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Grasses growing in the shade of a solar array were only a little less productive than those growing nearby in open grassland during years of average and above-average rainfallbut in a dry year, the shaded plants grew much better than those growing in full sun. Thats the result of a four-year study we conducted in a semi-arid grassland of northern Colorado. When choosing a location for generating solar power, consistent sunlight and interconnection to the electric grid are key criteria. In Colorado, the combination of new electrical transmission infrastructure, abundant sunlight, and short vegetation that is easy to maintain have made grasslands a prime target for solar development. Grasslands, like those that dominate the eastern plains of Colorado, provide important habitat for wildlife and serve as a critical food source for livestock. Although these grasslands have long been productive despite their normally arid environment, a warmer climate has increased the potential for more frequent and severe drought. For instance, a recent global study found that previous research likely underestimated the threat of extreme drought in grasslands. Semi-arid grassland near Cheyenne, Wyo., with close-ups of flowers of some of the plants that grow there. [Photo: Matthew Sturchio, CC BY-ND] At Colorado State University, biology professor Alan Knapp and I started the ecovoltaics research group to study the effects of solar development in grasslands. Our primary goal is to ensure an ecologically informed solar energy future. Solar panels create microclimates Strings of solar panels redirect rain to the edge of panels. Because of this, small rain events can provide biologically relevant amounts of water instead of evaporating quickly. Simultaneously, solar panels shade plants growing beneath them. Some arrays, including the ones used in our study, move the panels to follow the path of the sun across the sky. This results in a combination of sun and shade that is very different from the uninterrupted sunlight beating down on plants in a grassland without solar panels. In turn, patterns of plant stress and water loss also differ in grasses under solar arrays. How grasses respond to a solar panel canopy To get a handle on how these different conditions affect grasses, we measured plant physiological response during the early stages of our study. More specifically, we tracked leaf carbon and water exchange throughout daylight hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., over 16 weeks in summer 2022 at Jacks Solar Garden, a solar array over grassland in Longmont, Colorado. In general, plants that are adapted to full sun conditions, including most grasses, might not be expected to grow as well in partial shade. But we suspected that growth benefits from reduced water stress could outweigh potential reductions in growth from shading. We call this the aridity mitigation potential hypothesis. Sure enough, we found evidence of aridity mitigation across multiple years, with the most pronounced effect during the driest year. When water is scarce, increases in grassland productivity are more valuable because there isnt as much around. Therefore, increasing grassland production in dry years could provide more available food for grazing animals and help offset some of the economic harm of drought in rangelands. Informing sustainable solar development in grasslands So far, our research has been limited to a grassland dominated by a cool-season grass: smooth brome. Although it is a perennial commonly planted for hay, fields dominated by smooth bromegrass lack the diversity of life found in native grasslands. Future work in native shortgrass prairies would provide new information about how solar panels affect plant water use, soils, and grazing management in an ecosystem with 30% less precipitation than Jacks Solar Garden. Were beginning that work now at the shortgrass ecovoltaic research facility near Nunn, Colorado. This facility, which will be fully operational later in 2025, was constructed with support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, through the wider SCAPES project. Testing the effects of solar panels over grasslands in a native ecosystem with even greater aridity will help us develop a clearer picture of ways solar energy can be developed in concert with grassland health. Matthew Sturchio is a postdoctoral research associate in natural resources and the environment at Cornell University and a faculty affiliate in ecology at Colorado State University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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If you want to land a new role, you’ve got to deal successfully with the Q&A portion of the job interview. Fumble in responding to a question or offer a garbled answer, and you could miss out on that next dream role. That’s why it’s such a good idea to do your research and prepare a set of potential answers in advance. To do this, think of what questions could be asked and use the following template to build a set of answers. Having this four-step “H-I-R-E” template will also help you answer unexpected questions eloquently on the fly. (For a fuller discussion of this method, see my book The Job Seekers Script.) Step 1: HOOK Every answer should begin with a hook that provides a handshake and an introduction to whats to follow. First, take a moment to pause. This shows respect for the questioner and indicates that you are thinking about what was asked. And as you begin your answer, avoid some of the most common errors: Dont rush to answer. Rushing can make you look anxious or insecure. Doing so might also lead you to blurt out inappropriate or imprecise information. Skip that ever-so-common response: Thats a good question. You are not there to evaluate the interviewer. Youre there to answer the question. Avoid answers that begin with filler words like um, ah, or you know. They make you sound hesitant. A good hook responds positively and clearly to the question. You might say, Im glad you asked that. Or Thats something I have thought a lot about. Or if youre asked, Do you have experience with Al?your hook might simply be Yes, I do. Step 2: INSPIRE The main purpose of an answer is to inspire. Once youve reached out with your hook, get to your pointyour inspiring message. And make sure to cut to the chase. In a job interview, you might be asked to explain why youre the right person for this job. Your inspiring message could be: I have the experience you are looking for. Or your message might be even more specific: I have led teams in three separate organizations. Deliver that message with a strong voice. Your audience should hear your statement as one that you believe in. Step 3: REINFORCE Once you deliver your message, reinforce it with a series of supporting points. Choose one of the following patterns: The reasons that support your message. The ways your message can be proven. The situation and response that underlie your message. The chronological steps that prove your message. These proof points show that youve thought out your argument. For example, if the interviewer asks you why you feel ready for the advertised job, give the reasons you believe that you are a strong candidate. Or mention the ways you will contribute to that role. How many proof points will you want to have? Anywhere between two and four. Step 4: ENGAGE The final part of a great answer is engagement, or a call to action. This engagement points to next steps, or the steps you would like to take to fulfill or realize your message. Suppose you have said that you have the skills required to assume the leadership role youre discussing. You might end with, I look forward to the possibility of fulfilling this role. Or I am excited by the challenges this role represents and am confident I will be able to meet them. Ending with action gives your answer a path forward. Often, its also valuable to suggest next steps at the end of the interview. You might say, I am excited about this role and look forward to hearing from you. When can I expect that?
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Debate about whether artificial intelligence can replicate the intellectual labor of doctors, lawyers, or PhDs forgoes a deeper concern thats looming: Entire companiesnot just individual jobsmay be rendered obsolete by the accelerating pace of AI adoption. Reports suggesting OpenAI will charge $20,000 per month for agents trained at a PhD level spun up the ongoing debate about whose job is safe from AI and whose job is not. Ive not seen it be that impressive yet, but its likely not far off, James Villarrubia, head of digital innovation and AI at NASA CAS, told me. Sean McGregor, the founder of Responsible AI Collaborative who earned a PhD in computer science, pointed out how many jobs are about more than just a set of skills: Current AI technology is not sufficiently robust to allow unsupervised control of hazardous chemistry equipment, human experimentation, or other domains where human PhDs are currently required. The big reason I polled the audience on this one was because I wanted to broaden my perspective on what jobs would be eliminated. Instead, it changed my perspective. AI needs to outperform the system, not the role Suzanne Rabicoff, founder of the human agency think tank and fractional practice, The Pie Grower, gave me some reading assignments from her work, instead of a quote. Her work showed me that these times are unprecedented. But something clicked in my brain when she said in her writing that she liked the angle of more efficient companies rising instead of jobs being replaced at companies with a lot of tech and human capital debt. Her response to that statement? Exactly my bet. Sure, this is the first time that a robot is doing the homework for some college students. However, there is more precedent for robots moving market share than for replacing the same job function across a sector. Fortune 500 companiesespecially those bloated with legacy processes and redundant laborare always vulnerable to decline as newer, more nimble competitors rise. And not because any single job is replaced, but because the foundational economics of their business models no longer hold. AI doesnt need to outperform every employee to render an enterprise obsolete. It only needs to outperform the system. Case study: The auto industry Take, for example, the decline of American car manufacturers in the late 20th century. In the 1950s, American automakers had a stranglehold on the car industry, not unlike todays tech giants. In 1950, the U.S. produced about 75% of the world’s cars. But in the 1970s, Japanese automakers pioneered the use of robotics in auto manufacturing. These companies produced higher-quality vehicles at great value thanks to leaner operations that were also more precise. Firms like GM struggled to keep up, burdened by outdated factories and excessive human capital costsincluding bloated pensions. The seismic shift in the decades to follow paints a picture of what could be in store for large companies now. In 1960, the U.S. produced about 48% of the worlds cars, while Japan accounted for just 5%. By 1980, Japan had captured around 29% of the market, while the U.S. had fallen to 23%. Todays AI shakeup could look similar. Decades from now, we could look at Apple similarly to how we look at Ford now. AI startups with more agile structures are poised to eat market share. On top of that, startups can focus on solving specialized problems, sharpening their competitive edge. Will your company shrivel and die? The fallout has already begun. Gartner surveyed organizations in late 2023, finding that about half were developing their own AI tools. By the end of 2024, that dropped to 20%. As hype around generative AI cools, Gartner notes that many chief information officers are instead using outside vendorseither large language model providers or traditional software sellers with AI-enhanced offerings. In 2024, AI startups received nearly half of the $209 billion in global venture funding. If only 20% of legacy organizations currently feel confident competing with these upstarts, how many will feel that confidence as these startups mature? While headlines continue to fixate on whether AI can match PhD-level expertise, the deeper risk remains largely unspoken: Giant companies will shrivel and some may die. And when they do, your job is at risk whether you greet customers at the front desk or hold a PhD in an engineering discipline. But there are ways to stay afloat. One of the most impactful pieces of advice I ever received came from Jonathan Rosenberg, former SVP of products at Google and current advisor to Alphabet, when I visited the companys campus in college. You can’t just be great at what you do, you have to catch a great wave. Early people think it’s about the company, then the job, then the industry. It’s actually industry, company, job… So, how do you catch the AI wave? Ankur Patel, CEO of Multimodal, advises workers to learn how to do their current jobs using AI tools that enhance productivity. He also notes that soft skillsmobilizing people, building relationships, leading teamswill become increasingly valuable as AI takes over more technical or routine tasks. You cant have AI be a group leader or team leader, right? I just dont see that happening, even in the next generation forward, Patel said. So I think thats a huge opportunityto grow and learn from. The bottom line is this: Even if the AI wave doesnt replace you, it may replace the place you work. Will you get hit by the AI waveor will you catch it? George Kailas is CEO of Prospero.ai.
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