We are big fans of citizen science! Of course, science is always cool, and STEM/STEAM projects are an increasing part of everyone’s work and school experiences. So understanding how science works is not just fun, but a good way to understand what is going on in the world around us all.
So we are sharing some neat science you can do, contributing toward large projects, and learning new things. Maybe you can use this today; maybe you will save it for later. As long as you enjoy some exploration and learning new things – citizen science is for you! And it is definitely something you can use to bring some good programming to your library.
Check out this project from SciStarter:
| Presented By | Salish Sea Hydrophone Network |
|---|---|
| Goal | Monitor endangered Pacific Northwest killer whales. |
| Task | Detect orca sounds and measure noise levels using hydrophones. |
| Where | Online |
| Description | The Salish Sea Hydrophone Network needs volunteers to help monitor the critical habitat of endangered Pacific Northwest killer whales by detecting orca sounds and listening for dangerous noises. The goal is to report whenever you hear something interesting, thereby notifying marine researchers and stewards when orcas are in the Salish Sea, and possibly being subjected to dangerous levels of human-made noise. Maintained by a broad coalition of non-profit organizations and initiated with major funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the network consists of five hydrophones (underwater microphones), each hooked up to a computer to analyze the signal and stream it to you via the internet. Even though software is used to distinguish animal from other underwater sound, human ears do a better job of detecting unusual sounds. So it’s critical that volunteers also monitor the network from their favorite device anywhere in the world, and alert the rest of the network when they hear interesting or worrisome sounds. We’ve detected the use of military sonar and helped get it stopped. At night or during foggy days, our listeners help activate other researchers to study the whales the next clear day. In the long run, we will also engage our network and citizen scientists in deciphering orca communication and whale migration patterns. See less |
| How to get started | Visit http://www.orcasound.net/listen to find out how to listen live, access recordings, learn what to listen for, and how to log in your observations. Help us develop a new app to make listening for whales easier and more rewarding! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1114690397/orcasound-listen-for-whales?ref=bkci0d More information and guidance: http://www.beamreach.org/externships |
| Social Media | Follow the Orcasound: listen for whales |
| Total expense | 0.00 |
| Special Skills | Be a good listener! (Or if you don’t hear well, be observant when looking at spectrograms, or other visual displays of sounds.) |
| Ideal Age Group | Graduate students, Middle school (11 – 13 years), Adults, College, Seniors, Elementary school (6 – 10 years), Families, High school (14 – 17 years), |
| Spend the time | Indoors |
| Ideal Frequency | Other |
| Average Time | |
| Type of Activity | At school, Exclusively online, At night, At home, |
| Topics | Crowd Funding, Sound, Nature & Outdoors, Ocean, Water, Marine & Terrestrial, Ecology & Environment, Animals, Biology, |
| Media Mentions & Publications | Annual reports to NOAA (2006-2009) |
| Tags | killer whale, ocean, orca, whale, |
| Sustainable Development Goals | Relevant Sustainable Development Goals, identified by  ?:Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure Sustainable Cities and Communities |
| Website | Orcasound: listen for whales |
And if you want to bring in a few of these ideas to your library, it is useful to have a variety of different program strategies to help share this project. We have a few suggestions to help you get started:
- Find pictures of orcas of all different sizes
- Write up a list of criteria for whales – what makes a whale different from fish and the other things in the ocean?
- Try doing some meditation or having quiet time while listening to whale songs
- Look up information on noise pollution. What is the biggest cause of noise pollution in your area?