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If anyone at home wants to discover new planets (without the need for a NASA internship) there has been a citizen science project running for several years [1].

If anyone at home wants to discover new planets (without the need for a NASA internship) there has been a citizen science project running for several years [1]. It uses TESS data (I believe Kepler data was used before TESS) and is essentially the same as what the intern has done I'm mystified why this story is getting spammed so far and wide? Is this a recruiting advert? [1] https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/nora-dot-eisner/planet-hunters-tess-mobile/classify https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/nora-dot-eisner/planet-h...

capableweb 7y ago
> I'm mystified why this story is getting spammed so far and wide? Is this a recruiting advert? It ticks all the boxes of becoming a viral story: - "A teenager discovered a new planet on the third day of his NASA internship" - "Teenager" > relatable to people who share most on social media - "discovered a new planet" > woah, aliens/space - "the third day of his NASA internship" > Wow, what a accident/savant
- Izkata 7y ago
  Don't forget "teenager discovered" -> special skills not needed / anyone can do it / "I" could do this too.
  - happytoexplain 7y ago
    Can somebody clue me in on the cynical overtones of this thread?
    - allovernow 7y ago
      Scientifically illiterate media tends to occasionally treat fairly mundane work as exceptional when performed by a teenager. Particularly if they're from an underrepresented group. It's frustrating to read about such exaggerated accolades. But laymen eat this shit up.
      - happytoexplain 7y ago
        While I follow this explanation and agree with it outside any other context, I usually find that this position is actually more negative/harmful/self-gratifying on par than that particular flavor of misleading writing is.
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
    - the8472 7y ago
      It is about explaining what makes the headline clickbaity. TESS is designed to find planets, so someone poring over the data is expected to find one eventually. I.e. it's far less unexpected than the headline suggests. And thus far less newsworthy apart from the people interest aspect.
    - spitfire 7y ago
      Exceptionally cynical take follows. Teenagers who get prestigious internships often come from rich families with connections. If they're particularly affluent/connected, the intern has a problem setup for them so they can "discover" a new discovery or solution to a problem. Not saying this is frequent, but it's frequent enough that when you see an affluent/connected gifted youngster achieve it's reasonable to be circumspect about them.
      - redis_mlc 7y ago
        > the intern has a problem setup for them so they can "discover" a new discovery or solution to a problem. Wow, that's some next-level cynicism. Well-played, sir!
        snejj5 7y ago
        I think cynicism became paranoia here.
        g82918 7y ago
        I don't know about that. I wasn't even aware that Nasa let high schoolers do anything when I was a teen or that programs like that existed, and I even graduated my high school summa cum laude with honors in science for a paper I published in an actual journal. Either parents or schools help you with this. It isn't that cynical or paranoid.

capableweb 7y ago

> I'm mystified why this story is getting spammed so far and wide? Is this a recruiting advert? It ticks all the boxes of becoming a viral story: - "A teenager discovered a new planet on the third day of his NASA internship" - "Teenager" > relatable to people who share most on social media - "discovered a new planet" > woah, aliens/space - "the third day of his NASA internship" > Wow, what a accident/savant

Izkata 7y ago
Don't forget "teenager discovered" -> special skills not needed / anyone can do it / "I" could do this too.
- happytoexplain 7y ago
  Can somebody clue me in on the cynical overtones of this thread?
  - allovernow 7y ago
    Scientifically illiterate media tends to occasionally treat fairly mundane work as exceptional when performed by a teenager. Particularly if they're from an underrepresented group. It's frustrating to read about such exaggerated accolades. But laymen eat this shit up.
    - happytoexplain 7y ago
      While I follow this explanation and agree with it outside any other context, I usually find that this position is actually more negative/harmful/self-gratifying on par than that particular flavor of misleading writing is.
      - deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
  - the8472 7y ago
    It is about explaining what makes the headline clickbaity. TESS is designed to find planets, so someone poring over the data is expected to find one eventually. I.e. it's far less unexpected than the headline suggests. And thus far less newsworthy apart from the people interest aspect.
  - spitfire 7y ago
    Exceptionally cynical take follows. Teenagers who get prestigious internships often come from rich families with connections. If they're particularly affluent/connected, the intern has a problem setup for them so they can "discover" a new discovery or solution to a problem. Not saying this is frequent, but it's frequent enough that when you see an affluent/connected gifted youngster achieve it's reasonable to be circumspect about them.
    - redis_mlc 7y ago
      > the intern has a problem setup for them so they can "discover" a new discovery or solution to a problem. Wow, that's some next-level cynicism. Well-played, sir!
      - snejj5 7y ago
        I think cynicism became paranoia here.
        g82918 7y ago
        I don't know about that. I wasn't even aware that Nasa let high schoolers do anything when I was a teen or that programs like that existed, and I even graduated my high school summa cum laude with honors in science for a paper I published in an actual journal. Either parents or schools help you with this. It isn't that cynical or paranoid.