Discover Magazine and SciStarter announce new citizen science partnership

Amateur science enthusiasts can join forces with top researchers through Your Research Mission—a new partnership between DISCOVER Magazine and SciStarter.com.

Discover Magazine and SciStarter announce new citizen science partnershipNEW YORK, NY. (March 1, 2012) – A “citizen science” movement is sweeping the country. Now, amateur enthusiasts who want to collaborate with leading scientists can visit DiscoverMagazine.com to join cutting-edge research projects.

DISCOVER is teaming up with SciStarter.com to present Your Research Mission, a dynamic project showcase. Each week, it will feature curated citizen science tasks, ranging from analyzing distant galaxies to monitoring frog, firefly and whale populations, to detecting home and body microbiomes. The projects will make it simple for everyone to jump in and get their hands dirty with science.

“This partnership moves DISCOVER into the fast-growing realm of citizen science,” says Corey S. Powell, Editor in Chief of DISCOVER magazine. “Our readers tell us they’re eager to help study and explore the world, but it can be difficult for them to know where to begin. Now we’ll be offering projects vetted, sorted and aggregated by SciStarter to our two million monthly online visitors.”

“DISCOVER has enormous credibility in the scientific community. Its print and online readers are enthusiastic and intelligent, and their participation in research projects will be invaluable to researchers,” adds Darlene Cavalier, Founder of SciStarter.

Select SciStarter projects will be featured on DiscoverMagazine.com each day beginning in March. Researchers and team leaders who want their project featured can submit it to the SciStarter.com Project Finder for consideration by the SciStarter editors.

About SciStarter.com

SciStarter aims to enable people to contribute to science through informal recreational activities and formal research efforts. The website creates a shared space where scientists can talk with citizens interested in working on or learning about their research projects.

Darlene Cavalier founded both SciStarter and Science Cheerleader.com, a popular blog that works through NFL and NBA cheerleaders-turned-scientists and engineers to promote science literacy and to involve citizens in science and science-related policy.

About DISCOVER

DISCOVER makes science entertaining and understandable through beautiful writing, stunning images, and clear explanations. The monthly magazine covers all of science, from astronomy to human origins to the environment. DiscoverMagazine.com is one of the top science destinations on the Internet, with more than two million monthly visitors. It features daily science news coverage, image and video galleries, and a lineup of popular science blogs including Bad Astronomy, The Loom, and Not Exactly Rocket Science.

Categories: Citizen Science

About the Author

Darlene Cavalier

Darlene Cavalier

Darlene Cavalier is a professor of practice at Arizona State University's School for the Future of Innovation in Society and a Senior Global Futures Scientist, Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory at ASU. Professor Cavalier is the founder of SciStarter (a popular citizen science portal and research platform connecting millions of people to real science they can do), founder of Science Cheerleaders (a non profit organization comprised of current and former NFL, NBA and college cheerleaders pursuing STEM careers), cofounder of ECAST: Expert and Citizen Assessment of Science and Technology and cofounder of ScienceNearMe.org. She is a founding board member of the Citizen Science Association, an advisor and Fellow at National Geographic, a member of the EPA's National Advisory Council for Environmental Policy and Technology, appointed to the National Academy of Sciences "Designing Citizen Science to Support Science Learning" committee and named cochair of America 250's Innovation, Science, and Entrepreneurism Advisory Council. She is the co-editor of "The Rightful Place of Science: Citizen Science," author of "The Science of Cheerleading," and co-author of the Field Guide to Citizen Science (Timber Press). Recently, ASU President Michael Crow awarded Cavalier and her team the prestigious Medal for Social Embeddedness.