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Getting Started

Equipment: bring some units to pass around and show

In class activity A: Introduction to Public Laboratory

• What is an online research community?
  • compare to online reading community like goodreads.com
• What do we work on together?
  • tools, methods, questions, advocacy
• Why do we do these things?
  • STEM learning and environmental justice outcomes.

In class activity B:

• With support from Marla Greenwald, media specialist, create user profiles on PublicLaboratory.org.
• Create demo Research Note with tagging for “CHAQ”, “Cypress Hills” and “NYC”
• The teacher will sign up for the Public Lab mailing list.

In class activity C: Intro to Air Quality Egg

• Show Kickstarter video.

• Discuss:
  • how people collaborated online to create this open source product by sharing knowledge, perspectives, and local experiences,
  • how this equipment is being installed globally.
  • history of AQE, show prior project “citizen sensor”, which includes the NYSCI collaboration, and summer camp for middle schoolers.

In class activity D: Introduction to air quality

• What do we mean when we say “air quality”?
• What is the difference between indoor and outdoor air quality?
• What are air quality markers?
  • who thinks those markers are important and why?
  • what can be measured, what kind of technology is used to measure, and how does it work?
  • what kind of data is it? (numbers)
  • where is the data stored?
  • what conclusions can be interpreted from this, what can be acted upon to improve our air quality, as well as how can we improve the equipment?
• Give overview of the weeks to come.

Week 1 Assignment

Sign up on publiclaboratory.org: Go to the registration page.

Initial site survey: visit places (can be indoor or outdoor) where you think a sensor unit can be installed.

• What are you noticing about air quality?
  • Identify where you have experienced poor air quality, record relative “hot,” “cold,” “damp,” or “smoky” parts of your everyday environment, and whether you made those observations with your eyes, skin, and/or nose.
• Go out and look for where sensors can be set up:
  • good places will have access to a working power outlet and be close to an area you have identified as having poor air quality.
• Write a new Research Note on publiclaboratory.org (24 hours before next meeting).
• Make sure to include your opinion of all the sites you visited, and name the one you think will be the best place to install a sensor for 1 week.
• Each potential site should have an image attached (taken with cell phone or other camera). Minimum of 2 sites need to be visited and documented.