Experimental Design Lab - Golden Rod Field Data

To examine the effect of proximity to water and pollution on plant health, we have selected the Golden Rod as our test plant species. After researching metrics of Golden Rod health, we've concluded that the best controls include individual stem yield, base stem width and plant height to measure population health. To control for variability within each species, we have chosen two plots on York University's Keele Campus. The first plot of data was gathered in the wetlands at Stong Pond and represents our wet ecosystem dataset while the second plot was gathered in the in the York Boulevard Woodlot / York University Busway and represents our dry ecosystem dataset. In each plot, we set up 3 pollution measurement devices which use petroleum as an adhesive to capture particulates of air pollution. These measurement devices were left in the field for exactly 5 days and were analyzed for content in the laboratory thereafter. Our field data collection includes a total of 5 transects per plot with 15-20 individual measurments per transect. We've collected measurments of plant height, base stem width, colour, perceived health and stem abundance, all recorded along a transect with the use of a measuring tape and a tally sheet. <br><br>Plant Height represents the measurment from base to leading stem in meters. Base stem width represents the distance in centimeters at the base of the plant stem. Colour and perceived health are arbitrary values which follow a score of 0-2 and will be attributed to either life cycle or health. Lastly, stem abundance includes all branching stems or flowering stems from the base of the plant to the top. The large sample size has allowed us to control for changes in water content throughout the two plots. Once all 5-6 transects were taken in each plot, we input the data into an excel spreadsheet for further analysis. Due to inconsistencies in the pollution measurement data, we will discuss whether a particulate density score of low and moderate will be included in our final results. If used, we will correlate this with the health data in each plot and examine if our experimental controls had a significant impact on the population health of the Golden Rod.

为探究距水体的远近程度与空气污染对植物健康的影响，我们选取了一枝黄花（Golden Rod）作为受试植物物种。在梳理该物种的健康评价指标后，我们确定最优的种群健康衡量指标包括单株茎秆产量、茎基宽度与植株高度。为控制物种内的个体变异，我们在约克大学基尔校区（York University's Keele Campus）选取了两块样地：第一块样地的数据采集于斯通池塘（Stong Pond）湿地，对应本研究的水生生态系统数据集；第二块样地的数据采集于约克大道林地带/约克大学公交专用道区域，对应旱生生态系统数据集。

每块样地均布设3台以石油作为黏合剂以捕获空气颗粒物的污染测量设备。此类设备在野外放置时长恰好为5天，随后移送至实验室开展成分分析。

本次野外数据采集工作中，每块样地共设置5条样带，每条样带开展15至20次独立测量。我们借助卷尺与计数表，沿每条样带记录了植株高度、茎基宽度、颜色、主观健康评分与茎秆丰度等指标。其中，植株高度指从植株基部至主茎顶端的测量值，单位为米；茎基宽度指植株茎秆基部的直径，单位为厘米；颜色与主观健康评分为0至2分的任意评分值，可对应植株生命周期阶段或健康状态；茎秆丰度指从植株基部至顶端的所有分枝茎或开花茎的总数量。

较大的样本量使得我们能够控制两块样地间的水分含量变化。完成每块样地的5至6条样带采样后，我们将所有数据录入Excel电子表格以开展进一步分析。鉴于污染测量数据存在不一致性，我们将讨论是否将低、中度颗粒物密度评分纳入最终研究结果。若纳入该评分，我们将其与各块样地的植物健康数据进行关联分析，以检验本次实验的控制变量是否对一枝黄花种群健康产生显著影响。