On data provenance: what does it mean to think about data through maize and to think about maize through data?

As part of the Anthropocene River Journey project, sociologist Tahani Nadim focuses on the postnatural histories of maize and their companions along the Mississippi River. Nadim reflects on the provenance of metadata, which determine how these histories are told, and the stories and labors they embody. What does it mean to think about data through maize and to think about maize through data?