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Unit III Students Run Biochar Experiment

Dr. Eric Gruenstein, a professor-emeritus at the University of Cincinnati, has been teaching Tracy Hickenlooper’s Unit III class about biochar, a black carbon produced from biomass sources. “We are exploring the possibility of slowing down climate change through plant growth,” Hickenlooper said. The experiment is based on the hypothesis that biochar can make plants grow faster, thus reducing the pace of climate change. As part of their biochar experiment, the students mixed top soil with biochar and will eventually plant seeds in the soil mixture to see if it grows faster than in regular soil. Students applied their lessons on the scientific method and recorded each step they completed. Gruenstein explained the importance of being able to determine an average within their data.