Category: Science Education Standards

What’s Your Lens On Nature?

By Lisa Gardiner, Apr 17, 2012

Imagine someone who is exploring nature. Are they wearing a backpack and hiking boots? Are they roaming the great outdoors? Now imagine someone exploring science. Are they wearing a lab coat and glasses? Are they in a chemistry lab or a room full of computers? Have they been indoors so long that their eyes squint at the light of day? Scientists, naturalist, writers, and artists all look at nature in different ways. What's your lens on nature? … Read more

Categories: Animals, Birds, Citizen Science, Nature & Outdoors, Science Education Standards

NIH Lab Challenge: Submit your best citizen science experiments!

By John Ohab, Oct 02, 2011

  Here’s your chance to help bring citizen science to the classroom — and win a little recognition in the process! The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is asking people to send in their best experiments for kindergarten through 12th-grade classrooms. After you submit your experiments, a panel of classroom teachers, students, scientists, and NIH … Read more “NIH Lab Challenge: Submit your best citizen science experiments!”

Categories: Science Education Standards, Science Policy

10 back-to-school projects for young citizen scientists

By John Ohab, Sep 13, 2011

As summer comes to a close, a young person’s fancy may turn to fretting at the thought of being cooped up in a classroom. But for fans of science and nature—and by that we mean kids who like to watch clouds, hunt mushrooms, prowl around graveyards, and check out what gets squashed on the side … Read more “10 back-to-school projects for young citizen scientists”

Categories: Animals, Astronomy & Space, Biology, Birds, Chemistry, Climate & Weather, Computers & Technology, Ecology & Environment, Education, Geology & Earth Sciences, Nature & Outdoors, Ocean & Water, Physics, Science Education Standards

Citizen Science Cheerleaders Head To Vegas

By Darlene Cavalier, Sep 09, 2011

Meet the Science Cheerleaders. This team of more than 100 NFL and NBA cheerleaders-turned-scientists and engineers is ready to cheer for citizen science. ScienceCheerleader.com, our sister-site, aims to inspire the 3 million little cheerleaders in the U.S. to consider careers in science and engineering, while playfully challenge stereotypes and encouraging participation in any of the … Read more “Citizen Science Cheerleaders Head To Vegas”

Categories: Education, Science Cheerleaders, Science Education Standards

Citizen Science Opportunities with The American Chestnut Foundation

By John Ohab, Sep 01, 2011

Sara Fitzsimmons is the Regional Science Coordinator at The American Chestnut Foundation The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to restoring the American chestnut (Castanea dentate) to its original range. Once estimated to be 25% of the Appalachian forests, the species was all but eliminated from the landscape by an imported fungal … Read more “Citizen Science Opportunities with The American Chestnut Foundation”

Categories: Biology, Citizen Science, Ecology & Environment, Education, Nature & Outdoors, Science Education Standards

Citizen Paleontologists Are Making History

By Lisa Gardiner, Jul 28, 2011

During the last Ice Age, mammoths and mastodons roamed Florida. Today, fossil hunters like James Kennedy of Vero Beach, Florida find their bones. “I'm not a scientist,” said James in a recent interview for National Public Radio. “I just go out and dig up bones good. I'm good at finding them." But I’d contend that James is a scientist – a citizen scientist. Many people collect fossils. I like to think of these fossil hunters as “citizen paleontologists” and they can play important roles in scientific discovery. For example, one of the bones James collected is more than just a fossil. It’s also prehistoric art. An image of a mammoth is engraved on the bone. Scientists estimate that the engraving was made at least 13,000 years ago. It’s an important clue to how humans lived at the time. Several research projects are combining the skills and interests of citizen paleontologists with those of scientists in order to help us understand more about earth’s history and evolution. Here are a few examples of projects that are getting citizens and researchers working together and leading to scientific discoveries. … Read more

Categories: Animals, Citizen Science, Geology & Earth Sciences, Nature & Outdoors, Science Education Standards

“Changing Planet” Town Hall: clean energy, green jobs

By John Ohab, Jul 20, 2011

On Tuesday, July 26 at 9pm ET, The Weather Channel will air the “Changing Planet” Town Hall focused on clean energy and green jobs. Science for Citizens is a partner in this three-part series. Here’s more information from NBC News: This town hall broadcast is the second in a 3-part series that brings together scientists, … Read more ““Changing Planet” Town Hall: clean energy, green jobs”

Categories: Climate & Weather, Ecology & Environment, In the News, Science Education Standards, Science Policy

Citizen Science in Puerto Rico

By John Ohab, Jul 12, 2011

Citizen science is taking off in Puerto Rico! According to a story at Ciencia PR, citizen scientists are playing an important role in the conservation efforts for the Hacienca La Esperanza Reserve, which houses the only coastal forest in Northern Puerto Rico. Through the Puerto Rico Conservation Trust’s Citizen Science Program, volunteers have the opportunity to explore and observe the … Read more “Citizen Science in Puerto Rico”

Categories: Biology, Citizen Science, Ecology & Environment, In the News, Science Education Standards