A VIEW THROUGH THE PERISCOPE : ADVANCED AND GEOSPATIAL VISUALIZATION OF NAVAL BATTLEFIELDS

Battlefield visualizations have existed for nearly ten thousand years and are found in almost all corners of the world. These may range from simple representations of opposing hunting parties depicted in Neolithic cave art to the examples found in today's military atlases. The practices used to visualize these, almost ubiquitous human acts, have changed along with the sciences, arts, and military technology and strategy. Although the most drastic changes in military technology have occurred within the last century, little advancement has been made concerning battlefield visualization techniques. Essentially, new military technologies and strategies have been visualized with outdated techniques and methodologies.   This study attempts to identify the key trends and deficiencies in battlefield visualizations so that new or alternative techniques may be proposed. Inspiration for these alternative methodologies will come from closely associated academic disciplines that already utilize these techniques. Once these trends and techniques are identified, then an exploration into these innovated battlefield visualization techniques is possible. These new and innovative techniques are important because they advance the discourse of battlefield visualizations and may increase the conveyance of ideas between scholars and the public.  M.A

Geovisualization of knowledge diffusion: Visualization of bibliographic data 1995-2009

Bibliometrics are an important research area within information and library science, which provides valuable insights about relationships between authors, publications, and knowledge domains. This study examined the geographic aspects of literature involving the visualization of bibliographic data published by authors residing in the contiguous United States. It determined where visualization of bibliometric research occurred and explored the spatial relationships among its contributors via institutional affiliation. The study involved five aspects: (1) cited publications, (2) citing publications, (3) cited-citing publication networks, (4) co-author networks and distances, and (5) hypothesis testing of average co-author distances over time. Using 102 publications identified from Thomson Reuters’ Web of Science in the field of visualization of bibliographic data, it demonstrated that spatial aspects of bibliographic data can be represented in ArcGIS as both points (institutions) and networks (cited-citing pairs). The study examined clustering of the bibliographic data based institutional affiliation (i.e., ZIP code) using a nearest neighbor analysis. A Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) script was used to create polylines for cited-citing publication and co-author networks. The networks were mapped using small multiples and animation. Average co-author distances were calculated for the co-author networks and temporal changes were explored formally using a nonparametric hypothesis test. The average nearest neighbor analysis found that both cited and citing publications involving visualization of bibliographic data were clustered. Visual inspection of the thematic maps showed clustering of both cited and citing maps concentrated in the following cities: Philadelphia, PA, Bloomington, IN, Sandia, NM, Stillwater, OK, and Tucson, AZ. Despite a statistically significant increase in the number co-authored publications on visualization of bibliographic data, there was no change in the average co-author distances from 2001-2009

Evaluating human-centered approaches for geovisualization

Working with two small group of domain experts I evaluate human-centered approaches to application development which are applicable to geovisualization, following an ISO13407 taxonomy that covers context of use, eliciting requirements, and design. These approaches include field studies and contextual analysis of subjects' context; establishing requirements using a template, via a lecture to communicate geovisualization to subjects and by communicating subjects' context to geovisualization experts with a scenario; autoethnography to understand the geovisualization design process; wireframe, paper and digital interactive prototyping with alternative protocols; and a decision making process for prioritising application improvement. I find that the acquisition and use of real user data is key; that a template approach and teaching subjects about visualization tools and interactions both fail to elicit useful requirements for a visualization application. Consulting geovisualization experts with a scenario of user context and samples of user data does yield suggestions for tools and interactions of use to a visualization designer. The complex and composite natures of both visualization and human-centered domains, incorporating learning from both domains, with user context, makes design challenging. Wireframe, paper and digital interactive prototypes mediate between the user and visualization domains successfully, eliciting exploratory behaviour and suggestions to improve prototypes. Paper prototypes are particularly successful at eliciting suggestions and especially novel visualization improvements. Decision-making techniques prove useful for prioritising different possible improvements, although domain subjects select data-related features over more novel alternative and rank these more inconsistently. The research concludes that understanding subject context of use and data is important and occurs throughout the process of engagement with domain experts, and that standard requirements elicitation techniques are unsuccessful for geovisualization. Engagement with subjects at an early stage with simple prototypes incorporating real subject data and moving to successively more complex prototypes holds the best promise for creating successful geovisualization applications

A framework to estimate the risk of noise exposure from vessels for endangered cetacean species

This thesis proposes a framework for assessing and visualizing exposure of the Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW) population to vessels’ noise. First, SRKW distribution was mapped and the risk for this population to be exposed to vessel-noise was estimated. The study identified six vessel classes as being the main contributors to noise exposure for SRKW. Building on this result, the second study presents an analytical framework focused on exposure hotspot mapping, the computation of probabilistic levels of exposure, and the identification of shipping routes minimizing exposure for SRKW. The framework was tested in the Salish Sea, leading to the identification of four hotspots of exposure for SRKW. Small spatial changes in the current shipping lanes could lead to a large reduction of the overlap between vessel traffic and sensitive areas for SRKW. The results highlight how effectively addressing vessel noise requires the implementation of adaptive management strategies

Proceedings of the GIS Research UK 18th Annual Conference GISRUK 2010

This volume holds the papers from the 18th annual GIS Research UK (GISRUK). This year the conference, hosted at University College London (UCL), from Wednesday 14 to Friday 16 April 2010. The conference covered the areas of core geographic information science research as well as applications domains such as crime and health and technological developments in LBS and the geoweb. UCL’s research mission as a global university is based around a series of Grand Challenges that affect us all, and these were accommodated in GISRUK 2010. The overarching theme this year was “Global Challenges”, with specific focus on the following themes: * Crime and Place * Environmental Change * Intelligent Transport * Public Health and Epidemiology * Simulation and Modelling * London as a global city * The geoweb and neo-geography * Open GIS and Volunteered Geographic Information * Human-Computer Interaction and GIS Traditionally, GISRUK has provided a platform for early career researchers as well as those with a significant track record of achievement in the area. As such, the conference provides a welcome blend of innovative thinking and mature reflection. GISRUK is the premier academic GIS conference in the UK and we are keen to maintain its outstanding record of achievement in developing GIS in the UK and beyond

Spatial Modeling of the Risk of Mosquito-borne Disease Transmission, Chesapeake, Virginia

The increase in mosquito populations following extreme weather events poses a major threat to humans because of mosquitoes' ability to carry disease-causing pathogens. In areas with reservoirs of disease, mosquito abundance information can help to identify the areas at higher risk of disease transmission. Using a Geographic Information System (GIS), mosquito abundance is predicted across the city of Chesapeake, Virginia. The mosquito abundance model uses mosquito trap counts, habitat suitability, and environmental variables to predict the abundance of the species Culiseta melanura, as well as the combined abundance of Aedes vexans and Psorophora columbiae, for the year 2003. The mosquito abundance values are compared to vulnerable population indices to determine the spatial distribution of risk of disease transmission. The goal of this project is to create a reproducible model that could be embedded in a decision support system to aid in detecting areas at high risk of mosquito-borne disease transmission.  M.A

Vulnerability and adaptation of Pacific Northwest shellfisheries to ocean acidification

The purpose of this study was to understand the vulnerability and adaptive capacity of shellfish stakeholders in the Pacific Northwest who are adapting to ocean acidification (OA). This study developed a geovisualization tool of existing environmental data for assessing species-specific risk profiles to OA (based on their exposure and sensitivity), and then created a decision tree of adaptation options reported by interviews conducted with shellfish stakeholders for identifying pathways to successful adaptation (based on their adaptive capacity and the barriers to their adaptation). Results from the geovisualization showed that OA risk is greatest in the northern Pacific Northwest, where a faster rate of change in OA exposure intersects with relatively greater social reliance on shellfish. Interviews showed that OA has led to substantial shortages of seed. Despite adaptation investments at hatcheries succeeding to improve overall seed production, industry consolidation has constrained access to seed for the smallest stakeholders. Adaptation investments prioritized in at-risk areas should account for uneven impacts and specific barriers that affect stakeholders engaged in shellfish production at multiple life stages. To facilitate discussions with stakeholders in local adaptation planning efforts, future work may benefit from pairing an adaptation pathway decision tree and the geovisualization tool developed here

Ocean Solutions, Earth Solutions

What affects the oceans affects terra firma. Ocean Solutions, Earth Solutions gathers the insights of more than 50 ocean and coastal science researchers exploring ocean components and their relationships, patterns, and trends over time and space. The book's 16 chapters feature geographic information system (GIS) best practices and include additional online resources.The book is edited by oceanographer and Esri Chief Scientist Dawn J. Wright and features a foreword by oceanographer David Gallo, director of special projects for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts.Keywords: marine resource management, GIS, mapping, ocean conservation, ocean scienc

OGRS2012 Symposium Proceedings

Do you remember the Open Source Geospatial Research and Education Symposium (OGRS) in Nantes? "Les Machines de l’Île", the Big Elephant, the "Storm Boat" with Claramunt, Petit et al. (2009), and "le Biniou et la Bombarde"? A second edition of OGRS was promised, and that promise is now fulfilled in OGRS 2012, Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland, October 24-26, 2012. OGRS is a meeting dedicated to sharing knowledge, new solutions, methods, practices, ideas and trends in the field of geospatial information through the development and the use of free and open source software in both research and education. In recent years, the development of geospatial free and open source software (GFOSS) has breathed new life into the geospatial domain. GFOSS has been extensively promoted by FOSS4G events, which evolved from meetings which gathered together interested GFOSS development communities to a standard business conference. More in line with the academic side of the FOSS4G conferences, OGRS is a rather neutral forum whose goal is to assemble a community whose main concern is to find new solutions by sharing knowledge and methods free of software license limits. This is why OGRS is primarily concerned with the academic world, though it also involves public institutions, organizations and companies interested in geospatial innovation. This symposium is therefore not an exhibition for presenting existing industrial software solutions, but an event we hope will act as a catalyst for research and innovation and new collaborations between research teams, public agencies and industries. An educational aspect has recently been added to the content of the symposium. This important addition examines the knowledge triangle - research, education, and innovation - through the lens of how open source methods can improve education efficiency. Based on their experience, OGRS contributors bring to the table ideas on how open source training is likely to offer pedagogical advantages to equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in tomorrow’s geospatial labor market. OGRS brings together a large collection of current innovative research projects from around the world, with the goal of examining how research uses and contributes to open source initiatives. By presenting their research, OGRS contributors shed light on how the open-source approach impacts research, and vice-versa. The organizers of the symposium wish to demonstrate how the use and development of open source software strengthen education, research and innovation in geospatial fields. To support this approach, the present proceedings propose thirty short papers grouped under the following thematic headings: Education, Earth Science & Landscape, Data, Remote Sensing, Spatial Analysis, Urban Simulation and Tools. These papers are preceded by the contributions of the four keynote speakers: Prof Helena Mitasova, Dr Gérard Hégron, Prof Sergio Rey and Prof Robert Weibel, who share their expertise in research and education in order to highlight the decisive advantages of openness over the limits imposed by the closed-source license system

Shifts in Mapping

Depicting the world, territory, and geopolitical realities involves a high degree of interpretation and imagination. It is never neutral. Cartography originated in ancient times to represent the world and to enable circulation, communication, and economic exchange. Today, IT companies are a driving force in this field and change our view of the world; how we communicate, navigate, and consume globally. Questions of privacy, authorship, and economic interests are highly relevant to cartography's practices. So how to deal with such powers and what is the critical role of cartography in it? How might a bottom-up perspective (and actions) in map-making change the conception of a geopolitical space