This methodological training award to a cultural anthropologist will allow the researcher to become more proficient in soil science by taking courses at the University of Maryland and conducting research in the Andes mountains. This training will allow the researcher to further his studies of how native Andean farmers use knowledge in conducting their farming and making farming decisions. The native knowledge will be studied as an "expert system" using techniques from computer and cognitive science. This research is important because the researcher will become equipped to better understand the soil management practices of farmers in an area of the world plagued by soil erosion and loss of fertility. This knowledge will be available to be compared with similar studies of North American farmers in order to design programs which can help preserve soil fertility.
