A River of Data Runs Through It

Whether the purpose is to inspire urban dwellers to a greater awareness of the natural resources contained within their city's limits or to help professionals in the field send critical information fast, the natural world and the digital one continue to form useful ties.

Natural systems unfettered by gadgetry, and getting out to enjoy them that way, will continue to be a valuable and fulfilling experience. But there are some very good reasons behind the ongoing trend to imprint our wired consciousness onto our understanding and experience of the natural world.

A prime example appears online at National Geographic. Near the city of Cork, Ireland, the DEPLOY Project has seen the River Lee outfitted with a series of sensors that collect and instantly report water quality data to scientists and citizens alike. The digital monitoring network is less expensive and much faster compared to sending field hydrologists to collect and deliver water samples multiple times daily.

The real-time manner of the data collection and reporting systems provides public officials and citizens with information describing whether conditions are favorable for a river outing, and have the capacity to immediately serve notice of a pollution incident. The River Lee demonstration project went online in April of 2009, is slated to run for at least a year, and will provide a basis for determining how viable such a monitoring system approach may be for keeping ultramodern tabs on additional Irish rivers.

Photo courtesy of Michael Rogers, via Wikimedia Commons