citizen science
Ready to Become a Citizen Scientist? by Jessica Scudella Are you interested in participating in research to make a difference but don’t know where to get started? Professional scientists can benefit from data collected by citizen volunteers and there is always room for more volunteers willing to collect data. There are multitudes of projects you can participate in that don’t require any training. Projects range from taking pictures of nature to collecting rain samples. Some projects don’t even require extra supplies other than a computer, phone or tablet and a way to take pictures. As Dr. Caren Cooper said in her TEDx talk, Citizen Science: Everybody Counts, “our individual data may feel insignificant but collectively it has the power to make discoveries that change the world.” Citizen science, also called community science and crowdsourced science, is the voluntary participation of citizens to gather scientific data usually for a project being completed by professional scientists. By participating, members of the public become more knowledgeable about their project as well as the concept of recording scientific data. All participation is voluntary, and participants choose how involved they want to become and how much time they have to give. Similar to citizen science,
crowdsourcing is the call for voluntary participants to contribute anything from technical skills to creative designs. Where to Get Started Citizenscience.gov is the official government website for citizen science. On this website, you can find the catalog for over 400 projects looking for volunteers. You are allowed to narrow down your search via the status of the project (if it is active and looking for volunteers), the agency it is through (within the federal government), and the field of science. Scistarter.org is another great resource. SciStarter has a directory of over 1500 projects you can look through to find the citizen science project best suited for you; over 800 of these projects can be done in North Carolina. Other citizen science platforms with similar search options are Anecdata.org, CitSci.org, Zooniverse.org, Experiment.com and iNaturalist.org. iNaturalist If you are looking to “Connect with Nature,’’ a good place to start would be iNaturalist. Use your phone, computer or tablet to take a picture of your findings in nature and upload them to iNaturalist. On this app, you can find many projects nearby that just require a photo of your findings. There are four steps to iNaturalist:
source: iNaturalist app
This screenshot from the iNaturalist app being used on a laptop shows four observations made by a member of the public.
Fall 2021
source: ISeeChange app
This screenshot from the ISeeChange app shows information on its “Rain and Flooding” topic area, where you can add a sighting from your own area.
observe, identify, discuss and contribute. To begin, go outside to observe the nature around you and take a clear photo of what you want to identify. Once you have uploaded the photo onto the mobile app or web page, iNaturalist will try to identify the picture and give you suggestions as to what is in your photo. After this, you can discuss with the iNaturalist community and confirm or refine your identification. Lastly, scientists have access to your photo if it is deemed Research Grade and can use it toward their research. ISeeChange There are many different ways to get involved in a citizen science project. Whether you feel more comfortable using (continued on page 4)
Cape Fear’s Going Green
3
