Professional scientists, like Dr. Les Mehrhoff, Director of the Invasive Plant Atlas of New England, are contributing to and learning from the Vital Signs community.
What you see on TV portrays scientists as a bit crazy, what you read portrays naturalists as introverts who work in museum basements and behind closed doors. Vital Signs lets students see what we are really like.
Les Mehrhoff, Director of IPANE
Les Mehrhoff, a self-described hand lens-toting naturalist, was inspired to become a scientist by searching for red salamanders as a 3rd grader. Through Vital Signs, he sees that students will get the same kind of hands-on outdoor experiences he had as a third grader, and that their teachers will get to relive the experiences that they had as youngsters.
Les is excited about Vital Signs because he sees that it will give students a better understanding of the environment, field biology, and natural history, and what the scientists who work in these fields are really like.
Scientists participate in and contribute to the Vital Signs community in the following ways:
2. Scientists monitor data quality. Through their comments, they applaud quality data or lend personalized tips and tricks to help you improve your data quality.
3. Scientists use species observations and habitat data to inform their own research or to target their management efforts more effectively.
Register or contact us if you are interested in joining our scientist network.
