The concepts of forward modeling and inverse modeling

Provenance: Lee Slater, Rutgers University-Newark
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This unit introduces the student to the concept of geophysical inversion, which is the process of estimating the geophysical properties of the subsurface from the geophysical observations. The basic mechanics of the inversion process used to estimate spatial variations in electrical conductivity from electrical imaging (EI) datasets are introduced in a way that avoids the heavy mathematics. The challenges of inverting two dimensional geophysical datasets and the strategies for limiting the inversion to geologically reasonable solutions are described. The unfortunate characteristics of geophysical images (blurriness, imaging artifacts) are explained to highlight the limitations of inversion and to emphasize that the inverted images never match with geological reality. Students use the Excel-based Scenario Evaluator for Electrical Resistivity (SEER) tool introduced in Unit 3, Field Geophysical Measurements, to investigate key inversion concepts associated with measurement errors and the benefits of adding boreholes to surface data using synthetic datasets. Students are then led through an inversion of the two-dimensional EI dataset acquired in Harrier Meadow using ResIPy, a Python-based graphical user interface developed for instructional use. Following the instructional video, students then perform the inversion in ResIPy themselves and explore how variations in inversion settings related to the errors in the measurements result in distinctly different images.

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In this unit, students explore water privatization and freshwater access issues within the geophysical and cultural context of Cochabamba, Bolivia. Students identify topographical features that create rain shadows and their relationship to the water cycle. As they discuss several alternative models for supplying water to the residents of Cochabamba, they link concepts of environmental justice to the Cochabamba Water Wars of 2000.

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The assignment is to calculate an annual water balance for a tree using data gathered at the Southern Sierra Critical Zone Observatory. In the framework of experimental design, students will organize around a research question "Is there enough water in the soil to account for transpiration?" After gathering and organizing data, students will calculate the annual water fluxes and reservoirs using a mass balance approach. Later these lessons can be expanded to catchment-scale calculations.

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This is the second module of a two week-long unit on hydrology in an upper-level undergraduate course on the Critical Zone. After Unit 5.1, students should have a basic understanding of the fluxes and reservoirs in the context of a tree and basin water balance. In Unit 5.2, students will learn how to apply environmental sensor data to larger catchment or regional scales (Part 1) and will connect hydrologic processes in the Critical Zone to societal needs through a quantitative resource availability and decision-making exercise (Part 2).

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This unit has students build on a system diagram, to include new knowledge about quantitative values and relationships. They will also write about and discuss what they know about their systems, the questions that still remain, and how to find answers to their questions.

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In this two-day activity spanning Units 4 and 5, students analyze spatial variation in climate through a map-based jigsaw exploration of NASA's Earth's Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) data. By the end of the activity students will have created maps and graphs illustrating the global radiation balance and used their knowledge to develop and refine hypotheses regarding impacts of global climate change.

In Unit 5 (day 2 of activity) students work in new groups that include members who analyzed each of the three ERBE datasets from day 1 of the activity (Unit 4). These synthesis groups work together to summarize their observations and infer regions of radiation excess and deficit in graph and map forms. These new figures are used to facilitate a whole-class discussion of the global radiation balance. The unit ends with a discussion of how atmospheric circulation acts to balance the radiation budget and the impacts of a changing climate on other Earth systems.

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Unit 5 will delve more into an examination of food security using online ArcGIS. The class begins with a GIS-based exploration of data available for the three regions. The rest of the class period is provided for group work creating an action plan for a food insecurity issue teams have identified for their region. Students will utilize their maps from ArcGIS Online within their action plan. One component of the summative assessment, to be submitted in Unit 6, is a community-based action plan of how the selected community can increase food security and lessen vulnerability.

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Screenshot of the slider tool used to relate geophysical images to vegetation pattern

Provenance: Lee Slater, Rutgers University-Newark
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In this unit, students explore spatial associations between the three-dimensional electromagnetic (EM) conductivity inversions and the visible patterns of Salicornia (Pickleweed) introduced in Unit 1, Exploring Harrier Meadow. The Arcview Storymap started in Unit 1 allows students to overlay inverted electrical conductivity patterns for different depths on aerial photographs of Harrier Meadow that highlight the patches of Pickleweed. Students analyze how conductivity patterns vary with depth and explore for evidence for a relationship between electrical conductivity and Pickleweed patches based on the hypothesis introduced in Unit 1. Students then perform an integrated interpretation of both the EM and electrical imaging inversions along with the results of direct sampling (coring, pore water sampling, soil characterization) conducted at locations selected using the electrical conductivity patterns observed in the EM dataset. Students perform basic qualitative assessments of the correlation between physical and chemical properties of the sampled soils and soil electrical conductivity from the EM inversions. Students finish the module by evaluating the extent to which the geophysical dataset and supporting direct measurements support the hypothesis pertaining to the cause of the Salicornia clusters introduced in Unit 1.

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Students use what they have learned in the previous units to link the above-ground part of the rock cycle (driven by the hydrologic cycle, energy from the Sun, and gravity) to the below-ground part of the rock cycle driven by Earth's internal heat energy. This unit is focused on group thinking: interpreting a rock cycle diagram and the role of the hydrologic cycle, identifying energy transfers (including sources and sinks), and describing hypothetical rock material transfer pathways. Students also make connections between erosion and plate tectonics through analysis of a reading, "How Erosion Builds Mountains."

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Unit 5 addresses the concept of Net Zero Water of buildings. Net Zero Water can be defined in different ways. For this module it means a building's water needs are supplied 100% from harvested rainwater or water that is recycled on site. Reducing indoor and outdoor water use is a key element. Reading and videos are assigned to aid students grasping the concept of Net Zero Water as applied to buildings. A spreadsheet tool from the U.S. Green Building Council is introduced and used to estimate indoor water demand for baseline and design (water conservation) scenarios. In addition, this unit links to Unit 4 by including an estimate for outdoor water demand. The central activity for the unit is an active learning team exercise to analyze indoor water use reduction for a case study building and evaluate Net Zero Water.

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In this unit, student groups will use sensory data (scents and/or sounds) collected in the field to create maps of the sensory environment and relate their findings to larger environmental problems identified in their guiding questions and hypotheses. This unit is designed to build upon prior units in which students develop guiding questions and hypotheses, field data collection protocols, and field investigation plans. The field investigation will require a base map on which to record data and a final map on which to display data and characterize the study area and environmental impact of the mapped data. The base map will be derived from aerial imagery if the investigation site is outside. The base map will be derived from a building schematic or floor map if an interior location is mapped.
Class time will be devoted to developing maps on which students will display the data collected in the field. Students will use Google Earth or other online resources to obtain aerial (or other schematic) imagery of their study area. They may use an aerial image as a base map or they may draw their own maps based on the aerial imagery. If the site is indoors, a blueprint or floor plan can be the base map, or students can draw their own maps based on an existing image or schematic.
Sensory mapping allows students to identify scent plumes as they migrate away from source locations. Odor plumes and sounds are analogous to plumes of contaminants that migrate through groundwater, surface water, and air. In many instances, the presence of unusual odors is an indicator of migrating contaminants and can lead to sampling by environmental professionals (including geoscientists) to confirm and quantify contaminant migration through the environment. These maps serve as representations of the complex odor or sound systems in the students' chosen geographical areas.

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Sea-level rise due to the melting of glaciers and ice sheets and ocean thermal expansion has significant societal and economic consequences. In this final unit, students prepare a summary of the impacts of sea level for relevant stakeholders. Students will integrate the stakeholder analysis in Unit 1 with the geodetic data (radar satellite altimetry, GRACE [Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment], InSAR, and GPS) of ice mass loss and sea-level rise from Units 2 -- 4 in their analysis. Unit 5 is the summative assessment for the module.

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Online-ready: The exercise is a final project that can be done remotely, individually or in small online groups.

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In the final unit of the module, students will synthesize their understanding of climate science and modes of communication. Students are assigned to groups and given a climate change issue that they will use to demonstrate their understanding of ethos, pathos, and logos, when presented with a variety of audiences. The module summative assessment is designed to be administered after this unit.

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In this unit, students will learn about the dynamic movement of nutrients among and within ecosystems primarily through the reading and discussion of scientific literature. This unit is generally subdivided into three sections: (1) allochthonous inputs (2) the role of organisms in biogeochemical cycles and how ecological theory can be applied to biogeochemistry and (3) how biogeochemical processes can assist in creating solutions for humanity's grand challenges. This unit is designed to provide students with the opportunity to develop their reading and interpretation of scientific literature. Students will also become familiar with the utility of isotopic techniques and their use in biogeochemistry through readings and data analysis of carbon and nitrogen isotopic data sets. Chosen scientific articles are provided, each with their own set of reading questions. Additionally, short introductory materials are provided to introduce students to some of the general concepts and processes in the study of biogeochemistry.

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In this week-long unit students will explore Critical Zone function and dynamics as they relate to nutrient cycling in agricultural systems and nutrient pollution into aquatic systems. This unit is generally subdivided into three sections: (1) nutrient pollution (2) agricultural importance and (3) Critical Zone function and dynamics in relation to nutrient cycling. The students will use data sets, interactive activities, primary literature, and videos to allow them to examine the role that the CZ plays and how that role changes with differing land uses. Important present-day topics of food production, clean water, nutrient pollution, and sustainable agriculture are examined using a CZ lens. Students will interact with each other on a variety of scales (individual, small groups, entire class) and using a variety of modes (presentations, written reports, question and answers, and class discussion) in this unit. Additionally, optional activities are provided if lab activities are able to be accommodated. The unit ends with a summative assessment assignment that is based on an innovative call for proposals to combat one of America's most widespread, costly, and challenging environmental problems: nutrient pollution.

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In this unit, students will review mock proposals that deal with some aspect of the role of carbon in the environment. Each proposal is based on actual actions proposed to mitigate some aspect of carbon consumption and/or climate change, and as such are considered "real world" scenarios (although somewhat generalized for this exercise). Students will review each proposal for the possible societal, economic, and moral implications if the proposal was pursued on a large scale -- for instance, by a single nation or collection of countries. Additionally, students will make recommendations to a fictitious governmental panel on the merits and pitfalls of each proposal and provide well-supported recommendations about whether that government panel should pursue or reject the proposal. Instructors can use this unit as a stand-alone activity, or as a summary activity to comprehensively review, discuss, and assess material presented in this module's earlier units.

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Students are introduced to the concept of geoengineering, "the deliberate large-scale intervention in the Earth's climate system, in order to moderate global warming" (The Royal Society). The goal is for them to leverage their acquired knowledge from previous units in physical oceanography, ocean chemistry, biodiversity, and ecosystem ecology to evaluate the validity and/or the risk of geoengineering (systems thinking). Current and future generations will be required to make informed decisions on whether they support strategies that result in irreversible changes in Earth's carbon cycle.

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Unit 6 covers the preliminary design of a rainwater harvesting unit. Pre-class assignments provide background on rainwater harvesting. An active learning exercise steps student teams through the process of sizing a rainwater harvesting cistern, using water demand estimates from Units 4 and 5. The activity leads into a revision of the water system mind map developed in previous units.

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Unit 6 provides an opportunity for students to present their action plans and exchange knowledge about what they have learned in their team case study work. This unit builds on food security and Earth system science covered in the first three units. It can be taught in any course discussing food security or it can be modified to fit a variety of courses of in the sciences and social sciences. The activities included in this unit are appropriate for introductory-level college students or as a basis for more in-depth class discussions on food security for upper-level students.

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