#366 Zooniverse: Unlocking Data through People-Powered Research

The Zooniverse is the world’s largest platform for online citizen science, engaging more than 1.7 million volunteers around the world (including 18,000 Chicagoans) in over 100 projects across the disciplines, from identifying animals in images from the Serengeti to discovering planets around distant stars to transcribing African American Civil War soldiers’ service records to tracking resistance to antibiotics. Processing our increasingly large datasets poses a bottleneck for producing real scientific outcomes and citizen science - engaging the public in research - provides a unique solution, particularly when coupled with machine learning.

In addition to highlighting some of the exciting (and surprising) discoveries the public has made through Zooniverse over the past decade (e.g., the WTF star), Dr. Laura Trouille, VP of Citizen Science at the Adler Planetarium and co-PI of Zooniverse, will use Zooniverse as the context to wrestle with a number of pressing questions – How do we build an understanding of how science works and trust in science? What role can citizen science play in society? In government? In education? How do we balance creating the most efficient human-machine systems while at the same time accommodating human motivation, trust, etc.?

RSVP required Braintree now requires all attendees to RSVP beforehand by 12:00 PM (noon). Walk-ins will not be allowed!

ASL This event will have an American Sign Language interpreter.

Food Food and drinks will be provided. We encourage attendees to bring their own water bottles to reduce waste.