Discover Magazine and SciStarter announce new citizen science partnership

Amateur science enthusiasts can join forces with top researchers through Your Research Mission—a new partnership between DISCOVER Magazine and SciStarter.com. NEW YORK, NY. (March 1, 2012) – A “citizen science” movement is sweeping the country. Now, amateur enthusiasts who want to collaborate with leading scientists can visit DiscoverMagazine.com to join cutting-edge research projects. DISCOVER is … Read more “Discover Magazine and SciStarter announce new citizen science partnership”

Categories: Citizen Science

Incentives for citizen scientists: report, recruit, verify

For most people, a citizen science project provides a way to address a specific scientific challenge with the help of volunteers. For a group of researchers from MIT, UCSD, Masdar Institute, and University of Southampton, it is also an opportunity to study what motivates people to join the project. Would you rather receive a badge, … Read more “Incentives for citizen scientists: report, recruit, verify”

Categories: Citizen Science, Guest Contributor

Don’t miss The Great Backyard Bird Count!

On the morning of Friday, February 17, I will wake up before work, pour myself a cup of coffee, and stare out my window for 15 minutes. As long as I submit my observations to the Great Backyard Bird Count, my 15 minutes of zone-out time before I jump in the shower will qualify as … Read more “Don’t miss The Great Backyard Bird Count!”

Categories: Biology, Birds, Citizen Science, Ecology & Environment, Nature & Outdoors

The landscape and promise of Citizen Science

Some of you expressed interest in viewing the slides I shared during a talk at the Microbe.net workshop at UC Davis. The talk was designed to give an overview of citizen science projects and a peek at the opportunities and challenges ahead for people involved in the production of such projects. It also pointed towards … Read more “The landscape and promise of Citizen Science”

Categories: Citizen Science, Science Policy

An ode to you: a citizen science theme song!

Citizen scientists around the world finally have their own anthem! Monty Harper, an Oklahama-based educator and entertainer, has released his latest song, “Citizen Scientist,” featuring SciStarter! We’ve adopted this as our theme song. Harper drew inspiration from the research of Dr. Janette Steets, a botanist at Oklahoma State University. And the best part is that … Read more “An ode to you: a citizen science theme song!”

Categories: Citizen Science, EarthSchool, In the News

Who’s the boss: Home or human microbiomes?

Most of us are aware of the bacteria on the surfaces we come in contact with. The doorknob for the bathroom, coins and paper currency in our pockets, handrails in subway cars, computer keyboards and mice at the library… the list of built environments on which microbes thrive is nearly endless. In our preoccupation with … Read more “Who’s the boss: Home or human microbiomes?”

Categories: Citizen Science, Guest Contributor

Have you seen this swan?

The Trumpeter Swan is the largest bird in North America, but in the early 20th Century, they were extremely hard to see. Over-hunted for their feathers and skins, these beautiful birds once teetered on extinction. In the early 1900s, fewer than 100 remained in the wild. Despite decades of subsequent protection under the Migratory Bird … Read more “Have you seen this swan?”

Categories: Birds, Citizen Science

Top 11 Citizen Science Projects of 2011

Drumroll, please! Here are SciStarter’s top 11 citizen science projects from the past year. The list was generated based on the number of visits in our Project Finder. Thanks for joining our journey. Wait until you hear what we’ve got cooking for 2012! Happy New Year from the SciStarter team! 11. ClimatePrediction.net Climateprediction.net is a distributed … Read more “Top 11 Citizen Science Projects of 2011”

Categories: Citizen Science

12 Days of Christmasy Citizen Science Projects

Make sure you’re on Santa’s “nice list” this year. Consider helping researchers help the planet this holiday season. Here are a dozen opportunities to get involved in real research during the 12 days of Christmas! On the first day of Christmas, Missouri gave to me…an opportunity to help stem the threat of invasive pear trees … Read more “12 Days of Christmasy Citizen Science Projects”

Categories: Citizen Science