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UrduLonger days and warmer nights, it’s the perfect recipe for mosquito season. But before you reach for the repellent, did you know that some species of mosquitoes rarely touch a drop of blood, instead favouring flower nectar? Or that mosquitoes only smell with their feet?
Tag: Citizen Science
Turning the tide: Ghana’s innovative approach to tackle marine plastic pollution with citizen science
Working with IIASA researchers, Ghana has adopted a citizen science approach to addressing the problem of plastic pollution in marine environments.
Unlocking the power of citizen science to monitor health and wellbeing targets
IIASA researchers and experts at the World Health Organization (WHO) have conducted a systematic review of health and wellbeing-related indicators, as well as citizen science initiatives, to explore the potential of citizen science for mobilizing action toward the achievement of health and wellbeing related targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the WHO’s Triple Billion Targets.
Revealing the power of citizen science for SDG advancement
A new collection in the journal Citizen Science: Theory and Practice demonstrates the potential of citizen science to aid in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other international agreements and frameworks. The authors call for urgent dialogue between citizen science practitioners, researchers, and decision makers to build partnerships and work together to advance citizen science for a sustainable world.
Grassroots Data Vital for Reducing Deadly Bird-Window Strikes
Much of the progress made in understanding the scope of bird deaths from building and window collisions has come as the result of citizen science, according to a newly published study. But the study also concludes that such grassroots efforts need more buy-in from government and industry, and better funding so they can keep a foot on the gas in their efforts to reduce bird-window collisions.
Driving inclusive and green urban transitions
A new Horizon Europe project led by IIASA, called Urban ReLeaf, leverages citizen science for public sector innovation.
Stars Disappear Before Our Eyes, Citizen Scientists Report
A startling analysis from Globe at Night — a citizen science program run by NSF’s NOIRLab — concludes that stars are disappearing from human sight at an astonishing rate. The study finds that, to human eyes, artificial lighting has dulled the night sky more rapidly than indicated by satellite measurements. The study published in the journal Science showcases the unique contributions that citizen scientists can make in essential fields of research.
Citizen science: empowering citizens to address global challenges
IIASA researchers actively contribute to the development of citizen science and have recently published a primer aimed at both established and aspiring practitioners of this approach to highlight key issues and how to address them.
Beach trash accumulates in predictable patterns on Washington and Oregon shores
Citizen scientists spent thousands of hours observing trash on beaches in Washington and Oregon. Their surveys show that certain beaches, and certain areas of a single beach, are “sticky zones” that accumulate litter. Finding patterns for where litter lands could help to better prevent and remove trash in the marine environment.
Is there snow in that tree? Citizen science helps unpack snow’s effect on summer water supplies
To investigate what happens to snow intercepted by trees, UW researchers created a citizen science project called Snow Spotter.
Making the most of crowdsourcing campaigns
In a new study, an international team of researchers explored how crowdsourcing projects can make the most effective use of volunteer contributions.
Rensselaer Scholar Conducts First Sociological Analysis of Lead Residue in Soil; Available During National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week
Lead in soil is a problem that is nearly ubiquitous. It can be found in playgrounds and parks, urban gardens, and backyards in communities around the world. But how do we know just how widespread the problem is? How can…
Male dragonflies lose their ‘bling’ in hotter climates
A study led by Michael Moore at Washington University in St. Louis finds that dragonfly males have consistently evolved less breeding coloration in regions with hotter climates. The work reveals that mating-related traits can be just as important to how organisms adapt to their climates as survival-related traits.
ESF Receives NSF Grant to Explore Evolution in Urban Areas
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) scientists received $540,000 as part of a four-year, $1.5 million National Science Foundation grant to explore principles that shape evolutionary processes in urban areas.
Understanding how birds respond to extreme weather can inform conservation efforts
How do different bird species respond to extreme weather events that occur for different amounts of time, ranging from weekly events like heat waves to seasonal events like drought? And how do traits unique to different species — for example, how far they migrate or how commonly they occur — predict their vulnerability to extreme weather?
Closing the gap: Citizen science for monitoring sustainable development
Citizen science could help track progress towards all 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). An IIASA-led study, for the first time, comprehensively analyzed the current and potential contribution of citizen science data to monitor the SDGs at the indicator level.
New Tech Lets Marine Scientists Track Real-Time Health of Coral Reefs Around the World
MERMAID, an open-source tech platform for marine scientists, is for the first time launching an interactive map that provides an insider’s view of the ecosystem data collected from coral reefs by field scientists around the world.
Earth Challenge 2020: Calling on citizens to help support global food supply
A new app widget provides citizens with an opportunity to get involved in one of the world’s most challenging problems: how to provide enough, high quality, nutritious food to the ever expanding global population.
Rutgers Expert Can Discuss Family’s 43-Year Backyard Bird Citizen Science Project
New Brunswick, N.J. (June 8, 2020) – Rutgers University–New Brunswick Professor Kimberly Russell is available for interviews on an upstate New York family’s 43-year family tradition – a competition to predict the arrival of American robins in their backyard every spring…
SAS and IIASA call for crowd-driven artificial intelligence to help track deforestation
On the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, SAS and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis join forces to transform crowdsourced knowledge into actionable intelligence to help protect the planet.
Citizen scientists may be an untapped resource for water quality improvement
Raising awareness and offering technological tools to the thousands of citizens groups in the U.S. that monitor water quality might help community leaders tap these volunteers as a way to improve access to plentiful, clean water and possibly avoid water-related crises, according to a team of researchers.
Uncover Secrets of Nesting Birds With “Nest Quest Go!”
Secrets hidden in more than 300,000 index cards with hand-written information about nesting birds are gradually being revealed. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is partnering with Zooniverse, an online people-powered research tool, to digitize this valuable collection and create the largest database of nesting bird information in the U.S. This new effort is called “Nest Quest Go!”
“Science By The People” Book Explores Promise and Pitfalls of Citizen Science
Involving the public in scientific research can help to solve complex environmental problems, but according to Science by the People, a new book co-authored by sociologists Abby Kinchy of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Aya Kimura of the University of Hawaii-Manoa, effective “citizen science” requires an awareness of potential social dilemmas.
Citizen science for sustainable development
Monitoring progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goals requires a huge amount of data. Citizen science could help fill important data gaps, say IIASA researchers.