Methodology & Transparency
How We Work
OpenMycoNet is a citizen science project. Many people can contribute data — but according to shared rules. Here we explain why we measure in the field, how tasks and roles are separated, how we ensure data quality, and what scientific independence means to us.
Laboratory studies — including electrophysiological work by Andrew Adamatzky — create controlled conditions to investigate basic mechanisms. OpenMycoNet complements this approach with a different question: how does electrical activity manifest in fungal and mycorrhizal systems under real, changing environmental conditions?
Lehmann and Rillig (2025) point to gaps in field studies and ecosystem-level data on Common Mycorrhizal Networks. This is where OpenMycoNet comes in: not as a replacement for laboratory research, but as a complement through long-term, distributed measurements under natural conditions.
A distributed network of long-term sensor nodes can gather continuous measurement series from many real environments. This spatial and temporal diversity is exactly what OpenMycoNet contributes.
Independent research from below — not against the lab, but as a complement to it.
OpenMycoNet separates the role within the network from operating a BioComm node. Registration, cooperation and funding describe how someone is connected to the project. Anyone who collects measurement data themselves additionally needs the node-operator qualification.
Roles in the network
Mycelist (Community Member)
By registering, you become part of the OpenMycoNet community.
Hyphist (Cooperation Partner)
Anyone who cooperates with OpenMycoNet professionally, scientifically, technically or structurally can additionally become a Hyphist.
Sporist (Supporter)
Anyone who supports OpenMycoNet can additionally become a Sporist. Hyphist and Sporist are not mutually exclusive.
Node operation — an additional qualification
Mycelists, Hyphists and Sporists can additionally become node operators if they meet the defined requirements. These include an introduction, careful documentation of measurement conditions, and reliable operation over the required measurement period.
Cooperation or funding do not grant automatic access to primary data collection. The same requirements apply to node operation regardless of role in the network.
Our core principle is: measure first, then evaluate. Concretely, this means:
- We make no claims about effects before robust, repeatedly collected data is available.
- We work with an open outcome. Unexpected, inconclusive or negative results are part of the process of understanding and are not made to fit.
- We report publicly on new technical developments as soon as protection and review status allow.
- Node operators systematically document measurement conditions so that data remains traceable and interpretable later.
This rigor makes results traceable and provides the basis for reviewing and discussing them with independent experts.
OpenMycoNet initially develops the technical platform and an initial data basis independently. This lets us secure protection rights, build cooperations deliberately, and follow the data even when results don't match our expectations. Funding can support this independence without influencing results or their interpretation.
Independence does not replace scientific quality control. That's why we seek exchange with independent scientists who can critically review methods, data and conclusions.
Do you work on mycorrhiza, fungal electrophysiology, soil ecology, forestry science or a related research field? OpenMycoNet is building a distributed measurement network designed to record electrical activity and environmental conditions at different sites over extended periods in a comparable way.
We are looking for scientific and specialist partners who want to contribute their own research questions, methods, field access or experience to the shared work. Cooperations that help validate measurement procedures, place datasets in their proper scientific context and examine which reproducible patterns actually appear under different conditions are of particular interest.
See a point of connection? Then introduce your idea to us via the cooperation form. A cooperation does not have to begin with a finished research project — sometimes a good question, a distinctive study environment or a method worth testing together is enough.