Autumn Years Spring 2023

MERLIN BIRD ID

Here is a state of the art bird identifying app that not only gives you localized bird questionnaires to help find what bird you have spotted but also picture and sound recognition. Researchers at the Cornell

University Lab of Ornithology built this app “to be a birding coach for bird watchers of all levels.” They teamed up with eBird and trained machine learning models on millions of examples of bird pictures and bird calls. This resulted in an algorithm that can predict bird species with startling accuracy. Users cannot stop raving about how this app helps them train their ears and eyes to identify birds. One user review stated that the app was even able to identify a mockingjay mimicking the bird songs of multiple different species. “Life List” lets you report the birds you see and tracks them for you. Here is an app that uses technology to make being outside more fun.

PICTURETHIS

Whether you are a gardener, a new plant owner or just like going for walks and seeing plants, PictureThis is the app for you. It was not too long ago that the greatest image recognition technology in the world could barely tell the difference between a hot dog and a person’s legs. Fast forward to 2023, and now we can have the power of many computers in the palm of our hands. PictureThis’s advanced algorithms can identify almost any plant you can photograph and can even diagnose if the plant has an ailment of some kind. The app also recommends articles about plant care, gardening trends and landscaping tips. For those who have limited experience with caring for plants, it is a great tool to help navigate the world of plants.

ARGO

In 2022, the global leisure boat market was valued at $44.47 billion and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 5.4 percent from 2023 to 2030. So it is no surprise to find a growth in boating apps to help new and longtime owners navigate. Argo appears to be the most popular boating app on the free marketplace at the moment. It has many advanced features for route navigation based on a boat’s draft and size. It gives you live depth measurements as well as wind speed and direction while out on the water so you can captain your boat with extra confidence. It makes finding popular launching spots, anchorages, marinas, dock bars and more very easy, thanks to user reviews. Argo also gives live safety updates on water conditions.

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SPRING 2023 I AUTUMN YEARS