Citizen Science

Citizen science can be broadly defined as activities in which members of the public voluntarily engage with professional scientists in scientific inquiry to answer problems. Although the level of engagement on the part of the participants varies depending on both the project and the skill and interest levels of the volunteers, the most important characteristic of citizen science is that the public is participating in authentic scientific research. Citizen science as a research method lends itself well to many disciplines, including astronomy, ecology, biology, atmospheric science, geography, and environmental science. In these projects, participants act as amateur scientists, contributing to the collection, categorization, and/or analysis of data and sometimes also playing a role in its dissemination and use. Informal science education is often an implicit, ...