Category Archives: Phenology

A Million Points of Data

Posted on 8 May 2012 by

Watching and reporting the flowering of a nearby vine maple, Acer circinatum, turned into the millionth observation submitted through NPN’s online observation program, Nature’s Notebook. Lucille Tower, an amateur scientist from Portland, Ore. submitted the record.
Continue reading →

Posted in Amateur Science, Biology, Botany, Breaking News, climate, Community, History of Science, Measurement, Phenology, Research Tools | 1 Comment

Thoreau’s Notebooks Shed Light on Changing Climate

Posted on 15 March 2012 by

Most of the raw data that Thoreau collected has remained unpublished until very recently, when a team of scientists, biology professor at Boston University, and fellow researcher Abraham Miller-Rushing went looking for historical climatological data. Continue reading →

Posted in Amateur Science, Botany, climate, History of Science, Phenology | 1 Comment

Making, Maintaining, and Using Serious Field Notes

Posted on 9 February 2012 by

But if you want to do serious natural science you have to keep good field notes. Continue reading →

Posted in Amateur Science, Best Practices, Biology, Botany, Entomology, Environment, Geology, Marine Biology, Meteorology, Ornithology, Paleontology, Phenology, Photography, Projects, Research Tools, Wildlife | 2 Comments

Director of the Monarch Watch Program on the Winter Monarchs Observed in Texas

Posted on 11 January 2012 by

After several readers of my column about Bob Pish’s winter monarch butterflies in San Antonio, Texas, sent their reports about their monarch observations, it was time to contact Professor Orley R. Taylor, who founded the Monarch Watch program at the University of Kansas 20 years ago. Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Entomology, Phenology | Leave a comment

National Biological Information Infrastructure Facing Termination

Posted on 10 January 2012 by

Since the time of Benjamin Franklin, science-minded national leaders used government as a means for assembling and analyzing scientific information. Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Breaking News, Entomology, General Interest, Geology, Phenology, Wildlife | 1 Comment

Migratory Dragonfly Partnership

Posted on 6 December 2011 by

To better understand and conserve North America’s dragonfly migration, dragonfly experts, nongovernmental programs, academic institutions, and federal agencies from the United States, Mexico, and Canada have formed the collaborative Migratory Dragonfly Partnership (MDP). Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Entomology, Phenology, Projects, Wildlife | 1 Comment

Time to Play “Name That Bat”

Posted on 2 December 2011 by

This animal drew Dr. Brooks’ attention because of its location and the season of the year; it seemed unusual to find a bat still in his locale by itself, in the open, at this time of year. Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Phenology, Photography, Wildlife | Leave a comment

Citizen Science and the Genius of Crowds

Posted on 13 November 2011 by

We have mentioned many of the examples found in the article, but I recommend it in any case because it serves as a good review article, i.e., an article that summarizes the state of the art of crowdsourced science. Continue reading →

Posted in Amateur Science, Archaeology, Astronomy, Best Practices, Biology, Botany, Computer Science, Education, Entomology, General Interest, Ornithology, Phenology, Projects, Rocketry, Wildlife | Leave a comment

Citizen Science Musings: What is Autumn?

Posted on 26 September 2011 by

The transition from summer to winter for me is one of the richest times of the year. The sharpness that come into the air, the gradual dip of the sun that lights the world from a slant, the feeling of change. Harvest time, Halloween, the onset of the winter holidays. Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, Phenology | Tagged | Leave a comment