What is a SciStarter Hack Day? 

 

SciStarter is a one-stop shop to find out about, take part in, and contribute to science through recreational activities and research projects. A SciStarter Hack Day convenes people who are excited about programming to collaborate to build cool things for citizen science. Entrepreneurs, designers, project leaders, community organizers and developers work in teams to create hacks and apps for web or mobile platforms. In our case, participants will help build APIs that make it easier for people to find and get involved in projects, and track and share their awesome contributions with others. 

Who can participate?

The SciStarter Hack Day is open to all, whether you are a student or a professional or just someone interested in this. You don't have to be a computer science major or an engineering student, though you should have some coding experience, preferably with Django. You aren't required to have ever attended a hackathon before: we will have tech talks beforehand so you can ramp up quickly. You can come with a team or come alone — there will be a place for you. We’d love to have you, no matter where you’re from! 

Where will it be? 

The workshop and hack day will take place at the ExCITe Center at Drexel University: 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 215-895-2000

When is the hack day? 

April 9 (Wednesday) from 4:30pm to 7:30pm ET.

How do I register for this free event? 

Fill out this form: https://goo.gl/cJpDkF 

What should I bring? 

For starters, bring your laptop and charger. Bring your cell phone charger too, and a power splitter if you have one! 

As a programmer, what should I know ahead of time? 

In order to work with our site, you'll need familiarity with Django, which is a Python package. Full documentation can be found here: https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.4/ref/models/querysets/ 

Do I need a team or idea to sign up? 

Nope! We will have a briefing to help people find team members and/or form teams, as well as an idea generation session to help people think of ideas to work on for the hackathon. So you should sign up regardless! 

Do I have to be there the entire time?

Nope, you're allowed to come and go throughout the 3-hour event. 

Will there be food? 

Yes, there will be pizza! 

Can I start working before hack day starts? 

If you want to prepare for the hackathon, focus on gaining experience with and knowledge of SciStarter and the tools you hope to use to build your application. 

When are project submissions due? 

All hacks will need to be completed by the end of the session.

Do you provide us with any technology? 

WiFi -- please bring power splitters if you have them! 

Will there me more hack days in the future? 

We hope so. If you’d like to stay in the loop about these types of events, please fill out the registration form and indicate this. 

Questions/comments?

Contact lily@scistarter.com.