Since the 2008-2009 Antarctic field season is underway I have reposted the info and image from last winter's 3d quadrat in Antarctica.


December 26, 2007
WAIS Divide camp Antarctica

Time: 6 am
Latitude: 79° 28.10’ S
Longitude: 112° 3.56’ W
Elevation: 1820 m (5919’)
Temperature: -14 °C (7 °F)
Wind speed: calm
Wind Chill: °C
Visibility: cloudy, 2 miles
Clouds: thick stratus to the ground
Wind direction: N
Relative Humidity: 86%
Barometric Pressure: falling
Precipitation: 0, snowing lightly
Breakfast: eggs, sausage-bacon, toast, hot/cold cereal, lots of leftovers
Lunch:
Supper:


The glue on my 3-d quadrat seems to have hardened properly so I installed it outside the communications building as close as possible to the meteorology
(weather) station. Since there is already a professional grade weather
station here, I have decided to use it for most of the weather data. All of the data should come from inside the 3d quadrat but you use what you can - and the meteorology station is right next to the 3d quadrat - and I did add my 2
data loggers to my 3-dquadrat, one on the snow level and one at the
top, one meter up, a wind indicator (flag) on the upright bamboo poles that support the 3d quadrat, and a snow depth indicator. The data loggers I am using automatically record temperature and light intensity every hour, 24 hrs a day, for about 3 months. The relative humidity, additional temperature, and barometric pressure will come from the WAIS meteorology station.
http://waisdivideoutreach.blogspot.com/2007/12/december-26-2007-wais-divide-camp.html

As of April 2008 we have a student in the Bahamas that is using a 3d quadrat to study the biodiversity of fish in a coral community near his home.

Hi Zach,
Hope this finds you in good health and spirits! We have assembled a cubed meter and it is big! Good thing we did not glue it because it won't fit out the door!!!!
We are struggling in how this is going to work. We were kicking over the idea of bringing the cube one afternoon to several different sites and keep an ecoological record of various urban settings. Not clear on the way the added dimensions are to be utilized though, I can see the different levels of temperature readings, and we have a small weather kit that reads temperature and is a simple rain gage as well. But we are struggling in trying to find other applications. If we put it in the pond in Franklin park, that is one possibility, but it is the biotic component of measuring that makes the cube challenging. If you have any suggestions or other insights, that will be greatly appreciated. I am thinking of trying to incoprorate pH measurements but it is in the works.
Give a heads up to others that plumbing supplies mean something different by a one inch diameter than a simple ruler measurement of the pipe diameter! I thought you mentioned someone creating a smaller cube, not sure if that is the way to go, but I am open to ideas. We haven't attached the weather gages yet, I picked up two as a start. Hope to build another cube this coming Thursday. It might be fun to drive around in a van and take the cube out at four different locations around the city. Could be repeated in the Winter, Spring, and maybe the Summer. Thanks!
Jeff- Boston Public Schools

v

Brandon Gillette and his class from Kansas have gotten their 3D quadrat program
Up and running! We're collecting temperature data from surfaces of various colors to attempt to observe effects of the urban head island. We're using your system and Hobo data loggers.

३-dQP Forum

Hi 3d fans. Nancy Robie, our current fellow, is curently giving her workshop here at Tufts University on "Using Stations" in Middle School, at which I presented about the 3dQP. It prompted me to go to the 3dQP web site and I noticed that the 'forum" button was not linked to this blog site. So, as of today I am getting this blog linked to the 3dQP web site so that teachers and students can communicate with each other about the observations/data they collect with their 3d quadrats.
http://www.tufts.edu/as/wright_center/3dqp/forum.html

3dqp introduction

3-dQP: What’s in your 3-d quadrat?

Hi, this is day one on the blog for the 3D quadrat program and I will take this time to introduce our program as well as provide to link to find out more.
The 3-d Quadrat Program is designed to help develop an understanding of earth system science. The Earth system is very dynamic and involves multiple variables that are all very dependent on each other. These variables included aspects of all five spheres: the atmosphere, the biosphere, the hydrosphere, the lithosphere, and the cryosphere. Too often students are asked to make observations and collect data from only one sphere and do not gain experience in understanding the entire system. 3-d quadrats create a workable sized space that encourages and allows collecting observations and data from multiple interactive parts of the Earth system. Though 1m3 is the basic unit of size for the 3-d Quadrat Program we encourage the creation of other multiple of this size and 10m3 space may be the perfect size for an entire ecology lab for a class or school. Once you start to "add" additional 3d quadrats you will be able to interpret various geograpohic areas, even those directly next to tyour first 3d quadrat. Once you start adding you will see that you observations can be used to interpret between different areas and used to extrapolate your observations to even larger areas. Eventually you will see how you can use your observations to create models and project temporally and spatially (into time and space).

The observations/data collection in each 3-d quadrat can then be applied to the larger Earth system. This program is not just limited to K-12th grade but is developed to include informal education and adult learners as well. Through its workshops, seminars, educational materials, and a variety of public-outreach activities, the 3-dQP provides leadership in the training and retraining of all educators to use innovative methods to stimulate young minds about earth system science and human impact on the planet. This program is not limited to earth science students but includes mathematics, literature, art, and social studies. It is also a first step in citizen science and making detailed observations about environmental change, first having observed multiple parameters in a single space.

The 3-d Quadrat Program supports basic and applied research and evaluation that enhances science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning and teaching.

* Synthesis Research and Evaluation Project proposals should identify areas where the knowledge base in either evaluation or research is sufficiently robust to support strong scientific claims, identify areas of importance to education research and practice, and propose rigorous methods for synthesizing findings and drawing conclusions. Proposals for workshops and other meetings are permitted.

Most notably 3-d quadrats can be open or closed systems with dynamic movement through the quadrat boundaries supporting a natural system and allows testing of individual variables.
http://www.tufts.edu/as/wright_center/3dqp/


So, now you know a little about our program. More is included on the web site. As others use the program youare welcome to comment here adding your own thoughts and observations.

Thanks