We need your help with a new National Science Foundation sponsored research study that will investigate the characteristics and educational experiences of people who are active in science hobbies. More and more people are engaging in science hobbies; schools and science centers would like to know more about the characteristics of science hobbyists and how these organizations might better support hobbyists’ networking and education.
What will happen if you take part in the study?
The information gained from this research can help science educators and researchers understand how to better teach science in schools and museums, and how to design better community-based science programs. Participation in this study is voluntary. Information you provide will be anonymous. If you complete the survey, you may elect to enter a drawing for a $100 Target gift card.
I think of scientists are people that use the scientific method to answer questions (hypothesis->experiment->observations->conclusions), so Kai and Sean would qualify. I suppose we all brew a batch, decide if we like it, form an hypothesis about what we could do to make it better, make it, then observe if it really was better. That seems like it would qualify us as scientists.
call me paranoid but this survey is funded by the National Science Foundation, A fed govt agency. Sorry but I don’t trust the govt enough to give out this kind of information… I don’t see the need to go blindly into any survey that pops up asking about homebrewing…
They’re not collecting any personally identifiable information (other than your email address, and only then if you want to a shot at the gift card) or really anything else they couldn’t get from posts to this forum if they tried hard enough. So I think you’re safe.
Ah, yes, the National Science Foundation. Brainwashing us with government propaganda through their insidious IMAX films, episodes of NOVA, and geological kiosks at the grand canyon.
In search of great beer I have learned about water chemistry, yeast biology and lots about heat exchangers.
Now I have questions that aren’t easily looked up online. How do I get answers to questions that don’t yet have any answers? I think I might know what happens, but how could I know for sure?
It sure feels like I’m on the edge of science. Now to see if curiosity pushes me over the edge…
Far worse info is available for purchase from marketing companies - even if you don’t think it is. Anyway, researchers rarely turn their data over to funding agencies.
No Denny, thats your buddy Dave that thinks that. Plain and simple, I don’t trust the govt. If a govt agency is funding something like this they could ask for the results. You really think a college would say no?There’s not ‘personal’ information per se in there, but there is enough info to track folks down. If they need to survey homebrewers to figure out improvements they need to make to better education, they need to rethink their entire process/agenda. Yep, call me paranoid!
So I assume you did not fill out your census documents in 2010? There is no privacy. Every piece of info that someone could want about you is readily available with some degree of digging and the NSA is really good at digging. I am super paranoid but at some point I realized that all my fears about various people and organizations getting info on me were absolutely founded and there was no point in continuing to worry about it. The best possible solution is to flood the buffers. put so much info about yourself out in the world that it’s just not worth looking at. You can’t stop anyone from compiling the info but you can make it so noisy that it’s not worth the trouble.
;D