What public health-related restrictions are in place at this meeting? What distancing/masking practices will be required of attendees?

Given the current Covid situation, we are taking the following precautions and policies to avoid a superspreader event.

• Rapid test before traveling. We ask all those traveling to Providence to test themselves (regardless of where you are coming from) using a rapid antigen test. Please stay home if you test positive even if you have no symptoms. Also stay home if someone in your household tested positive in the last 3 days. We will reimburse all those registration costs for those who can’t attend due to positive tests or documented recent exposures.
• Test on day 1 and day 3. Upon arrival, we will distribute rapid tests to all registrants (regardless of where you are coming from, including those local to Providence). We ask you to test on day 1 and day 3 of the conference. If you test positive either day, please let us know (via email to rldmconference@gmail.comrldmconference@gmail.com) and we will help arrange for accommodations to isolate at no cost, including after the conference is over until you can travel again. Brown has a set of dorm rooms devoted to COVID quarantine, and attendees who test positive will be able to stay in these rooms until they are able to travel.
• Masks indoors. Please wear a mask while indoors, unless actively eating or drinking (and please try to maintain reasonable distance in that case). Speakers will not need to mask. While we are limiting the density in the poster sessions (with half as many presenters per poster board), poster presenters should still mask given close interactions.
• Outdoor events. We are planning to hold the opening reception on the main green outside, with a backup indoors if it rains. The banquet on the last night will be at the Skyline but with buffet and hybrid indoor/outdoor space, with open air outside. We may have a subset of posters outside on a patio, weather depending.

We will be adjusting these guidelines as the conference nears according to public health situation, in accordance with university protocols. Please see Brown University’s Health Protocols site for up-to-date information on pandemic-related guidelines. Brown has a set of dorm rooms devoted to COVID quarantine, and that attendees who test positive will be able to stay in these rooms until they are able to travel.

Will registrants be reimbursed if they need to cancel their travel (for any reason)?

Registrants will be reimbursed in the event that the meeting is cancelled.

WIs it possible to attend the conference remotely? Do I need to register in order to view the talks online?

All talks (and probably tutorials) will be recorded and made publicly available afterwards. You do not need to register in order to view the talk recordings. We have chosen not to live stream the talks, given that those who cannot attend in person will be in different time zones and can watch more conveniently on their own time. Please note that the poster sessions (and probably workshops) will not be recorded and will be in-person only.