Quantifying Geometric Changes in BIM-GIS Conversion

Abstract. A conversion process is often carried out to migrate data during BIM and GIS integration, often from the highly detailed BIM to the less detailed GIS environment. Due to the differences between the two systems, information loss occurs during conversion. While research has been focusing on addressing information loss on the semantics, it is also necessary to quantify geometric changes resulted from converting geometry representations used in the two systems. This paper describes a preliminary study which evaluates the geometric changes during conversion for a list of primitives. The outcome shows that the metrics are useful both to those carrying out the conversion to balance between potential information loss and resulting data complexity, and to end users of the converted information to assess the fitness for purpose and impact of the conversion results

Representations of Environmental Data in Web-based GIS

The GIS community is using the vast potential of the Internet to disseminate geospatial information. Web-based GIS software and services are key components in distribution of geospatial data. Web-based GIS provide government departments, local authorities and environmental agencies with unprecedented opportunities to offer online access to their environmental information and related services for citizens. Web-based GIS offers access to information services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. In order for web-GIS to be successful in delivering environmental information the representation of the input datasets and output delivery formats/structures must be suitable to both the Internet delivery medium and the intended audience. In the majority of cases this will involve conversion and re-modelling of existing data resources. This paper discusses representations of environmental data for delivery and dissemination using web-based GIS in order to serve a variety of stakeholders : policy makers, scientists, media, and the general public. We summarise the major issues for delivering complex geospatial data about the environment using this medium. Prioritisation of metadata collection and geospatial data interoperability are crucial factors in delivering effective web-GIS tools. The INSPIRE Directive will greatly increase the number of available data sources and the use of webbased GIS for environmental information provision in the future will be discussed

Predicting China’s Land-use Change and Soil Carbon Sequestration under Alternative Climate Change Scenarios

This paper examines and predicts the effects of climate change and climate extremes on China’s land use conversion and soil carbon sequestration under two alternative climate change scenarios. It intends to investigate the following three questions. 1) How did climate factors affect land-use conversion in China from 1988 to 2000 and what was the relative importance of these factors? 2) How would the predicted future climate change pattern affect land-use choice under alternative climate change scenarios? 3) How would the predicted future climate pattern change the spatial distribution of soil organic carbon in China? The study makes two contributions to the literature. First, it integrates climate change, land use conversion, and soil carbon sequestration into a whole model, which facilitates a comprehensive, systematic analysis. Second, it employs a unique dataset, consisting of high-quality Geographic Information System (GIS) data on climate, land use, and soil properties. To the best of our knowledge, no one has used such detailed Chinese data for economic research.Land-use change, soil carbon sequestration, climate change, Environmental Economics and Policy, Land Economics/Use,

Evaluasi dan Optimasi Lokasi Pendirian Sentra Pengisian Bahan Bakar Utama (SPBU) di Kabupaten Bekasi Menggunakan Metode Algoritma Genetik

Gas Stations are important objects for transportation. Therefore, the location must be optimum regardingto economic, environment, and safety aspects. Genetic Algorithms are used to help calculating for optimumlocation of gas stations. For easiness we integrated Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with geneticalgorithms for Bekasi District. According to GIS rule, we use two kinds of data: vector data and rasterdata. Road of map and location of object that must far away from gas station as vector data and map asraster data. Conversion from local coordinate to global coordinate is used in order to be integrated withgoogle map application. Testing result showed that optimum gas station location are far enough from vitallocations that must far away from gas stations. Keywords: Geographic Information System, Genetic Algorithms, Optimizatio

The role of tropical forests in supporting biodiversity and hydrological integrity: a synoptic overview

Conservation of high-biodiversity tropical forests is sometimes justified on the basis of assumed hydrological benefits - in particular, the reduction of flooding hazards for downstream floodplain populations. However, the"far-field"link between deforestation and distant flooding has been difficult to demonstrate empirically. This simulation study assesses the relationship between forest cover and hydrology for all river basins intersecting the world's tropical forest biomes. The study develops a consistent set of pan-tropical land cover maps gridded at one-half degree latitude and longitude. It integrates these data with existing global biogeophysical data. The study applies the Water Balance Model - a coarse-scale process-based hydrological model - to assess the impact of land cover changes on runoff. It quantifies the impacts of forest conversion on biodiversity and hydrology for two scenarios - historical forest conversion and the potential future conversion of the most threatened remaining tropical forests. A worst-case scenario of complete conversion of the most threatened of the remaining forested areas would mean the loss of another three million km2 of tropical forests. Increased annual yield from the conversion of threatened tropical forests would be less than 5 percent of contemporary yield in aggregate. However, about 100 million people - 80 million of them in floodplains - would experience increases of more than 25 percent in annual water flows. This might be associated with commensurate increases in peak flows, though further analysis would be necessary to gauge the impact on flooding. The study highlights basins in Southeast Asia, southern China, and Latin America that warrant further study.Wetlands,Forestry,Climate Change,Drylands&Desertification,Earth Sciences&GIS

Darkmold Archaeological Site Analysis: Three Dimensional Surface Modeling and Data Compilation

Archaeology is a spatial discipline, which is why using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analysis is a powerful tool for archaeological applications. In the past, the use of GIS by archaeologists consisted of site location prediction, or related applications covering large areas. This project is concentrated on a single site in southwestern Colorado, known as the Darkmold Site. The purpose of this project is to amass data collected from the site, convert it to digital format to be used in the ArcGIS software made by ESRI, and return it to the client in a form that can be updated and maintained through future field seasons. Converting the data is no small task because in the field data is recorded on paper forms and collected using a Total Station. However, neither of these collection methods imports easily into the software. The data assemblage of this project involves the creation of a personal geodatabase to store the data, and manipulation and conversion of files into accepted formats. The three dimensional surface models are the results of interpolating the ground surface elevation of the site after each year of excavation. Briefly, the methodology for creating the surface models involves creating Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN) surfaces from point and line data, and converting the TIN to a raster surface. This project also includes a discussion on relating data of spatial tables to standalone tables, which is basic to GIS, to allow for simultaneous querying of the data in the GIS. The importance of this project to the use of GIS in archaeology is not only in the methods, but in the realization of what is required to build a successful GIS application. For GIS analysis to be successful at the site level, excavation methods must incorporate data collection for the goals of the GIS

The World of Organic Agriculture – Density-equalizing Map

The World Map of Organic Agriculture presents countries as proportional in size to their share of the total of world organic hectares. Such a map can be referred to as an equal-area cartogram or a density-equalising map. Equal-density cartograms are a tool for presenting a fresh view of tabulated geographic data sets. The World Map of Organic Agriculture accounts for all of the hectares of organically managed agricultural land (certified organic and in-conversion organic) reported by FiBL and IFOAM in 'The World of Organic Agriculture - Statistics & Emerging Trends 2013'. The map visually reveals relationships between the territories of the world and highlights the regional strengths and weaknesses of the global diffusion of organic agriculture. The World Map of Organic Agriculture is generated by the Worldmapper GIS algorithm developed at the University of Sheffield as a cartographic visualisation tool

Uporaba programskega okolja R v prostorskih analizah

R is a powerful and increasingly popular programming language with strong graphical and presentation features and large expanŽdability. Although primarily intended for statistical computing, R has paved its way to the field of GIS through the development of specialized extension packages. It offers a wide range of functions at all GIS levels: data acquisition, data manipulation, graphical reŽpresentation and quantitative analysis. The paper presents R as an open source alternative to the existing commercial GIS software. It proves especially well when advanced quantitative methods on spatial data are needed (e.g. spatial modelling). We demonstrate R capabilities through spatial analysis of forest area in Snežnik (South Slovenia), where the possibilities of data import, conversion and export into various GIS formats and possibilities of geostatistics, spatial modelling and spatial visualization are demonstrated.R je zmogljiv in vse bolj priljubljen programski jezik s poudarjenimi grafičnimi in predstavitvenimi funkcijami ter veliko možnostjo razširitve. Čeprav primarno namenjen statističnemu računanju, si je R z razvojem specialnih razširitvenih knjižnic utrl pot tudi na področje GIS. Omogoča široknabor funkcij na vseh ravneh GIS: na nivoju zajemanja podatkov, na nivoju manipulacije podatkov ter na nivoju grafičnih predstavitev in kvantitativnih analiz. V prispevku predstavljamo R kot odprtokodno alternativoobstoječim komercialnim GIS- orodjem, ki se izkaže še posebno tedaj, kadar želimo na prostorskih podatkih upoŽrabiti zahtevnejše kvantitativne metode (npr. prostorska modeliranja). Prikazujemo ga na primeru prostorskih analiz gozdŽnega območja na Snežniku (južna Slovenija), kjer demonstriramo možnosti vnosa podatkov, transformiranja in shranjevanja različnih GIS-podlag, možnosti geostatistike, prostorskega modeliranja in prostorske vizualizacije

A Water Utility Mapping Application for the City of Elko, Nevada

This project explains how a small town in northeastern Nevada improved the collection of data for the local water utility department with the use of a GIS. The initial need was to improve and expand the city’s existing GIS data holdings by incorporating ESRI’s ArcGIS product to accommodate the mapping needs of the Engineering and Municipal Water Departments. The collection of data into a GIS is used to find, improve, and reduce time spent on researching for information needed for planning and decision making. Data assessment and conversion comprised a major portion of the project. The database design was modified with the use of an existing water utility data model based on the assessment provided by the client. The software design for the project utilizes out-of-the-box ArcGIS 9.2 tools and functionality. The use of a geometric network was implemented to execute trace analysis on the water network available with use of the Utility Network Analyst toolbar. The importance of using GIS for the water utility department has proven to be more than a pretty map but rather a tool that can be used to solve problems when they arise which helps save time and money for the community

The development of an integrated modelling system to support decisions on organic farms

This paper was presented at the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference of the Colloquium of Organic Researchers (COR). An Integrated Decision Support System (IDSS) is developed which synthesises current understanding of organic farming by means of a multiple objective framework incorporating GIS, biophysical models and socio-economic models of the farming goals. The IDSS uses a multitiered concept of a farming system as a collection of micro-enterprises at the field level, with individual resource endowments, objectives and activities. Farm-level decision drivers trickle down to affect the micro-level field enterprise selection. Biophysical models describe typical forage, cereal, root and legume output and a user-friendly interfaces permits easy access and output display via a GIS. A prototype of the IDSS framework, being developed as a part of the SAC organic research programme is presented