My Keynote at the GLOBE conference in Leysin, March 2018
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This document promotes hacking for citizen science and getting people involved in scientific research projects. It encourages readers to use their skills to help scientists by hacking and developing tools for data collection and analysis. Readers are asked to consider what area of science they could contribute to as part of the growing citizen science movement.
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My Keynote at the GLOBE conference in Leysin, March 2018
- 26. What Science will YOU Hack? @MobileMaggie
Editor's Notes
- Hi I’m Margaret, and my background is in technology, but I’m using that in the field of Science, particularly in Citizen Science. When I say hacking, and I don’t mean hacking into computers or servers or networks to steal data. I mean hacking stuff together, quick ways of building a tool that you need, a website, or a science inquiry! And today I want to tell you about Hacking for Science.
- Technology has been making Participatory Science possible all the way back to the late 1800s, when Wells Cooke, an American ornithologist was studying bird migration patterns in the US. He asked for ornithologists in Iowa to send him lists of winter residents and the dates of the first arrivals of spring migrants for a long-term study. Individual volunteers sent him hand-written reports or telegrams over 15 years, reaching a total of more than one million cards. He was called the “father of cooperative study of bird migration in America”. Cooke was the fifth child (of nine) and the eldest son of Rev. Elisha Woodbridge Cook, a Congregational minister, and Martha Miranda (Smith) Cook. He was born at Haydenville, Massachusetts and grew up largely in the lake region of eastern Wisconsin where he showed an early interest in natural history. Given a gun at about 12 years of age, he began collecting bird specimens. He studied at Ripon College and the University of Iowa, eventually graduating from Ripon with an AB degree in 1879 and achieving an AM degree in 1882. In 1879 he married Carrie Amy Raymond. After graduating he worked as a teacher in Indian schools in several states for the next six years.[2] For 16 years from 1885 he worked in colleges, being associated with the University of Vermont (1885–1893) where he was appointed Professor of Agriculture in 1886, the Agricultural College of Colorado (1893–1900), and the State College of Pennsylvania (1900–1901). During the period he was teaching in the Indian school system, Cooke produced several papers on birds and began to focus on bird migration. In the winter of 1881–82 Cooke asked for ornithologists in Iowa to send him lists of winter residents and the dates of the first arrivals of spring migrants for a long-term study which later expanded to cover the whole Mississippi valley. In 1901 Cooke was appointed to a position in the Biological Survey section of the United States Department of Agriculture, based in Washington, D.C.. There, for the last 15 years of his life, he worked mainly on bird migration and distribution, building on the earlier records and network of participants he started in 1881. He accumulated individual records of migration on cards, many of which he wrote himself, with the total number of cards reaching one million in 1915. He also published extensively on bird distribution and migration, with a bibliography of over 400 items. He died quite suddenly, of pneumonia in Washington, at the age of 58. The ninety years of records that Cooke accumulated, along with those who followed him, are now held by the North American Bird Phenology Program.
- When we think of Citizen Science, we often think of Bioblitzes, and wildlife observations that are shared with researchers. There are some great examples of that here in Leysin too, with the LETS Study Leysin project. But modern technologies are making lots of new kinds of citizen science possible as well.
- For example, the web allows people to share their wildlife observations, along with photos and other data, to be mapped along with other observations on websites like NestWatch
- Here in Switzerland one great example of web-based projects is the Swiss Litter Report, where you can share your observations of litter found, classify it and place it on the map – enabling country-wide analysis of the worst types of litter, and heaviest hit locations.
- There is some amazing science happening with these web-based Citizen Science projects. The Planet Four project took images of Mars that show surface features, and asked people to mark them.
- More than 70,000 people took part world wide, and the marked nearly 4 million images of Mars!
- Thanks to that contribution, new publications are now coming out showing newly discovered ridges - Here is a map showing the ridges that were known before this project (green) and the enormous number of ridges in fine detail that we mapped throughout Nili Fossae (red): http://blog.planetfour.org/2018/01/18/one-earth-year-of-planet-four-ridges/
- All the locations monitored by HiRISE that were classified by Planet Four volunteers to make the Season 2 and 3 catalog. A labeled version (for clarity a few regions don’t have their names listed). We note all of these names are unofficial nicknames and are not IAU approved. Credit: G. Portyankina http://blog.planetfour.org/2018/03/09/south-polar-locales-comprising-the-first-planet-four-catalog/
- Another example of Citizen Science projects with high research impact – is Etch a Cell, which involves the public in cancer research by asking them to outline the shape of the nucleus in microscopic images of a cancer cells.
- After a very successful start to one of our new biomedical research projects, Etch A Cell, the hard work of Zooniverse volunteers has provided enough data for the researchers to start making 3D models of cell features. This image shows a model of a nucleus from a ‘HeLa’ cancer cell that has been entirely built by our amazing citizen scientists from our electron microscopy images. The nucleus is only around 10 millionths of a metre in diameter and you can see the tiny intricate folds and creases on its surface. Using these models we can see the shape of each complete nucleus and understand their structure more easily. From these models we can make measurements that will allow us to study the effects of different diseases and treatments on the internal structure of cells. These annotations will also allow us to train state-of-the-art machine learning systems to help us churn through our ever increasing piles of data. https://daily.zooniverse.org/2017/07/27/sneak-preview-of-etch-a-cell-results/
- And of course the ultimate data collection device in the field is the mobile phone, allowing surveys to be filled in in-app, attaching photos and GPS location data, to create very rich maps and data sets on which scientists can make amazing strides. There are now many great app-based citizen science projects across a wide range of fields – not just wildlife monitoring. Many of you are using iNaturalist, and iSpot is another great mobile application for sharing observations.
- Whenever you are out in nature you can be contributing wildlife observations, biodiversity observations, even weather observations via your mobile phone. The Spotteron platform also has a wide range of examples of mobile-based observation sharing.
- You can find a lot of projects that you can join, that are specific to Switzerland on Schweiz Forscht.
- Such as Crowdwater, which is a water-quality project across all of Europe, that has a good participation level in Switzerland as well.
- But during the GLOBE conference, you have been asking your own science questions – what if you’d like to ask others to get involved in YOUR enquiry about the world around you? Well, this is where hacking for science comes in – you can build it yourself! Here are some great examples of other people who did exactly that…
- Public Lab was inspired by the information blackout surrounding the 2010 BP Oil Disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Despite having a massive impact on residents and the environment, local communities received sparse, incomplete data that contradicted what they could see unfolding in front of them. As news of the spill’s severity spread and outrage about limited access to information simmered locally, three of Public Lab’s would-be co-founders, Shannon Dosemagen, Jeff Warren and Stewart Long, convened in the Gulf Coast with a plan to use helium balloons, kites and inexpensive digital cameras to loft their own "community satellites" over the spill. The trio, in partnership with local New Orleans nonprofits and collaborators from across the United States, trained over one hundred local volunteers and activists who then collected over 100,000 aerial images of the coastline before, during, and after the oil spread. Using MapKnitter, an open source platform created by the group, residents stitched these images into high-resolution maps of the disaster. Through a partnership with Google Earth Outreach, these community-created maps were then uploaded to Google Earth making them globally accessible. The maps of the spill received broad media coverage, including being featured by the New York Times, BBC, PBS, and the Boston Globe, allowing residents to speak their truth to the world about what was going on in the Gulf Coast. https://publiclab.org/wiki/stories Thanks tothe crowd-funding sites Kickstarter, this baloon mapping kit has been developed further, built, and made available for anyone to purchase. https://publiclab.myshopify.com/
- https://blog.safecast.org/ March 11th, 2011 – a 9.0 earthquake hits Japan, triggering a massively destructive tsunami and crippling the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. An email thread between Sean Bonner (Los Angeles), Joi Ito (Boston/Dubai/Tokyo) and Pieter Franken (Tokyo) began almost instantly. In the days following, as the discussion moved from confirming safety of friends and family, to ensuring their continued well being in part by getting geiger counters into their hands. Commercially available supplies dried up almost instantly and the discussion changed from buying to building. A plan to distribute devices was developing. As each new challenge arose, someone from the networks of these three people was added who could speak about that particular issue with more authority. Joi was introduced to Dan Sythe (Maui), who ran International Medcom and produced high quality geiger counters. Sean knew people at the Tokyo Hackerspace and looped Akiba (Tokyo) into the discussion about building devices from scratch. bunnie hwang (Singapore) was added when the conversation turned to designing new devices. Ray Ozzie (Boston/Seattle) joined when the question of how to look at the data arose. The following week Aaron Huslage(North Carolina) contacted Joi to introduce Marcelino Alvarez (Portland). Marcelino was one of the principals at a web/mobile shop in Portland called Uncorked Studios and they were working on site called RDTN.org. This site was to be primarily a map aggregating published radiation data and soliciting measurements from the public. Ideas and resources were shared and a clear synergy developed. As available data was mapped, missing data was obvious and getting devices into those areas seemed like the next obvious direction. Email threads turned into Skype calls and an always active chat room became the project headquarters. Months earlier Joi Ito and Sean Bonner had begun working with Digital Garage in Japan on the production of their annual New Context Conference held in Tokyo. With radiation levels largely unknown and concern very high, the decision to reprogram the event was made. Rather than focusing on startups and new technologies, crisis response and recovery specific to the earthquake would be the topic. This event would become the first in person meeting of the whole team thus far, as well as the first introduction to many future Safecast volunteers. On April 15th, just over 1 month to the day later, Dan, Pieter, Akiba, bunnie, Sean and Joi sat down in an office together for the first time. That weekend they were joined by Aaron Huslage, David Ewald (representing Uncorked in Portland, who would later design the the Safecast Logo), Ray Ozzie, Kei Uehara and Catherina Maracke from Keio University, and Tokyo Hackerspace members Kalin Kozhuharov and Robin Scheibler. Many hours were spent hashing out the direction of our next steps. This meeting was a turning point for many reasons. Ray Ozzie conceived the plan to strap a geiger counter to a car and somehow log measurements in motion. This would became the bGeigie which would be entirely designed and built at Tokyo Hackerspace the following week by Akiba, Robin, Pieter, Steve Christie and Mauricio Cordero. We decided that directionally we needed to focus on collecting data, and concluded that a new brand was needed to describe both the work we were doing now and might do in the future – in Japan and around the world. We were to be called Safecast – the name and related domains donated by Ray Ozzie. With a successfully overfunded kickstarter campaign and a few private donations to help fund equipment were were in motion. The week of NCC in Tokyo solidified our efforts and gave us a mission. In the months following we would secure additional funding, recruit hundreds of volunteers and openly publish more measurements than any other organization to date.
- http://naturebytes.org/ Here’s how it all started in 2015 (as reported in TechCrunch) There’s no shortage of products purporting to help teach kids coding these days, whether it’s Kano’s DIY computer kit, or the Robot Turtles board game, or any one of the many programmable robots. Toys with a STEM twist that aim to keep kids tinkering and learning indoors are all the rage. U.K. startup Naturebytes is bringing a different emphasis to this tech-plus-education space. It’s aiming to combine hackable technology with a mission to spark kids’ curiosity in the great outdoors. And given kids’ dictionaries have this year been jettisoning nature-related words such as acorn and buttercup, and adding in tech terms like broadband and ‘cut and paste’, there are perhaps signs technology risks becoming a little all consuming for ‘digital natives’. Naturebytes has just kicked off a Kickstarter for a Raspberry Pi-powered camera trap kit for capturing wildlife photos. The idea is to inspire kids about what electronics and coding can do while also giving them an appetite for learning about and experiencing nature. Putting technology outdoors might also be a way to get kids interested who might otherwise prefer running around outdoors. Add to that, embedding technology in the natural environment is something we’re going to see more of, with the rise of the Internet of Things. The weatherproof camera trap kit is designed to survive the elements. It houses a Raspberry Pi Model A microprocessor (other more powerful Pis can also be used), battery pack, Pi cam and an infrared sensor — a set up that enables motion-sensitive photo (and video) capture of any passing wildlife. The camera comes in kit form so kids get to put it all together and learn along the way. There’s also scope for expanding functionality — for instance the kit can be upgraded with a Wi-Fi link to automatically upload wildlife snaps. As well as crowdfunding these hardware kits, Naturebytes is intending to build a web platform where users can share images they’ve captured with the camera, and get involved with citizen science projects. Kits start at £45 for more advanced makers who already have a Pi and Pi cam and want to 3D print the camera casing themselves. Stepping up to £85 for a kit that has everything except the Pi included, or £95 for all the bits and bobs. At the time of writing the team has raised more than 10 per cent of their crowdfunding target, with a month left on their campaign clock. So not bad going. They’re targeting around $45,000 in total pledges in order to produce and ship their first batch of kits — with an estimated shipping schedule of December.
- The Hardware Hacking movement, increasingly sophisticated sensors at low price points, and the internet of things is opening up all sorts of possibilities. Here we see a DIY spectrometer, the Air Quality Egg, and a home made sensor device.
- So where do you get started if you want to do it yourself?
- The Epicollect application allows you to create your own forms to ask observation questions in the field, to which a photo can be attached, and the location data also automatically attached – which can then all be uploaded to a centralised map on your own project page on the Epicollect website. It was orginally designed for tracking illnesesses and diseases for Epidemiology field workers, but has since been used for everything from tracking wildlife to reporting roadkill! https://five.epicollect.net/
- https://crowdcrafting.org Crowdcrafting was born at a hackathon in Cape Town, South Africa in 2011. It is a free and open source alternative to existing citizen science platforms. In partnership with our key collaborators, such as CERN, United Nations (UNITAR), the University of Geneva, and Open Knowledge International we have reached out to and inspired many people to get involved with science. And this is how we have achieved our goal of transforming citizens from scientific consumers to scientific producers. Crowdcrafting is a web-based service that invites volunteers to contribute to scientific projects developed by citizens, professionals or institutions that need help to solve problems, analyze data or complete challenging tasks that cant be done by machines alone, but require human intelligence. The platform is 100% open source - that is its software is developed and distributed freely - and 100% open-science, making scientific research accessible to everyone. Crowdcrafting uses PYBOSSA software: Our open source framework for crowdsourcing projects. Institutions, such as the British Museum, CERN and United Nations (UNITAR), are also PYBOSSA users.
- https://mapknitter.org/ MapKnitter 2 is free and open source software created and run by Public Lab, that was created for stitching the aerial photos together that were taken during the very first balloon mapping project.
- You can find many more amazing project ideas and ways to get started on the Instructables website, (for example: http://www.instructables.com/howto/citizen+science/), you can find code to reuse on GitHub (for example: https://github.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=citizen+science&type=), and some amazing projects that you can help to build or build yourself that are shared on Hackaday (for example: https://hackaday.io/search?term=citizen+science). And if you build something yourself, don’t forget to share it back so that others can try it too – or even develop it further!