Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Geospatial Clustering And Hot Spot Detection Of Covid-19 Incidence In 2020: A Global Analysis, Munazza Fatima, Sana Arshad, Ibtisam Butt, Saba Arshad

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Emergence and spread of Covid-19 initiated diversified researches based on spatial analysis in visualization, exploration, and modelling of this infection. This short communication is an attempt to comprehend the geographic distribution and spatial clustering of Covid-19 in year 2020. Main objective is to spatially analyze Covid-19 incidence rates, identification of hotspots and clusters outliers at global level. Monthly data of reported cases were taken from World Health Organization dashboard and situation reports. Incidence rate was calculated for each country for each month. Spatial autocorrelation techniques of Global Moran are I and Anselian Local Moran’s I were used to examine the …

A Simulation Framework For Traffic Safety With Connected Vehicles And V2x Technologies, Md Abu Sayed

Theses and Dissertations

With the advancement in automobile technologies, existing research shows that connected vehicle (CV) technologies can provide better traffic safety through Surrogate Safety Measure (SSM). CV technologies involves two network systems: traffic network and wireless communication network. We found that the research in the wireless communication network for CV did not interact properly with the research in SSM in transportation network, and vice versa. Though various SSM has been proposed in previous studies, a few of them have been tested in simulation software in limited extent. On the other hand, A large body of researchers proposed various communication architecture for CV …

Milwaukee's Unequally Gendered Commemorative Street Names (1920-2021), Ayodeji Oladipo Obayomi

Theses and Dissertations

Urban commemorative spaces have consistently shown vast gender disparities through the domination of men at the expense of women; this is evident in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This thesis employed an archival research method to locate useful primary materials from the City of Milwaukee (which included the Common Council Proceedings) and from other sources. In addition, I employed a geographical information system to visualize gender disparity and also express the spatial distribution of the identified commemorative streets. The study argues (among other ideas) that commemorative street naming is problematically gendered.

Of the 233 commemorative street names given between 1920 and 2021 in …

Measuring Social Vulnerability In Transit Deserts Of United States Metro Areas, Junfeng Jiao, Josh Conrad, Amin Azimian

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This study was aimed at identifying areas in the US that need both transit improvements and anti-displacement protection. First, rather than focusing on transit-dependent populations, we developed a new method of accounting for overall transportation demand among independent residents in comparison with public transit supply. Next, we analyzed transit deserts in metro areas using the social vulnerability index. Results indicated that living in transit deserts across 200 metro areas today are approximately 24.6 million people, of which about 19% live below the poverty line. Additionally, residents of transit deserts exhibit, on average, a social vulnerability that is approximately 21% higher …

Evaluation Of Spatio-Temporal Land Use And Land Cover Dynamics Using Geospatial Technologies: The Case Of Majang Zone, Ethiopia, Girma Alemu Melka, Muluneh Woldetsadik Abshare

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

The dynamics of land use-land cover changes is one of the phenomena which interweave the socio-economic, political, and environmental issues in Ethiopia. This study investigated the land use-land cover (LULC) changes in the Majang Zone of Gambela Region, Ethiopia over a period of 33 years from 1985 to 2018. Four sets of Landsat imageries (i.e.,1985, 1996, 2007, and 2018) were the input data from which LULC maps were produced and analyzed using remote sensing and GIS applications. Concurrently, key informants’ interviews, focus group discussions, and questionnaires were used to identify and describe the drivers of LULC changes. The LULC change …

Human Influences And Decreasing Synchrony Between Meteorological And Hydrological Droughts In Wisconsin Since The 1980s, Woonsup Choi, Susan Ann Borchardt, Jinmu Choi

Geography Faculty Articles

Hydrological droughts are important for agriculture and other human activities such as navigation and groundwater pumping, so it is necessary to understand their characteristics at various temporal and spatial scales. This study aims to examine the characteristics of hydrological droughts and their propagation from meteorological droughts across Wisconsin. Hydrological droughts were identified for twenty-four U.S. Geological Survey streamflow monitoring sites using the 20th percentile threshold level for each calendar day. Meteorological droughts were identified in the same way using daily precipitation data. Drought events of both types were identified for the period from 1980 to 2018, and the drought in …

Special Thanks To Reviewers 2020, Woonsup Choi

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Sincere thanks are extended to the individuals who reviewed manuscripts for International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research during the period of 1 January to 31 December 2020.

Placemaking And The Loss Of Place: Perceptions Of Tourism-Induced Neighborhood Change In South Korea’S Disadvantaged Neighborhoods, Minji Kim

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation research uncovers how seemingly beneficial urban projects associated with tourism reinforce inequitable urban environments and loss of place by examining different perceptions and experiences of tourism-induced neighborhood change in disadvantaged neighborhoods in South Korea. I investigate how public art projects implemented by the government to regenerate daldongnes—informal hillside settlements—have brought economic and social disruption to residents and generated a series of contest outcomes. In this research, I examine how tourists’ perceptions and representation of the neighborhood in social media contribute to the (re)construction of the neighborhood, how the growth of tourism has influenced place attachment, and how residents …

Geographical Counterpoint To Choreographic Information Based On Approaches In Giscience And Visualization, Hyowon Ban, Ola Ahlqvist

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This study provides geographical counterpoint to existing knowledge of a dance piece through approaches from GIScience and visualization by focusing on spatio-temporal movement of dancers in a large dataset of the dance. The goal of this study is to introduce a new application to bridging art and science in the domain of dance and geography disciplines. The study utilizes existing methodologies in GIScience, including exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA), spatial analysis, Relative Motion (REMO) analysis, and Qualitative Trajectory Calculus (QTC) analysis for the reasoning of the dance data. The results of the study demonstrate the following. First, spatio-temporal information in …

Exploring The Potential Of Feature Selection Methods In The Classification Of Urban Trees Using Field Spectroscopy Data, Simbarashe Jombo, Elhadi Adam, Marcus J. Byrne, Khalid Adem Ali, Solomon W Newete

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Mapping of vegetation at the species level using hyperspectral satellite data can be effective and accurate because of its high spectral and spatial resolutions that can detect detailed information of a target object. Its wide application, however, not only is restricted by its high cost and large data storage requirements, but its processing is also complicated by challenges of what is known as the Hughes effect. The Hughes effect is where classification accuracy decreases once the number of features or wavelengths passes a certain limit. This study aimed to explore the potential of feature selection methods in the classification of …

Scale Mis-Matches When Assessing Chloride Concentration And Corrosiveness Using Statewide Data For Trend Analysis, Rebecca L. Kauten

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This study compares chloride concentrations and a series of corrosiveness indexes to determine whether trends in statewide databases appropriately detect local conditions. Chloride concentrations in local, urban streams generally persist at higher levels than what is typical of natural waters. Data collected for statewide water quality assessments are often at a broader geographical scale. Results and subsequent policies may indicate little to no environmental concern, meanwhile degradation at the local scale remains relatively undetected. Pulses of local snowmelt runoff may violate water quality criteria, but long-term trends measured at the statewide scale are in decline. Results highlight the need for …

A Neighborhood-Level Perspective Of Real Estate Determinants In Three U.S. Cities, Mikhail Samarin, Madhuri Sharma

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This study examines the relationships between commonly available socio-economic and environmental determinants of real estate (crime, quality of schools, racial/ethnic diversity, and built environment) and real estate values in socially and politically recognized units in the three largest cities of the U.S.—New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Utilizing a variety of data sources used by potential real estate buyers, we conduct correlations, mapping, and multiple regression analyses to identify the degrees and strengths of associations between select determinants and real estate values at these politically recognized units. Results suggest that the cities exhibit similar patterns for crime-related characteristics and quality …

A Comparison Of Network Clustering Algorithms In Keyword Network Analysis: A Case Study With Geography Conference Presentations, Youngho Lee, Yubin Lee, Jeong Seong, Ana Stanescu, Chul Sue Hwang

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

The keyword network analysis has been used for summarizing research trends, and network clustering algorithms play important roles in identifying major research themes. In this paper, we performed a comparative analysis of network clustering algorithms to find out their performances, effectiveness, and impact on cluster themes. The AAG (American Association for Geographers) conference datasets were used in this research. We evaluated seven algorithms with modularity, processing time, and cluster members. The Louvain algorithm showed the best performance in terms of modularity and processing time, followed by the Fast Greedy algorithm. Examining cluster members also showed very coherent connections among cluster …

Triple Threat Gateway? Respiratory Health, Demographics And Land Use In Metro East St. Louis, Missouri-Illinois, Usa, Stacey R. Brown-Amilian

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This paper examines a triple threat for residents of two counties in the St. Louis metropolitan area. Previous environmental justice research has focused on demographics and toxic facilities. This research builds upon those assessments by incorporating hospital discharge data and demographics as well as three different types of pollution sources. Air pollution monitors were unavailable to use during the time period of 2009-2011, therefore proxy measures of pollution in the form of major roadways, industrial land use parcels, and toxic facility information from the EPA Toxic Release Inventory are utilized. This study integrates both spatial coincidence and proximity analysis methods …

Green To Gray: Political Ecology Of Paving Over Green Spaces In Moscow, Russia, Mikhail S. Blinnikov, Liudmila Volkova

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Moscow, Russia is the largest city in Europe with over 12.6 million residents. The remarkable fact is that it is also a biologically diverse ecosystem with a few dozen specially protected natural areas, including 15 large forest parks and a variety of smaller nature-places. The recent landscaping “improvements” conducted by the Moscow government since 2010 greatly increased negative impacts on the green infrastructure, e.g., a lot more paving, systematic grass mowing, widespread planting of exotic plant species, increased residential and commercial construction, more noise, etc. While quantification of the impacts of the above on the biota is not easy, we …

A Conceptual Agent-Based Model Of Farming Households’ Vulnerability To Winter Storms, Yiyi Zhang

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Vulnerability assessments are implemented to identify regions and groups at risk and factors that need to be addressed to reduce vulnerability. Existing assessments have allowed multidimensional factors to be examined in various settings and adopted complex models to simulate human-environment-weather interactions. However, these models are far less accessible than traditional models due to model abstraction and there has been limited research detailing a formalized way to simulate the interactions between rural households and external changes in response to a specific extreme weather event. To supplement applied efforts in vulnerability assessments and address the challenge in communicating agent-based models, this study …

Mapping And Describing Geospatial Data To Generalize Complex Models: The Case Of Littosim-Gen, Ahmed Laatabi, Nicolas Becu, Nicolas Marilleau, Cécilia Pignon-Mussaud, Marion Amalric, Xavier Bertin, Brice Anselme, Elise Beck

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

For some scientific questions, empirical data are essential to develop reliable simulation models. These data usually come from different sources with diverse and heterogeneous formats. The design of complex data-driven models is often shaped by the structure of the data available in research projects. Hence, applying such models to other case studies requires either to get similar data or to transform new data to fit the model inputs. It is the case of agent-based models (ABMs) that use advanced data structures such as Geographic Information Systems data. We faced this problem in the LittoSIM-GEN project when generalizing our participatory flooding …

Qualitative Analysis Of Users’ Negative Reviews On Tripadvisor: International Tourists’ Reviews On Gyeongbokgung Palace In Seoul, Korea, Jung Eun Hong

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

With the rise of Internet, many people have shared quantitative and qualitative feedback on their travel experiences on travel websites. As the largest travel site, TripAdvisor allows users to post reviews; conduct discussions with other users; and rate destinations, hotels, restaurants, and attractions. Through thematic and discourse analysis of user reviews on TripAdvisor, this study gives tourists’ negative reviews of visiting Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, Korea. The study findings show that tourists evaluated the palace was not real, impressive, interesting, tourist friendly, and neither was it worth visiting. The findings of this study may be helpful in expanding research scopes …

Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis In Traffic Safety, Amin Azimian, Dimitra Pyrialakou

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This paper presents an exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) of road traffic crashes at different severity levels in West Virginia (WV). Although ESDA can support transportation safety decision-making by helping planners understand and summarize crash data, it is underutilized in practice. This paper describes the application of five representative easy-to-use method to identify crash patterns and high crash-risk counties in WV. Analysis of crash data from 2010 to 2015 indicated that traffic crashes in WV were not spatially correlated. However, crash severities were found to be positively correlated.

Intersectional Experiences Of Violence: Studying The Serial Murder Of 16 Men And Boys In Milwaukee, 1987-1991, Sally Svetic

Theses and Dissertations

Between the years of 1987 and 1991, 16 multiply-marginalized men and boys went missing in the City of Milwaukee; few other than their family and friends noticed. In 1991, it was discovered that they were murdered by Jeffrey Dahmer, a white man living on Milwaukee’s near west side. This paper argues that state power, racial capitalism, and white supremacy devalued the lives of Black, queer, young and poor people and created conditions that allowed Dahmer to commit 16 murders without detection by the Milwaukee Police Department. In this thesis, responses from Black, Lao, queer and Othered people are centered. In …

Situating Worker Cooperatives: The Urban, Racial And Gendered Geographies Of Cooperative Development In New York City’S Worker Cooperative Business Development Initiative, Rebecca Wolfe

Theses and Dissertations

Worker cooperatives are gaining increased traction as an urban economic development strategy aimed to better support low-income women, immigrants and communities of color. Worker cooperatives are businesses that are owned and managed by its workers, and their supporters see them as a more equitable form of development that facilitates enhanced economic agency and access to ownership and wealth building. Reflecting and reinforcing growing cooperative momentum, New York City developed the nation’s first municipal-sponsored cooperative development initiative in 2014. The Worker Cooperative Business Development Initiative (WCBDI) brings together policy makers, city administrators and nonprofit community-based organizations to provide educational programming, cooperative …

An Analysis Of Temperate Deciduous Shrub Phenology In Downer Woods, University Of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Usa, Chloe Rehberg

Theses and Dissertations

Shrub species, both native and non-native, are an important component of temperate deciduous forest ecosystems but are an often-overlooked and under-studied functional group. Shrubs tend to leaf-out earlier than trees in spring and retain their leaves later in autumn thus extending the overall growing season and the carbon uptake period of the forest ecosystem. In this study, a range of 5- native and 3- non-native shrub species were identified in a deciduous urban woodlot, and the phenology was monitored over a 3-year period on the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee campus. The aim of this work was to determine any variation in …

A Pilot Study On The Relationship Between Urban Green Spaces And Fine Particulate Matter, Sohyun Park, Seungman Kim, Jaehoon Lee

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This study aims at identifying the relationships among various variables that influence city-wide PM_2.5 pollution levels in the six largest cities in Texas. The variables were categorized into three groups for statistical analysis: 1) urban components (city land area, urban population, population density); 2) green space components (coverage, percentage, connectivity, and shape); and 3) meteorological factors (ambient temperature and wind speed). To identify the relationship between meteorological features and daily PM_2.5 concentration, we used descriptive statistics for each city and all six cities combined. A bivariate statistical test was used to examine the correlation between urban and green …

Enhancing Equity In Public Transportation Using Geographic Information Systems And Spatial Optimization, Ho-Seop Cha, Alan T. Murray

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Public transportation is a vital part of urban living. For instance, public transportation services help reduce road congestion, oil consumption and air pollution, and they serve people who need to travel throughout urban environments at the same time do not have access to private vehicles. The latter aspect is an important matter of social justice. Therefore, it is important to understand why the interest in equity in transport is growing, why public transportation should favor the transport disadvantaged, and why analyses of equity measurement and improvement are needed. Measuring the level of access to public transportation among the transport disadvantaged …

Special Thanks To Reviewers 2018-2019, Woonsup Choi

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Sincere thanks are extended to the following individuals who reviewed manuscripts submitted to the International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research during the period of 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2019.

Effects Of Stormwater Green Infrastructure On Watershed Outflow: Does Spatial Distribution Matter?, Benjamin Fahy, Heejun Chang

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) has become a popular method in urban stormwater management. We examined how spatial distribution of GSI affected rainfall-runoff relationships in a recently developed neighborhood in Gresham, Oregon, USA for the 2017-2018 water year. Runoff ratio, peak discharge, and flashiness were compared under four precipitation scenarios (of differing intensity and duration) and different spatial arrangements of GSI. Distributed GSI reduced runoff ratio (10 - 20%), peak discharge (26 - 68%), and flashiness index (56 - 70%). Distributed GSI outperformed centralized structures for all metrics, reducing runoff ratio (22 - 32%), peak discharge 67 to 69%, and flashiness …

Everyday Perseverance & Meaningful Toil: Mapping The (In)Distinguishable Process Of Recovery Post-Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, Louisiana, Monique Hassman

Theses and Dissertations

For nearly a century, anthropological scholarship on disaster has contributed to advancing emergency preparation and management, however examination focusing on survivors’ return and responses in the aftermath of catastrophe, specifically the ways in which residents work to recover—if at all—remains far from comprehensive, especially in urban, post-industrial settings.

Following calamity, what remains? What is disturbed? What becomes reconstructed? Who repairs the tattered social fabric or restores the built environment? And how do these processes transpire? These questions summarize the research interests of this dissertation, which examines the place-making practices not of experts or administrators, but, rather, those enacted by (extra) …

A Player’S Sense Of Place: Computer Games As Anatopistic Medium, Kristopher John Purzycki

Theses and Dissertations

This project works to understand how open-world computer games help generate a sense of place from the player. Since their development over a half century ago, computer games have primarily been discussed in terms of space. Yet the way we think about space today is much different than how those scientists calculated space as a construction of time, mass, and location. But as computer games have evolved, the language has failed to accommodate the more nuanced qualities of game spaces. This project aims at articulating the nuances of place through phenomenological methods to objectively analyze the player experience as performed …

Spatial Dimensions Of Drilling Technologies: Controversies Over Unconventional Oil And Gas Development In Northern Colorado, Nicholas J. Schuelke

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates three controversies surrounding oil and gas development in populated areas of the Front Range region of northern Colorado that have emerged as a result of renewed interest in developing unconventional hydrocarbon resources using horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing techniques. These controversies surround disputes between competing capital interests over rights of access to subsurface hydrocarbon resources, municipal challenges in accommodating oil and gas development in residential areas, and perceptions among more ‘moderate’ residents regarding activism resisting oil and gas development in Colorado and alternative strategies adopted by these residents to oppose hydrocarbon extractive activities in their neighborhoods. Through …

Visualization Of Uncertain Boundaries Of Undersea Features, Hyowon Ban, Hyo Hyun Sung

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

There have been several studies that detect, measure, analyze, and visualize the undersea features by using technologies in multiple disciplines including geography and oceanography. However, definitions of the undersea features often vary among the existing leading literature. Due to this reason the geographical boundary for a certain undersea feature is sometimes not identical among the definitions. In this study, we explore semantic uncertainty in the definitions of some undersea features and apply approaches from fuzzy-set theory and geographic information science on empirical bathymetric data to visualize the uncertain boundaries of the undersea features. Results from this study demonstrate that the …