Category: Nature & Outdoors

This morning, my son spotted a squirrel from our window and said “Mom, hurry, take a picture!” (He’s grown accustomed to spotting and photographing squirrels, birds and insects for various citizen science projects. In this case, it’s for Project Squirrel.) I grabbed my iphone and, using its built in camera, snapped away as the squirrel […]

Today is Earth Day, a perfect excuse to get out and help the planet! Researchers need YOUR help tracking the presence of American robins, so they can compare your observations with other environmental data, including climate and weather changes.  American robins are arriving in the Colorado Rockies 14 days earlier than they did 30 years ago […]

You’re invited to join Science for Citizens at the Philadelphia Science Festival Carnival on the Ben Franklin Parkway this Saturday, April 16! The festival promises to be an event like no other, with over 80 exhibitors offering non-stop family-friendly experiments, interactive activities, games, and a packed line-up of live entertainment. Best of all, the event […]

Energy is a strange thing.  It floats around you, fills you up until you’re about ready to burst, and then it skips off, leaving you to keep up as best you can.  Last Thursday and Friday were two full days of such energy, when 60 professionals from such exotic places as Alaska, Colombia and New […]

As spring revs up to full gear, I enjoy taking runs around my neighborhood to enjoy the colorful bursts of flower and bits of cheerful birdsong. If you too have a soft-spot for feathered creatures, consider becoming a citizen science observer for one of these three great projects! If you live in a city or […]

Could you come up with a new way to track submarines? Could you outsmart a submarine commander? If  you think you’re up to challenge, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) could use your help! DARPA is inviting citizens to get in the virtual driver seat of a new video game: the Continuous Trail Unmanned […]

Did you know that you can contribute to science by blowing bubbles? It’s true! The Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) network is asking citizen scientists in England to use bubbles to calculate wind direction and speed. All you need to do is create a “bubble cone” using a piece of paper and some tape. Then, with some […]

Whoooohoo!!!

This is National Invasive Species Awareness Week! Invasive species represent a significant threat to native plants, animals, and humans. They cause enormous disruptions in the natural ecological balance, inducing erosion, crowding out food sources, and reducing biodiversity. Invasive species are also a significant drain on the national economy. If you’re in the Washington, D.C. area today […]

Have you ever seen the Milky Way from where you live? Most of us have not, and it’s largely due to increased light pollution from outdoor lighting. Light pollution not only wastes billions of dollars a year in energy and money but it causes human sleep disorders and disrupts habits critical to ecology. Globe at […]