{"id":4172,"date":"2021-01-21T03:47:10","date_gmt":"2021-01-21T10:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/?p=4172"},"modified":"2021-02-08T13:09:30","modified_gmt":"2021-02-08T20:09:30","slug":"airbeam-mobile-crowd-sourced-science","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/2021\/01\/21\/airbeam-mobile-crowd-sourced-science\/","title":{"rendered":"Airbeam: Mobile Crowd Sourced Science"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><span style=\"color:#0055b7\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Airbeam is a unique combination of innovation, mobile technology &amp; crowd sourcing.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-video aligncenter\"><video controls src=\"https:\/\/v.kickstarter.com\/1611330037_e054986092e58b6856db1780cbc3ff792ec4c68d\/projects\/1271942\/video-454936-h264_high.mp4\"><\/video><figcaption>3 minute video introduction<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Have you ever wondered about the quality of the air you are breathing every day? How about during forest fire season or in an area of high industrialization? Most commonly air quality data-supplied to the general public is obtained from large, stationary testing stations that sample air in their direct vicinity (here is a link that maps out local stations in the metro Vancouver area provided by the provincial government <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.env.gov.bc.ca\/epd\/bcairquality\/readings\/find-stations-map.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.env.gov.bc.ca\/epd\/bcairquality\/readings\/find-stations-map.htm<\/a>l)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Airbeam is an attempt to improve upon air quality data collection by providing <span style=\"color:#40b4e5\" class=\"has-inline-color\">inexpensive, handheld, and wireless air quality testers that link with smart phones via bluetooth<\/span>. The air testing device is able to collect data on the quality of the air around it and uses it&#8217;s link with Airbeam&#8217;s app (Aircasting) that is installed on the users smart phone to record and share the data collected online. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized is-style-rounded\" id=\"block-4324e1a5-626d-4036-a604-4d6e3cc26777\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.07.13-AM.png\" alt=\"This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.07.13-AM.png\" width=\"374\" height=\"294\" \/><figcaption>Airbeam device clipped on to a backpack<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The app allows the mobile user to follow the data of the Airbeam and create personalized graphs for specified periods of time for specified particles being tested (ex: particulate matter, CO2, humidity &amp; temperature). <span style=\"color:#40b4e5\" class=\"has-inline-color\">The crowd sourcing aspect involves the collection of data that can be shared from all Airbeam users to create a larger and more complex mapping of data.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.05.33-AM-1024x463.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4175\" width=\"596\" height=\"269\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.05.33-AM-1024x463.png 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.05.33-AM-300x136.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.05.33-AM-768x347.png 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.05.33-AM-1536x694.png 1536w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.05.33-AM-2048x925.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 596px) 100vw, 596px\" \/><figcaption>Active Airbeam users in the Metro Vancouver Area as of January 21st, 2021<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.06.02-AM-1024x819.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4176\" width=\"672\" height=\"537\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.06.02-AM-1024x819.png 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.06.02-AM-300x240.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.06.02-AM-768x614.png 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/files\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-21-at-1.06.02-AM.png 1430w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 672px) 100vw, 672px\" \/><figcaption>Screenshots from the AirCasting App showing the graphing and mapping capabilities<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For more information about the Airbeam you can visit for official website: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.habitatmap.org\">https:\/\/www.habitatmap.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The official website for the Airbeam loads fine on smartphones and was also confirmed as mobile friendly by <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/search.google.com\/test\/mobile-friendly?id=R4KnwPckDAYFSCcYS6oaCQ\" target=\"_blank\">google&#8217;s mobile-friendly test.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><span style=\"color:#0055b7\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Review:<\/span><\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Metro Vancouver provided local residents an opportunity to test these devices on a volunteer basis and I was lucky enough to participate from the location of the school I was teaching at in Richmond, BC. The application and device allowed my students to analyze real-time data while walking around the school and neighbourhood. As the levels of particulate matter and CO2 changed we discussed possible factors that could influence fluctuations in the air quality such as the weather, motor vehicle exhaust and construction sites in the area. It was a great opportunity to really see the value of such data collection and put a focus on the importance of air quality and testing elements of our environment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The app and device were not perfect and we ran into a lot of connection issues at first but after everything was set up properly it was well worth the troubleshooting struggle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mobile testing instruments are not a new concept as you can find many industrial air quality testers, water testers, soil testers&#8230;etc for sale. <span style=\"color:#40b4e5\" class=\"has-inline-color\">What makes the Airbeam system unique is the connectivity and open sharing of information it makes possible to help create a wider view of environmental conditions.<\/span> Such information and data sharing can be extremely valuable for educational purposes and is the true mobile\/open technology aspect for this technology and why I think it has value to discuss in this course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Airbeam is a unique combination of innovation, mobile technology &amp; crowd sourcing. Have you ever wondered about the quality of the air you are breathing&#8230;<\/p>\n<div class=\"more-link-wrapper\"><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/2021\/01\/21\/airbeam-mobile-crowd-sourced-science\/\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Airbeam: Mobile Crowd Sourced Science<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":83464,"featured_media":4173,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[67,69,68,71,70],"class_list":["post-4172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mobiletechnologies","tag-air-quality","tag-airbeam","tag-crowd-sourced","tag-environment","tag-science","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4172","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83464"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4172"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4172\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4179,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4172\/revisions\/4179"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4173"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec523\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}