Bridging the Gap FEATURES
border between human sensitivity in reception and e . g . machine learning techniques ; we have the effort to increase the use of human reception beyond the “ optic ” attitude towards sonification methods ; we have established more professional methodologies of feedback , impact monitoring and interactivity assessment and finally we have reached out to different audiences with their own characteristics and needs , including teachers and students .
From the citizens ’ viewpoint , the first findings indicate that their participation in REINFORCE was mainly due to their own intrinsic motivation . Overall , participants ’ self-reported knowledge seems to improve over time , while they become more confident in understanding and being able to explain relevant scientific terms .
From the scientific standpoint , despite the extremely specialised nature of the project demonstrators , the lack of prior training and the significant effort needed , the first analysis of results of REINFORCE demonstrators showed that citizen scientists can carry out complicated tasks responsibly , with a combined performance comparable to that of a purpose-built machine-based algorithm in some cases . Whether the citizen science initiative leads to a scientific discovery such as new glitches in gravitational wave detectors or supports the improvement of a machine learning algorithm used for scientific research , the turning point is need-based implementation of citizen science : REINFORCE demonstrators ’ implementation showcases the usefulness of citizens ' contribution .
The road ahead is promising . The work done by EU funded projects such as ASTERICS 13 , ESCAPE 14 and REINFORCE as well as from scientific collaborations and individual research teams has started persuading the scientific community that Citizen Science goes beyond communication towards actual scientific contribution by the citizens . This fact can be testified by the growing number of citizen science projects in Zooniverse related to the frontiers of Physics . All the above constitute a firstclass preparatory terrain to set up a roadmap program 15 for the sustainable future of this emerging field . n
About the Authors
Emmanouil Chaniotakis is a Physicist and PhD candidate in Science Education . Since 2015 he is a researcher at the RnD Department of Ellinogermaniki Agogi . He is the deputy coordinator and responsible for the participatory engagement activities of the REINFORCE project . Sofoklis Sotiriou is the Head of the Research and Development Department of Ellinogermaniki Agogi since 1998 . His main field of research is the modernization of science education using the inquiry-based approach . He is responsible for the Citizens Engagement Strategy of the
REINFORCE project . Gary Hemming is the Coordinator and Technical Manager of the REINFORCE project . He has been a software developer at the European Gravitational Observatory for more than 15 years and is a member of the EGO IT Department and the Virgo Detector Characterisation and Outreach groups . Francesca Spagnuolo is Project Officer of REINFORCE and EU Program Coordinator at European Gravitational Observatory . She holds a PhD in Law from the University of Pisa , where she was post-doc and adjunct professor of EU and European Administrative Comparative Law .
Acknowledgment
The REINFORCE project has received funding from the European Union ' s Horizon 2020 project call H2020- Swafs-2018-2020 funded project Grant Agreement no . 872859
References
[ 1 ] Susanne Hecker , Muki Haklay , Anne Bowser , Zen Makuch , Johannes Vogel , Aletta Bonn and Margaret Gold ( 2018 ), Citizen Science – Innovation in Open Science , Society and Policy . 10.14324 / 111.9781787352339 .
[ 2 ] Helen Spiers , Alexandra Swanson , Lucy Fortson , Brooke D . Simmons , Laura Trouille , Samantha Blickhan and Chris Lintott , Journal of Science Communication 18 ( 01 ), A04 ( 2019 )
[ 3 ] Chaniotakis et al . ( 2022 ) “ REINFORCE-ing Citizen Science ”, Engaging Citizen Science Conference 2022 ( CitSci2022 ), 25- 26 April 2022 Aarhus University , Denmark PoS ( CitSci2022 ) 119
◀ FIG . 3 : Examples of participatory engagement activities around the Virgo Gravitational Wave detector in REINFORCE . From informing citizens to involving them and fostering collaboration with them .
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