Nomination phase for the Talmage Awards is now open
What are the Talmage Awards?
James E. Talmage is a notable Mormon scientist who served as an Apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1911 and 1933. In memory of Talmage, the Mormon Transhumanist Association seeks to identify and publicly recognize outstanding contributors to the work of promoting radical flourishing in compassion and creation through technology and religion. This year, Association members will nominate and vote for candidates in various categories, such as "Best Mormon Transhumanist Blog," "Best Speech on Science and Religion," "Biggest Idea in Religious Transhumanism," and so forth. The Association will then announce winners and provide "Talmage Award Winner" web badges that winners can post to their websites.
How does the selection process work?
During the nominations phase, categories are proposed, as well as candidates for each category. Association members then vote on which candidate should win each category.
What are the rules for nominating?
-Anyone is eligible to propose a category or a candidate in that category. -Every category must have at least three nominations to make it to the voting phase -You can nominate your own works -No more than three nominations per author per nominator: otherwise it's hard for the readers to read all the nominations and get exposed to their work. - Example 1: James is a big fan of Carl's work. James cannot nominate more than three of Carl's pieces. -Example 2: Carl thinks his own work is perfect for almost every category. -He cannot nominate more than three of his own works. -Each nomination must have a link that enables others to review the work -Each nomination must have been produced/delivered after 1 January 2010
(credit goes to Carol Hamer for advising on this process)
How do I submit a nomination?
Post your category and award nominations in the comments of this post. Discussion can of course take place anywhere (e.g. the Association's Google Group or Facebook page), but nominations must make their way into the comments of this post to be considered.
What will the award web badges look like?
The Association will also accept nominations for the design of the ”Talmage Award Winner" web badges that winners can post to their websites. Designs must contain the phrase "Talmage Award Winner" or "Winner of the Talmage Award," and ideally will be rasterized. Here is an example:
IMAGE: PHOTO OF AWARD WINNER
What is the timeline?
- 1-31 July: Nominations Phase
- 1-5 August: Administrator prepares poll for voting phase
- 6-31 August: Voting Phase
- 1-5 September: Administrator prepares announcements of winners
- 6 September: Winners announced, graphics distribute
Do you have a model you're patterning the Talmage Awards after?
Our inspirations are the Brodie Awards (voting and results) and the Association for Mormon Letters.
IMAGE: PHOTO OF VOTING POLL RESULTS
IMAGE: PHOTO OF MORMON LETTERS
Who is managing this project?
Brad Carmack, with assistance from Karl Hale and others. You are welcome and invited to help manage the project. Contact [[email protected]].