file: meetings-recipes.txt = Rob Rutten recipes for meetings organisers init: Jul 1 2006 Rob Rutten Las Tricias last: Oct 29 2021 Rob Rutten Deil site: http://www.staff.science.uu.nl/~rutte101/Recipes_presentations.html note: all pre-Covid19 except final part RECIPES FOR SCIENTIFIC MEETINGS =============================== timing workshop: 2 full days - 0.5 day + excursion - 1 or 1.5 days more symposium: full-day excursion midway end at noon at locations from where people can travel home the same day including a weekend may make travel cheaper (then have Sunday excursion) announcements put early ad in SolarNews, just the URL, not full rationale and details send additional announcement per personal email to desired participants announce precise starting time (welcome party) and ending time very early (great nuisance to discover one's flights are too early or too late) specify invited talks and key participant list very early (many people decide to come on the basis of who else is coming) program, participant list, travel directions: also as downloadable pdf's define proceedings format already in 1st announcement participant list should include first names, full initials, email addresses oral presentations workshop: keynote talks 45+15 min, contributions 20+10 min symposium: reviews 30+10 min, contributions 15+5 min speaker selection: (N=nr papers, H=Hirsch index) 10% big-shot seniors (N>200, H>30) 40% solid scientists (H>10, H/N>10%) 50% promising juniors (H<10, H/N>20%) schedule hint for speakers by far your best slot: second day after morning coffee (Tuesday 11:00) on the first day most are occupied by logistics and their own talk after the second day many are more interested in pubs and tourism discussion do not have specific discussion sessions or panel sessions select chairs who stimulate discussion and know all pertinent people chairs must always cut speakers in favor of discussion (yes, me too) chairs must never cut interesting discussions - run late instead try to avoid need for discussion microphones do not record discussion in any way (usually publication fails anyhow) stand-up + name/institute declaration: only in large audiences (symposia) applause: only one per talk, not for chairs etc. posters serve break refreshments amidst posters have multiple hour-long poster sessions with authors at posters have happy-hour pre-dinner parties between posters posters to be hung during the whole meeting duration pertinent posters to be specified/advertised by chairs and reviewers do not have 1-min poster summaries provide chairs and tables for laptop-fed discussions provide flat-screen displays for laptop-fed discussions have large on-wall screens for e-posters scheduled in the program lecture room MUST: reliable wireless in lecture room (some people will read on-line soccer news but so stay awake. I read speaker's publications from ADS and so stay awake) MUST: plenty power sockets throughout lecture room (daisychain power bars) don't have the speaker too far from audience or separated by big table blackboard/white board/flipover for sketching wall clock or alarm clock or count-down display in sight of speaker small alarm clock for chair large 5-min, 2-min, stop traffic-sign warning boards for chair, or Hans-Peter Doerr's count-down display (script on my website) long bamboo pointer in addition to laser pointer do not darken the lecture room (audience falls asleep or can't type) preferably people can walk in/out at the back without disturbing others ideally microphone is not needed for questioners but always have clip-on or headset amplification for speakers projection have a good computer guy/gal for the uploading and trials high enough stand for laptop+mouse so that speaker needn't stoop over laptop stand horizontal so that mouse doesn't slide off laptop stand sideways to both audience and screen beforehand ppt/pdf loading into conference laptop + trials in breaks install all kinds of movie players in conference laptop(s) have both a Windows PC and a Mac 2 laptops + 2 projectors + 2 screens side by side = fast speaker change allow speakers to use their own laptop but let them try beforehand all types digital-analog converters for Mac owners who forgot theirs small workshop: long 2nd cable to enable interrupt projection by questioners (projector: in Europe we say "beamer" but in the US that is a BMW car) display hints for speakers have a white background to illuminate you in a too dark lecture room don't add superfluous and distractive info as time, place, logo, page number don't "cover up" stuff by letting it appear sequentially don't use distractive fancy page turners make movies open within the display file, in auto-repeat loop end with a numbered conclusions or points list and leave that on screen (not "Thank you" or such, that doesn't assist discussion) breaks at least half-hour duration, long enough to absorb time overruns preferably two breaks per half-day session, each with refreshments best amidst posters handbell (or cowbell) to get people back accommodation try to lodge all participants together if needed install open wireless there temporarily meals at least have lunch together rearrange tables to sit many together after the meeting put all meeting photos on the meeting website add person identification including first names to the group photograph proceedings carefully consider printed or talk-posted or none-whatsoever proceedings printed -: generally low citation rates +: one may publish something not easily published elsewhere reviews may be nastier than in review journal talk-posted +: easy to do, maintain only a few years -: posting on ADS with eternal availability: not worthwhile announce well in advance which type it will be webposted e-proceedings = talk displays have a simple website address and header, make sure Google finds them do not post .ppt or .doc, only .pdf (avoid manipulation) suggest poster authors to insert links to papers and other material suggest talk authors to not only insert links to papers and other material (such as movies they showed) but also additional viewscreens adding their oral explanation if their displays are too cryptic give authors 1-2 weeks after meeting for such pdf improvement consider putting all abstracts with links to the full contributions on ADS printed proceedings: startup do not require manuscripts at meeting but set the deadline 1 month after (many writeups will improve from discussions during the meeting) whatever the publication is, make sure it gets integrally on ADS do not require writeups for every talk: only those worth the effort reviews: do not impose page limits but let them balance out naturally add BibTeX .bst and .sty files to the publisher's LaTeX package printed proceedings: editing be free of other duties during the month after the deadline no refereeing other than by editors unless special journal issue editing = improving writeups but only where worthwhile at the deadline, give late but desirable authors another ten days give authors upon manuscript delivery two days more for checking suggest improvements where worthwhile very fast after manuscript receipt try to get proceedings published within the same year as the meeting require all authors to use LaTeX and BibTeX with your style files modify the publisher's style file to set references in smaller font provide a \cite{meeting-authorname} for citations "in these proceedings" suggest using color since it gets into the pdf files if not in the book suggest small figures that readers can blow up on-screen printed proceedings: completion webpost the complete pdf under an easy Google mnemonic webpost and email-spread the table of contents with page numbers webpost and email-spread a bibtex file with .bib entries for all papers return the edited input files to the authors push the better authors to post their paper on Astro-ph so that it gets freely available on ADS (for which they need the edited input files) webpost recipes, scripts etc for future editors (as mine for ASP-CS) ----------- all the above was pre-Covid19 ----------------- on-line meetings don't bother with abstracts don't bother with proceedings don't have parallel sessions when using chat for question-answer let these stand some days have a clear, easily viewed succinct program pdf during/after the meeting add links to recordings and pdfs ask presenters to add mailto email link in their pdf suggest presenters to add hyperlinks for material, movies, references enable poster viewing with presenter standby and discussion possibility enable subgroup meeting opportunities keep the recordings and pdfs online for a few years