REMOTE MONITORING AND
DATA GATHERING EQUIPMENT FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
SUPPORTED BY THE INSTRUMENTATION AND LABORATORY IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM OF THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
The goal of this project was to acquire field monitoring equipment to be linked to Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in a core curriculum for undergraduate environmental studies (ENVL) at a 4-year liberal arts college in the New Jersey Pine Barrens. With NSF's support, ENVL has incorporated key developments in instrumentation and data analysis into the curriculum. The most important of these are GIS and the Global Positioning System (GPS). A new arts and sciences building, which houses the ENVL program, has a 1500-square foot computer/cartography lab. To take full advantage of these new facilities in its field and laboratory curriculum, ENVL acquired new instruments which enable students to 1) input data directly into GIS, 2) collect time series data involving multiple environmental variables, and 3) gather field data more rapidly. The plan included eight new GPS units with data loggers, three remote monitoring stations on the campus, and a portable photosynthesis measurement system. All instructional modules using the new equipment build on the background of first and second-year environmental studies students, use the inquiry method, and allow self-paced learning and student-initiated research.
Monitoring Station Data (EXCEL files)
National Science Foundation ILI Program