Great Barrier Reef: How AI, wildlife experts and everyday Aussies are banding ... trends now

Great Barrier Reef: How AI, wildlife experts and everyday Aussies are banding ... trends now
Great Barrier Reef: How AI, wildlife experts and everyday Aussies are banding ... trends now

Great Barrier Reef: How AI, wildlife experts and everyday Aussies are banding ... trends now

A mix of wildlife experts, everyday Australians and artificial intelligence have banded together to try to save the Great Barrier Reef from damage. 

The Great Barrier Census, organised by the non-profit organisation Citizens of The Great Barrier Reef, is a large scale reconnaissance project that allows members of the public to analyse photos to identify what sections of the reef are damaged.

The images are taken by groups of locals, tourists and experts while diving on the reef and then uploaded to a system where they will be later analysed.

Although the process of analysing photos was initially slow, an A.I. built by Dell Technologies has allowed thousands of photos to be analysed in a day.

The introduction of A.I. has been a windfall for experts who have been busy trying to analyse a reef that is larger than the area of the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the Netherlands combined.

The new technology means they can quickly identify unhealthy regions of the reef and focus recovery efforts in revitalising in a more timely manner. 

An AI developed by Dell Technologies and the Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef is being bolstered by the general public in an effort to restore the Great Barrier Reef

An AI developed by Dell Technologies and the Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef is being bolstered by the general public in an effort to restore the Great Barrier Reef

Large areas of the Great Barrier Reef has sustained serious damage from coral bleaching and crown-of-thorns starfish that have evolved to eat coral

Large areas of the Great Barrier Reef has sustained serious damage from coral bleaching and crown-of-thorns starfish that have evolved to eat coral 

Sections of the Great Barrier Reef have been severely damaged by recurring incidences of bleaching across large sections of the reef. 

The first mass bleaching event occurred in 1998, with several more incidences in recent years.

Crown-of-thorns starfish, bottom-feeders which have evolved to eat coral, have also caused the reef substantial harm after exploding in population due to increased nutrients from water run-offs.

Citizens of The Great Barrier Reef co-founder and CEO of Andy Ridley was drawn to the cause after the 2016 mass bleaching that drew world-wide headlines claiming prematurely that the Great Barrier Reef had died.

He had been working with another organisation in the Netherlands at the time and was 'astounded' to see the reaction from younger colleagues at an international level.

'Seeing their reaction was just devastating because it wasn't a reaction of "we must do something", it was a

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