CITIZEN SCIENCE & AMATEUR RESEARCH
Archive for July, 2008
BioBlitz with The Discovery Channel
Jul 31, 2008
An upcoming BioBlitz scheduled on Long Island in the Tanglewood Preserve has the local academia and the local amateur scientists excited… and the event might also have piqued some interest from producers at The Discovery Channel.
The BioBlitz is an interesting movement where community members designate a 24-hour period to canvass their local region and identify and catalog all of the organisms that can be observed. This concept is a perfect idea and opportunity to unite citizen scientists and local professional scientists to help keep track of regional biodiversity, species evolution, and environmental impacts on the local biosphere.
The following report suggests an unofficial interest from The Discovery Channel to document one such event, which would be a wonderful publicity boon to supporting the role of the citizen scientist and will certainly inspire many more to look into opportunities in their local areas.
“Bio Blitz catches Discovery’s attention” :: Herald Community Newspapers Online :: July 31, 2008 :: [ READ ]
Learn more about the BioBlitz movement and to find events in your area [ BioBlitz on Wikipedia ].
Volunteer for Wilderness in Montana
Jul 30, 2008
The Wilderness Institute at the University of Montana features a Citizen Science program that is a wonderful opportunity for our amateur research friends up north to explore their local natural wildlands and contribute to the region’s scientific monitoring.
They consider the contributions from their volunteers to be quite valuable and they seems quite supportive of the citizen science movement. The institute has programs going on right now, so visit the website by following the link below and contact the group to join in the activities. You might even make into an upcoming photogallery update!
If you are a Citizen Scientist involved with the Wilderness Institute, please let us know about your experiences by posting a comment below.
Not living in Montana, but want to explore a wilderness near you? Check out the national locater map at Wilderness.net sponsored by The University of Montana’s College of Forestry and Conservation.
Physicists are learning to Love the Citizen Scientist
Jul 27, 2008
The role of the citizen scientist continues to grow into a new, profound tool for the scientific community. This realization from the academic world is once again made apparent by a new Job Posting from the University of Oxford’s Department of Physics.
They are in search of not one, but two, postdoctoral associates to lead the development of new research programs that utilized citizen scientists in data collection. Most of this inspiration is stemming from another Oxford-lead program, GalaxyZoo, which is continuing to reap successful results from their world-wide community approach.
So, as a citizen scientists, it’s time to really jump on the bandwagon. It’s always a win-win … the academic world gets tons of free data, that’s reasonably reliable, and we get to be part of something important … and have a whole lot of fun with the experience.
“Postdoctoral Researcher in Internet-Based Citizen Science (two posts)” :: Department of Physics, University of Oxford :: July 27, 2008 posted :: [ READ JOB POSTING ]
New Plants Discovered by Amateur Scientist
Jul 26, 2008
Two new wildflower plant species of the phlox family (more) have been discovered in the Lime Ridge Open Space at the foot of Mt. Diablo in central California. The two species are named Lime Ridge Navarretia (Navarretia gowenii) and Lime Ridge Woollystar (Eriastrum sp. nov.).
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The discoverer of the plants is amateur botanist, David Gowen, who is a testament to the reality that we still have much to learn about our world–and we often don’t have to look much further than our back yard.
The media release from the Save Mount Diablo organization is a thorough review of the entire discovery process and is an exciting reminder of what real contributions citizen scientists provide.
“Two New Species Discovered in Lime Ridge Open Space” :: Media Release from Save Mount Diablo :: June 12, 2008 :: [ READ SUMMARY ] :: [ READ THE MEDIA RELEASE ]
Also featured by the Society of Amateur Scientists…
“Amateur Scientist David Gowen Discovers Two New Plant Species” :: SAS The Citizen Scientist Newsletter :: July 4, 208 :: [ READ ]
Perseids Meteors coming in August
Jul 23, 2008
Beautiful falling space debris from the latest 1992 passing of Comet Swift-Tuttle will once again grace our sky early in the morning of August 12, 2008. Drive far away from city lights and venture with your family and friends to enjoy the show. The Perseid meteor shower should provide another good viewing this year with possibly one to two meteors each minute.
Read the following NASA news article to learn more and plan for a show of nature that will certainly be exciting and fun to watch.
“The 2008 Perseid Meteor Shower” :: Science@NASA Headline News :: July 22, 2008 :: [ READ ]
A Little Research in the Early Morning
Jul 21, 2008
The DPRI AmSci Journal does focus on reporting great opportunities to do real research as a citizen scientist. But, we cannot stress enough the importance of keeping your eyes open at any moment for the science discovery that might present itself just to you. It might not be a profound discovery never seen by any other human being, but it might still be intriguing, inspirational, and breathtaking.
In fact, we’re starting a new category called “Inspiring Citizen Science” to present how others experience great personal moments in science discovery–large and small–and how you might be inspired to enjoy exploring as a citizen scientist.
Please read the following post from a woman who has moved out into the wilderness to start a new life, and be inspired by her openness to interact with the world around her…
“Inner Children will be Children” :: Liven’ the Life by Meg Menkedick :: July 21, 2008 :: [ READ BLOG POST ]
If you have a personal science experience that you would like to share with the other readers of the DPRI AmSci Journal, please submit your story to the publisher or post your own Citizen Science Public Journal Report.
Galaxy Zoo gets Googled
Jul 17, 2008
Google is making a $50,000 financial connection with Galaxy Zoo to support the continued development of the program, and to extend the reach and usability of GoogleSky. Professor Bob Nichol, a Galaxy Zoo team member and faculty at the University of Portsmouth, is the recipient of the grant.
Google sure is getting into everything these days… sound like a familiar Mr. Gates a few years back? … fortunately, the technology is pretty great for assisting amateur scientists to great things!
“Zoo receives cash boost from Google” :: University of Portsmouth News :: July 10, 2008 :: [ READ ]
