Getting their hands dirty: Students experience fieldwork in Hawaii
In MIT's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), students are encouraged to apply material from class and to get hands-on experience in the field. From monitoring air quality and conducting chemical analysis of soil samples, to learning about Hawaiian culture, a group of undergraduate students gained this real-world experience through a unique program that takes them to the Island of Hawaii ("the Big Island") over the month-long Independent Activities Period (IAP) in January. Traveling Research Environmental eXperiences (TREX) is a fieldwork experience that takes a group of undergraduates from CEE and other departments, along with CEE professors and teaching assistants, to the Big Island to monitor air quality and to study plant health. The two-week adventure involves creating air sensors, installing them in various locations on the island, and coupling chemical analysis with images from drones to monitor plant health from multiple locations. The research is supplemented with adventures such...