snake_case is a two-day hackathon/sprint building open source software for data science and scientific Python. This event is an experiment. With coding agents you can achieve a lot in evenings and weekends by yourself, so why come together in person? We believe in the human connection: you can bounce ideas off each other, get rapid feedback on prototypes, argue API design in person, and maintain momentum by building a sense of community. There’s also nothing like watching over someone else’s shoulder to learn tacit tips and tricks you’d never learn about otherwise.
Who is coming?#
For the first year, most attendees are invited by the program committee (represented by Posit, Marimo, and PyOpenSci), as we believe that’s the fastest way to get a new event up and running. We will have a small number of spots open to community applications, and we’ll shift the balance towards open in future years.
The common thread is people working on data problems in and around Python, particularly in science. We want to invite a group that’s diverse in race, gender, problem domain, and programming skills. Our goal is to find folks with shared interests in data and science who wouldn’t normally have the chance to meet each other.
What will we do?#
The main goal is to help you carve out time to create a new project (or big feature in an existing project) in a fun, collaborative environment. Before the event, you’ll have the opportunity to brainstorm project ideas on GitHub issues, which will help us group together like-minded individuals. At the event itself, we expect you’ll spend most of your time programming, thinking about programming, and talking about programming 😀 We’ll provide just enough structure to make the event work: an icebreaker at the start, lightning talks over dinner day one, and a round up at the end of day two where everyone gets 2 minutes to present what they’ve done.
Cost#
Free! We’ll cover your flights, 2-3 nights of accommodation (up to $250/night), and provide food and drinks during the event. Please note that our budget is tight, so if you or your company can cover (some of the costs) will help us invite more folks.
Why is Posit doing this?#
This event is funded by Posit, and you might wonder why we’re doing this. We’re a public benefit company (PBC) whose mission is to build free and open source software for data science, scientific research, and technical communication. Historically, we’ve worked mostly in R, but we also want to help data folks in Python. This event is our attempt to be useful by funding an in person event that will cross-fertilise communities that we hang out in, and help us to identify interesting areas to support in the future.
Code of conduct#
All attendees are expected to follow our code of conduct. We are committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive experience for everyone.