Sunday, May 24, 2009
Gary
Lewis
www.goearthtrek.com
What
is
EarthTrek?
EarthTrek
is
a
citizen
science
program
that
links
scientists
undertaking
real
scientific
research
with
the
broader
community
through
their
active
participation
in
the
collection
of
real
scientific
data.
EarthTrek
projects
will
focus
on
environmental
issues
in
which
community
involvement
is
the
key
to
understanding
the
real
nature
of
the
issue
at
a
local,
regional
or
even
global
scale.
Scientists
involved
in
EarthTrek
can
increase
the
amount
of
data
collected
on
their
local,
regional
or
global
projects
as
well
as
dramatically
raise
the
profile
of
their
research
in
the
broader
community.
Scientists
also
have
the
opportunity
to
mentor
young
people
in
career
paths
which
lead
to
being
involved
in
their
scientific
field.
Participants
involved
in
EarthTrek
contribute
to
scientific
research
by
collecting
data
following
scientific
protocols,
and
then
see
their
contributions
reflected
in
the
real
outcomes
of
scientific
research.
Participants,
especially
the
young,
can
also
discover
potential
pathways
for
careers
in
science.
Participant
receive
rewards
for
their
participation
in
the
form
of
EarthTrek
statistics
based
on
the
number
and
scope
of
projects
in
which
they
participate.
EarthTrek
projects
involve
people
collecting
data
outside
using
their
GPS
unit
to
locate
a
feature,
or
to
record
the
coordinates
of
a
data
point.
The
basic
EarthTrek
data
point
contains
the
latitude,
longitude,
date
and
time
of
the
data
collection
point,
followed
by
the
data
needed
to
fulfill
the
project
needs.
Gravestone Project
This
project
aims
to
map
the
location
of
graveyards
around
the
globe
and
then
use
marble
gravestones
in
those
graveyards
to
measure
the
weathering
rate
of
marble
at
that
location.
The
weathering
rates
of
gravestones
are
an
indication
of
changes
in
the
acidity
of
rainfall
between
locations
and
over
time.
The
acidity
is
affected
by
air
pollution
and
other
factors,
and
could
be
used
as
a
measure
of
changes
in
climate
and
pollution
levels.
Every
time
it
rains
the
raindrops
contain
more
than
just
water.
As
well
as
the
small
particles
of
dust
that
the
water
drops
formed
around,
the
water
can
contain
chemicals
found
in
the
atmosphere.
Often
the
rain
will
end
up
being
slightly
acidic.
This
“acid
rain”
can
then
chemically
affect
(weather)
materials
in
which
it
comes
in
contact.
The
amount
of
weathering
that
occurs
from
place
to
place
differs
and
may
be
changing
over
time.
Marble
is
a
common
stone
used
to
make
gravestones.
Marble
is
mostly
made
up
of
the
mineral
calcite.
Calcite
is
a
carbonate
mineral,
and
so
it
reacts
with
any
acid,
including
the
weak
rainfall
acids,
and
dissolves.
This
means
that
over
time,
marble
headstones
are
slowly
weathering
away.
This
project
aims
to
measure
how
fast
the
marble
gravestones
in
graveyards
you
visit
are
weathering
and
see
how
that
may
be
changing
over
time.
This
could
be
an
indicator
of
changes
in
pollution
or
climate.