This project is awesome, not least because it’s my voice on the video! But there is a lot more to like about this project. The project is based in Collserola Park, which is on the edge of Barcelona, Spain. Collserola is the biggest urban park in the world and, at 85 square kilometers, it is 22 times larger than New York City’s famed Central Park. Collserola is an oasis of nature in a highly urban landscape, containing well over a thousand plants species and hundreds of vertebrate species.
The world’s human population just topped 7 billion people. How are we going to produce enough food and fuel for the earth’s growing population without exploding the planet? The answer might just lie in pond scum. As anyone who has a pool or birdbath knows, pond scum (which is a form of algae) can grow extremely rapidly without any encouragement at all. What if we could genetically engineer this fast-growing algae to produce biofuels? What about protein for us to eat? Suddenly, all of the pressure that we are placing on the earth’s ecosystems might just lift.
Go to Facebook and fill out the “Create a New Account” section. You can change everything later, so feel free to be honest about your name and everything else and if you want to change the account to represent an organization later, you can. Once you’ve submitted that information, you’ll have to verify your identity by entering a code sent from Facebook to your email address or phone. Following the code verification, Facebook will walk you through how to set up your profile. You will definitely want a profile picture (which you can change later), but finding people you know is optional at this point, as is touring privacy settings. Either of these activities can be done later, once your account is set up. I’d recommend taking the privacy tour, though, because it’s only 4 short screens to look through and the first screen is especially useful- it shows you how to set viewing privileges for every post you will make.
And that’s it- you’re ready to go!
Facebook’s frontpage, viewed from a computer’s internet browser.
2. SEND US YOUR USERNAME
A. Computer view: click on your profile picture and your first name at the very top of the screen (the red box in the image below). Then read the address bar in your browser, which should say something like “facebook.com/username”. Please send us the “username” part of that address.
The top of the Facebook profile page for Virginia Schutte, viewed from a computer’s internet browser. There is a red box around the profile icon, which can be used to return to the profile at any time.
B. Mobile view: Your username is currently unavailable to view from a mobile device, so head on over to a computer.
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The two kinds of email that we send.
Announcements about upcoming events: mostly about our upcoming classes (sent out every 1-2 months).
SciFund Solutions: 1-minute communication tips for scientists (sent out every 1-2 weeks).
