Building a Low-Cost Geographic Website for Collecting Citizen Science Contributions

Abstract

In 2004, shortly after the introduction of Google Maps, Paul Rademacher created the first web mashup mapping housing data from Craigslist. Since then, web mapping has become ubiquitous on websites and mobile applications in many realms, including social networking, collaborative mapping, and citizen science. During this time, web mapping technologies have developed rapidly. A wide variety of new software from both private vendors and open source collaborators has made the barrier to entry for web mapping platforms relatively easy to overcome. Using this technology can assist geography researchers to collect information from citizen scientists. In this project, we explore different low-cost, low-barrier options of web technologies for citizen science websites. Using this information, we created a website to collect volunteered information about low water crossing hazards perceptions in central Texas. Choosing the right combination of software to implement a geographic citizen science project requires understanding the basics behind web portals. Web mapping portals are built on a GeoStack, or the layers of database and storage, data server, imagery server, and viewer that allow seamless integration of web portal technologies. We present the most popular open source software choices for each GeoStack layer and a comparison of the features for these products. For our project collecting low water crossing hazard information, we selected a combination of WordPress blogging software and a Google Maps plug-in called GeoMashup. The software allows users to submit possible low water crossings as point data in addition to descriptions and photos. Other users can comment and verify locations. A group of undergraduate students, some with geographic information system (GIS) experience and some without, tested the software for usability. The results indicate that the software is easy to use for most students regardless of GIS experience. Using such a portal should allow applied geography researchers to work with citizen scientists to collect photos and information about a wide variety of geographic phenomena.

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