OUR PROJECT AIMS TO DEVELOP SENSORS, SOFTWARE, AND AUTOMATED METHODS TO OPTIMIZE THE AMOUNT OF WATER AND FERTILIZER APPLIED TO CROPS THAT IS NEEDED TO ACHIEVE OPTIMAL YIELD. WE WILL DEVELOP A SUITE OF PHYSICAL SENSORS AND ELECTRONICS THAT CAN BE APPLIED TO THE PLANTS AND RECORD THEIR RESPONSE TO ENVIRONMENTAL AND GROWTH CONDITIONS, AND WE WILL APPLY NOVEL DATA ANALYSIS METHODS TO IDENTIFY THE EVOLVING NUTRITIONAL AND WATER NEEDS OF PLANTS FROM THESE RECORDINGS IN REAL-TIME.THE OUTCOME OF THIS PROJECT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO LEAD TO A MORE SUSTAINABLE FARMING OPERATION WHILE REDUCING THE COST OF PRODUCTION. SPECIFICALLY, THE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE PROJECT GOALS ARE NECESSARY STEPS TO MEET THE FOLLOWING CHALLENGES:ENSURING CROP AND RESOURCE SECURITY AND SUSTAINABILITY. FOOD SECURITY IN TERMS OF INCREASED AVAILABILITY OF PLANT BIOMASS FOR HUMAN NUTRITION IS ONE OF THE KEY CHALLENGES FOR THE COMING DECADES. A LONG-STANDING DIFFICULTY IN PLANT SCIENCES IS THE ABILITY TO EFFICIENTLY AND NON-DESTRUCTIVELY MEASURE THE PLANT TRAITS OVER TIME, ESPECIALLY ITS RESPONSES TO CHANGES IN ENVIRONMENT AND NUTRIENTS AVAILABILITY. CURRENT METHODS ARE COMMONLY DESTRUCTIVE, LABOR INTENSE AND EXPENSIVE. ALTHOUGH THEIR USE FOR RESEARCH PURPOSES HAS INCREASED EXPONENTIALLY DURING THE LAST DECADE, NO SYSTEM IS AVAILABLE FOR LARGE-SCALE IMPLEMENTATION IN A FIELD ENVIRONMENT. FURTHERMORE, TYPICALLY THESE METHODS, EVEN AT THE RESEARCH LEVEL, LOOK AT ONE TRAIT AT A TIME. TO BETTER UNDERSTAND COMPLEX QUANTITATIVE TRAITS, OUR CYBER-PHYSICAL SYSTEM PAVES THE WAY TOWARDS INTEGRATING A MULTIDIMENSIONAL APPROACH THAT WILL ENABLE DISSECTION OF COMPLEX TRAITS INTO INDIVIDUAL CAUSES AND RESPONSES THAT CAN BE MORE READILY QUANTIFIED AND STUDIED.PROTECTING AND ENHANCING WATER RESOURCES. FOOD SECURITY TO NOT ONLY RELATES TO AN INCREASING YIELD BUT ALSO EFFICIENT USE OF NATURAL RESOURCES SUCH AS WATER AND FARMLAND TO ACHIEVE SUSTAINABILITY. PROTECTING THE QUALITY AND SUPPLY OF THE NATION'S WATER IS OF VITAL IMPORTANCE TO NATIONAL DEFENSE, POPULATION HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY. BOTH THE WASTEFUL USE OF WATER AND CONTAMINATION OF WATER RESOURCES ARE ISSUES THAT CAN BE ADDRESSED VIA NEXT-GENERATION CROP MANAGEMENT METHODS. MUCH OF OUR CURRENT UNDERSTANDING OF PATTERNS FOR WATER AND NUTRIENT DELIVERY IS BASED ON DISCRETE SAMPLES COLLECTED MANUALLY FOLLOWED BY LABORATORY ANALYSIS. THIS LOW-FREQUENCY APPROACH HAS YIELDED IMPORTANT INFORMATION; HOWEVER, MORE TIMELY AND ACCURATE KNOWLEDGE OF WATERING AND FERTILIZING EFFICACY CAN HELP FARMERS AND RESOURCE MANAGERS IDENTIFY, ASSESS AND TAKE REMEDIAL ACTIONS TO OPTIMIZE THE USE OF WATER AND FERTILIZER. OUR PROJECT WILL USE THE CONTINUOUS DATA PROVIDED BY THE DEVELOPED SENSOR SYSTEM TO PRODUCE NEW OPTIMIZATION STRATEGIES TO LIMIT UNNECESSARY WATER USE, WHICH CONSERVES A VITAL RESOURCE, AND REDUCE FERTILIZER USE, WHICH WILL PROTECT DELETERIOUS GROUND AND RUN-OFF CONTAMINATION.