Nature, place and stewardship¶
Readiness and care¶
Field safety and local orientation before independent measurement or intervention
Do not enter hazardous sites, disturb protected habitats or perform engineering interventions without permission and expertise.
Environmental professional, engineer, land manager, weather authority or emergency services
Use real observations with uncertainty and seasonality; stop when weather, access or competence limits are exceeded.
Earth systems & ecology¶
Understand: climate; water; soils; biogeochemical cycles; ecosystems; biodiversity; feedbacks
Judge: Distinguish local observation, model projection, uncertainty, and value choices
Practice: Field/system map of a local ecosystem/resource
Evidence: Map + measurements + source review
Related study:
- Thermodynamics + statistical mechanics
- Genetics + evolution + systems biology
- ODEs + dynamical systems
Partial coverage: Earth-system and ecology synthesis requires the TS25 candidate test.
Energy, materials & industrial metabolism¶
Understand: energy conversion; grids; fuels; mining; materials; waste; lifecycle
Judge: Compare systems using physical constraints, costs, externalities, and scale
Practice: Trace an everyday product/energy service from resource to waste
Evidence: Lifecycle/energy flow model
Related study:
Food, agriculture & water systems¶
Understand: agronomy; soil; irrigation; fisheries; supply chains; nutrition; land use
Judge: Reason across yield, resilience, ecology, labor, culture, and access
Practice: Trace a food/water system
Evidence: System map + intervention critique
Related study:
- Mechanical design + fluids + structures
- Genetics + evolution + systems biology
- Collective action and the commons
Partial coverage: Watersheds, soils and agriculture need field-specific synthesis beyond the physical/biological prerequisites.
Place, cities & built environment¶
Understand: land use; housing; transport; infrastructure; public space; zoning; urban form
Judge: Understand how physical form encodes incentives, access, health, and social life
Practice: Conduct a neighborhood/place audit
Evidence: Map + observation + redesign
Related study:
- Space, Maps, Architecture & Wayfinding
- Family, Kinship, Demography, Migration & Cities
- Mechanical design + fluids + structures
Hazards, resilience & continuity¶
Understand: risk; disaster; redundancy; preparedness; supply chains; insurance; emergency governance
Judge: Prioritize catastrophic tails and graceful degradation without paranoia
Practice: Build household/team continuity plan and run a drill
Evidence: Scenario performance + after-action report
Related study:
Futures & intergenerational stewardship¶
Understand: forecasting; scenarios; technological change; option value; irreversibility; existential/global catastrophic risk
Judge: Separate prediction from scenario planning; preserve plural futures and rights under uncertainty
Practice: Write a 25-year decision under multiple futures
Evidence: Scenario tree + reversible strategy + defense
Related study: