Katie Skiles presenting her thesis project plan at the University of Arkansas Undergraduate Research Week Poster Competition.
Author: Katherine Skiles | Major: Biological Engineering
Hello! My name is Katie Skiles, and I am a senior in the College of Engineering majoring in Biological Engineering. I began working with Dr. Benjamin Runkle, a faculty in the Biological & Agricultural Engineering department, in the summer of 2021 on a project that is ongoing to this day and has since spurred my thesis research. The end of spring 2022 marks my first semester of funded thesis research and almost one year of research for the original project. I expect to complete majority of my active thesis analysis in fall 2022 and complete the written and oral components in spring 2023.
As we know, global climate change is a critical issue, and the effects are being exacerbated by human actions and greenhouse gas emissions. Many networks of observational flux towers across the world monitor the exchange of important gases between the atmosphere and ground such as carbon dioxide and methane that contribute to climate change. The United States Mid-South (AR, LA, MS, TX, and MO) is rich with agroecosystems such as rice that produce copious amounts of methane, but sustainable farming has the potential to reduce emissions without sacrificing harvest yield if managed properly. Delta-Flux is a regional network in the Mid-South, co-founded by my mentor Dr. Runkle. My goal is to evaluate the placement of Delta-Flux towers on rice fields to determine how well current tower locations are representing diverse rice paddy conditions. The theory behind this research is that data collected from towers can be extrapolated to rice regions without towers if the areas are ecologically similar enough. By adjusting irrigation practices using tower data-driven analysis, we can reduce methane emissions and practice water conservation. However, towers are expensive to purchase, difficult to maintain, farmers are hesitant to participate, and time is not on our side. My research aims to contextualize the current data we have collected from towers by identifying areas we can apply this data and consequently the new irrigation practices.
The methodology for my thesis stems from the original project I started with which involves conducting the same type of Delta-Flux tower analysis. However, my area of interest spans Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi, instead of only rice fields. I was introduced via email to Dr. Runkle by a previous professor at the end of a BENG course covering ArcGIS and AutoCAD. He was in need of someone to create maps for various research projects and proposals, and I was eager to continue developing the ArcGIS skills I recently learned. Over the course of summer and fall 2021, I transitioned from a map-making research assistant to first author on the proposed research paper which is now in the draft stage of writing. Because I had so much experience in conducting representativeness analyses in the Delta-Flux region, I knew I wanted to continue in this area for my thesis, so Dr. Runkle and I began brainstorming. We realized that half of all 36 Delta-Flux towers lie in rice fields, yet typically the data collected at each tower site is only used to inform that farmer’s irrigation practices. We noticed this created a huge disconnect between the data’s potential and how it was actually being applied and developed the basis of my thesis project around this concept.
While I understand the methodology and all required steps behind a representativeness analysis, I was only responsible for the final analysis work in the original project. Now that I am conducting a new analysis from scratch, one obstacle I have faced is learning the coding language python. Many of the clustering and analysis procedures require python to run, so I expect a large learning curve next semester as I navigate this project. I plan to use LinkedIn Learning courses and various coding resources to learn python. So far, I have conducted preliminary research, but no actual analysis has been conducted. One aspect of the UARK Undergraduate Research Week Poster Competition that I loved is that you do not need a completed, fully developed research project to participate. I created an abstract and poster based solely on my objectives for the project and proposed methodology, and I placed 2nd in the engineering category. This goes to show that even a plan, albeit a thorough one, can place in a competition, so I highly recommend this university opportunity to anyone involved in research at any capacity. Not only did I gain experience in designing a professional research poster, but I was able to practice my presentation skills in a comfortable environment and engage with many other students and professors in different departments.
Every project is different and requires variable levels of involvement depending on project pace and mentor preference. Because I meet bi-weekly with our research team on the original project, Dr. Runkle and I developed a flexible meeting routine with the understanding that I could always email him with questions at any time. This routine worked well last semester as I was mainly preparing my problem statement, thesis proposal, and thesis committee. Next semester will be heavily analysis focused, so we will reconvene in August to discuss and create a new plan moving forward.
This summer, I took a break from researching and am working at a civil engineering consulting firm in Texas to get a better understanding of industry work. My experience with the GIS platform has grown tremendously after that initial course because I use it constantly in my research analysis, and it has set me apart from internship applicants in the hiring process as well as in day-to-day work. I was able to start working on a billable project in the first week because of my familiarity with the program! Overall, I think my thesis and the original project have enabled me to dive into a niche research area, and I am grateful to the Honors College for their funding, resources, and support in this opportunity.