Limitations or Liberty? A Student’s Take on Minimizing Citizen Science’s Reckless Reputation

Not everyone with my level of research experience has the opportunity to contribute to or even lead original studies at a research institution level. Yet as a high school student, I was able to accomplish both, executing two of my own science fair projects on neurode-generative diseases and alternatives to antibiotics, and assisting in two others at my state flagship university. Though opportunities like the latter do exist for students who want a sneak peek of college-level research in high school, very little exist for those already in an occupation that does not involve high-level research in a scientific field, but a phenomenon emerging in big cities all over the world seems to be putting an end to that.

Dubbed “citizen science,” the concept has been applied by community labs—also known as hack-erspaces—in an attempt to make experimental resources more accessible to the public by providing lay people not only with a space where they can carry out a research pursuit, but also with the tools they need to execute their plan. In doing so, citizen science has sparked a debate rooted in the ethics of letting those who are not professionally trained, handle potentially hazardous materials in the name of accessibility. The controversy arises mostly out of the fact that few standards exist for the conduct of citizen scientists and regulations are virtually absent regarding the type of research that is appropriate to be conducted in these open community labs.

When I visited a prestigious university last March for a pre-college biotechnology program, I had the chance to speak with an esteemed faculty member on how citizen science is viewed by large research institutions around the world. Among the more traditionally trained professionals, there seems to be a general consensus that though there are several benefits to the general public pursuing their research ideas, as will be enumerated later, citizen science has earned a reputation of seeming reckless and potentially hazardous due to the slap-on-the-wrist type punishment conferred onto those who abuse its freedoms. For example, the synthetic biology world stood in shock last October when self-proclaimed biohacker Josiah Zayner of The ODIN biotechnology company injected himself with CRISPR in an attempt to cease the production of myostatin, a muscle growth inhibitor, in his arm. Though backlash from the DIY science community soon prompted his public statement of regret, it did not stop Aaron Traywick, then CEO ofAscendance Biomedical from performing a similar stunt at a Texas conference, injecting himself with an experimental herpes drug during a livestream of the conference. Even with measures in place to handle such incidents professionally, citizen science maintains its reputation as a mad science realm.

That said, several independent researchers, including me, claim that the actions of these few individuals should not represent the premise of the citizen science community and that we are making increased efforts to incorporate strict standards of conduct into open lab spaces to ensure the safety of all lab members and the public. My personal experience with citizen science has been remarkably educational and empowering, and never did I feel threatened by the conduct of my peers. Before I get into the details of my experience in particular, however, I find it noteworthy to highlight the reasons such a safe and unforgettable experience was possible in the first place.

My journey in citizen science began back in December 2014 when I enrolled in a high school research course that required students to submit a project to the local science fair. Influenced by my grandfather’s passing from Parkinson’s disease as well as the waning popularity of the ALS ice bucket challenge, I decided to take on a research project investigating the progress of neurodegenerative diseases and possible prevention. Because the experiments involved the usage and storage of expensive reagents and bacterial cultures, I looked for an alternative to buying and using my own supplies in a school classroom. That was when I learned about a local community lab, BioCurious.

Located in Sunnyvale, California, BioCurious is a...