Welcome to the internet refuge of an amateur biologist
I'm an amateur researcher located in the New York City working with a small research group of like-minded independent researchers called the Binomica Labs, also located in the city within the walking distance of the East River.
We are exploring a path to thoughtful and practical amateur research that emphasizes the value of the universal body of human knowledge, supported by the the capacity of all to contribute to its development and preservation regardless of background or means.
Our approach to research can be summed up under our group's motto- Small, Thoughtful, Science.
The birth of the modern concept of the scientist was an event built up over the years through thinking, writing, and discussions shared among many minds of various intentions and expertise, organized not through formal institutions and conventions, but through the organic outgrowth of the scientific practice adjacent to the culture of the times.
We believe the amateur sciences' beginnings go back as far as its professional counterpart and have remarkable examples even coming into the modern age. What would have been Mendel's professional credentials as a plant biologist, or even a general scientist among his contemporaries? Or Felix d'Herelle, who never completed the post-secondary education staple among the educated people of his era, whose professional titles and accolades were only gained after he's already made his significant scientific discoveries? And yet, the impression of the term amateur science often remains in the realm of illegitimacy, with its past contributions based on sound scientific practices and peer review treated as series of unrelated accidents rather than examples of excellence we could strive for.
With the improved tools for creation and dissemination of information and knowledge at our disposal, our society is capable of restarting the process of thinking, writing, and discoursing toward the goal of revival and expansion of the amateur sciences, with a renewed focus on the rigorous application of the scientific methods and integrity in research practices, built around small, practical experiments that contribute to the collective understanding of the universe at large.