Scientists used a sensor to check the soil in a field and found info about its top layer using a technology called artificial neural networks (ANNs). They looked at signals from the sensor and figured out the top layer's clay content. The sensor showed different info for the top and bottom soil layers, probably due to old water channels underground. By combining data from the sensor in different directions without considering the soil's surroundings, they got a good estimate of the topsoil's clay content. This method predicted 65.5% of the clay content in the topsoil with only a small error, making it a helpful tool for understanding soil properties efficiently.