You probably have a good feel for some of our personalities and a little about what we have been up to from all these blog posts at this point (if you have been keeping up with us). We are clearly learning a lot, seeing a lot, eating a lot and having a blast, but at this point, you are probably like why are you there (besides for the experience)? So I figured it was time to get a little scientific and reintroduce our groups. Don't get it twisted; This blog post isn't going to be a scientific paper so if that isn't your thing no need to click off. My goal is to give you some science with a little spice 🌶.
One last "fun" update before we get into the science, we went to the Moco Museum yesterday, and couldn't help but take a couple pictures.
Self-Sufficiency Sustainability
As we have told you before (or maybe we haven't), this group is picking up on work from a previous cohort. Because of this, the team originally had a different focus where they were working to assess the possibility for an entire city to be self-sufficient. This focus was adjusted after they had a breakthrough, and they are now focused on a topic a little closer to home and its ability to increase its environmental handprint and reduce its footprint. Have you ever wondered what it would take for a place to run on its own production of something like food before? This group has. So, how are they putting this idea on to paper?
Shiloh Walz
Focus: Introduction
Specialty: Wizard of facts on urbanization, urban agriculture, and rooftop gardens.
During our time here, Shiloh has been working away on several different things. She has sifted through many writing books with Kelsey on how to write a perfect (or as close to perfect as we can get) introduction. She has begun to lay the groundwork for that intro using some of the many facts that she has filed away in her brain during lit review. She must have some quick filers up in her head because she has collected a vast range of knowledge on their topic and put it on paper.
Ethan Eidt
Focus: Methods
Specialty: Basically a sage when it comes to yield and weight analysis equations and all necessary data for the equations
Ethan has been finding and formulating equations to best fit the needs of the project. Not only did he build the basis for the calculations to occur with the equations that he found through government agencies and other research papers, but he found sheets of data where he pinpointed out of hundreds of rows what was necessary for the calculations to run properly. Ethan has now shifted his focus from numbers to letters, as he is constructing the methods section of the paper. He must be fluent in numbers and letters that he made such a quick shift from the mindset of one to the other.
Lucas Finke
Focus: Results
Specialty: Visionary when it comes to possible routes for research
As I told you before, Lucas can't keep research off the brain. He has worked on figuring out how they could adjust their question to create a clearer path for the research, running calculations with Ethan, and writing up the findings from the research and their possible meaning. Lucas is almost an artist as he is creating his figures to make sure that they not only convey a message, but look well as they do so. He must have some quick fingers that he has managed to type of several pages of results while completing all the other tasks.
Virtual Water Networks
Our team has been investigating virtual water networks. Fun fact: Did you know there is imbedded water in all of your food? Clearly your food isn't made of all water because who would want that, but there is water associated with its production that can then be attached to the product and tracked as it moves from place to place. That may not be the clearest so maybe this will help. For example, they produce tomatoes here at ICTA that use X amount of water. They then give that tomato and the virtual water that is associated with it to Mateo. Mateo in turn gives ICTA peaches that used Y amount of water in their production. He not only traded the food with them, but the water. Now, this is very small scale to how this is usually run. It is on a much bigger scale as it is in our case. Most papers on the topic have looked at the virtual water trade of agriculture on the global scale, and how it is happening between countries. So how are we breaking down our work to do some tracking?
Kelsey Duffey
Focus: Introduction
Specialty: Walking encyclopedia of water facts, both virtual and physical
Kelsey has devoted much of her time her to literature review, and oh boy does it show. She can mention a random paper that she read and the stat that goes with that specific topic at the slightest conversation of something she read about. If she can't remember the stat perfectly, just give her a minute and she can tell you it from her color coded stat page. She has started her introduction section that puts to good use all her knowledge that she has collected. Kelsey has been a key player with the slight change in other methods as she already has a list of papers that will assist in doing so, and some facts from other places. She has got a whole library in her head, and she is ready to help figure out how to begin the next step of our research.
Lauren Hower
Focus: Methods
Specialty: All powerful being when it comes to anything with a computer or code
Lauren is a master of all things related to code, spreadsheets, and basically the computer in general. She has conquered 5 million row sheets, learned a completely new software package, and started to battle matrices. Kelsey and I would truly be lost with out her, even though she thinks we could figure out how to run codes on our own. Lauren has created several chord diagrams to depict our scenarios, created a network plot (basically looks like a dusty bunny at this point). I was going to share it with you, but Lauren has started it over. You can see the gif below for an idea of what they would look like. She is really a tech genius as she continues to amaze Kelsey and I with all the figures and scenarios she's running.
How Lauren summons the network plots
Elly Filas (me)
Focus: Results
Specialty: Optimistic mom (or as they have started to refer, grandma) of the group
As of right now, I have been mainly assisting in the literature review with Kelsey and the calculations with Lauren because you can't really have results without any data. I have helped talk and run through how to complete different conversions, matrices, and calculations of food production, water footprints, and virtual water. I have been the one that when a calculation or program isn't working, and everyone wants to slightly (more than slightly at times) throw their computers goes, "Well, we will figure it out. Let's try again." With our methods shifting to a potentially different path, I am getting ready to dive deep into literature review including talking my way through how several different equations could be applied to our scenario with Kelsey and looking at different characteristics and conversions that can be run with Lauren.
Hopefully, you have some understanding of the actual work we are doing and a better understanding of why we are here. We are trying to keep our topics hush, hush as most people do in research as we've found out from our literature review, but we hope to be able to share all the dirty 🌱 (and wet💧) details with you by the end of our time here.
Well, I should probably get back to work so until next time,
Elly