As people attend the conference from various time zones, the conference’s format will differ from a usual in-person meeting. We have designed the conference format to maximize the satisfaction of both presenters and participants under the consultation of scientists who have experience in organizing a virtual international conference and professionals from a virtual global conference provider.

Plenary sessions:

Five leading researchers give a live talk. It is like a TV show. The audience can submit a question from the chat window. Chat messages are immediately delivered to speakers and moderators.

Q&A sessions (parallel):

Each presenter first gives a 2-minute live lightning talk followed by an 8-minute live discussion with the audience. It uses zoom.

Discussion sessions:

The audience can approach presenters and discuss their research. The sessions are held in a dedicated room in Gathertown.

Gathertown:

It is a platform dedicated to live virtual interactions. It is available for all participants 24 hours during the conference. You can meet and talk with anybody at a lounge in Gathertown. Further Gather Town instruction and how to use short keys, please find in our Help desk page.

Videos and slides:

• Plenary sessions and the Q&A sessions will be recorded and uploaded after the sessions.

• All the videos and slides are available for 60 days after the conference but only to registered ones.

Text-based chatting with the speakers:

You can chat with any speaker in the Q&A and discussion sessions. A chat window is available on each speaker’s page, and you can leave your questions there.

Announcement to the other participants:

If you want to announce the other participants (e.g., “Hey, let’s meet at the lounge in Gathertown from 9 pm CEST!), please use Twitter (#CESConf2021).