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This is where you need to look for class assignments, changes to rooms, and other important news.

Solving Complex Problems (12.000) meets Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 3 to 4 pm. Depending on the nature of each day's class, the meeting may take place in a standard lecture hall with fixed seating (32-123 or 32-155 Stata Center and 3-270) or a room with tables and chairs that can be moved (E25-117). Team meetings will vary and some rooms will be made available as needed. Please learn to check the website each day before class as on occasion last minute changes do occur.



 These eight goals are the most widely supported and specific goals that nations of the world have ever agreed upon. The eight goals can be divided into smaller, but no less important, subsets. Your assignment, which is due October 18 in class, is contained within this Powerpoint presentation.

 Museum of Science event Friday October 8th: PowerPoint is here.

 Library Assignment: Each team has a different assignment. Grab 'em as Word docs: Team 1; Team 2; Team 3; Team 4; Team 5; Team 6; Team 7 or as pdf's: Team 1; Team 2; Team 3; Team 4; Team 5; Team 6; Team 7. Here are some fao tips to help you use FAOSTAT.

 GIS workshops-September 22: Should take you about 1 hour. You will use Arcgis, the most common desktop GIS. MIT has a site license for this software. You will use 1KM resolution land cover data to indentify locations of agricultural lands in China and their proximity to transportation (railroads)

Workshops will be in one of 3 rooms:
  1. DIRC (where listed): 14N-132 (enter building 14 at the Music Library and go right, DIRC is on your right) or in
  2. 37-312 (You will need the Athena combination, type “tellme combo” on any Athena computer, and your MIT ID for entry) or in
  3. GIS Lab, Rotch Library, building 7
  • Schedule time on Thursday (9/23) between 9AM and 5PM except 11AM-noon
  • Workshops on Friday (9/24) in DIRC 10AM-2PM (instructor is Anne Graham)
  • Schedule time on Monday (9/27) between 9AM and 5PM except except 11AM-noon
    Workshop on Monday (9/27) in DIRC 7PM-8:30PM (instructor is Jennie Murack):
  • Schedule time on Tuesday (9/28) between 9AM and 5PM
    Workshop on Tuesday (9/28) in DIRC 7PM-8:30PM (instructor is Daniel Sheehan)
You need to contact Daniel Sheehan by email (dsheehan@mit.edu) to schedule time or reserve a spot for any of the workshops. Workshop limit is 20 participants. Pick top 3 choices and send to Daniel Sheehan I will send email with time and place for the workshop

Send email to dsheehan@mit.edu by the end of the day, Wednesday September 22 (today)
 Your first reading assignment will be this NY Times article on The Peanut Solution.

 Assignment for class on Monday September 13: Room 32-123
    Each team gets five minutes to introduce themselves and make a statement about their topic:
  • Could be a few factoids or statement of major issues and/or possible links with other teams:
  • Each team should appoint a temporary leader and 1-3 Powerpoint slides should be sent to Seth before 2 PM on Monday.
 First Assignment (Due this Friday, Sept 10 by 2 PM)
  • Do wealthy countries buy farmland in poor countries? Should this be allowed under international law?
  • What country has the most number of people threatened by chronic hunger?
  • Is there a conflict between growing biofuels and feeding the world?
  • Do you think we should do more as a species to limit population growth?
  • Why are crop subsidies an issue for food security?
Send me a brief email (sbowring@mit.edu) with your answers

 Your first reading assignment is this NY Times article on The Peanut Solution.