Gordon Conference

What? An interdisciplinary examination of the uses of visualization for scientific discovery and science education, centered around a Gordon Research Conference, pre-Conference Workshops and a Visionary Grant Program to foster multidisciplinary collaboration among Conference participants.

A 5-day Conference with morning and evening Plenary Sessions consisting of papers and discussion on topics which currently include: The Cognitive and Neurological Basis of Visual Perception; Visualizing the Molecular Complexity of Life; Emerging Issues in Chemical Visualization; Visualizing Mathematics and the Mathematics of Visualization; and Creating and Evaluating Visualizations for Public Understanding. Participants and recipients of mini-grants awarded at past Gordon Conferences are encouraged to present Posters of their Visualizations.

The Conference will be preceded by concurrent 1.5 day Workshops on Assessing the Educational Impact of Scientific Visualizations and (new for 2007) on Conceptual Aspects of Best Practices in Visualization. Conference participants will be encouraged to submit Visionary Grant proposals that would move informal discussions into continuing collaboration for multidisciplinary research on Effective Visualizations. Peer-reviewed, the Visionary Grant proposals will require PIs from two or more scientific, educational and cognitive science disciplines.

Where? Bryant University, Smithfield, Rhode Island, USA

When? Conference: 1-6 July 2007.  Workshops: 30 June-1 July 2007

Why? To inform, to generate interdisciplinary discussion, and to encourage critical evaluation and collaborative research concerning Visualization in Science and Education.

Scientists and mathematicians often create visual images of what they cannot see or adequately comprehend: from molecules and chemical reactions to cosmic reality; of phenomena both real and abstract, simple and complex. In a parallel manner, science educators use images, created by scientists or ones they fashion themselves, to promote student interest and understanding. Also, cognitive psychologists investigate how humans – researchers, educators and students alike - understand reality in terms of visual images. Scientific, educational and cognitive research concerning visualizations, however, is often insular, occasionally redundant, rarely multidisciplinary. This Gordon Conference aims to mitigate such insularity and to foster useful, productive and continuing collaboration among Conference participants in their study and use of scientific visualizations.

Who? The Conference is multidisciplinary, bringing together physical and biological scientists who use visualizations for research, science educators who create visualizations for classroom use and who test their effectiveness, graphics specialists who create visualizations to advance the frontiers of science and mathematics, and cognitive scientists whose understanding of human perception and cognition guides the research and educational application of visualizations and, in turn, is informed by the results of such applications.

Plenary sessions (discussion leaders/ speakers) include the following:

Seeing the Data: Two Perspectives (Pat Hanrahan / Bart Anderson / Andrew Hanson)

Visualizing the Molecular Complexity of Life (Arthur Olson / David Goodsell / Chandrajit Bajaj / Graham Johnson)

Multidisciplinary Approaches to Creating Visualization in Science Education (John Gilbert / Mary Shultz / Carole Stanford / David Rapp / Jerry Honts / Saksri Suprasorn / Jerry Suits)

Issues in Visualizing Chemical Phenomena (Loretta Jones / George Bodner / Karl Harrison / Mike Stieff)

Visualizing Physical Phenomena Using Interactive Media (Lena Tibell / Gabriela Weaver & Carlos Morales / Miriam Reiner)

Creating Effective Visual Presentations for Museum Audiences and Informal Learning (Barbara Tversky / Donna Cox / Martin Storksdieck / Ka Chun Yu)

Improving Public Understanding of Science Through Visualization: A Panel Discussion (Robin Heyden / Rebecca Perry / Bang Wong)

Visualizing Atmospheric and Geological Phenomena (Oswaldo Garcia / Kim Kastens / Tim Spangler & Alan Bol / Janice Gobert)

Seeing the Data… and Beyond (Shaaron Ainsworth / Peter Atkins)

The Conference is multidisciplinary and international by design and to encourage broad discussion, limited in participant number (125).

How to apply? Prospective participants must first apply to the Gordon Research Conference (GRC) for admission and be accepted before they can register for either the Conference or a workshop. Go to the GRC website for information about “Attending a Conference” and for the electronic application form. GRC will forward completed applications to the Chairs early in 2007 for review and further communication. Confirmed Conference participants wishing to attend one of the Workshops should make application to the Workshop organizer, Dr. Shaaron Ainsworth (shaaron.ainsworth@nottingham.ac.uk).