Exciting days in Lyon! Got my survey paper (Azevedo, 2018) accepted on the student’s track of The Web Conference 2018!

(1) Arrived late one night before the first day of conference but got placed in a really nice room 😃
(2) Both the hotel and the conference center were located in a complex that also included a modern art's museum.. that explains the dadaist mini truck!

Guess who was also staying at the same hotel as me? Mr Berners-Lee! It was a bit surprising to have breakfast on a table next to him but on the way to the conference, I took the chance to speak a few words and the legend is as humble and chill as one gets. He even showed some interest in my research! 😁

Maybe I'll be as recognized as him once my hair is gone? 🤔

The panels were diverse but a recurrent topic was the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal, as it is quite recent and permeates many of the fields covered by the conference. A statement that still echoes in my head came from Dr Kira Radinsky, from eBay, that affirmed that when you choose not to share your data, you are denying contribution to the development of technologies that may possibly save a life. Personally, I think that there is truth in the argument.

Other highlights of the conference were the section on journalism, misinformation and fact checking, featuring many interesting presentations on the topic and a workshop on the dystopian(?) series Black Mirror, called Re-coding Black Mirror intended to foster reflections on how participants, as researchers and/or developers, could be ethically aware so as to avoid the scenarios presented in the show. Coincidentally, this workshop was organized by Mathieu d’Aquin who, a couple of years later, would become my supervisor.

Lastly, had the opportunity to know a bit of the the city as I had a couple of free days once the conference was over, here are some shots!

(1) Believe it or not, this is a painting on the wall, it has been modified throughout the years to depict the change to the scenery, with some of it's characters ageing accordingly
(2) Lyon was once part of the Roman Empire (as almost the whole of Europe) and even has its own theatre, built in 15 BC!
(3) Nice food and such a beautiful stained glass, had to record it! 😅
  1. WWW
    Truth or lie: Automatically fact checking news
    Azevedo, Lucas
    In Companion Proceedings of the The Web Conference 2018 2018