Science From Home
By Virginia Davidson
If like most of us you’re stuck at home 24/7, it can feel like any real involvement is just out of your reach. That doesn’t have to be the case. Citizen science is a great way to participate directly in science, and meet a new community of engaged and passionate people that have shared interests. Being involved in research can be a fulfilling and fun activity, although it’s often inaccessible to non-scientists. With the gradual rise of online projects, that barrier has begun to be torn down.
Citizen science isn’t simply participating in a study; it means being actively involved in the scientific process yourself. Citizen science projects can range from data gathering - like the famous Great Backyard Bird Count and platforms like iNaturalist - to more hands-on approaches like invasive species control. Researchers can get creative when they design their projects; scientists here at the University of Washington launched a computer game called Foldit over a decade ago which has players identify new proteins by solving puzzles. Projects like these are an important tool for making new discoveries, and enhance the impact of the data that’s gathered by drawing interest from the public.
Since March of this year most hands-on projects have taken a necessary pause in the wake of the pandemic. It’s near impossible to organize a volunteer event when all of your volunteers are in quarantine, and even as some restrictions on gathering have lifted in recent months it’s often a wise choice to keep projects suspended for everyone’s safety. Many studies have been put on hold while the crisis is dealt with, and researchers sometimes left floundering.
This doesn’t mean that citizen science has taken a break, nor the scientists driving it. The urgent need for information about the spread of COVID has meant a surge in crowd-sourced projects dedicated to figuring these things out. Not only have new projects popped up, pre-existing studies have pivoted in order to focus on current problems. Some flu studies, including the Seattle Flu Study here at the University of Washington, have provided the foundation for critical testing efforts. Others have taken on the challenge of symptom tracking and contact tracing. Even the well-established protein puzzle project Foldit has put in motion a project focused on developing a protein binder targeted at COVID-19.
Online projects are all the rage. There’s been a trend towards making citizen science projects, even those unrelated to Covid, accessible to anyone working from home. A popular citizen science site, Zooniverse, has added over a dozen new easily computer accessible projects to its roster in the last few months. Zooniverse, and other sites like it, serve as a centralization point for studies and projects from numerous organizations. Projects can span from digitizing old ship’s logs to identifying wildlife on live cam footage. In short, a person can participate in any kind of research they’re interested in, right from the comfort of their own computer.
This trend has also had the effect of making research more accessible to disabled communities, and others who are unable to partake in traditional face-to-face research. By opening up opportunities in an online environment, there are fewer barriers to participation in citizen science.
Citizen science and crowdsourcing efforts have been integral in the response to Covid. However, no matter how well-organized or online-adapted a project may be, without the participation of the public it can fail. The best way to help stop the spread of the virus is to stay away from others, but with citizen science at your fingertips, that doesn’t have to be the only way. You can help researchers identify new proteins to fight it, or track the spread of the virus, and you never have to leave your home to do it.