Throughout their days, people are engaging with complex information to manage their lives.

And designers now realize that information isn't simply this stuff you find - the appropriate presentation of information helps people make sense of the world around them.

This year's IDEA (Information: Design, Experience, Access) conference will feature a variety of speakers who will share their ideas and experiences surrounding the design of complex information spaces in both the physical and virtual worlds. Many topics will revolve around the urban realm, with presentations by Jake Barton, designer of the National September 11th Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center, Chenda Fruchter, Assistant Commissioner at NYC's Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DoITT), who will discuss the design of NYC's 311 system, and Kevin Slavin, Managing Director and co-Founder of area/code, who creates large-scale urban games that take place throughout entire cities with online and offline components.

Rachel Abrams, Hasan Elahi, Sylvia Harris, Mike Kuniavsky, David Rose, Fernanda Viegas and Martin Wattenberg, David Weinberger, Michael Wesch, and David Wright will also present during the two-day event.

There's still time to register and make sure to check out the IDEA blog for some pre-conference info. IDEA 2007 A conference on designing complex information spaces of all kinds October 4 & 5, 2007 Tishman Auditorium and lower lobby Parsons The New School for Design New York City