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[Mike Lee]

Dr. Frank Linton, Sheng Zhao and Matt Gallagher gave a great presentation on a project they did this past summer to gather scientific data related to the health of bees. The project’s title is “OLPC Research Software: A Tool for the Automatic Periodic Capture of Audio Data” and is part of an interdisciplinary effort by the Arlington Public Schools STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) Program.

Video of talk is on YouTube:
www.youtube.com/results?search_query=olpc+bees&search...

Frank's slides are on Slideshare:
www.slideshare.net/fotogeek/olpc-research-software-a-tool...

My photos of the meeting are on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/curiouslee/sets/72157609252778755/

Sheng followed Frank with a detailed description of how he coded his audio capture program in Python using cron. Then Matt Gallagher talked about the challenges in "Sugarizing" activities for the OLPC XO.

Here are Frank's notes:

OLPC Research Software:
A tool for the automatic periodic capture of audio data

Why am I here today?
1.      Peace Corps: I’ve seen poverty. I believe both education and technology can help eliminate poverty.
2.      I have a master’s and doctorate in educational technology. I believe educational technology, such as the OLPC can improve learning.

3.      I’m a beekeeper,
a.      I believe technology can make beekeepers better beekeepers. With certain technology, for example, they could detect Colony Collapse Disorder early, and intervene.
b.      I want to study honey bee behavior to develop that technology

4.      Question: How can you tell what the bees are doing without opening the hive and disturbing the bees?
Answer: Listen to them. Beekeepers can tell if they are happy, angry, or ill. And more, just by listening.

5.      I wanted to capture a sound sample periodically, for example, every hour, or every few hours, for many days.
a.      You can’t do that manually.
b.      You need a computer program to do it.

6.      Sheng wrote one for me. With help from
a.      STEM, Jeff Elkner, Sheng Zhao, Matthew Gallagher, and Dan Folsom
They are turning the code into an OLPC activity.
b.      NORTEL, Mike Connett, ….
Funded Sheng and Matthew with internships over the summer.
c.      And others; for example, Mike Lee

7.      Automated periodic data collection is useful to anyone studying how things change over time; for example, OLPC users doing science projects. For example:
a.      Capture the sun moving through the sky for a day or a year, or
b.      Watch a plant grow, or
c.      Sample automobile or pedestrian traffic, or
d.      Determine what time the birds start and stop singing.

The slides are:
1.      Title slide: image of a bee on my finger
2.      My observation hive: view inside the house
3.      My observation hive: outside entrance
4.      The queen, attendants, and nurse bees on brood comb
5.      The OLPC, set up to capture audio from the bees
6.      A graph of the bees’ audio (sample is dated Sept 27, 6:00 am)
7.      The hive in early morning, bees in the sun.
8.      A typical bee hive, I’m showing one frame of honey; and a bee on a flower

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