The Visual Exploration of Insurance Data in Google Earth

Visualisation and geovisualisation techniques can both complement and help communicate the results of GIS and other analyses in the exploration of multivariate datasets and may provide insights and solutions for managing exposure and potential loss. Graphical techniques and the use of geobrowsers such as Google Earth are also being used in a communicative role to engage a variety of different audiences within insurance companies with information about policies, exposure and potential losses. In this paper, we focus on one particular geo-browser, Google Earth, which provides access to a rich array of datasets including aerial imagery, roads, administrative boundaries and photographs and, importantly, allows additional data to be added through the welldocumented KML format

Providing scientific visualisation for spatial data analysis: criteria and an assessment of SAGE

A consistent theme in recent work on developing exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) has been the importance attached to visualization techniques, particularly following the pioneering development of packages such as REGARD by Haslett et al (1990). The focus on visual techniques is often justified in two ways: (a) the power of modern graphical interfaces means that graphics is no longer a way of simply presenting results in the form of maps or graphs, but a tool for the extraction of information from data; (b)graphical, exploratory methods are felt to be more intuitive for non-specialists to use than methods of numerical spatial statistics enabling wider participation in the process of getting data insights. Despite the importance attached to visualisation techniques, very little work has been done to assess the effectiveness of techniques, either in the wider scientific visualisation community, or among those working with spatial data. This paper will describe a theoretical framework for developing visualisation tools for ESDA that incorporates a data model of what the analyst is looking for based on the concepts of "rough" and "smooth" elements of a data set and a theoretical scheme for assessing visual tools. The paper will include examples of appropriate tools and a commentary on the effectiveness of some existing packages

Interactive Techniques and Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis

This chapter reviews the ideas behind interactive and exploratory spatial data analysis and their relation to GIS. Three important aspects are considered. First, an overview is presented of the principles behind interactive spatial data analysis, based on insights from the use of dynamic graphics in statistics and their extension to spatial data. This is followed by a review of spatialised exploratory data analysis (EDA) techniques, that is, ways in which a spatial representation can be given to standard EDA tools by associating them with particular locations or spatial subsets of the data. The third aspect covers the main ideas behind true exploratory spatial data analysis, emphasising the concern with visualising spatial distributions and local patterns of spatial autocorrelation. The geostatistical perspective is considered, typically taken in the physical sciences, as well as the lattice perspective, more familiar in the social sciences. The chapter closes with a brief discussion of implementation issues and future directions

From SpaceStat to CyberGIS: Twenty Years of Spatial Data Analysis Software

This essay assesses the evolution of the way in which spatial data analytical methods have been incorporated into software tools over the past two decades. It is part retrospective and prospective, going beyond a historical review to outline some ideas about important factors that drove the software development, such as methodological advances, the open source movement and the advent of the internet and cyberinfrastructure. The review highlights activities carried out by the author and his collaborators and uses SpaceStat, GeoDa, PySAL and recent spatial analytical web services developed at the ASU GeoDa Center as illustrative examples. It outlines a vision for a spatial econometrics workbench as an example of the incorporation of spatial analytical functionality in a cyberGIS.

Interactive maps: What we know and what we need to know

This article provides a review of the current state of science regarding cartographic interaction a complement to the traditional focus within cartography on cartographic representation. Cartographic interaction is defined as the dialog between a human and map mediated through a computing device and is essential to the research into interactive cartography geovisualization and geovisual analytics. The review is structured around six fundamental questions facing a science of cartographic interaction: (1) what is cartographic interaction (e.g. digital versus analog interactions interaction versus interfaces stages of interaction interactive maps versus mapping systems versus map mash-ups); (2) why provide cartographic interaction (e.g. visual thinking geographic insight the stages of science the cartographic problematic); (3) when should cartographic interaction be provided (e.g. static versus interactive maps interface complexity the productivity paradox flexibility versus constraint work versus enabling interactions); (4) who should be provided with cartographic interaction (e.g. user-centered design user ability expertise and motivation adaptive cartography and geocollaboration); (5) where should cartographic interaction be provided (e.g. input capabilities bandwidth and processing power display capabilities mobile mapping and location-based services); and (6) how should cartographic interaction be provided (e.g. interaction primitives objective-based versus operator-based versus operand-based taxonomies interface styles interface design)? The article concludes with a summary of research questions facing cartographic interaction and offers an outlook for cartography as a field of study moving forward

Integrating GIS and spatial statistical tools for the spatial analysis of health-related data.

Spatial Statistical Analysis (SSA) and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are instrumental in many areas of geographical study. However, their use tends to be separate one from another. This has prevented their potential in many application areas from being realised. This research is an attempt to bring the two technologies together for a specific application area - health research. There are two research objectives. The first and main objective is to construct a software package - SAGE - by integrating necessary SSA techniques with ARC/INFO, a GIS, to enable the user to undertake a coherent study of area-based health-related data. The second objective is to evaluate and demonstrate SAGE through a case study. A range of SSA techniques was identified to be useful for addressing typical health questions. A three-tier client-server model was suggested and argued to be the most appropriate for integration as it takes advantages of both the loose-coupling and close-coupling approaches. Under this model, a SSA component forms the client, while ARCH/INFO functions as the server. They are linked through the middle tier - the linking agent. The development of SAGE provided experiences useful for developing a generic SSA module in the future for any GIS that confonns to a set of well-defined standard application interfaces. An empirical study of colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence for the city of Sheffield using SAGE is presented. It shows the usefulness of the SAGE regionalisation tool in constructing an appropriate regional framework for subsequent data analyses and of both exploratory and confirmatory spatial data analysis in exploring the characteristics of CRC incidence. Some weaknesses of SAGE are identified, while remedies for them are suggested. Future work is recommended. The SAGE User Guide, related publications and the SAGE source and executable code as well as the data used in the case study are enclosed for reference

Analisi Statistica delle Proprietà Idrauliche ed Idrodispersive dei Suoli

Il presente studio è particolarmente dedicato agli aspetti fondamentali dell’analisi della variabilità spaziale e temporale delle proprietà idrauliche dei suoli, sviluppati secondo il paradigma fondamentale: teoria, risultati, utilizzazione e temi di ricerca. Sosteniamo che l’efficienza delle metodologie proposte si fonda sul postulato, largamente accettato, che il suolo è un complesso fenomeno naturale non perfettamente definito e pertanto le metodologie non pretendono che il sistema suolo, che può essere modellato con parametri ed osservazioni strumentali sia più esatto o più perfetto di quanto esso realmente sia. Da questo postulato discendono tutti gli strumenti analitici di sintesi ed indagine proposti in questo lavoro. Allo scopo, utile riferimento è fornito dall’ampia casistica offerta relativamente alle indagini svolte. Il quadro concettuale di questo studio può consentire un più corretto sviluppo di tecnologie agro ecologiche volte all’accertamento della struttura delle risorse naturali integrate su differenti scale di spazio e di tempo per una gestione ottimale dell’ecosistema in toto piuttosto che valutare l’impatto di particolari, a volte arbitrari, trattamenti applicati, come spesso accade nelle scienze agronomiche, a sets di piccole parcelle sperimentali mediante il solo ricorso ai metodi di analisi della varianza

Enhancing comprehension of complex data visualizations: Framework and techniques based on signature exploration

This thesis presents a framework and set of readily applicable techniques for enhancing comprehension of complex data visualizations. Central to the work has been the definition and exploration of a new concept, signature exploration. Visualization is being used increasingly to help make sense of large sets of data and information. Abstractions of complex data can be performed to reduce the dimensions to 2 or 3 for display. Novel or established representations can be used that allow direct mapping of greater numbers of attributes, and of a variety of data structures. There is an ever expanding set of visualization tools available. Two questions face the user: how to choose appropriate displays and how to understand the resultant graphic. This thesis examines how to support the user’s comprehension in this context. The work makes the following three main contributions to enhancing comprehension of complex data visualizations: the definition and application of signature exploration, a concept describing the exploration of visualization behaviour using specially constructed data; the proposal of a framework for the design of visualization systems for increased comprehension; the introduction of two new forms of interaction - which are here described as visual data tracking and feature fingerprinting. The central theme for the exploration presented in this work is the notion that a user wants to take data that is known in some way, put this into the visualization process and assess the resultant visual depiction. This intuitive desire has been captured in the definition of the concept, signature exploration. Signature exploration describes the exploration of the behaviour of visual representations using specially constructed datasets that contain features of interest. The datasets are used to explore the signatures of different visual representations and mathematical transformations. The thesis defines and illustrates signature exploration, with five proposed approaches: generic dataset provision; user-construction of data; querying; insertion of landmarks; elicitation and application of feedback data. These applications of signature exploration, together with analysis of the comprehension challenges presented by different aspects of visualization, and established work to support user comprehension, form the basis of the framework for increased user comprehension. Example software has been developed within the context of a visualization application that employs a number of visualization algorithms to generate graphics for multivariate or proximity data. Principal Components Analysis, Principal Coordinates Analysis and distance metrics of various kinds are the algorithms used. An additional interface is given to the user, to perform signature exploration. The work has resulted in the specification of a set of techniques that developers can readily apply. Two new interaction forms are described: visual data tracking - bi-directional brushing and linking between representations also allowing change of position or value; feature fingerprinting - synthetic additions to real-world datasets to provide the user with calibration of the visual depiction

Wildlife population analysis with GIS: conservation management of royal albatross

Part of the GeoComputation '96 Special Issue 96/25; follow the "related link" to download the entire collection as a single document.This paper describes the use of a prototype spatial information system to facilitate exploratory analyses of 60 years of scientific observation data concerning a breeding population of royal albatrosses at Taiaroa Head, on the east coast of New Zealand's South Island. This system shall form the basis on an on-going data collection, management and analysis effort. Incorporation of breeding records with spatial and landscape data permits the investigation of spatial interactions between the location of nest sites and other phenomena. Three example analyses that explore these interactions are described and discussed.UnpublishedAGEE, J.K., STITT, S.C.F., NYQUIST, M. and ROOT, R. 1989. A Geographic Analysis of Historical Grizzly Bear Sightings in the North Cascades. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol.55 No.1 1637-1642. 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JOHNSON, L.B. and HOST, G.E. 1991. Use of GIS for Landscape Design in Natural Resource Management: Habitat Assessment and Management for the Female Black Bear. GIS/LIS ’91, Proceedings. Atlanta, GA, 28-31 October, American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Vol.2, pp.501-517. JOHNSTON, C.A. 1989. Ecological Research Applications of Geographic Information Systems. GIS/LIS ’89, Proceedings. Orlando, FL, USA, 26-30 Nov, American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Vol.2, pp.569-577. JOHNSTON, C.A. 1993. Introduction to Quantitative Methods and Modeling in Community, Population and Landscape Ecology. In: Environmental Modeling with GIS, Eds. GOODCHILD, M.F., PARKS, B.O. and STEYAERT, L.T. Oxford University Press, London, pp.276-283. KEMP, K.K. 1992. Spatial Models for Environmental Modeling with GlS. 5th International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling, Proceedings. Charleston, SC, USA, 3-7 Aug, University of South Carolina, Vol.2, pp.524-533. LEE, J. 1991. Analysis of Visibility Sites on Topographic Surfaces. International Journal of Geographic Information Systems, Vol.5 No.4, pp.413-429. LYON, J.G., HEINEN, J.T., MEAD, R.A. and ROLLER, N.E.G. 1987. Spatial Data for Modeling Wildlife Habitat. Journal of Survey Engineering, Vol.113 No.2, pp.88-100. MCLENNAN, B.R., CHONG, A.K. and PURVIS, M.K. 1994. Data Acquisition by GPS for a Wildlife Management Decision Support System. Sixth Annual Colloquium of the Spatial Information Research Centre, Proceedings. Eds. BENWELL, G.L. and SUTHERLAND, N.C. Dunedin, New Zealand, 17-19 May, University of Otago, pp. 17-30. MCNEELY, J.A., MILLER, K..R., REID, W.V., MITTERMEIER, R.A. and WERNER, T.B. 1990. Conserving the World’s Biological Diversity. IUCN, WRI, CI, WWF-US, World Bank, Washington DC, 193 pages. MICHENER, W.K., BRUNT, J.W. and STAFFORD, S.G., Eds. 1994. Environmental Information Management and Analysis: Ecosystem to Global Scales. Taylor & Francis, New York, 555 pages. MILLS, R.J. 1990. Royal Albatross Nest-Site Selection. Unpublished Honours dissertation, University of Otago. OPENSHAW, S.. CROSS, A. and CHARLTON, M. 1990. Building a prototype Geographical Correlates Exploration Machine. International Journal of Geographic Information Systems, Vol.4 No.3, pp.297-311. PEREIRA, J.M.C. and ITAMI, R.M. 1991. GIS-Based Habitat Modeling Using Logistic Multiple Regression: A Study of the Mt. Graham Red Squirrel. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol.57 No.11, pp. 1475-1486. PURVIS, M., GASKIN, C., SMITH, I. and MCLENNAN, B. 1993. Life at Taiaroa Head (Pukekura). Fifth Annual Colloquium of the Spatial Information Research Centre, Proceedings. Eds. BENWELL, G.L. and SUTHERLAND, N.C. Dunedin, New Zealand, 17-19 May, University of Otago, pp.265-278. RICHDALE, L.E. 1939. A Royal Albatross Nesting on the Otago Peninsula, New Zealand. EMU, Vol.38 pp.467-488. ROBERTSON, C.J.R. 1993. Survival and Longevity of the Northern Royal Albatross Diomedia epomophora sanfordi at Taiaroa Head 1937-93. EMU, Vol.93 pp.269-276. ROBERTSON, C.J.R. 1995. Factors Influencing Breeding Performance of the Northern Royal Albatross. First International Conference on the Biology and Conservation of Albatrosses, Proceedings. Hobart, Tasmania, 28 Aug - 1 Sep, In press. TOMLIN, C.D., BERWICK, S.H., and TOMLIN, S.M. 1987. The Use of Computer Graphics in Deer Habitat Evaluation. In: Geographic Information Systems For Resource Management: A Compendium, Ed. RIPPLE, W.J.. American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Falls Church, VA, pp.212-218. WALKER, P.A. 1990. Modelling Wildlife Distributions using a Geographic Information System: Kangaroos in Relation to Climate. Journal of Biogeography, Vol.17 pp.279-289. YONZON, P., JONES, R. and FOX, J. 1991. Geographic Information Systems for Assessing Habitat and Estimating Population of Red Pandas in Langtang National Park, Nepal. 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