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New tools for monitoring biodiversity and environments
Ed BakerNatural History Museum
How can we do science when this..
…. becomes this .
What can we make machines do for us?
What can we measure?
http://ubidots.wordpress.com/2012/01/28/the-internet-and-the-nature-of-things/
Can we put the environment online?
http://ubidots.wordpress.com/2012/01/28/the-internet-and-the-nature-of-things/
The Internet of Things
http://ubidots.wordpress.com/2012/01/28/the-internet-and-the-nature-of-things/
Do we have to become hardware engineers as well now?
Do we have to become hardware engineers as well now?
• I’d recommend it. It’s fun building stuff.
Do we have to become hardware engineers as well now?
• I’d recommend it. It’s fun building stuff.
• Potential for collaboration outside of biology
Do we have to become hardware engineers as well now?
• I’d recommend it. It’s fun building stuff.
• Potential for collaboration outside of biology
• Take citizen science somewhere new: citizen engineering
CITIZEN ENGINEERING?
Once again – physics got there first
Hackers and makers
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fumi/3546898731/
Take a microcontroller
Plug in ethernet and SD card
Add some sensors
Write some code
Environmental data to Scratchpads
In terms of hardware – it’s crude
In terms of hardware – it’s crude
But the data is good data
In terms of hardware – it’s crude
But the data is good data
It’s cheap (pretty much disposable)
What about academic collaboration?
You can listen for bush crickets
Can we automate this?
In Situ Acoustic Monitoring of Biodiversity
Can we automate this?
Can we automate this?
Can we automate this?
Can we automate this?
Don’t stop there!
Don’t stop there!• Add a GPS! Location, but also time
Don’t stop there!• Add a GPS! Location, but also time
• Temperature, humidity, light levels
We can already do a lot if we collaborate
We can already do a lot if we collaborate
We need to think big in terms of scope, scale and speed
You can put a plant on Twitter
Why not a whole forest?
You can track a domestic cat
Why not track hundreds of individuals?
