A century-old red oak in Harvard Forest of Petersham, Massachusetts lives two lives. One is in the forest, the other on Twitter. It goes by the name Witness Tree. Researchers from Harvard University are hoping to create awareness on the effects of drought and pathogens. Monitoring water flow, shrinkage and swelling of the bark, and leaf growth using instruments, Witness Tree supplies real-time data on how the tree is affected by its environment. Through a computer algorithm called TreeWatch.net designed by Ghent University, the data is then organized into a Twitter post and posted onto its Twitter page. In February 2020, Witness Tree said, "The last 2 days were extremely hot for February. When is this heatwave going to end? Already, the tree has 9,118 followers. The Witness Tree project and TreeWatch.net are hoping to grow internationally and create a network of so-called internet trees.

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