SAS is an organization dedicated to driving positive change through responsible innovation and technology. In line with its mission, SAS applies crowd-driven artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to help conserve endangered sea turtles. SAS is working with the UNC Center for Galapagos Studies (CGS) on this project to further research several island-wide initiatives.
According to a release from SAS,1 An app called ConserVision will enable citizen scientists to match images of turtle facial markings to train SAS computer vision models. Once the model can accurately identify individual turtles, researchers will get valuable information more quickly, allowing them to better track the health and migration patterns of each turtle over time. From there, the ultimate goal is to allow models to perform facial recognition on any sea turtle image, whether from conservation groups or tourists on vacation.
Ultimately, SAS also aims to enable apps to identify health metrics around growth rates, health threats, and presence data. From there, researchers can better understand the temporal and spatial migration patterns of these turtles and identify health risks from marine debris, boat crashes, disease, and more.
“Our challenges as a global community are becoming increasingly complex, requiring dynamic ways to access and use information to enhance conservation efforts,” said SAS Chief Technical Architect and Master of Science Sarah Heiser said in a release. “By using technologies such as analytics, AI and machine learning to quantify the natural world, we can gain knowledge to protect ecosystems and tackle climate change.”1
“For more than a decade, the Galapagos Science Center has been a leader in scientific excellence, conducting groundbreaking research that advances our understanding of the environment and has positive real-world outcomes,” said Penny Gordon-Larsen, Interim Vice President for Research at UNC Chapel Hill. We have accepted people,” he said. PhD, listed in release. “This innovative public-private partnership with SAS will strengthen the data analytics center’s ability to positively impact both the environment and the people who live on these amazing islands.”1
SAS supports UNC CGS’ three marine life-focused projects:
- Sea turtle face recognition.
- Hammerhead shark pattern.
- Prediction of phytoplankton.
reference
SAS explores crowd-driven AI to protect endangered sea turtles in Galapagos. news release. SAS. Published May 9, 2023. Accessed May 12, 2023. https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sas-seeks-crowd-driven-ai-to-protect-endangered-sea-turtles-in-galapagos-301819633.html
