Citizen Science Data is the New Data Bitcoin

The Arctic Glass project has spiderwebbed out into a handful of directions I hadn't originally planned, one being "how to capitalize on citizen science." Originally citizen science came up only briefly on my Toolik visit, and was specific to solving instrument validation issues for USGS stream gauges in remote locations. I spoke for a while with the techs doing readings in hard-to-reach places like Barrow, AK, or even at the non-helicopter only sites like a truck ride a few miles up the pipeline haul road. Getting to these locations are time-consuming, and a misbehaving gauge doesn't often show up as an issue until the data is missing. What if there was "a guy" or someone local to the area that goes by that particular gauge on a regular basis. This "guy" might not have the training to fix instrument issues, but what if there was an early warning light or something simple to tell an average observer the instrument is having issues?

And so has been the general extent of citizen science to date. Scientists set up the observation, citizens help with the readings. This has been a great success on websites such as Zooniverse.org, and has even resulted in new discoveries coming directly from observant enthusiasts. But what happens when the volume of data we are churning out on a daily basis in our cities, airplanes, ships, and even personal devices eclipses the volume of data collected by the traditional scientific process?

This is where I personally find things to get really interesting. Here is the concept I have been playing with: What if data wasn't a product, but a currency? In that I mean, has transactional value that is measured rather than volume for volume's sake? In this model, we might view scientific data as similar to traditional dollars. Reasonably well structured and monitored (with those pesky data management plans) at the least. I akin traditional data collected by scientists and mostly for scientists just like the good 'ol dollar bill. If we assume traditional scientific data is like the dollar: trusted, backed by known "value", regulated....where does that leave data collected by citizens? OR, citizens that are also scientists, but not working in their given domain for a particular project, just for fun? (In other words, we can't assume the data is poorly collected and therefore less valid.)

So then, it looks to me like citizen science data is to data as bitcoin is to dollars. It's untrusted, wild, making its own rules, with everyone trying to constantly validate it on an old standard for traditional data that may no longer apply. Most importantly,  in the future citizen science data will most likely be more plentiful and more granular (think local collections in houses next to each other) than traditionally collected data. It's even feasible a market for citizen science data could flourish along side the market for harder-to-get scientific satellite data.

Just like bitcoin, only time will tell I suppose, if this prediction becomes a reality. However, I am feeling fairly confident here given the technology to perform credible scientific work is available. The first thing we need to figure out is value of citizen data, and also traditional scientific data for that matter. For example, at this point we aren't even sure if our data is worth a chicken, a pig, or two bags of flour....or if value is variable depending on transaction participants.

Promoting Awareness and Attracting Collaborators: American Geophysical Union Conference 2013

As the 2014 AGU conference quickly approaches, I'm taking some time to document my time spent at the American Geophysical Union conference in December 2013 in search of collaborators for the Arctic Glass project. I gave a short presentation during the polar cyberinfrustructure track at the conference. From this and other discussions held on the conference trade floor, I gathered approximately 20 contacts that were 'definitely interested' in exploring the use of Google Glass with their work. Of those 20, 7-8 contacts had definitive ideas regarding what projects they would pursue using. This is even more of an interesting metric to me now we (Scientific Computing team at AWS) are experimenting with a similar approach to finding collaborators this year at AGU. I am also very interested to find out if the Arduino-style "internet of things" will be more prevalent this year. There's a lot of promise in Maker devices to measure in-home toxins, back yard garden soil richness, and even your own biometric activities. The internet of things will rely on the rapid prototyping abilities of these types of DIY boards, which in turn means the probability federal agencies involved with local scale environmental modeling enlisting this type of sensor data collection is very high. All of this for another post for now...

Overall, it definitely seems targeting the appropriate professional event for the community you wish to engage is still a tried and true method of making collaboration connections. I am curious to see how the upcoming fall 2014 meeting pans out for AWS, because the connection I made at AGU 2013 that enabled this project was at the Toolik Field Station exhibition floor booth.

Experiment Design: Facilitating Awareness to Rapid Development

In general, there is a significant gap between consumer technology development and technology intended for scientific use. However, the two seem to be on an exponentially accelerated path to collision and have been for some time. For example, the core development of smart phones developed almost completely outside the concept of designing instruments for science. It's true that research specific to cellular transmission, graphics acceleration, hardware improvement, ect, can often be attributed to academic research...however, the product itself, the smart phone, is entirely designed for general consumer / commodity use. It was only after mass use did scientists start to realize the potential of the mobile sensors, data collection, visualization, and other uses specific to the need of experiments. At the same time, the pure science development being released for mass consumption (LDAP protocol is a good example) in a final form has reduced over the years. This disconnect, which came about organically from the pace of technological invention, has left a large void in which science could be capitalizing and even leading the development of, commodity devices both the general population and science could benefit.

• So then, how to better integrate new, perhaps revolutionary technology in particular, to the scientific workflow? 
• On top of that, how can scientific study influence commodity devices such that the devices are primed to work as citizen science or teaching and learning devices once development is mature?
• Finally, how can commodity devices, both cheaper and readily available in support and quantity, both accelerate discovery and improve cost effectiveness in hard to reach regions such as the Arctic, Antarctic, Ocean, Space and others?
• What potential advancement in science methodology and workflow could result from newfound researcher awareness?

These questions led to a collaborative approach between myself and the National Science Foundation Division of Polar Programs. The technology of focus for the experiment is a result of a potential data collection and validation method created from new disruptive devices and services.  For visualization and collection, I proposed a revolutionary device still in early stages of development be a centerpiece of the project: Google Glass. Additionally, Amazon Web Services would provide the computational power and scale necessary to address in-situ processing for data collection and retrieval. Finally, additional resources yet to be named would provide for additional sensor immersion and high-accuracy data collection in tandem with the Glass and AWS technologies.

With Polar Programs, we discussed many strategies, but ultimately settled on a somewhat hybrid approach to soliciting projects. The traditional aspect of our plan focused awareness efforts on well-know gatherings related to earth science domains we wished to target. the American Geophysical Union (AGU) conference was unanimously determined a good fit for a "wide net" approach for soliciting interest in pilot projects. Once there was specific interest that could be tied to specific scientific discovery, the AGU opportunities will evolve into targeted projects delivering proof-of-concept examples. Finally, the proof-of-concept projects are to provide a basis for extrapolation of additional areas of scientific discovery to be pursued.

UPDATE - The video call issue "somewhat" resolved...

I was just as frustrated with Google as everyone else when the 'Hangout' feature for Glass was removed back in May/June 2014. However, the concept of immersive applications for businesses of all kinds still persists, and not just in pure science. For example, the Remedy application for Glass, being piloted by Harvard and other Med Schools:

http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/25/remedy/

Remedy is essentially a virtual patient visit, aided by Glass, mobile devices, and interfaces to patient records. Indeed the medical industry stands to benefit immensely from this kind of revolution in handling patient treatment.

However, a true replacement for Hangout this is not, and a replacement for Hangout in general doesn't seem to be on the radar right now. HOWEVER, there is the Livestream app for Glass.

Livestream allows a Glass wearer to broadcast audio and video over glass to a web audience. The audience in turn can write text back to the Glass wearer, which shows up in the Glass app. In theory, this is pretty awesome. I have yet to experience the service without some hiccups in performance, however. For example, significant latency of the feed (ok, blame networks) but also complete dropping of the connection intermittently. I will continue to play with Livestream, but I'm hoping to find a better classroom app for Glass out there.

Open Data in the Context of Arctic Glass

Other than the customary excuse for "not having enough time" to update this blog, I do have some fairly well-formed excuses that led me to thinking about the concept of open data, science, and all topics related to that conversation. All of this due to this simple conundrum: "I want to be efficient about my progress reporting and findings for Arctic Glass, BUT I also want to share some of this information publicly on this blog." This of course developed into the realization that I would have to essentially keep current on two separate records. One for my internal reporting and one for external. While for some areas of science this makes a lot of sense (i.e. munition research), it does not make sense at all in my case. If anything, I want to attract a wide audience, inclusive of commercial and the general public, to my ideas forming as a result of the Arctic Glass project. However, the idea of two separate narratives for this process for which I would rather be doing the experimenting and not the administration was driving me a bit crazy. Ultimately I decided to err on the side of open. (Note to Google though, it would be AWESOME if I could limit some text in my blog posts to specific users only. Kind of like highlighting for security purposes.)

In any case, what does "being open about data" mean in the context of Arctic Glass:


- My field notes, and thoughts surrounding them, will be kept in this blog, open to anyone.
WHY? Because I'm not the one manufacturing the product. Just as with pure science in general, I'm not limited specifically by commercial competition. I have knowledge to share, and my only expectation is to be kept, at least, informed by any research or commercial development that comes from my work.


- My expenditures, and other financial information regarding Arctic Glass will be kept private, for now. 
WHY? Mostly because this can be a sensitive subject for some, and there is really no scientific advantage to that information right at this moment in time. Not to say this always has to be the case.


- Collaborative information regarding commercial or public entities will be open but only at the consent of the parters involved.
WHY? Kind of obvious, but betraying others trust blindly doesn't make people want to collaborate.

WHY be open in general?
Because science, (and myself) can move faster (and be more efficient and ultimately useful).

Because collaborators are a blessing not a problem. On top of that, they can help you keep your eye on the goal AND help you get there.

Because there is a lot to do, and there is more than enough work to go around (thanks to Dan Duffy @ NASA for this thought)


I realize that many researchers do in fact, post their project process online. This is awesome! I plan to help encourage this trend with some kind of non-static web presence beyond this blog, very soon...

Just because, Helicopter

Gratuitous helicopter footage.

Takeoff!

Time to go south.

Today is my last day at the Toolik Field Station. It has definitely been an interesting couple of weeks. I have enough projects to keep me busy for 5 years, let a lone the 1 year of the grant. There's everything from larger-scale novel networking approaches to building Arduino "scientific accessories" for Google Glass. The big lesson to be learned though, is that just about anyone can benefit from a little bit of technology in their workflow....but thinking creatively on how to apply technology is the real challenge. I'm pretty sure my work would have been pretty short here if I would have shown up with only Google Glass and only was interested in applying that specific device to science problems. The same would have been true if I only was here to do AWS work. But, putting the two together, and then throwing in some ideas on using Arduino to augment commodity technology, and a little bit of the national and university scientific landscape helped immensely. The grant is about building a few Google Glass projects, but more importantly it's about figuring out how to help accelerate science with the technology that can be afforded. Sometimes, the biggest most impressive gear isn't really what you need in the field. It is also often cost prohibitive. You might be able to get away with a cheaper grade of say, laser or IR, that will still serve the purpose but not take over your entire budget. Software is also the key to making commodity technology just as good as the proprietary stuff. Proprietary software is still generally stand-alone, and well proprietary, which makes the technology itself less desirable if there is a cheaper, more integratable solution that can still do the job at lesser resolution. This isn't of course the truth for every experiment, but it's definitely a shift in thinking that wasn't present even a few years ago.

Fox - from the Haul Road to Deadhorse, AK

So I have a lot of work ahead of me, but this has definitely been a productive trip. Barring the issues with the video call removal on Google Glass, and a disappointing but expected wireless network performance, things went very well. Hopefully video calling will be back on Glass soon, and the fiber network should be up at the station sometime before summer ends. Oh, and if anyone reading this is interested in doing a little start-up work building tablet / Google Glass accessories for scientific field work, private message me on Google+ or email me.

Caribou crossing the road - Haul Road to Deadhorse, AK

Dear Google. I love thee....but right now, I hate thee.

So things have been going extremely well with introducing Google Glass to research in the Arctic. Amazon Web Services have also taken hold with researchers here too. Unfortunately for me, Google Glass has decided to make a most unfortunately feature removal during the most critical time. They have removed the video call feature from Glass, citing that explorers in the beta program said the feature wasn't good enough and it wasn't being used by enough people. Well, obviously the squeaky wheel got the grease because I am now dead in the water with the educational component of my grant. True, Google says the video call feature will come back, but now is the time we would be having our PolarTREC instructors going out into the field to teach remote classroom activities. Granted, I will be working on other applications for Glass for the project, but this turn of events is extremely unfortunate and really quite a turn off. I'm hoping I'll be able to get a previous version of glass software loaded onto my Glass units, or get a future version where video calling is again a feature or I'll be holding off a bit from purchasing a few more for the station's use.

Bummer Google.

Day 7 - Prep work for PolarTREC

PolarTREC is a teaching and learning component of the Arctic programs.

http://www.polartrec.com/

We will be experimenting with Google Glass in PolarTREC, specifically for virtual field trips into the tundra with polar researchers. Since the wireless signal at Toolik only goes out about a quarter to third of a mile from camp, we're limited to field trip experiences in the area around the station. This is not such a big deal though, since there's quite a bit to see just within a few feet of the buildings. I'll be doing some additional testing for this initiative today.

On a totally different note....the mosquitoes are coming. Unfortunately I think for good this time. The little cold spell (with snow) killed them off a few days ago but I'm starting to see both the monster-size ones and the little ones. The monster ones are pretty freaky actually. Here's a sample of their size:

Mosquitoes are actually the worst in the Arctic than anywhere else in the world, (yes, even jungles). It's all of the standing water that sits on top of permafrost. The permafrost prevents the water from absorbing into the ground, and all of the wet vegetation in the standing water is mosquito larvae heaven. So the golden hour of awesome weather without mosquitoes is ending with no relief in sight until August.

Day 6 - Back to the old routine

So it doesn't take long to fall into a routine here. Especially when you are fed 3 square meals a day at specific times, and the sun never goes down so you kind of need to purposely find some sort of normal in a sleeping schedule. It's a nice sunny day today, and pretty warm (t-shirt with pants is feeling tropical). This means all of the scientists that rely on decent weather to observe bird activities, insects and other wildlife are out all day today. The bird observers probably have the most dramatic day of everyone, as their day is pretty much a treasure hunt for bird nests. Not only that, they are looking for birds in the process of building the nests. Checking on sensors and other instruments seems less glamorous when the birders arrive back from their hunt.

I was able to get some basic wi-fi boundaries testing done today. This involved walking out on the "boardwalk" a.k.a. an extremely long dock, to get to the research land plots. Unfortunately the wi-fi ended right before most of the research areas, so it looks like some wi-fi extension or creative network architecture is in order if researchers want to use any sort of wi-fi device out there. This of course, was kind of what we expected.

The boardwalk is not exactly easy going all of the time, as some areas are still covered with a good 3-4 ft of snow. However, the section in the video was clear of snow and a nice morning walk.

Tonight I will be the entertainment for the evening, and give a talk about Google Glass and Amazon Web Services.

Another nice feature of the camp is the sauna. You only get 2 showers a week, so the sauna is a nice way to warm up and then wash up by pouring water over yourself. I also love the smell of woodsmoke, so that's nice too.

Here are some nice ice chunks breaking up as Toolik Lake thaws for the summer.

Day 5 - Sunday a day of kind of resting

Today the camp is a bit slower than it usually is during the 6 day work week. Some people are still out collecting samples, even in the rain. I've been alternating between napping and working, although my working is not going to be more than reading today. I've been working on some data gathering of my own, which is finding the actual end of the wireless signal around camp. I've also been dong some internet speed tests. Yesterday I rode the mountain bike out, although I didn't go far, to the end of the wireless from the road side of camp. Tomorrow I hope to get out on the "boardwalk" I.e. really long doc system, over the tundra to see where the internet ends on the experiment side of camp. If we can get signal roughly a mile out, we can provide wireless to about 56% of Toolik research plots.

That would open up opportunities for better data collection validity to start, as well as more immediate processing of data in the field, which could ultimately improve sampling planning, awareness and finally better models.

Getting Around Camp

Toolik isn't very big, so the most common ways of getting around are walking and biking. Here's a video I took with Google Glass that shows you my usual "commute" for the day. In other words, from my weatherport housing, past the dining hall and finally to the GIS trailer.

 Most of the brown/green trailers are labs or operations buildings. The tan towers with steps going up them are bathrooms. Most of the tents, especially the green and tan ones all bunched together, are housing.

Day 3 - co2 Sensor Repair documented by Google Glass

The biggest event for today was tagging along to do maintenance on several data collection instruments about 20 miles from the station. I used Google Glass to document much of our outing. Here we are landing at the first location:

The audio didn't turn out so well here, but researcher Adrian Rocha explains the different sensors to me. The ones on the far right are a CO2 and temperature sensor. The instruments on the left side of the tree are radiation sensors. The box is where all of the sensor data comes together and is recorded. You can also get a good idea of what soggy tundra looks like as I walk over to him. The packet that Arian puts on top of the box at the end of the video is a dri-pak, which is used to keep the inside of the wiring box dry.

We found that the first sensor issue was that a bird had pooped in it, making the software tell Adrian the sensor was obstructed. That site also had dead batteries (the size of a car battery) In the second location, we found a bear had ripped some of the wiring out of the box. Adrian also made a few positioning adjustments to some of the sensors and then downloaded data from the hard drive located under the solar panels.

Day 2 - Errand in Deadhorse, AK

Today in the morning I spent time working on the computer, and catching up on a few things. But, in the afternoon I was able to tag along on a trip to Deadhorse, Alaska. The camp helicopter's battery was dead, and a new one had been shipped up to the tiny, primarily oil-company-servicing airport in Deadhorse. This is about as far north as you can get to the Arctic Sea by road and not trespass onto oil refinery property. Any further north you need to go by air. The trip is also all dirt road on the Dalton Highway, which actually comes to an end in Deadhorse. Dalton is really the only main "highway" through northern Alaska, so this is a pretty big deal. So, the helicopter pilot and I started up to Deadhorse.

From Toolik Field Station north to Deadhorse is about 130 miles...but at 50 mph, so it's a significant trip. The ride was definitely very scenic. The fog rolled in for the first part of the drive, but we managed to see a pack of caribou crossing the road.

For a while, the drive is pretty mountainous. There are even some strange-looking bluffs. 

Eventually though, the landscape gets very flat, for a long time. There is also more and more water, ice, and snow as you get closer to Deadhorse.

Then, you arrive in Deadhorse, which is really nothing more than an oil rig camp. Everybody is there for one thing, and that is to work the rig. It's an area full of specialized machinery and grit. It's definitely a rough and harsh place to live and work. It boggles my mind that a few of these structures, which are not that impressive to look at, can supply so much energy. I mean, it's barely the size of a lighthouse.

It also boggles my mind that there is such a thing as "oil pride" as I call it. Like shirts with the pipeline and a polar bear on it. Oil pride paraphernalia was pretty much the only selection of souvenirs at the general store, which also had all of the other sundry items you might need.

Then, we went to the airport, picked up the battery and headed back.

Along the way, we ended up coming across a few animals. The first was a large fox.

The second was a heard of Musk Ox hanging out by the water.

Then we got back to camp, ate dinner, and the helicopter now runs. The End. Until tomorrow...

Interlude II - more pictures....tundra hike

More pictures from my short hike in the tundra:

Rocks with lichens

Bog cranberry, or alpine berry, and some mountain heather? Probably totally misidentified these..

Cottongrass was used by the Inuit for oil lamp wicks

Camp

Brooks Mountain Range from camp

Interlude - more pictures...the ride north

 More pictures from the ride north:

Our ride north next to the Alaska pipeline, near the Yukon River

The Arctic Circle, obviously

Mountains from the truck. Notice the trees are starting to get sparse....just a bit further north there won't be any trees at all.

Coldfoot, AK, world's north-most truck

stop

Day 1 - getting organized

This morning I gave the GIS staff their orientation on their new Google Glass. We also tested the video hangout functionality which will be used as part of the PolarTrek (Teachers and Researchers Exploring and Collaborating) program. Another use for Glass came up as a result of testing this function, which would be lab inspection. In the lab that is studying the local squirrel population, there is need for remote video communication between on-site and off-site researchers. They have currently been literally carrying around a computer in the lab and using Skype, but we hope to make that a hands-free process with Glass. Of interesting note, the squirrel studies are actually quite fascinating given their eventual outcome. As you might imagine, arctic squirrels have a way of surviving the winter...a biological process that may help humans travel through space over long distances! Surprised me that was why they were studying squirrels..impressive!

The GIS trailer.....one of the many places where SCIENCE! happens.

GIS trailer - where science happens!

Today I also spent some time walking the tundra. Which, also looks like something from outer space. It was also an experience given all of the snow hasn't melted yet and some of the drifts are still waist deep. The tundra is also very squishy and soggy right now. So, to get out to the exposed tundra, you walk the planks...

If you step off of a plank accidentally, or loose your balance and put your foot down in the snow, it's pretty much guaranteed your reward is a leg deep in snow. Then, you have to dig yourself out and hopefully your foot doesn't get too stuck. BUT, the tundra is really pretty and incredible.

The last thing I did today was watch the breakup of the ice around the river flowing into Toolik Lake. Several researchers were in the process of taking water samples, watching the breakup, and observing the color of the water (which tells you about the C02 composition of the water. The big chunks of ice on the right side broke while we stood there, but didn't quite fall into the river yet.

Final stretch....then we arrived at Toolik!

Today was primarily a travel day, although it didn't seem like it because the drive was definitely scenic. It's approximately 350 miles from Fairbanks to the Toolik Field Station, but the speed limit is 55 and much of the road isn't paved so it takes about 8-ish hours to get there. Toolik runs a "shuttle service" up and back to the station, so those of us going north that day load up the truck and get on the road.

The biggest aspect of the drive up that I didn't expect to see was the constant presence of the Alaskan pipeline. Dalton Highway, i.e. THE route north, as I found out was the original service road for the pipeline. So, you essentially get mile after mile after mile of pipeline the whole trip. It really makes the little touristy stop to get your picture taken with the pipe in Fairbanks kind of silly when you realize how much of it there really is.

So after much pipeline and the Brooks range of mountains, we finally arrive at camp just in time for dinner! After camp orientation, I unpack. Everyone pretty much stays in weatherport semi-permeant tents during the summer season, although there is still a bit of snow on the ground so electricity and space heaters are helpful.

On my way...

I said to myself "I'll just take the train so I don't have to pay for airport parking." I still don't regret it, but...

It's awesome to take the train, on a hot day in DC that goes to Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day said no one ever...and hauling all of your cold weather gear. I'm not sure if I feel hard core or stupid right now...

Snow is actually sounding refreshing...that's good cause it's still snowing here:

Go North

This blog is primarily to document my experience at Toolik Field Station, which is about 500 miles north of Fairbanks, Alaska. I'm headed up to the station to brainstorm, test, explore, and design new ways of using technology with the operational staff and researchers. We are primarily testing the idea that consumer technology can be used to accelerate science, polar research in particular.

I will be posting video, photos, and commentary on this blog while up at the station.