Unravel DNA with Citizen Science
You can help collect data for studies of DNA by mailing researchers your dog’s saliva, samples of the forest floor, and even spiny anteater scat.
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Photographing Starlink Satellites For Science
SpaceX and others plan to launch thousands of new satellites into low-Earth orbit, creating streaks that cut through astronomers’ images. Now educators at NASA are asking citizen scientists to help document the problem.
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Clearing the Air in the Historic West End
Equipped with air quality sensors, an African American neighborhood in Charlotte, North Carolina, is trying to reverse decades of environmental injustice.
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Citizen Science is for Lovers this Valentine’s Day!
By Bob Hirshon (@Bob Hirshon) It’s almost Valentine’s Day. Cuddle up with these five projects–and one book–that we love! They are waiting for you with open arms. Xoxo, The SciStarter Team Health eHeart You’re probably science-savvy enough to know that the seat of love is in the brain, not the heart. But do you really want to send a romantic card that says “I (brain) you!” We thought not. So follow your heart to the Health eHeart (get it?) project, where you and your SO can share data that will…
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Five Ways to Prepare for SuperbOwl Sunday
By Bob Hirshon @BobHirshon Sunday, February 2 is the most exciting day of the year for owl-lovers all over the world: SuperbOwl Sunday! This is the day when the ornithologically-inclined brave the elements to admire owls near them, photograph owls and/or, for some reason, stay indoors and watch football. No matter who you’re hooting for this Super Bowl Sunday, you can celebrate SuperbOwls and citizen science. Get started with the projects we’ve spotlighted, below. Cheer for science…like 49ers cheerleader Kelly! Cognitive neuroscientist and San Francisco 49ers Gold Rush Cheerleader Kelly…
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Book Review: Field Guide to Citizen Science
By Devon Moriarty @devmoriarty Darlene Cavalier, Catherine Hoffman, and Caren Cooper. The Field Guide to Citizen Science: How You Can Contribute to Scientific Research and Make a Difference, $7.60 Kindle, $11.99 Paperback The Field Guide to Citizen Science is currently available for pre-order. I know you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but in this case, the front of The Field Guide to Citizen Science: How You Can Contribute to Scientific Research and Make a Difference effectively communicates the essence of this book. A simple black, blue, and yellow…
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Phendo: Understanding Endometriosis
In 2016, Noémie Elhadad and her lab at Columbia University’s Irving Medical Center created the Phendo, or “phenotyping endometriosis,” app, to better understand and identify symptoms of endometriosis. Endometriosis is a painful condition that causes overgrowth of the endometrium, or inner lining of the uterus, such that it grows outside the uterus and into other places in the body. Their goal is to fill in the gaps of knowledge about how individuals experience the disease on a day-to-day basis. The app invites anyone over the age of 13 who has…
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Regular People Are Changing How We Monitor Air Quality
Low cost, high impact: How access to sensors is changing everything in air quality research. Air quality: It’s about us The ways we hear about air pollution can make us think it’s not about us. Large industrial stacks, smoky skies, and cities far away — filled with people we’ve never met, in places we don’t expect to be. Articles on the front pages of major news outlets describe air pollution in India, China, and Bangladesh, and they don’t always make the connection with people like me who live in the…
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Cultural Heritage and Citizen Science
Citizen science for your ears The latest episode of Citizen Science, the podcast from SciStarter, is the first of two episodes about how regular people help cultural heritage institutions like archives, libraries, and museums do scientific research, like uploading photographs to iNaturalist or eBird, or volunteering with a local water organization to monitor stream and river quality. Co-host Justin Schell shares how natural history museums and libraries encourage everyday people to take part in local, national, and global science projects. The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County In the…
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Explore Biodiversity with iNaturalist
Do you want to know more about the world around you? You can get outside and explore biodiversity and the natural environment with iNaturalist! iNaturalist allows anyone, anywhere to contribute to a global record of biodiversity by uploading pictures of plants and animals with their smartphone or computer. In a new podcast episode (listen below!), co-host Justin Schell talks with Dr. Carrie Seltzer, the Stakeholder Engagement Strategist for iNaturalist, and with representatives and a volunteer from the Appalachian Mountain club. Tip: add your iNaturalist username to your SciStarter dashboard, and…
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