scifoo: blogsession

As I’ve mentioned at scifoo the programme was evolved by the participants in a first-come first-accepted process whereby we signed up for free slots. It was hardly surprising that the blogosphere gained a slot and on Sunday we found a community of about 10-15 bloggers discussing how and why they did it. Here are some of the blogs that scifoo members have created and some of which were at the session. (Andrew Walkingshaw created a PlanetScifoo, the aggregation of the blogs updating every halfhour). Nothing special about my selection… they weren’t all at the session

• AlexPalazzo: The Daily Transcript http://scienceblogs.com/transcript/
• AndrewWalkingshaw: Brighten the Corners http://wwmm.ch.cam.ac.uk/blogs/walkingshaw/
• AnnaKushnir: Lab Life
• AttilaCsordas: Pimm Partial Immortalization http://pimm.wordpress.com/
• BoraZivkovic: A Blog Around the Clock http://scienceblogs.com/clock/
• Corie Lok: Nature Network Boston
• DaveCarlson: Dave’s Blog http://web.mac.com/clsmfmly/iWeb/Carlson%20Family/Dave%27s%20Blog/Dave%27s%20Blog.html
• DeepakSingh: http://mndoci.com/blog/
• DuncanHull: http://www.nodalpoint.org/blog/duncan
• EuanAdie: http://www.ghastlyfop.com/blog/
• GiaMilinovich: http://www.giagia.co.uk/
• Henry Gee: The End Of The Pier Show
• JCBradley: http://usefulchem.blogspot.com/
• Jim Hendler (and colleagues): http://www.mindswap.org/blog/
• JonathanEisen: http://phylogenomics.blogspot.com/
• PatTufts: Pinhead’s Progress
• PeterMurrayRust: http://wwmm.ch.cam.ac.uk/blogs/murrayrust/
• PZMyers: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/
• RichardAkerman: http://scilib.typepad.com/science_library_pad/
• RichardJefferson: CAMBIA βiος – Taking the Red Pill
• RobCarlson: http://synthesis.typepad.com
• ThomasGoetz: http://epidemix.org/
• VaughanBell: http://mindhacks.com

So we spent an hour talking about why we did it – what we got out of it – etc. At one end are the compulsive writers – Henry Gee explained how he couldn’t help blogging – it was in the journalistic tradition. I sometimes feel like this but not to the extent I am driven to communicate something whatever. Many of us feel we have an “audience”, community, whatever with whome we have a fragile rapport. Some bloggers get a lot of feedback, others very little. Often we are dependent on real-life contacts for feedback (I generally get little unless I unwittingly or otherwise turn up the “outrage button” and find out who is at the other end). Many bloggers who act as transducers for the immediate are appreciated by their following – the stream of consciousness of unprepared commentary on the world make contact.
Some – such as Richard Akerman have been blogging for years, others like me have yet to reach their first blogversary. Some, especially those in clear employment (e.g. publishers), have boundaries that should not be overstepped. What the boundaries are, are not always clear. Some have more than one blog – a day blog and a more anonymous non-work one. Some feel “soft constraints”, especially when they are partially hosted by – say – a publisher’s umbrella. But I think most would be prepared to speak their mind – here (A Letter to Martha) is Anna Kushnir criticising Martha Stewart for failing to live up to the promise of Scifoo.  (I wasn’t there, but it sounds like a valid comment).
So blogs are of all sorts. Mine has a life of its own.