[BCMA] Alien-Spotting iPhone/iPad App from Royal BC Museum

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.]

[cid:image001.png at 01CCB5B2.7F7E1FC0]                              NEWS RELEASE







December 8, 2011


Alien-Spotting - there’s an App for that!

VICTORIA, BC - The Royal BC Museum’s first iPhone/iPad app, Aliens Among Us, has launched and is available as a free download from the iTunes store.  The app, a first of its kind from a North American museum, allows users to monitor and track the spread of invasive species in British Columbia.  It is part of an invasive species public engagement strategy from the museum and archives that also features a travelling exhibition and virtual exhibition.

There are more than 4,000 alien species in British Columbia and detailed information - images, sound recordings, descriptions - for 47 of these is now available via the app or website.  Listening to an American Bullfrog, or seeing invasive “rock snot”, helps users identify these species and report them, whether in their apartment or out and about.

Not sure if you have a Large Yellow Underwing or a Widemouth or Smallmouth Bass?  The website includes video demonstrating the differences.  Or “Ask an Expert” by sending your question to one of the Royal BC Museum’s natural history curators.  Still not sure if you’ve got one?  Spotters can take a photo of the suspected alien, pin it to their location on the interactive Google map, and send their field notes to the museum.  Each upload will be reviewed, the spotter will be notified by email, and the alien’s image will be posted to the website.

The website also includes activities to bring aliens into the classroom.  The Classroom has a collection of five learning objects, each comes with images, video, an interactive map and classroom activities about introduced plant and animal species in British Columbia.  The learning object collection is linked to grades 4, 7, 10, 11 and 12 curriculum, but can be adapted to other grades and for informal learning outside the classroom.

“Mobile applications are appealing to museums, it is a way to open a collection, extend an exhibition to a much wider audience - or in this case, help us chart the spread of alien species,” said Tim Willis, Director of Exhibitions and the Visitor Experience, Royal BC Museum.

These two new digital pieces are part of a multi-faceted project reaching all across British Columbia.  Tried and true outreach, such as taking the Aliens Among Us exhibition to 9 communities and offering presentations by RBCM curators, are being complemented by new ways of reaching tech-savvy, mobile alien trackers.

To explore the website and participate in the project go to: http://alienspecies.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/
Or download the free Aliens Among Us app to an iPhone or iPad at the iTunes store: http://itunes.apple.com/om/app/aliens-among-us-royal-british/id479083111?mt=8

The Royal BC Museum received funding for the virtual exhibition project from the Virtual Museum of Canada, Department of Canadian Heritage.

About the Royal BC Museum
As the provincial museum and archives, the Royal BC Museum preserves and shares the stories of British Columbia - on‐site, off‐site and online - through its research, collections, exhibitions and educational programs. Its two‐hectare cultural precinct also includes a number of historically significant buildings and First Nations sites.

For more information about the Royal BC Museum, visit www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca or call 1‐888‐447‐7977.
‐30‐

Media Contact:
Royal BC Museum Media Enquiries
250‐387‐3207
news at royalbcmuseum.bc.ca


-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.vvv.com/pipermail/bcma/attachments/20111208/a31da138/attachment.htm 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.png
Type: image/png
Size: 10360 bytes
Desc: image001.png
Url : http://lists.vvv.com/pipermail/bcma/attachments/20111208/a31da138/attachment.png