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In the following examples we examine a plant process and how sensor-data might be captured and manipulated to represent the data.
Each example includes:
  • an infographic describing a plant process from biological to biochemical process (they get more detailed as tab number increases)
  • an example program of a way to capture, manipulate and represent sensor-data related to that phenomena using the micro:bit screen
Gas exchange in plants is necessary so plants can complete other important processes such as photosynthesis and transpiration. By examining this process through the infographic to the right there are several data points that are important to opening the stoma allowing gas exchange such as: light, temperature, water, and carbon dioxide.

This program checks the values above against a "good" range of values and if the values are "good" then the stoma open through an animation on the micro:bit screen. The range of values was chosen based on research about healthy environmental conditions for average house plants. This program uses functions to organize different behaviors and control inputs in the code.
Transpiration is the process that pulls water and nutrients into plants - without which they would wilt and die. Using the infographic to the right, the data points found to be important to transpiration were light, air temperature, soil moisture, and humidity.

This program checks the values above against reasonable values. Since transpiration is about the movement of water from root to leaf and out, the program shows "water molecules" moving on the micro:bit screen from bottom to top. The number of water molecules that are moved through the "plant stem" (the screen) depends on "good" environmental conditions for these transitions. Here functions also help to organize the code into smaller sections for ease of debugging and readability. 
Photosynthesis is the process plants use to convert energy in sunlight (or other light) into chemicals that provide the plant with energy (food) later. 

Program and more in-depth infographics coming soon!
This project is supported by a gift from Oracle Corporation.
The Laboratory for Playful Computation is part of the ATLAS Institute at the University of Colorado Boulder.