Literature v3 · Research topic

Do poorer U.S. counties have dirtier air, and does it depend on region?

Using free government data, we'll see if poorer counties face more air pollution—and whether that gap grows or shrinks across different parts of the country.

Data DetectiveEnvironmental AdvocateHealth Explorer

Zero-cost dataExploring one-variable and two-variable data

8 weeksIntermediate$0 public datasets · Supplies: laptop onlyPortfolio 6/10

Why this matters

Imagine uncovering how the air you breathe—and where you live—could shape your health and cognitive development, all using data that's free and open to anyone. That's the power of secondary data analysis: turning public numbers into stories of environmental justice.

Project scores

Originality7/10

Feasibility8/10

Impact3/10

Essay value7/10

Rigor6/10

Difficulty

Intermediate

This project requires 8 weeks of focused work. You'll need comfort with spreadsheets or basic programming (Python/R) to manipulate county-level datasets. No lab equipment needed, but strong attention to data cleaning and interpretation is crucial. Suitable for students with some prior experience in statistics or environmental science.

3 of 5 difficulty

Strengths

Clear methodology using publicly available data
Focus on environmental justice
Combines epidemiology and sociology

Skills built

Zero-cost data

Research gap

Curriculum alignment

Exploring one-variable and two-variable dataData and informationScientific foundations of psychology

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