Cornell Nestbox Network

9627280 Dhondt Cornell的鸟类学实验室将开发“Cornell Nest Box Network （CNN）”。这是一个教育/研究项目，将使非专业人员参与科学研究，它建立在一个成功的美国国家科学基金会资助的“国家科学实验”。在这个项目中，CNN的参与者将在他们的社区建造和放置巢箱，并监控这些盒子，收集居住者繁殖成功的信息。参与者将总结和分析他们的数据，然后将其发送到实验室进行更全面的分析。实验室生物学家将分析汇编的数据，并在各种媒体上报告结果，包括科学报告和流行通讯。CNN包括教育和研究议程。参与者将在直接参与科学过程的同时了解鸟类。研究问题，需要庞大的，全大陆范围的数据库，将集中在酸雨对鸟类种群的影响，鸟类产卵数量的地理变化，体外寄生虫对筑巢鸟类的影响和种群扩散等。该议定书将鼓励团体参与，并将特别适合家庭。它将包括一批训练有素的“大使”，他们将帮助在地方一级维持该项目。该项目的目标之一是使参与者从涉及最少知识和技能的项目上升到需要更多知识和技能的项目。它还涉及国家教育标准，要求增加学生参与扩展探究和真实研究活动的机会。在第四个发展年之后，这个研究/教育项目将会自给自足。

9627280 Dhondt Cornell's Laboratory of Ornithology will develop the "Cornell Nest Box Network (CNN)". This is an educational/research project that will enable lay people to participate in scientific research and it builds on a successful NSF grant "National Science Experiments". For this project, CNN participants will build and place nest boxes in their communities and monitor the boxes gathering information on the breeding success of their occupants. Participants will summarize and analyze their data and then send it to the Lab for more comprehensive analysis. Lab biologists will analyze the compiled data and report results in a variety of media including scientific reports and popular newsletters. The CNN includes both an educational and research agenda. Participants will learn about birds while participating directly in the scientific process. The research questions, requiring huge, continent-wide databases, will focus on the effects of acid rain on bird populations, geographic variation in avian clutch size, effects of ectoparasites on nesting birds and population dispersal, among others. The protocol will encourage group participation and will be especially suitable for families. It will involve a corps of trained "ambassadors" who will help sustain the project a local levels. One of the goals of the project is to move participants up a ladder of science knowledge from projects involving minimal knowledge and skill to those requiring more. It also addresses national education standards that call for increased opportunities for students to engage in extended inquiry and authentic research activities. After the fourth development year, this research/education project will become self-sustaining.