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GSA Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado, USA - 2016

Paper No. 68-9
Presentation Time: 9:00 AM-5:30 PM

SMART MOBS IN THE FIELD: HARNESSING THE GLOBAL BRAIN FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPPING


DE PAOR, Declan G., Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529, WHITMEYER, Steven J., Geology & Environmental Science, James Madison University, 395 S. HIgh St, MSC 6903, Harrisonburg, VA 22807, CROMPTON, Helen, Department of Teaching & Learning, Darden College of Education, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529 and DORDEVIC, Mladen, Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology, Washington, DC 20005, ddepaor@odu.edu

Crowd-sourced geological mapping was, until recently, inconceivable. Use of many novices to perform work previously done by a few experts is now possible via digital technology. Mobile devices enable a Smart Mob make geological maps. We recognize three approaches: The Novice Mob; The Expert Mob; and Expert–Novice Collaborations.

The keys to success with a Novice Mob are: a truly massive crowd; simplicity and single-mindedness of the task; and sufficient expert oversight to curate data for quality. An example is the USGS ShakeMap project. 

A famous Expert Mob took part in the GoldCorp Challenge, but even senior undergraduates have significant, if imperfect, expertise. At JMU field courses, students engage in crowd-sourced mapping. Their digital maps are curated by instructors. Keys to success with Expert Mobs are: honestly tagging level of expertise; massive student supervision (why have one advisor when you can have 100?); massive peer review; and substantial geo-referencing and metadata to aid search engines and future field researchers.

Projects can pair massive numbers of novices and experts. Keys to success are: expert mentoring skills; suitable technologies; rapid streaming; and shared visualizations. Pairing with wearable computers opens opportunities to persons with disabilities and other non-traditional geoscientists. Such collaboration is aided by augmented reality apps.

Novice–expert collaboration need not be explicit. Tourists generate lots of imagery worldwide and experts can use these as data sources for maps without any formal contact with the content creators, who may not be aware that they are recording useful scientific data. Today, it is possible to harness a Global Brain to supervise novices, maintain communications, and implement massive peer review, and to engage in large expert-novice collaborations. These developments are important as the USA faces a looming geoscience workforce crisis. Related resources: www.GEODE.net and www.EarthQuiz.net.

Session No. 68--Booth# 169

T77. Disseminating Best Practices and Resources Developed in Education Projects Funded by the National Science Foundation or by Other Federal/State Agencies (Posters)
Sunday, 25 September 2016: 9:00 AM-5:30 PM
Exhibit Hall E/F (Colorado Convention Center)
Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 48, No. 7
doi: 10.1130/abs/2016AM-281888
© Copyright 2016 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.
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