User:Astronott/UBRET

UBRET is an acronym for User-Based Research Enabling Toolkit. It refers to a set of tools which may accompany an online citizen science project, e.g. Galaxy Zoo, which are not part of the project's primary tasks, but rather facilitate further, independent research by project participants. The term was first coined by the Citizen Science Alliance. UBRETs may provide access to additional data or facilities for further analysis of the data presented in the primary project tasks. The tools are not necessarily developed or presented together with the main project. They may be pre-existing resources that have been provided for either amateur or professional use, and which are conveniently linked to by the main project. Alternatively, they may be developed and made available at a later time, perhaps as a response to participant's requests or as suitable tools become available.

UBRETs have three principal purposes:
 * they engender a more satisfying and involving experience for the keenest participants in a citizen science project. This has the benefit of strengthening the associated community, resulting in overall greater participation in the project's primary task
 * they provide a form of informal science education, concerning not only the specific subject but experience of the research process,
 * by facilitating original research, participants may make contributions which are of value to the professional community associated with the project. An example of this is the Pea galaxies identified by Galaxy Zoo participants using UBRETs provided by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey.