 "Nodes" and "paths" on the
Student Greenhouse Field. |
Whoah, it's getting abstract The goal of our analysis will be to predict where students might forge new paths in the green spaces that have been proposed for MSU's south campus. To construct a model to assist in those predictions, we'll use two existing green spaces on campus: the field due south of Old Horticulture, which we'll call the Student Greenhouse Field, and the IM East field, on Shaw Lane west of Akers Hall. First things first. To understand how pedestrians weigh the costs and benefits of different paths, paved and unpaved, we need to take a closer look at the field behind Old Horticulture, which provides a good example of this phenomenon and will be the initial focus of our analysis. It is a square field with significant points of entry and exit -- or "nodes" -- in every cardinal direction. There are no obstacles between nodes. The line connecting any set of two nodes is a path -- these will be the subject of our analysis. The diagram to the left illustrates the twenty possible paths across the Student Greenhouse Field. The only difference between paths is the walking surface and, of course, the set of potential origins and destinations. Brace yourself for assumptions >> |