Students in the class "Water Measurement and Analysis Methods" at Thompson Research Farm. From left to right: Ruby Pascual, Grace Duffy, Brooke Paykin, Gabi Tan, Mateo Aranzazu, Sinahy Fragoso-De la Paz, Prince Osei-Marfo. Provided, Brian Richards.
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Engineering students learn by doing at Cornell AES farm
By Krisy Gashler
Brooke Paykin ‘24 chose to major in Biological and Environmental Engineering (BEE) because she cares about protecting the natural environment and she enjoys seeing projects from planning through construction. Her love of hands-on engineering work was a main reason that Water Measurement and Analysis Methods (BEE 4270) was one of her favorite classes at Cornell.
“This was the first class I took at Cornell that had a real adventure aspect to it,” Paykin said. “The professor jokingly called it a 'water play' course, but it was really all about hands-on, field-based learning. We got our hands dirty by taking samples from Cayuga Lake, wading knee-deep in streams, drilling wells on research farms, and sampling soil. We then analyzed the collected data to understand and contextualize the real-life conditions we encountered in the field.”
The course is one of two dozen that utilize the farms, greenhouses, and other research facilities managed by the Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Station (Cornell AES). The facilities exist primarily to support research, but they also serve as unique teaching resources, where students can learn by doing on real, working farms.
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