Cape Town


Save the date!

 

28-29 January 2012

Cape Town Science Hack Day!

 

The event has now happened and all the information has migrated to this new website:

http://science.mu/scihacksa/

twitter: @SciHackSA

email: sciencehackday@science.mu

 

 

 

 

Some inspiration:

 

South Africa is a hub to the African continent and Cape Town is probably one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It makes a lot of sense to organise a Science Hack Day here.

 

SCiENCE

 

It can bring together scientists in the region from Higher Education institutions, e.g. the AIMS Research Centre and universities of Cape Town (UCT), of the Western Cape (UWC) and of Stellenbosch (SU) and from national research facilities, e.g. the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO), iThemba Labs (nuclear physics), the South African National Space Agency Space Science Centre (SANSA) in Hermanus, the African Laser Centre (ALC), the South African National Antarctic Programme (SANAP), SKA Africa (radio astronomy).

 

AFRICA

 

The challenges facing the African continent are vast and complex and one way of better understanding them is good data science. And data on Africa is plentiful and scattered. At the same time, the MeerKAT radio telescope – South African precursor to the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) – will also generate vast quantities of data. With the help of the CTDN and the local scientists, data science and visualization is a likely natural theme to this Science Hack Day. 

 

This Science Hack Day will showcase some of the ingenuity of local scientists; Africa is rarely seen as a destination of choice for science but the natural ingenuity on the continent has that hacker spirit of making things that work with what there is (see, e.g. the afrigadget.com blog). This very African trait can really make this event a success.

 

DESIGN

 

The collaboration with the Cape Town Design Network (CTDN) brings in another dimension to the Hack Day, which is essential. The Cape Town Design Network has led the initiative to make Cape Town World Design Capital in 2014. The theme of the bid is using design and technology to change lives. Cape Town is currently shortlisted with Dublin and Bilbao in a list of over 50 applications.

 

After the FIFA Soccer World Cup, the Communicating Astronomy to the Public conference, the 6th World Science Centre Congress, the International Astrunautical Congress have all held their first African event in Cape Town in the last couple of years, the buzz is real in the mother city!

 

Organisers (so far):

 

Blog posts about Science Hack Day Cape Town: