The Interior Department's Bureau of Reclamation’s recently launched a competition for original, user-friendly data display methods for Colorado River Basin (CRB) management.
The bureau said in a release that the contest was inspired by the need for improvement in CRB data visualization methods.
By way of explanation, bureau hydraulic engineer Jon Rocha compared the project to a daily weather map, stating that most viewers see the surface information, such as temperatures indicated by colors. "But, underneath that map is really lots and lots of data," Rocha said in the release.
The bureau said it plans to allot $60,000 total in the competition, with individual prize amounts ranging from $5,000 to $20,000 once entries are deemed to meet eligibility criteria. Solutions being sought are expected to include integrated versions of CRB data types and scalable, interactive visualization of data selectable by parameters such as time periods or geography.
“Visualizations improve data exploration, analysis, interpretation, and communication,” the bureau said in the release. “The bureau is collaborating with the U.S. Geological Survey, the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, the Natural Resource Conservation Service and the U.S. section of the International Boundary and Water Commission.”
Using information gleaned from CRB data, the bureau plays a major role in overseeing Colorado River management, water supply and usage, habitat protection and defense of endangered species.
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