Technology: Make or Break

Technology. It is hard to imagine our lives without it; indeed, as a college student, I would be hopelessly lost without email, my laptop, or wireless internet. As the class experiments with different ways of incorporating our iPads into our group tasks, it is interesting to consider how we would approach things differently if we didn’t have such advanced technology at our fingertips. That said, it is great that we are able to take advantage of the latest technology to help expedite our work.
As a part of my internship at Fort Harrison State Park, my supervisor and I encountered the “dark side” of utilizing technology when we realized that a year-long research project had a major flaw—inaccurate GPS coordinates for key observation plots. We are still trying our best to fix the problem, and it’s been very frustrating. My hope is that my classmates and I have a very different experience as we delve into the possibilities of working with iPads.
I think it is wise for LOI to consider incorporating as much technology as possible in their initiatives, particularly in the area of citizen science. Technology always makes things easier, and if a task is simpler to perform, more people will be willing to volunteer to tackle it. If the window strike app is ever completed, that will be a big step in the right direction!
-RF