This weekend the RESTART Team attended SCÉAL COLLECTIVE’s How It’s Made 2024: Experience IoT event in celebration of Science Week. This was an excellent event funded by Research Ireland with support from Fingal County Council in partnership with Smart Balbriggan, the CONNECT Centre and SCÉAL Arts Collective. The event was packed with creativity: IoT inspired art displays, hand-on activities and demos, but also Virtual Reality (VR) activities. One of our favourites was the Fingal County Council stand on “Tech Through the Decade”, where one of the first punch-card machines was on display.
Our goal was to engage the wider audience, but we did have some tricks up the sleeve to gather interest from the younger among them. The YSI Exxo multiparameter sonde, was clearly the centre of attention. Not hard to impress when you can measure so many water quality parameters and shoot green & blue light beams in the process. The green and blue LEDs are the two light sources the Exxo uses to measure chlorophyll and phycoerythrin via fluorescence—key pigments for detecting blue-green algae, which serve as crucial indicators of aquatic ecosystem health. For environmental scientists, the quantity and quality of data are essential. The more robust and accurate the data, the better we can analyse, understand, and protect our environment effectively. Environmental sensors are providing that information at high frequency which in turn allows us to capture and understand environmental processes that otherwise we would miss; but they also provide real-time data which supports decision making.
A vast majority of parameters cannot be measured using sensors, and for those we use laboratory-based instrumentation or test kits. On display we had two such examples, for nitrate and phosphate analysis. We used these citizen science test kits before in the DCU Water Institute Water Blitz. Participants loved analysing their own water samples and interpreting results through colour changes. For tech enthusiasts, we showcased the inner workings of sensors with disassembled devices, including optical fibres, LEDs, photodiodes, mechanical wipers, motors, housing, and antifouling protection systems.
By the end of the day, the event sparked curiosity and excitement within the community, with intrigued reactions accompanied by countless questions. Seeds of inspiration were planted and participants left with a new appreciation for the fun and impact of being an environmental scientist.
Special thanks to Eamonn Dolyn for the invitation and insightful tour of this engaging event!
