Senior Project

Quentin Miller 22 Mar., 2018 Senior Project W6 Research Blog Water in the American West Water is a vital natural resource for many different human processes from personal hydration to irrigation for crops. The requirement for water in so many different things that people need, both directly and indirectly, means that each person needs/uses a lot of water each day. In many areas of the United States where annual rainfall is above 30 inches, water shortages or challenges surrounding finding the water needed to satisfy water needs are not usually a problem. However, many parts of the United States do have water shortage problems or uncertainty regarding water supply. Nowhere is this more evident than in the western part of the United States. In this vast region, many troubling factors and trends surrounding water use and climate combine to create situations of uncertainty, risk, or even shortage of water. Most of the American West receives far less rainfall than other parts o...

Quentin Miller 15 Mar., 2018 Senior Project W5 Research Blog The Increasing Threat of Volcanoes in the United States on Human Populations Volcanoes are powerful and significant forces of nature that impact the environment and earth’s human population in a variety of ways. Volcanoes play a vital role in geological changes and movements and are responsible for the circulation of rock and other elements of earth from the mantle onto the surface and into the atmosphere. Volcanic eruptions have and continue to be some of the most powerful forces in regulating the planet’s climate, especially with regard to particulate matter and other gases. Additionally, their eruptions often make drastic changes to the world’s topography and its soil. However, in the context of the planet’s human population, volcanoes pose a variety of risks and produce disasters that are often deadly. Volcanic eruptions often spew lava, ash, rocks, and other gases that can be deadly and highly destructive to l...

Quentin Miller 8 Mar., 2018 Senior Project W4 Research Blog Transportation in the Bay Area (Current and Future) The Bay Area is one of the most populated metropolitan areas in the United States with over 7.2 million people spread across nine counties in over 100 cities. With two cities that each have nearly a million people with relatively high densities, it is clear that reliable and sufficient systems and forms of transportation are required to adequately move the Bay Area’s people. However, in many cases, transportation in the Bay Area is seriously lacking. Freeways and other roads are clogged with traffic for hours on either side of peak rush hour, public transportation is sparse, slow, and not reliable in many areas, and commute times are some of the highest in the nation. These striking facts are only the surface when it comes to discussing transportation in the Bay Area; the issues listed above are compounded by a number of problematic trends. In the Bay Area, espec...

Quentin Miller 1 Mar., 2018 Senior Project Week Three Blog Over the break, I reached out to ULI, the organization that I would like to intern with. I sent them an email and have yet to receive an answer. With my copious amounts of time over the break, I also did some brainstorming about how I want to go about creating my product (maps) and the type of maps I want to create. Additionally, I looked into other possibilities for internships at other organizations that emphasize land use, space, and mobility, three central ideas to my project. My goal over the break was to develop my ideas and to come up with back-up options should ULI not get back to me; I successfully met these goals. After much thought about my essential question, I settled on the question: How can maps and other geography-based visuals change the way we view the world around us and serve to create a better foundation for understanding our world? Some of my specific goals over the next two months are to get/secu...

Quentin Miller 15 Feb., 2018 Senior Project Week Two Blog I have narrowed down my ideas for my Senior Project to my idea of making interesting maps and other visual/geographical elements to help people understand geographical space and the area around them, as well as the world at large, in a different light/way. For this "mapmaking" idea, I have a couple of internship ideas. The first internship idea is working with an organization (that has nation-wide offices) called the Urban Land Institute which works to foster responsible development and planning between groups and to allow its members and other members of the community to gain a better understanding of the various needs of those in the community. Additionally, they strive to teach people about understanding space, more specifically urban space and surroundings. If for some reason I were not able to obtain an internship with this organization, I would look for an internship with local government, most likely in a p...

Quentin Miller 8 Feb., 2018 Senior Project Week One Blog Some of my concerns revolve around deciding which idea of mine I should choose to pursue and acquiring an internship depending on which idea/project I choose to do. I have an idea of what topic/project/thing I want to do for Senior Project which is creating maps that enable others around me (and myself, for that matter) to rethink how we as people use space and move through that space. For this geographic diagram option, I do have an internship in mind that is a very good opportunity and would allow me to understand San Francisco from a new angle and understand how social issues and other challenges affect how we perceive this city. My other ideas are ones for which I do not have clear ideas for internships: climate forecasting/something weather-related and redesigning Community Time in a way that is far more beneficial for students and that allots the scare amount of time in a more efficient way. For this last option, I am ...