A Nice Example of Scientific Outreach Activities

by Valentina Giangreco M. Puletti Outreach

The University of Iceland website Vísindavefurinn (Web of Science) has been named as the best Icelandic "medium" and the best non-profit website. Vísindavefurinn was launched in 2000. Initially it was conceived as a temporary contribution to the project of the University of Iceland, Reykjavik - European City of Culture in 2000. Soon, however, due to the large public interest in Science, it was decided to keep the project going. Vísindavefurinn deals with all sciences, from astronomy to molecular biology. Visitors can read the answers to the most popular scientific questions, but also, they can submit new questions and the employees of the University and supporters of the website can directly answer or find the answer. As described by the Selection Committee: "The web is filled with exciting and interesting content about everything between heaven and earth, it is at once one of the most reliable, user-friendly" and extremely popular scientific website.