Citizen science enables everyday people to be involved in scientific research by participating in data collection. Many consider Benjamin Franklin to be America’s first citizen scientist. Franklin believed all people should engage with science, and that knowledge can be used to advance society for the benefit of all. Those who registered to the free virtual program on April 20th at 7pm ET
joined PBS Books, SciStarter and PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs in celebration of Citizen Science Month, STEM storytelling, and Ken Burns’ BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, which began airing on April 4 at 8/7c on PBS stations nationwide.Tap your inner citizen scientist all year long right here by selecting a project below to share your observations and contribute to citizen science the way Benjamin Franklin did!Then, check out this podcast from SciStarter featuring Michael Madeja, the Director of Education at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia, a society founded by Franklin himself. In this special "minisode" of the SciStarter podcast, Madeja discusses some of Franklin's achievements and corrects some misconceptions about one of America's founding "citizen scientists".