Smart Sensor Turns Surfers Into Citizen Scientists

Benjamin Thompson thinks he's figured out a way to turn every surfer into a wave-riding researcher collecting data on ocean acidification caused by climate change.

The best part: Surfers don't have to don't do anything but chase the perfect wave.

Thompson, a surfer and engineer, looked out at the blue horizon and realized that his wave-hunting peers could be turned into citizen scientists simply by installing a tiny sensor inside their surfboard fins. Thompson's SmartPhin collects data on temperature, salinity, pH, and location as the surfer paddles around the ocean and catches waves. When the surfer gets out of the water, the data is uploaded wirelessly to his or her smartphone through a Bluetooth connection and then to servers. Read more...

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