Archived GIS Snippets
Published in 2013
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Crowdsourcing the Boundaries of the Midwest
by samuel arbesman
The United States Census Bureau has a clear definition of the Midwest: the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. But this doesn’t capture certain subtleties, such as cultural similarities. For example, should Buffalo (my hometown) be grouped into the Midwest rather than the Northeast, given its Rust Belt nature and use of the word “pop” rather than “soda”?
Rather than argue about this, we can take a massive survey. And this is what the firm Sasaki Associates did (you can take the survey here). In addition to asking users to draw their borders of the Midwest, they also asked demographic questions such as where they are from and what fraction they have lived, and you can see how differences in background change the Midwest borders. The results can be played with here, and here is a sample results map:
For more on this, The Atlantic Cities had a writeup last month about this.
A similar kind of map was made by Bill Rankin by aggregating the opinions of 100 organizations, rather than asking individuals and found this result: continued…
first published week of: 09/02/2013
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Delhi Police probing Google’s map contest
survey of india alleges ‘mapathon’ “likely to jeopardize national security”
Internet giant Google could land in serious trouble over its ‘Mapathon 2013’ as the Delhi Police have launched an inquiry into the mapping contest held in February-March this year following a formal complaint by the Survey of India.
“Mapathon 2013 activity is likely to jeopardize national security interest and violates the National Map Policy. Citizens of the country, who are ignorant of the legal consequences, are likely to violate the law of the land,” the Survey of India wrote in its complaint filed at the RK Puram police station on March 25, 2013.
“We have received a complaint from the Survey of India…an inquiry has been initiated,” a senior Delhi Police official said. Google had launched the Mapathon contest between February 12 and March 25, asking Indians to map their neighborhoods and send their maps so that they can be uploaded in the search engine’s sites. Google had also said it would reward the top 1,000 participants.
In a letter to Google’s India office on March 21, Additional Surveyor-General of India R.C. Padhi asked the U.S.-based Internet company to stop the activity which was against “India’s policy guidelines.” “Survey of India is only [sic] mandated to undertake ‘Restricted’ category surveying and mapping and no other government/private organizations or any individual are authorized to do so,” he wrote.
As per the National Map Policy, 2005, “The responsibility for producing, maintaining and disseminating the topographic map database of the whole country, which is the foundation of all spatial data vests with the Survey of India.”
first published week of: 04/08/2013
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designing a livable singapore with gis
by clarice africa
Despite being a city state with limited resources, Singapore has impressively overcome various land challenges to achieve an enviable spot as one of Asia’s most liveable cities. This is the result of many factors such as good city governance, long term land policies, and strategic use of Information Communication Technologies (ICT).
“In the general use of ICT, Singapore has done well in areas such as national IT plans, e-government program and ICT research and development,” says Quek.
Today, ICT has become a part of the government’s DNA for public administration and service delivery. As a result, the government’s efforts have been consistently recognized worldwide as an international benchmark in e-government services.
“In URA’s case, we have been using GIS as a strategic enabling platform to ensure that data are spatially captured, organised and linked into a single portal for complex visualisation and analysis required in land use planning.” continued…
first published week of: 09/09/2013
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Detailed geospatial map data provides Soldiers greater technology, in less time
The Sept. 11, 2012, attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya reinforced the need for U.S. Army Africa to have at its fingertips the ability to draw upon the most up-to-date detailed maps and imagery of any given region at a moment’s notice.
Project Manager Mission Command, or PM MC, is helping to streamline the delivery of maps and imagery through the use of specialized geospatial products that work with the Army’s primary mission command information system, known as Command Post of the Future, known as CPOF.
Although CPOF users have an initial set of digital maps at their disposal, there is usually not enough storage space to keep the latest and most detailed maps for every contingency across the globe. For combatant commands such as U.S. Army Africa, or USARAF, which covers most of the African continent, sometimes the need arises where they must request customized map sets.
Within days of the flare-up in Libya, PM MC coordinated the creation and installation of a specialized map set providing the most recent imagery and detailed maps of that area in support of USARAF.http://bit.ly/15tHqC6
first published week of: 03/04/2013
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DHS taps BAE Systems for geospatial imagery and analysis
The Homeland Security Department is looking to improve geospatial imagery and analysis to support emergency management and security planning for special events. DHS’ Geospatial Management Office has selected BAE Systems to provide geospatial imagery for real-time intelligence as part of DHS’ Remote Sensing Services to Support Incident Management and Homeland Security contract, according to a company release. BAE Systems is one of four prime contractors in the $50 million, five-year IDIQ contract.
BAE Systems’ intelligence experts will use geospatial data and airborne imagery to produce high-resolution maps that reflect current environmental conditions, BAE officials said. The data will be used to produce real-time intelligence products to support a variety of DHS missions, including emergency management of natural and man-made disasters, and possibly security planning for special events. The geospatial intelligence products might also be used to assist public safety and law enforcement with tactical planning and incident response.
As part of the contract, BAE Systems’ supported the Federal Emergency Management Agency in its response to the tornadoes in Oklahoma. BAE provided high-resolution, color imagery along the entire path of destruction -- information that is critical to the recovery and cleanup efforts, a BAE official said. continued…
first published week of: 06/17/2013
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Discover How Astrium Services Can Help Shape our World
Astrium Services will deliver a campaign over the coming months designed to communicate the diversity and value of its range of Earth observation services, connect to existing and potential customers and strengthen the identity of the dynamic brand amid a highly competitive global geo-information market.
Bernhard Brenner, Executive Director of Astrium Services’ GEO-information Division explained: “Astrium Services as a company is committed to its customers. Having expanded the diverse range of geo-information services we offer, thanks to a unique access to the most sophisticated satellite constellation, we believe this is the perfect point at which to reconnect with customers, communicate our values and drive home the ways in which Astrium Services can support a wide range of industries.”
Astrium Services has commissioned “Picture the Future" to communicate the potential created by the application of geo-information services to a wide range of sectors, including Oil and Gas, Defence & Security and Agriculture.
Acting as a springboard towards highlighting the different needs, Astrium Services aligns the brand with the expertise and experience it holds in terms of providing access to and analysis of the most complete range of Earth observation data on the market.
first published week of: 07/15/2013