Support for Citizen Science

This is the primary mission of MAST. We seek to encourage and support the efforts of individual amateur scientists to overcome the hurdles that face them in their endeavors. To this end we have the following programs available:

1. We have a small laboratory with some very advanced equipment for individual projects on a first-come first-serve basis.
   • We have a fairly complete electronics laboratory including two oscilloscopes: 350 MHz Tektronix 468 and a 1 GHz HP 54100A Digital Scope.
   • We have a Vernier LabPro Data Acquisition and Analysis System attached to an 800 MHz Pentium III Computer with a variety of probes for precision laboratory measurements.
   • We have a substantial quantity of laboratory glassware.
   • We have a Dremel system.
   • We have both a Visible and a UV/Vis Spectrophotometer.
   • We have a pair of Gas Chromatographs (which need to be put into working order).
   • We have a Cahn 27 Digital Analytical Balance.
   • We have a Mettler-Toledo AB 104 Digital Analytical Balance
   • We have three laboratory centrifuges.
   • We have a Vortex Mixer, and we have a magnetic stirrer.
   • We have an alcohol lamp, a gas burner, and a laboratory grade hot plate.
2. We have an extensive library of several books at a college level or higher in math, physics, chemistry, electronics, computer science, meteorology, astronomy and astrophysics.

We are also applying for NSF funding to support a project to purchase a building and develop what amounts to a national laboratory for amateur scientists. Here is what we have so far:

Current and Future Trends in Membership

MAST has a current membership of eight people. This is not good, but it is not unexpected since we have no bidget for advertising. We have grown our membership by 12% in the last year. It is not unreasonable to assume that if we spend money to advertise our membership will experience a significant initial jump (to perhaps twenty active members) and then level off to a 10-20% increase per year. Assume this to be 15%, then we expect our membership after the first year to be twenty, twenty three the second year, twenty six the third year, thirty the fourth year, and thirty four by the fifth year. The revenue generated by this membership will only be (after SAS membership dues are removed from what we get) $200 in year 1, $220 in year 2, $260 in year 3, $300 in year 4, and $340 in year 5. Among other things this means that we will not be able to rely upon membership dues to make us anything more than a small club; we must seek outside funding and that means grants.

Membership Needs

There are basically three kinds of members in MAST:

• Members who are very active and have their own facilities (perhaps not entirely sufficient for what they want to do) where they live. This accounts for around 50% of the membership.
• Members who wish to be active and make arrangements to use existing facilities when they can. This accounts for 13% of the membership. I believe that this category of member would see the greatest increase in numbers.
• Members who wish to be active but do not have the time to be involved, nor the facilities to do work on their own. This accounts for 37% of the membership.

We have no reason to believe that these figures will change in the current environment.

Let us examine the last category first. A facility with laboratory and library support that is open to members with a key would suit these individuals well. It allows them to perform work when they can, even if they do not have the space in their current situations.

The second category would receive the greatest benefit. A lab would allow members to conduct their work even if they live under a fixed budget.

The first cetagory would receive the least benefit, but it would allow access to "big-ticket" items that might not otherwise be available.

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