Notacon April 14, 2010

Notacon is a different kind of conference. We're not a trade show. We're not an academic poster session. We're not limited to narrow topics or hyper-specialized subject matter. Notacon is an exploration into creativity, ideation and culture as it relates to technology, music and art. Notacon is what happens when you put more than 400 talented, creative and inspired people into a common space for a weekend. Notacon is collaboration and innovation..

We thrive on the creative applications of technology, art and music and the interaction thereof. All presentations, performances, workshops and panels should try to reflect this idea. How are you or your group using technology in creative ways? Are you advancing the state of the art? What have you developed, discovered, or thought about that might be interesting? How can participants either get involved or take your idea to the next level?

We like to think that our presenters help perpetuate humanity's oral tradition and our performers expose us to new concepts and ideas through art and music. We have found it an effective and engaging way for everyone involved to learn and become enlightened. As such, we encourage participation. Presenters should expect questions, group interactions and note-taking. Our presentations are not designed to be lectures. No one likes a lecture.

Notacon 7 will be held Thursday, April 15th, through Sunday, April 18th, 2010 at the Wyndham Cleveland at Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio, located in downtown Cleveland. We have secured a sizable conference space that allows many activities to go on simultaneously. Events, presentations, performances and workshops will run concurrently throughout the conference and there will be many scheduled events most hours of the day and night. Notacon organizers will also provide some level of support as well as perks as a thank-you to those presenting.

If accepted, presenters and performers will receive free admission for themselves and one guest and a very snazzy badge that says "Presenter" on it in large, friendly letters. There may also be food. Unfortunately, we do not have the ability to cover hotel and travel expenses. If you are not from the Cleveland area, please take that into consideration.

Finally, please note that we encourage first-time or "green" presenters. Any idea is perfectly acceptable, no matter how out there it may seem. There really is no such thing as a bad proposal (though we may offer suggestions for minor tailoring and adjusting).

Conference Topics

Proposals should fall in to one or more of these four general formats: presentation, panel discussion, artistic/musical performance and workshop. We strongly encourage proposals that use multiple formats (e.g., a presentation on a subject followed by a hands on workshop, a presentation on a performance tool and a performance to demonstrate its use).

We also encourage proposals to cover a wide range of topics. In past years we have covered a lot of territory with our presentations and events. We strongly encourage you to look through the schedules of previous years for ideas. In general, presentations and workshops in the past have fallen in these general categories:

The intersection of art, music and technology
Explorations in creativity and ideation
Cultural, social, business or political implications of science, art, music and/or technology
Any novel use of technology and/or the utterly bizarre
Anything that integrates more than one of the above
Anything and everything else
It cannot be emphasized enough that we are open to working with you on any idea you may have. If you are unsure about something, please get in touch with us. We'd love to hear from you.

Official Website: http://www.notacon.org/