In an age where all the information you could possibly want seems to be a mere push of a button a way, conferences are a testament to how important social interaction is to us humans. We go to them to listen to and meet other professionals in our domain (or a domain we just happen to be interested in), and to learn and share new information, practices. Conferences are also working vacations; an opportunity to visit somewhere new, while also not feeling like you are slacking off from your job.