No app for that? Make it yourself!

Are you passionate about science? Do you like communicating that passion to the general public? Then come along to the very first CERN Summer Student Webfest kicking off on Friday 3 August! The Webfest is a grassroots initiative by the summer students, seeking to spark new ideas that could innovate the future of web-based education about CERN, the LHC and particle physics.

 

The CERN Summer Student Webfest is a weekend of online web-based creativity modelled on the gatherings (sometimes called hackfests or hackathons) that energize many open source communities. You can work with like-minded students and CERN staff to design and build demos of the web apps you would like to see online. Prizes will be awarded to the best apps, with a Grand Prize winner receiving a trip to the Mozilla Festival in London!

Participants in the CERN Summer Student Webfest will work in teams and design neat web apps that encourage the public to learn more about science and, in particular, CERN, the LHC and particle physics. The apps can range from games to volunteer computing projects and redesigning existing web information so that it can easily be browsed on the latest phones and tablets.

Although aimed at the summer students, technical students, openlab students and other young summer visitors, the event is open to people of all ages at CERN with a passion for web-based science outreach and education and who have a weekend to spare. You do not have to be a software expert to contribute: many types of skill sets are needed in order to develop an app. Indeed, successful teams will need people to work on various different areas, from writing and design to physics and engineering.

So, come along for the weekend and create, innovate and educate about science on the web!

Kick-off!
Project ideas will be presented at a kick-off evening on Friday 3 August, from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Main Auditorium. Teams will self-assemble around the most exciting pitches. Anyone who is participating can pitch a project; pitches will be presented in a short set time to give every participant the chance to present his or her ideas. However, participants are encouraged to submit their project ideas to the Webfest website for the best chance to form a well-defined team. The kick-off event will also introduce a range of tools for modifying the web, creating online education and contributing to online science.

Will there be prizes?
A Grand Prize will be awarded for the best app: a free trip to the Mozilla Festival in London from 9 to 11 November, courtesy of the Mozilla Foundation. Other things will be trickled out in due time on the website.

Where will we work on our ideas?
Teams can work on their Webfest app in CERN’s Restaurant No. 1. As the location is an open-space environment, teams will be able to work together while allowing for plenty of interaction between the organizers and various mentors. However, the event is free form, so teams can work anywhere.

How will the event end?
The event will wrap up on Sunday 5 August at 4 p.m. with a judging panel reviewing the apps and awarding the Grand Prize. John Ellis, the doyen of particle theorists and a keen enthusiast of good science outreach, will be one of the judges.

Many thanks to our sponsors...
The event is sponsored by the Mozilla Foundation and the Shuttleworth Foundation, and co-organized by the Citizen Cyberscience Centre and the Peer-2-Peer University.

For more information and to post your project ideas, please visit the website at: http://citizencyberscience.net/wiki

Connect to the event on: Facebook  - Google+ - Twitter.

by CERN Bulletin