Every structure around the world has one thing in common: they are built on a foundation of rock and soil. Unfortunately, the physical properties of these materials are as varied as the structures upon them. This variability has long forced geotechnical engineers to rely on instinct and experience when determining the most cost-effective safe solution. Since safety cannot be sacrificed, the margin of error must be covered with more robust and costly solutions than necessary in every case. In an industry where the consequences of error range from costly to catastrophic, Terracon is on a mission to replace educated guestimates with measurable, repeatable data. In this episode of We Measure the World, we talk to Arash Hosseini, Ph.D., P.E. and Matthew Ridgway, P.E. of Terracon about what it takes to make site-specific measurements consistent, accurate, and scalable.

Germany has committed to generating 80% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030, as outlined in the Climate Action Act. However, the ideal locations for wind and solar farms are in the north, while the industrial centers that require power are in the south. To save space, protect cables from weather damage, and preserve aesthetics, Germany chooses to bury the cables wherever possible. So, how do you safely transport utility-scale energy 700 km underground? Varying types of soil and seasonal changes in soil moisture can impact the ability to safely do this without damaging cables or harming the ecosystem. In this episode, Kai-Julian Hendler and Christoph Verschaffel-Drefke discuss the geotechnical challenges of this ambitious project.

Road construction projects can thrive or fail based on the weather conditions they face. Optimal air temperatures are required for paving materials to cure properly. Wind, temperature, precipitation, and other atmospheric factors determine project scheduling, resource allocation, and compliance with EPA guidelines. Traditional pen-and-paper tracking is inefficient and prone to inaccuracies. In this episode, Bryce Wuori, Co-founder and CEO of Pavewise, discusses their development of Groundtruth — a software designed to make weather tracking simpler, more accurate, and automated for the road construction industry.

Traditionally, models of tree water consumption rely on evapotranspiration —a process describing the movement of water through the soil, plant, and atmosphere—as an indirect measure. However, these models may lack critical components, leading to inaccuracies in prediction. In this episode, we are joined by Lauren Tucker, a PhD candidate at Idaho State University, who discusses her team's groundbreaking research on how different tree species store moisture deep within their heartwood for long-term retention.

As the climate continues to change, water distribution across the planet shifts in unpredictable ways. Historical data can no longer be relied on as traditional moisture-rich areas are experiencing longer, more frequent droughts and arid landscapes now have flooding to manage. In this episode, Dr. Matt Yost, agroclimate extension specialist at Utah State University, discusses his research in commercial agriculture and how producers can benefit from the certainty of high-accuracy soil moisture and weather instruments to achieve precision irrigation in these uncertain times.

The cover crop and crop rotation options used by agriculturalists across the country don’t work among the dryland farming practices of the plains of Wyoming. Wheat farmers — many of whom operate without well rights — are lucky to get a profitable crop every 2-3 years as their fields lie fallow for the interim to allow the soil recover. In this episode, we talk to G.A. Harris Fellowship recipient Alex Fox, who joined a study that took lessons from natural prairie systems and studied the impacts of planting Kernza®, the first ever domesticated perennial grain crop.

Growing blueberries is a challenge. Multiple stalks require manual harvest. A thirsty root structure requires large amounts of water. The pine bark mulch spread across the soil conserves irrigation water and added nutrients but comprises a quarter of the growing cost. 2022 G.A. Harris Fellowship recipient and University of Florida horticultural sciences PhD student, Cecilia Heller, has dedicated her studies to tackling this problem. In this episode, Cecilia discusses the challenges and successes she has found with grafting blueberries for climate resilience.

The world of essential oils isn’t inherently sustainable and rarely ethically sourced. The workers and the land itself are often treated with little respect in the name of short-term profitability. Katie Anselmi, master's student at Colorado Mesa University, got the opportunity to visit Fairoil farms in Kenya and work with the farmers that are trying to change that as they produce the oils used by doTERRA, a popular essential oil company. The farmers were battling inconsistent yield and had reached out to Katie’s advisor, Dr. Neil Hansen for help. In this episode, Katie discusses what they discovered on their trip to Kenya.

Stephen is a professor in the department of geology at the University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez. He obtained his bachelors in geology and earth science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his PhD in geology from North Carolina State University. He teaches classes in structural geology, geomorphology, and field geology, and his research projects have focused mostly on tropical landslides and landscape evolution, with the funding of such organizations as the NSF, USGS, USDA-NRCS, and NOAA.

In 2017, Hurricane Maria ravaged the island of Puerto Rico, with category 5 winds topping out at 174 mph (282 km/h). In this mountainous nation with the 9th highest road density in the world, thousands of landslides wreaked havoc on the large number of rural communities that became cut off from supplies and travel. Dr. Stephen Hughes, a professor in the Department of Geology at the University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez, has turned this catastrophe into a lesson by harnessing before and after data to develop a landslide susceptibility map with resolution down to every 5 m. Join us as we discuss with him the process of developing landslide prediction across the entire island nation.

Ecosystem services—the physical processes performed by soils within an ecosystem—are well-known in agricultural settings, but how do we define and measure them in urban settings? Join Dr. Sara Acevedo, assistant professor at La Pontifícia Universidad Católica de Chile, as she explores what it takes to measure the metals and other contaminants left in soil by human activity, the effect of soil homogeneity in an urban landscape, and to extend these studies out into areas of human development that have been ravaged by wildfires.

Measuring the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum across Australia comes in a wide variety of applications thanks to the wildly differing landscapes. No one knows more about the far reaches of these scientific efforts than Dr. Michael Forster, the founder of Implexx Sense and Director at Edaphic Scientific and a senior adjunct research fellow at Griffith University in Queensland. In this episode, we talk with Michael about everything from plans for an underwater cable to transmit power to Singapore across more than 2000 miles of seabed, environmentally friendly mining practices, and the fate of endangered frogs and birds.

Half of the world relies on rice for about 80% of their food intake. Unfortunately, rice is highly susceptible to the uptake of arsenic from soil and groundwater. To mitigate the uptake of poisons into the worldwide food supply, Mason Stahl, an associate professor in the environmental science policy and engineering program and the geosciences department at Union College, is utilizing machine learning and direct sampling to help mitigate dangerous levels of arsenic in our food. Join us in this episode as we discuss arsenic, uranium, and the global food chain.

Slope stability is unpredictable — or is it? The risk of landslides threatens roads, rails, homes, and lives. Being able to forecast where and when slopes will fail means giving communities the power to keep infrastructure and people safe. In this episode, we talk with civil engineer Dr. Ning Lu about his experience studying slope stability. Learn about the breakthrough slope stability predictive formula he helped develop in this episode of We Measure the World.

Achieving water balance isn’t easy, but it is critical. Whether you’re concerned with fields or ecosystems, understanding the balance between water, nutrients, and pollutants can be the difference between success and failure. In this episode, agricultural engineer and professor Erin Brooks discusses crop cover, the hydrological impacts of management choices, and finding the balance between field work and modeling.

Advancements in irrigation, pest management, and other grower concerns are useless if they are never adopted. How do you gain the trust and by-in from growers to test new techniques and technologies on a large enough scale to prove viability? In this episode, we talk to agronomist Saul Alarcon about his success working with some of the largest tomato-production networks and how he has helped keep his grower partners remain at the cutting edge of water conservation, pest and weed control, and everything else that feeds into optimal crop production. For more information on measurements that make precision farming possible, visit metergroup.com

Every 17 years cicadas emerge from the earth to mate, leaving thousands of holes peppering the landscape. Dr. Darren Ficklin and his Ph.D. students wondered what impact this monumental exodus has on the movement of water within the soil. Their findings were beyond what anyone could have ever imagined. In this podcast, we talk to Dr. Ficklin about his past and current work studying the intersection of climate and hydrology.

Colorado’s Saving Tomorrow’s Agricultural Resources (STAR) program provides a voluntary way for farmers and ranchers to assess their conservation efforts and impact on soil health. Creating a large-scale agroecosystem management comes with many funding and logistical tribulations. In this podcast, we talk to the founders of this program, Drs. Jim Ippolito and Steve Blecker, about what impacts soil health, how it’s measured, and the hope of a nationwide soil health rating scale.