Plants acts as conduits that transfer water from the soil to the atmosphere, thereby influencing soil moisture and climate. At the same times, the evolution of terrestrial ecosystems is a consequence of vegetation requirements of water, light, and nutrients. Vegetation is therefore a simultaneous cause and effect of spatiotemporal variability in soil moisture and climate. This course examines the hydrologic and ecological mechanisms underlying the soil-vegetation-atmosphere continuum. These mechanisms are examined across scales, in both space and time, in the context of climate and global change. This course counts toward the Natural Sciences and Mathematics area of inquiry requirement.
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