IYA2009 Updates
Space Generation Congress
Jun 15, 2010
Registrations are open for The Space Generation Congress 2010 (SGC2010) taking place in Prague, Czech Republic, September 23-25 2010. Students and young professionals in the space sector are invited to submit their applications by July 1, 2010.
The Space Generation Congress (SGC), organized by The Space Generation Advisory Council, is the global conference for university students and young professionals interested in today's key space issues. Being the only event of its kind, SGC offers the next generation of space leaders the opportunity to network and to examine together critical questions that are facing the space and international community at large.
This year’s Space Generation Congress takes place between September 23 and 25 at the Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic, prior to the International Astronautical Congress. Delegates can register until July 1 on the official SGC website, detailing their experience in the space sector and stating the projects they wish to participate in.
Based on their individual interest and prior experience, conference delegates will be assigned to one of the five groups that will debate on various pertinent space topics and issues. This year’s five working sessions will focus on:
- Industry – The New, Increased Role of Industry in the Space Sector
- Agency – Terrestrial Applications for Space Technology: Exploring the Practical Challenges in International Collaboration on Space Systems
- Climate – Challenges of the Use of Earth Observation Data
- Exploration – Human Space Exploration: Technical, Societal, Legal and Political Challenges
- Outreach – Development of Science and Technology Education and Careers for the New Generation
Leaders from the space sector will be invited to share their passions and perspectives, as well as contribute to the working sessions and debate with delegates on the main topics of the Congress. Conclusions and recommendations from these sessions will be formally written in both a presentation and a report, which will be shared throughout the following year at the United Nations, at conferences, and with SGAC’s partners and supporters.
For more information and updates, please visit The Space Generation Congress 2010 website, follow us on Twitter @SGAC or #SGC2010, connect via The Space Generation Advisory Council Official Facebook Group.
CONTACT SGAC
Oana Sandu, PR Lead – oana.sandu@spacegeneration.org, +40 724 024 625
setiQuest is looking for a community manager intern
Jun 15, 2010
Where do you want to go this summer?
The Quest
setiQuest is an effort to tap into the global brain trust, harness the power of citizen scientists, and educate the next generation of Earthlings to improve current searches for extraterrestrial intelligence and better understand our place in the cosmos. We are creating a community—or if you prefer, a tribe—to actively involve the world in the ultimate search for cosmic company. setiQuest is the concretization of Jill Tarter’s 2009 TED wish to change the world. We are looking for a summer intern, Community Manager to help harness and harvest the power of this tribe.
Training
While at SETI you will have access to some of the most prolific scientists in astronomy and astrobiology who are focused on scientific research, education and public outreach. Their work, along with The Quest, has the possibility to change our understanding of life, the origin of life, or to discover if other planets in our universe can support life.
Talents
We are looking for an individual who is passionate about all forms of communication and exploration. You are someone who is comfortable with working with limited direction, but still very focused on meeting targets and deadlines. You are open to new ideas and like meeting new Earthlings, virtually or in-person. A good day is when you discover something new or when you are challenged to rethink everything you thought to be true.
Experience
You have a strong knowledge of the many social media platforms including Twitter and Facebook, as well as a good understanding of web analytics. You host your own blog and/or often contribute to other public online forums. You have some experience in defining and executing against an editorial calendar. A background in best practices in web design and/or web development would also be welcomed.
Responsibilities
Working with the community guidelines, you will grow the setiQuest community; increase community engagement, while also leveraging other social media platforms. Your daily communication with your tribe will be predominately on the setiQuest forums. Utilizing the brainpower of the SETI Institute’s team of scientists you will address any key questions and seed the forum with new discussions. You will also provide guidance and input into the setiQuest site as it relates to community.
If you are ready to join the Quest and guide this tribe, please send your resume and brief note describing your place in the cosmos to: jobs@setiquest.org
IYA2009 Updates
Jun 11, 2010
Developing World’s Scientific Literacy May Lie in Its Stars
Jacob Zuma says the World Cup can score an economic goal for his country, but a collection of international astronomers meeting in his backyard have a starry-eyed yet down-to-earth suggestion for the developing world. Read more: http://www.miller-mccune.com/science/developing-worlds-scientific-literacy-may-lie-in-its-stars-17283/
Neil deGrasse Tyson praises amateur astronomers
Neil deGrasse Tyson (Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History) praises amateur astronomers during his talk at the World Science Festival 2010 in New York, US. More information: http://www.astronomy2009.org/news/updates/942/
SARM (Romania) and Friends released the GAM official poetry programme
Available at http://www.cosmopoetry.ro/astropoetrytotheglobalastronomymonth/
The Brazilian president Lula receives a Galileoscope
The Brazilian president Lula da Silva has received a Galileoscope from the Brazilian Minister of Science and Technology, the physicist Sergio Rezende, during the opening session of the National Conference on Science, Technology and Innovation in the Brazilian capital, Brasilia last May. Currently twenty thousand Galileoscopes are being distributed in public schools in Brazil, an IYA2009 project of the Brazilian Astronomical Society (Sociedade Astronômica Brasileira) and Brazilian Astronomy Olympiad (Olimpíada Brasileira de Astronomia) and supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology. More information: http://www.astronomy2009.org/news/updates/939/
The Search for Life in the Universe in Science Fact and Science Fiction
August 13 - 15, 2010, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Santa Clara, California
More information: http://www.seticon.com
Scientix – the community for science education in Europe
Scientix was created to facilitate regular dissemination and sharing of know-how and best.
Search, find and engage on: http://www.scientix.eu
Developing World’s Scientific Literacy May Lie in Its Stars
Jun 10, 2010
Jacob Zuma says the World Cup can score an economic goal for his country, but a collection of international astronomers meeting in his backyard have a starry-eyed yet down-to-earth suggestion for the developing world.
Neil deGrasse Tyson praises amateur astronomers
Jun 10, 2010
Neil deGrasse Tyson (Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History) praises amateur astronomers during his talk at the World Science Festival 2010 in New York, US.
Very well said Neil!
SARM (Romania) and Friends released the GAM official poetry programme
Jun 10, 2010
After the success of the international project Astropoetry to the International Year of Astronomy 2009, the Romanian Society for Meteors and Astronomy (SARM) and Friends went further by releasing Astropoetry to the Global Astronomy Month 2010 ( the GAM official program of literary-artistic creativity, including the largest-ever web page of astronomical poetry and astropoetic images; organizational team: Andrei Dorian Gheorghe, Valentin Grigore, Arlene Carol, Florin Stancu and Alexandru Sebastian Grigore ), available at http://www.cosmopoetry.ro/astropoetrytotheglobalastronomymonth/
It is important to add that two other beautiful astropoetry initiatives were connected to GAM2010:
- -The Spring 2010 issue of the regular web magazine Astropoetica (edited by Emily Gaskin, USA) at http://www.astropoetica.com/
- -Global Astronomy Month - Astropoetry Blog (edited by Robert L. Eklund, USA) at http://www.astronomerswithoutborders.org/index.php/projects/global-astronomy-month/gam360/astro-poetry-blog.html
Space and Time 2
Jun 9, 2010
Cidadania presents Space and Time 2
Staatstheater Darmstadt, Germany 15 October 2010.
What is cidadania?
a work group of artists, scientists and other scholars from germany, portugal, poland, russia, Ukraine and the U.S.A.,who writes and performs interdisciplinary events combining art with science.
What is Space and Time?
It combines live music with video projections, theatre and dance. It takes the audience on a 60-minute journey through the world of astronomy, reflections on issues of human self-perception, environmental degradation, space debris and the future of our planet and life as we know it. a play written for the International astronomy year 2009 and world space wek 2009, which was presented in several Theaters around the world, with premiere in the United Nations in Vienna in October 2009.
More information: http://www.cidadania-darmstadt.info/CIDADANIA3.html
The Brazilian president Lula receives a Galileoscope
Jun 8, 2010
The Brazilian president Lula da Silva has received a Galileoscope from the Brazilian Minister of Science and Technology, the physicist Sergio Rezende, during the opening session of the National Conference on Science, Technology and Innovation in the Brazilian capital, Brasilia last May.
Currently twenty thousand Galileoscopes are being distributed in public schools in Brazil, an IYA2009 project of the Brazilian Astronomical Society (Sociedade Astronômica Brasileira) and Brazilian Astronomy Olympiad (Olimpíada Brasileira de Astronomia) and supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology.
The Search for Life in the Universe in Science Fact and Science Fiction
Jun 7, 2010
August 13 - 15, 2010
Hyatt Regency Hotel, Santa Clara, California
Only $20 per day or $35 for a weekend pass.
Go to http://www.seticon.com for more information and tickets.
Space is limited! Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis!
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SETIcon features:
- Noted scientists explaining new developments in everyday language
- Stars of science fiction TV series and movies, plus the advisors who help with the science
- Panels to air controversial issues and compare perspectives
- Special sessions where you can ask questions of your favorite guests in a smaller setting
- A family room with hands-on activities (for kids 12 and older)
- An inflatable star theater like the one the Obama family enjoyed during the recent White House star party
Some of the confirmed guests so far:
- Apollo astronaut Rusty Schweickart, on saving the Earth from asteroid impacts
- Frank Drake, the astronomer who undertook the first project to listen for alien radio messages
- Jill Tarter, the SETI scientist on whom Jodie Foster’s character in Contact is based
- Michael Brown, who discovered several large worlds beyond Pluto and whose work helped kick Pluto out of the planet club
- Seth Shostak, SETI Scientist and the host of the “Are We Alone” radio program
- Debra Fischer, one of the top planet hunters in the world, co-discoverer of the first system of planets around another star
- Astronomer and California Professor of the Year Andrew Fraknoi on the "Top 10 Tourist Sights in the Solar System"
- Tim Russ, Star Trek actor and amateur astronomer
- Kevin Grazier, scientist on the Cassini Mission and science advisor for Battlestar Galactica
- David Morrison of NASA on “Doomsday 2012" and the new notion of "cosmophobia" -- fear of the skies
- Astronomer Alex Filippenko, who helped discover the dark energy that is speeding up the universe
- Award-winning science fiction writer Robert Sawyer
- Gibor Basri, world-renowned expert on brown dwarfs (failed stars)
- Margaret Race, one of the scientists working to protect Earth from alien microbes and other planets from Earth microbes
- Best selling writer Mary Roach, author of the forthcoming "Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void"
- Cosmologist Sean Carroll, author of "From Eternity to Here: The Quest for the Ultimate Theory of Time"
- Jennifer Ouellette, Director of the Science & Entertainment Exchange, fostering creative collaborations between scientists and the entertainment industry
Make contact at SETIcon with other fans of science fact and science fiction in a comfortable setting. It will be a weekend when science and the imagination meet! Enjoy a wide range of mind-expanding activities, an evening party, lots of time for discussion, plus a banquet where you can rub elbows with the speakers and other enthusiasts. The banquet will honor Dr. Frank Drake on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the first search for radio signals from extra-terrestrial civilizations. See the web site for full information.
Scientix – the community for science education in Europe
Jun 7, 2010
Scientix – the community for science education in Europe – was created to facilitate regular dissemination and sharing of know-how and best practices in science education across the European Union.
Scientix is open for teachers, researchers, policy makers, local actors, parents and anyone interested in science education.
Search, find and engage on: http://www.scientix.eu
Search IYA2009 Updates
National Nodes: 148
Organisational Nodes: 40
Organisational Associates:33
National Websites: 111
Cornerstone Projects: 12
Special Task Groups: 11
Special Projects:16
Official Products:8
Media Partners:22
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