Science Cheerleader

Bob Grant, Associate Editor, The Scientist, writes:

Meet citizen science’s answer to match.com – http://scienceforcitizens.net/. The new website, brainchild of Darlene Cavalier (AKA – The Science Cheerleader) and colleagues, seeks to hook researchers up with members of the general public who want to volunteer for duty in the scientific process. “We hope to enable regular people to do real science by connecting them to existing citizen science projects,” Cavalier told The Scientist. Read more.

Why so few posts from me lately? Truth is, I’ve been swamped. All great stuff, including a summer-long  immersion in an incubator program; some very cool upcoming Capitol Hill briefings for Discover Magazine and the National Science Foundation;  the launch of ECAST (Expert and Citizen Assessment of Science and Technology);  exciting speaking engagements; plotting of a national Emergency Response process so people with great ideas for solutions to a crisis will have an immediate and reliable place to turn where ideas will be delivered to decision-makers (more on that later); and…baseball season. I have four young kids and all of them play ball. Fun stuff!

To keep things fresh, I’ve enlisted the help of some enthusiastic writers so we can continue to deliver opportunities for you to get involved in science and science policy discussions; learn about people who are shattering stereotypes; and enjoy all science has to offer. From the simplest pleasures (like when I recently found a fly trapped in a spider’s web…I’m sure he deserved it) to mind-boggling speculations about our future (e.g. Singularity), it’s impossible to escape the influence and wonders of science.

I’d like to share with you a brief summary of SciCheer’s goals and outcomes. Feel free to use the data as you see fit. It’s becoming clearer to me that a SciCheer 2.0 might be in order. If you have thoughts on what the next generation of SciCheer should include, let me know. –Cheers!

On Sunday, the same day the New York Times featured YOUR future–aka Singularity, read on–on the cover of its business section, I was listening to the head cheerleader of all-things-Singularity, Ray Kurzweil, as he presented the future of humanity at the H+ Summit at Harvard. You might recall that we interviewed Ray on SciCheer sometime last year.

Ray and I, along with several others, were speakers at the H+ Summit, the theme of which was The Rise of the Citizen Scientist. I spoke about “citizen scientists” as I know them. (A copy of my powerpoint presentation can be found, below. I’ll post a link to the video when I have it.) As it turns out, my definition of citizen science isn’t quite the same as the who follow the Transhumanist/Singularity philosophy. While they are very interested and enthusiastic about what “our” citizen scientists are doing–and quite a visionary and friendly group of people, I might add–they are more interested in how humans can, ultimately, harness the deepest powers of technology to  “seize control of the evolutionary process” and create immortality.

I’ll do my best to explain what this means by pulling excerpts from my past interview with Ray Kurzweil:

Ray’s “short version” definition of  Singularity:  “The Singularity is a future time when the pace of technological change will be so fast and transformative that you will not be able to follow it unless you merge with the intelligent technology we are creating.”

How this work will and when: “Accessing the web from inside our brains is one good example of what we will see in about twenty years. The machine extensions to our brains will grow exponentially both in hardware and software capability. By the late 2030s, it will be the nonbiological portion of our intelligence that predominates.”

No thanks, I like things just the way they are. “First of all, it is human to change who we are. We didn’t stay on the ground, we didn’t stay on the planet, and we have not stayed with the limitations of our biology. Human life expectancy was 23 a thousand years ago. We are the only species that changes who we are and extends our reach, both physical and mental, through our tools. So it is human to change who we are. There will always be early and late adopters, but people are not going to completely dismiss these changes. How many people today complete reject medical and health technologies? When there is a therapy based on blood cells devices that overcome a particular disease, very few if any people will reject it. People put computers in their brains today if they have Parkinson’s Disease. People do not reject this FDA approved therapy due to philosophical issues.”

The buzz kill: real concerns that microscopic robots will pose a threat to the world: “Yes, that is called the grey goo scenario, and the narrative thread in the movie illustrates this danger. I do think we can manage that through a combination of ethical standards to build in safeguards into nanotechnology, as well as a rapid response system that detects threats and immediately deals with them, just like our biological immune system is designed to do. But this is not something we should be sanguine about. We need to be very diligent about it.”

So, there’s your future. Want to have a say? First step, head over to the beta website of ECAST (Expert and Citizen Assessment of Science and Technology) and sign up so we can keep you apprised of so-called “participatory” opportunities. We (see below) set up ECAST precisely so the public and scientists can inform each other on emerging technologies so smart, representative policies are initiated. And, as stated before: government policymakers, businesses, non-governmental organizations, and citizens need such analysis to capably navigate the technology-intensive world in which we now live.

“We”=Science Cheerleader, Arizona State University, Boston Museum of Science, the Loka Institute, and the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars.

Now, more than ever, we need to get in front of emerging technologies to help shape our future.

As promised, here’s a copy of my presentation.

ScienceForCitizens.net, the sister site of ScienceCheerleader that matches volunteers to scientific researchers in need of some help, was among 11 companies selected by GoodCompany Ventures to help “accelerate the growth of early-stage ventures that generate profit and have a positive social impact. GoodCompany Ventures provides support, facilities, and mentoring to socially conscious entrepreneurs who can make a difference.”

My partners and I just wrapped up week one of this summer bootcamp and we’ve already learned a great deal. Totally psyched about the future of ScienceForCitzens.net!

If you’re an entrepreneur, you may want to consider checking out an incubator. Here are some of the services Good Company Ventures, for example, provides to its participants:

• Access to Infrastructure: Conference and office space as well as technology infrastructure within our facility in downtown Philadelphia.
• Access to Advisors: GoodCompany Ventures has assembled mentors, preferred providers, expert advisors, industry leaders, and start-up gurus.
• Access to Capital: GoodCompany Ventures will facilitate a first investment round by assembling representatives from leading VC firms and angel investors.

We are in “good company” here at Good Company. I hope to be able to share information about the 10 other start ups soon.

For those of you who are active members of ScienceForCitizens.net, thanks for being early adopters, thought-leaders, influencers… Huge thanks to our founding sponsor, Science House, and early partners: the USA Science and Engineering Festival, the Coalition on the Public Understanding of Science, and Scientific Blogging.

We are accepting a limited number of “launch sponsorships” so if you are interested, just let me know.

June 12-13 at Harvard.

“The H+ Summit is a two day event that explores how humanity will be radically changed by technology in the near future. Visionary speakers will explore the potential of technology to modify your body, mind, life, and world.”

As a speaker, here’s what I plan to chat about. Registration is now open. I hope to see you there!

Moon Zoo: Crater Survey from The Zooniverse on Vimeo.

Today, NASA and the Citizen Science Alliance presented Moon Zoo to the world!

ANYONE with internet access can sign up and start identifying craters and other features of the moon courtesy of images of NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.

“We need Web users around the world to help us interpret these stunning new images of the lunar surface,” said Chris Lintott of Oxford University and chair of the Citizen Science Alliance, according to a NASA news release. “If you only spend five minutes on the site counting craters you’ll be making a valuable contribution to science and, who knows, you might run across a Russian spacecraft.”

I had the pleasure of chatting with Chris last week. We’re looking at ways ScienceForCitizens.net and the Citizen Science Alliance (as well as other groups with our shared mission of advancing opportunities for citizen scientists) might collaborate. I guess the sky really is the limit!

Cool: Congress is busy taking note of the many ways citizen scientists can help protect the nation. Check out this:

In the United States, 1 in 4 people live with the risk of earthquakes. The U.S. Geological Survey and its partners are designing innovative tools to better detect earthquakes and share critical information.

The involvement of citizens is key, as decisions made before and immediately after an earthquake can save lives and protect property.
What:The USGS will host a congressional briefing on how innovative tools combined with citizen involvement can help save lives and minimize economic losses from earthquakes.
Who: Jack Hayes, Director, National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (emcee)
David Wald, U.S. Geological Survey; John Hooper, Director of Earthquake Engineering at Magnusson Klemencic Associates; Mark Benthien, Southern California Earthquake Center
Where: 1334 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C
When: Friday, May 21, 2010 10 a.m.
For more information about the briefing, visit www.usgs.gov/solutions.

(Thanks to David Westcott for the lead!)

We’re on a roll, team! Two years ago this month, ScienceCheerleader.com launched with three goals:

1) help increase adult science literacy (see Brain Makeover). [Check!]

2) raise the ranks of citizen scientists and create a shared space for researchers and the public to socialize and work together. (see ScienceForCitizens.net) [Check!]

3) open doors to public participation in science policy (see this breaking news item) [Check!]

Thursday’s ground-breaking announcement in Washington, D.C. marked an important milestone for us (we accomplished the third goal); but, more importantly, it has already started to alter thinking in Washington, D.C. and within the science community.

Two years ago, some folks thought I was “misguided,” “naive,” “nuts,” to push for this level of public participation in science. (It’s one thing to ask someone to help count fireflies or monitor water quality, but to suggest people might add value to critical science policy discussions sometimes drew reactions of shock and horror.)

In two short years, the reactions have changed considerably. On Thursday,  when we issued a report on how to build a 21st century technology assessment mechanism, and announced the formation of a network that will put the report into action, the response was incredible. From Beth Noveck at the White House, to representatives from the EPA and other government agencies as well as universities, museums–and, yes, even scientists–the reception was remarkably warm if not enthusiastic.

Here’s a virtual toast to everyone who helped make this happen. Now rest up because we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.

Larry Bock, the unflappable founder of the USA Science and Engineering Festival, sent the following message to 40,000+ people this morning. Hope you can joins us!

“We are very pleased to announce our partnership with Science For Citizens, a brand new website co-founded by Darlene Cavalier (who blogs at the Science Cheerleader) and Michael Gold (a science editor and writer). This site aggregates citizen science projects (also known as amateur science projects or participatory research) and enlists volunteers to get their hands dirty with science. Discover Magazine calls it the Amazon.com of citizen science, Innocentive gives it two big thumbs up, and the National Science Foundation’s Science and Media Site says “Sci4Cits may by the solution to fragmentation, a serious issue for the informal science education community and its followers.”

Science For Citizens, in collaboration with the USA Science and Engineering Festival, the Coalition for the Public Understanding of Science(COPUS), and Science House, will have a major presence at the Festival playing host to numerous hands-on, citizen science activities.

Visitors at the Sci4Cits exhibit will have the opportunity to sort galaxies, test water quality, identify birds and fireflies, and participate in lots of other honest-to-goodness scientific research activities. Sci4Cits is now accepting applications from interested citizen science project leaders who wish to participate in this first-of-its-kind expo by demonstrating activities with thousands of festival goers-turned-scientists. If you lead a citizen science project and would like to participate in the Sci4Cits exhibit, please complete this brief surveybefore April 30 so we can better accommodate your goals and requirements. If you do not run a citizen science project, but would like to volunteer to help demonstrate one or more, that’s great, too! Just complete the contact information and make a note of your interest to be a volunteer in the final comments section (last question). Feel free to email Sci4Cits at info@scienceforcitizens.net with any questions or comments.”

Stay tuned for an announcement re: Science Cheerleader’s presence at this event. It includes a performance by a troop of pro cheerleaders-turned-scientists and engineers!

“Here’s an emerging opportunity for citizen-science,” wrote Richard Sclove, a mentor and colleague working with me on this effort.

Sclove attached this NYTimes article illustrating why “doctors, researchers, drug makers and regulators should pay more attention to patients’ firsthand reports of their symptoms while they take medicines, because their information could help to guide treatment and research, and uncover safety problems.”

The following particular quote in the article caught my attention, because it punctuates the importance of seeking direct input from the end-user (patients, in this case; consumers or citizens in situations involving stem cells, geoengineering, synthetic bio, etc.). It is attributed to Dr. Ethan Bash, an oncologist who published this report in the New England Journal of Medicine:

“Direct reports from patients are rarely used during drug approval or in clinical trials,” Dr. Basch says. “If patients’ comments are sought at all, they are usually filtered through doctors and nurses, who write their own impressions of what the patients are feeling.”

This type of second- or third-hand interpretation can be misleading. Take a look at the graph on the left, for example (courtesy of The New York Times). There are a host of possible and plausible explanations listed in the Times piece as to why doctors and nurses don’t do a better job of reporting what patients tell them. They’re not being deviant or trying to harm the patients when they substitute their own interpretations for what’s actually being reported by the patient. Nor are scientists and policy makers when they serve to speak on our behalf. But the sum result = misinformation and that’s not helpful to anyone.

Doctors, kindly listen more carefully to your patients; scientists and policymakers, consider taking citizen input seriously. If you think the U.S.A. does a good job doing so, I invite you to read this brief post on the differences between how we  view public participation here vs. how it’s viewed in the U.K.