Emphasizing citizens as scientists, the myFOSSIL mobile app helps users engage with the practice of paleontology, connect with others who share their interests, and collaborate on fossil field trips, research, and more. Users follow groups focused around a topic, event, or location. They then connect with group members by sharing photos and updates about their paleontological activities. Group members may include any of the nearly 1,000 amateur and professional paleontologists currently in the myFOSSIL community. Directly from the field, users can upload fossil images to the myFOSSIL gallery to compare and discuss their finds and techniques. By adding in details about location, taxonomy, and geology, these fossil images become scientific records accessible to researchers and educators worldwide. Beyond specimens, users can also document and share paleontological methods, events, collecting sites, and more! Designed to facilitate a visually rich form of social learning, the myFOSSIL mobile app allows users to become part of the larger social paleontology community.
