InnovationWell to stage US Traveling Roadshow in May 2018 

Science has a lonely image - the solitary individual hunched over a microscope or computer - when, in fact, discovery often depends on that most human of exchanges, conversation. The day Freud met Jung, they talked non-stop for over 13 hours. When the Indian philosopher Rabindranath Tagore visited Albert Einstein, they discussed mathematics, but also the nature of reality, religion and much more. Extraordinary people, extraordinary conversations.

Today, we have the technological means to reach out to anyone on the planet. The Internet connects scientists in labs and universities. Data, which can be regarded as a universal language of science, can be shared at the touch of a computer key. But something important is missing from the equation: personal contact and the building of trust that leads to the sharing of information and the swapping of expertise.

Probably every scientist has a story about an idea that grew from a chance meeting or collaboration – often with people from totally different fields. InnovationWell wishes to offer scientists a unique opportunity to put personal relationships back at the heart of scientific discovery and bring dialogue back into science.

InnovationWell is launching a series of unscripted gatherings, free and open to anyone. Each gathering will start with a few presentations to spark discussion. Then, we will break into small groups, fueled by coffee and cake, to allow people to do what people do. They talk.

The first three InnovationWell events will be held this spring at three important centers of learning in the US. The topic will be a problem critical to public health: What is the best way to test chemicals for toxicity and how should such tests be regulated?

• On May 7 at Bryn Mawr, Philadelphia, PA: Data-driven Innovation in Environment and Human Healthcare
• On May 9 at Research Triangle Park, Raleigh-Durham, NC: Environmental Health and Protection Modelling
• On May 11 at Cambridge Innovation Center, Cambridge, MA: Towards Evidence-based Care for Human Health and the Environment