Skepticamp Colorado 2010 - Impressions, Part Two: Praise

Four paltry complaints made up the last blog post detailing my criticisms of Skepticamp Colorado 2010, and not a one of them can stand up for the mountain of praise I could heap on the event.  It's clear that the organizers not only had their own shit together, they also had the good sense to learn from the failures and successes of similar events.

How the hell do I get involved?  Oh, wait...

Stunted troglodytes could have figured out how to get involved in the planning and implementation of Skepticamp Colorado 2010.  The main informational link for the event was a freakin' wiki page that gave enough information to successfully cobble together your own Skepticamp.  There were even instructions for those uncomfortable with editing wiki markup.  Seriously, if you couldn't figure out when and where the event was being held, how to register, what was going down, and what needed done you were better off missing it because you weren't rational enough to understand what was going to be discussed anyway.

Ugh, I hate restrictive events... oh, wait...

Even an experienced troll would have had difficulty committing a Godwin here.  Speakers weren't carefully selected by a panel, voted upon, or even drawn from a hat.  If you had something you wanted to talk about, you signed up.  Sure, they asked that talks be related to science or skepticism so it's always possible that questionable topic registrations would have been subject to more than a few raised eyebrows, but the organizers went out of their way to make it clear that anyone was welcome to give a presentation on the topic of their choice.

I'm new at presenting! What the hell do I... Oh, wait...

Not only did the organizers offer tips on giving a good presentation, they offered good tips on giving a good presentation.  Even better, their tips were tailored to both the nature of the event and the expected audience.  As simple as it is to toss a a few bones of advice to the masses I rarely see it done.  Convention after convention I've encountered huddled groups of nervous newbies who signed up to be on a panel or give a presentation expecting some sort of guidance and being given nothing but a time slot in return.  Not only do a few casual tips help to calm those nerves, they likely help to encourage those who were ambivalent about signing up to take the plunge.  It's the instructional version of a warm handshake and a "mind your step".

I can't handle another monotonous... oh, wait...

It may have been a side effect of the free-for-all presentation sign up, but there was no shortage of variety in presentations.  Sure, there were plenty of favorites on the list (is it even possible to have a skeptical event in Colorado without the Rocky Mountain Paranormal Research Society?) but there were also some unexpected and specialized topics on the docket.  Seriously, I've never before come from a skeptical event with a clearer understanding of mushrooms.

Where the hell do I... oh, wait...

Park?  Explained on the wiki, complete with lot prices.  Find the event?  Explained on the wiki, complete with a driving map and turn-by-turn directions to the greeting table; miss all that and all you had to do was follow the signs.  Eat?  Explained immediately prior to the lunch break, including walking directions and a brief description of the available choices and price ranges.  Get the WiFi login?  Information was written on the chalkboard at the front of the room and explained before the presentations began.  Again, I have difficulty believing anyone was significantly lost.

I'm shy! I hate being forced to... oh, wait...

While there were plenty of opportunities for socialization, there was no forced socialization.  No "let's go around the room and introduce ourselves" spotlights.  No "take a moment to shake your neighbors hand" germ fest.  No "find out one unusual thing about someone at your table" kinder bullshit.  I hate that shit.  As I mentioned earlier, there were plenty of opportunities for us to get to know one another - before the presentations began, at session breaks, over lunch and dinner... we weren't sealed off in individual cubicles like phobic pariahs, but we weren't prodded onto a social examination stage either.

A whole day of dry, intellectual... oh, wait...

I laughed at Skepticamp Colorado 2010.  Presentations were, for the most part, personable and many were intended to pull a chuckle or two without skimping on point delivery.  Questions and comments were pointed, but polite and there was a lot of good-natured kidding going around.  I think it's important that we skeptics never forget how fucking ridiculous some of the pseudoscience floating around is and it's nice to know I'm not the only one.  Lastly, ending the event with a four-round trivia contest was a stroke of genius.  It was a light-hearted and information rich way to end a great day.

Is this guy ever going to take questions?  Oh, wait...

I've mentioned this before, but it's worth repeating - Skepticamp's policy allows audience members to ask questions during presentations and that decision sparkles with brilliance.  I've seen a number of presentations where the speaker stood up and unloaded such a massive haul of bullshit that a 3-day question and answer period wouldn't have even scraped the surface.  I'm convinced there are speakers (creationist ass-hats, I'm talking about you) that do this on purpose - they know there's simply no way to refute every falsehood they've spewed in the brief period of questions that follows their presentation.  I'd like to see someone try that at Skepticamp where the audience would be busy dismantling their farcical juggernaut as it was being built.  With fire.  Brainy, brainy fire.

No, really... I'd like to see that.  If someone could arrange that, I'd be uber grateful.



There are people out there who view skeptics as a massive horde of killjoys, pouncing on the harmless fantasies of the unsuspecting public and probably kicking kittens in their off time.  The truth is, skeptics are very much concerned about that unsuspecting public, precisely because that public believes their fantasies are harmless.  Skeptics know that real harm is done by those fantastical beliefs - from "holistic medicines" that keep people from seeking proven treatments to "you have the power" mystical schemes that fill people with guilt while emptying their wallets.  Was everyone at Skepticamp opinionated?  Everyone I met or heard from, yes.  Was anyone at Skepticamp a pompous ass wreaking with arrogance?  Not a one of them.  Everything I saw and heard fortified my belief that skeptics are caring individuals, desperate to shine the light of reason into dark corners.

Not another crappy venue... oh, wait...

Skepticamp Colorado was held in two adjoining classrooms at Colorado University's Boulder campus, a very wise choice indeed.  Now, before anyone starts griping that not everyone has access to such posh accommodations, it wasn't the fact that it was a college campus that made the choice wise.  There are a number of things you can expect to need for an event where people are coming to present information to people who are coming to take in information:

Electricity - They had it at every seat.
Internet Access - They had several WiFi accounts at the ready.
Ample Seating - They knew how many people were going to be there, and they had butt holsters for all.
Climate Control - No one died of heat stroke, 'nuff said.
Lighting Control - No one went blind, 'nuff said.
A Projector - It's 2010, there's no reason to be using a chalkboard if you don't want to.
Designated IT - They had a name to scream when things went wrong.

There were other things that were nice about the classroom setting, like desks, but the things I've listed above are practically essentials these days and Skepticamp had them all.

So... hungry... fading... oh, wait...

Somebody (probably more than one somebody) brought food.  Yes, there was a lunch break where we were all able to gnosh to our hearts content on a wide variety of tasties, but there's something about sitting on your butt listening to presentations that brings on the munchies.  It's always nice to have something for people to snack on here and there, and Skepticamp did.  Those unknown somebodies were also smart enough to bring a range of snackage, from the healthy to the carblicious, all the way down to the sugertastic.  Thank you somebodies... the bagels were nummy and the fudge was much appreciated.

Damn, I wish I could have heard more about... oh, wait...

As a speaker, a special brand of disappointment descends when you're made to leave an attentive and responsive audience that would clearly like to hear more.  Similarly, captivated audience members wilt with frustration as they watch the time-keepers hurry their speaker off the stage with desired information in tow.  We all understand why schedules and time-keepers are necessary , but that doesn't lessen the suckage when a topic on a roll is brought to a crashing halt.  There were, however, no such issues at Skepticamp.  When it was clear that a topic hadn't been explored to the audience's satisfaction the presenter was either directed to the hallway where interested individuals could continue the conversation, or they were given an additional time slot later in the day.


If you haven't gotten the gist by now, Skepticamp Colorado 2010 was a very successful event put in motion by people that genuinely care about skepticism and the skeptical community.  Those that stepped forward to help with organization clearly used their experiences (and their brains) to mold an event that catered to those who would be participating.  It was a community event, and it felt and worked like a community event - no lockstep top down committee to steep it in the feel of an academic lecture series, no over-complication springing from a basic distrust in the mental capabilities of the participants, and no wall of separation between organizers and attendees.  This fluidity is clearly intentional; allowing the event to evolve naturally over time to a stable, rather than rigid, state.  The glory of the model is that new ideas can be implemented with very little risk, making leaps of advancement possible for the entire organism without hampering the growth of its individual... bits.

Okay, the Darwinian comparison breaks down a bit in the area of vocabulary.  The general abstract, however, is apt.  Skepticamp Colorado 2010 rocked it, and the model it's built on all but guarantees it'll rock it even harder next time 'round.  I know I'll be there, and this time I'll be bringing at least one newbie along with me.  Somehow, I doubt I'm the only one.