“Low-cost technology opens up doors for people who never before had the opportunity to become involved in science, especially those in low-income communities. In recent years, communities themselves are initiating research projects, supported by scientists, rather than the other way around. For example, Extreme Citizen Science, based in the United Kingdom, is developing a generic…
Editor’s Choice: This article is an excellent example of crowd-based monitoring for public health purposes using the ubiquity of smartphones in urban environments. — LFF — Abstract: In this study, we attempted to assess the feasibility of collecting population health data via mobile devices. Specifically, we constructed noise maps based on sound information monitored by individuals’ smartphones….
Children learn how science works mainly from fact-filled textbooks. The wider public experiences scientific discovery second-hand, through best-seller books, newspapers and television, as well as online formats like science blogs and TED Talks. Even for many undergraduate science students, the majority of hands-on experience comes from lab exercises which aim to support textbook learning, rather…
In a unique project, researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have crowdsourced the annotation and analysis of a large number of gene expression profiles from the National Center for Biotechnology Information’s (NCBI) Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). More than 70 volunteers from 25 countries helped Mount Sinai researchers analyze the data, enabling…
Citizen science, the active involvement of non-professional scientists in research, is experiencing an upsurge of interest. Activities range from small projects by groups with a common interest to large international projects, which involve professional scientists and research institutions. Citizen science can involve a vast range of activities, from gathering data in remote regions of the…
Summary of YouTube video: Presentation of the process involved for the development of a Green Paper Citizen Science Strategy 2020 for Germany / Demonstration of the function and characteristics of dialogue forum, the contributions of the GEWISS project consortium and advisory board, processes and results of the online consultation and the position papers and the…
Abstract: This study investigated STEM hobbyists, some who engaged in citizen science projects related to their hobby and some who did not, with the goal of understanding how science hobbies develop over the lifespan. One of the long-range goals of science education is to develop individuals who are knowledgeable about science concepts, processes and understand…
This introduction points to the second issue of the Journal of Science Communication’s special series on citizen science. The first had much of interest, and this looks like an interesting one too. — CJL — Abstract: This issue forms Part II of JCOM’s collection of articles and essays exploring the field of citizen science. Here…
Abstract: Urbanization is widespread throughout the United States and Canada. Studies at different scales have shown mixed consequences of urban areas for ecological communities and biodiversity. Here, we use geographic data on urban extent and survey data from the Christmas Bird Count to investigate the influence of urbanization on winter bird diversity over a continental…
Abstract: BACKGROUND: The language of “participant-driven research,” “crowdsourcing” and “citizen science” is increasingly being used to encourage the public to become involved in research ventures as both subjects and scientists. Originally, these labels were invoked by volunteer research efforts propelled by amateurs outside of traditional research institutions and aimed at appealing to those looking for more…