki markup or having yet another password to remember!

You’ll see many changes in the coming weeks as we polish off some rough edges and add new features.
podblack February 25, 2009 at 6:27 pm: Yay Reed!

Andy D, as Reed can tell you, I’ve been asked about that QUITE often – at the moment I have a thesis to finish and my focus has been on coordinating teachers for Dragon*Con! But I have promised and I will see what can be done. Mostly because of Reed and also Sean the Blogonaut and Protium who have been very supportive about doing something different in WA.
AndyD February 25, 2009 at 8:43 pm: Ahhh, good. I’ll leave it in your capable hands then
Sean the Blogonaut February 25, 2009 at 10:01 pm: Or the NT
Reed E February 26, 2009 at 11:54 am: You don’t need to wait for someone else to organize an event in your town. Do it yourself!

If it looks like too big a task, you’re doing it wrong.
Sean the Blogonaut February 28, 2009 at 9:56 pm: How about a Skepticamp at Ayers rock? Great skies for astronomers, international airport, dingo jokes, rocks for geologists, flora and fauna for biologists and a bar for the rest of us
podblack March 1, 2009 at 9:18 am: Excellent Sean – I look forward to hearing you sorting it out!
Sean the Blogonaut March 2, 2009 at 1:42 pm: Bugger