Citizen science

Citizen science is any activity that involves the public in scientific research and thus has the potential to bring together science, policy makers, and society as a whole in an impactful way. Through citizen science, all people can participate in many stages of the scientific process, from the design of the research question, to data collection and volunteer mapping, data interpretation and analysis, to the publication and dissemination of results. Citizen science is also an approach of scientific work that may be used as a part of a broader scientific activity.

Examples

Title: Who is a Citizen Scientist? – Parthenos training
Type: Digital
Institution: Parthenos. This site provides training modules and resources in digital humanities and research infrastructures from PARTHENOS and associated projects. This site can be used by both learners and trainers alike. Please click on the images below to get started. PARTHENOS is led by PIN (Italy) and has 16 partners. The scientific coordinator is Prof. Franco Niccolucci. To know more about the partners please visit the dedicated page
Year: 2014
Result: Ongoing courses open to all, Videos and Tools
Videos: Citizen Science: Everybody Counts | Caren Cooper | TEDxGreensboro
Description: Connecting non-experts who are curious about the world with research projects is an extremely powerful instrument through which to find solutions for the societal problems of our age faster and investigate them on a much larger scale than it could be done in laboratories or research groups alone. For instance, researchers of the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Washington had been investigating effective solutions to fold structures of certain proteins for a long time when they decided to release the problem to the public.


Title: Letters of 1916:
Link: The 'Letters of 1916' project | Irish Humanities Alliance
Type: Digital and Outreach Physical activities
Institution: Maynooth University
Year: 2016
Result: See Video and Blog
Project website
Description: Letters of 1916: A Year in the Life' is Ireland’s first public digital humanities project. Begun in September 2013, this collection includes letters held at institutions in Ireland and abroad alongside those in private collections. There are hundreds of letters connecting thousands of lives and commenting on a myriad of topics including: the Easter Rising, literature and art, the Great War, politics, business, and ordinary life. 'Letters of 1916' adds a new perspective to the events of the period, a confidential and intimate glimpse into early Twentieth Century life in Ireland, as well as how Ireland was viewed abroad.