The Holy Grail of Adam’s AleTeam: 65 School: Los Alamos High Area of Science: Geology/Hydrology
Interim: Team Number: 65
School Name: Los Alamos High School
Area of Science: Geology/Hydrology
Project Title: The Holy Grail of Adam’s Ale: Locating Aquifers through Geostatistic Modeling
It could be assumed that finding water would be an easy task on a planet primarily made of water, but that is only half the problem. Finding potable water is an enigma fraught with scientific and environmental complications. Water does not flow in perfect patterns and is not always healthy to drink. Aquifers, underground sources of water used for wells, are an answer to the problem. However, being underground, it is difficult to pinpoint the location of new aquifers.
We plan to create a geostatistics model which will use known samples to fill in likely values for a given variable over an area. Geostatistics uses spatially dependent data, so a value closer to our unknown value is more related to it than a sample farther away. We have made a fair amount of progress. As a team, we have met several times and delegated tasks. In order to keep everyone involved and make it easy to share and integrate work, we set up a network online. We can share reports and documents on Google documents, plan meetings and keep track of dates and assignments on Google Calendar, and have a Google Code repository which allows us to check out and in the code with subversion. We have gathered several resources and researched aquifers to determine traits to define in the program. We are also pleased to have a running program at this point. We are creating a GUI application with wxWidgets, and using wxFormBuilder to help generate C++ code. We are planning to use OpenGL graphics on an OpenGL canvas that is included in wxWidgets. The application currently plots a semivariogram for a single set of data. The user can interact with the plot, including matching it to different types of models. The idea is that we will have a window based application in which to run and interact with the model. This includes standard menus and dialogs.
While we have a general outline of the steps required in the program, we are still working through the geostatistics before we translate that into code. First, it must be determined how the variable is related through space in the material/sample being studied. This is done with a semivariogram made from the data which is then matched with a mathematical model. Then, a random path through the unknown points is constructed. For each point, the model should look at all of the known or previously calculated points that are within the range of influence. Each will be weighted depending on the distance from the unknown point to find the most likely value (this is called kriging). Next, it would compute the variance for that point and sample from a Gaussian distribution. We have made a start on the beginning of this process, but are still working through the rest of it with our mentor.
We are hoping to get some data to work with and have already talked to some people about it. We have several mentors which have proved invaluable, and we are very thankful for their help. At the end of the year we would like to have a practical application that is user oriented to create an easy way to find aquifers, providing a useful and practical application that can be extrapolated for a plethera of tasks.
References
Clark, Isobel. Practical Geostatistics. Elsevier Science & Technology, 1979.
Perlman, Howard. "Water Science for Schools: Aquifers." USGS. 2009. United States Geological Survey, Web. 28 Nov 2009. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/earthgwaquifer.html.
Shreiner, Dave. OpenGL Programming Guide. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Addison-Wesley Professional, 2009.
Smart, Julian, Kevin Hock, and Stefan Csomor. Cross-platform GUI programming with wxWidgets. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Ptr, 2006.
Stroustrup, Bjarne. The C++ Programming Language. 3rd ed. Boston: Addison-Wesley, 1997.
Swanson, Kimberly J. "Aquifer Characteristics." Water Encyclopedia: Science and Issues. Advameg, Inc., 2009. Web. http://www.waterencyclopedia.com/A-Bi/Aquifer-Characteristics.html.
Team Members: Rachel Robey
Orli Shlachter
Orion Staples
Gabriel Montoya
Sponsoring Teacher: Lee Goodwin Mail the entire Team |
