Geographic Information Sciences Commons^™

Using Gis For Determining Optimal Refugee Camp Placement In Western Thailand, Christopher Pierce

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

Refugee camps are often over crowded, which can create security issues and create strain on the camp infrastructure, supplies, officials, and other areas. ‘GIS for Good’ created methodology to determine optimal placement for refugee camps in Uganda using GIS. Their model focused on environmental (ie. Distance to water, land use, etc.) and social factors (population density, distance to education and health facilities, etc.). These factors were reclassified to rank most optimal sites 10 and least optimal sites 1. Factors were also weighted to give more emphasis to distance from water, slope, and food suitability sites compared to other factors. These …

Deer-Vehicle Collisions In Kalamazoo County, Michigan: A Study Using Gis And Statistical Modeling, Alex Todd Laporte

Masters Theses

Kalamazoo County ranked 15th among 83 Michigan counties in 2015 with 917 deer-vehicle collisions (DVCs). With the white-tailed deer population on the rise, the chances of collisions are also more likely to increase. Most predictive models developed for wildlife-vehicle collisions are used for specific areas and have localized characteristics that are hard to apply to different locations and animal species. By analyzing Kalamazoo County’s specific land cover, weather, traffic, and time variables with locations of deer-vehicle collisions throughout the county, characteristics are identified distinguishing between areas of differing risk. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can locate areas with a high rate …

Applying Spatial Literacy To Transform Library Space: A Selected Literature Review, Juliet M. Gray, Melissa Burel, Marlee Graser, Karen Gallacci

SIUE Faculty Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to review a selection of articles and books that highlight aspects of spatial theory and literacy from various disciplinary perspectives, along with a review of library space studies.

Design/methodology/approach

This study reviews library literature that uses spatial literacy and its related tools. The authors searched in two databases: Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts, and SCOPUS. The paper records were analyzed to find primary research studies, published between 2010 and 2017, which study patron use of library space using various single and hybrid methodologies.

Findings

The findings of the literature reveal that of …

Land-Use And Land-Ownership Changes In Usoma Village, Kenya, Ernest Tan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study attempted to find out how land-use activities and land-ownership patterns have changed since land adjudication in Usoma Village, a peri-urban community on the fringe of Kisumu City. The methods used were photo-observation and geo-tagging based on walkabouts onsite, documentary analysis of maps obtained from the Ministry of Lands, interviews with key authority figures, independent experts and community leaders, and interviews as well as focus-group discussions with community members. In terms of land ownership, it was found that subdivisions of land, both formal and informal, had been common over the period. Land transfers based on compulsory acquisition and investment …

Understanding 1-D Vertical Flux Dynamics In A Low-Gradient Stream: An Assessment Of Stage As A Control Of Vertical Hyporheic Exchange, Frances Claire Harris

Theses and Dissertations

Little Kickapoo Creek (LKC) is a low-gradient, third-order perennial stream with headwaters in Bloomington, IL. The objective of this study is to characterize vertical one-dimensional (1-D) flux rates in the top 150 cm of the streambed, test the viability of a heat tracing method in a low-gradient area, and determine the relationship between stage and 1-D vertical flux rates. In 2009, six wells were installed along the thalweg of the stream in a 25-meter stretch spaced at 5-meter intervals. Each well recorded temperature at five separate depths logging at 15-minute0 intervals from February 2009 to March 2010: 30, 60, 90, …

Reconstructing Historical Hurricane Tracks In The Atlantic Basin: Three Case Studies From The 1840s, Emily L. Cerrito

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Analyzing past tropical cyclone activity enables researchers to recognize patterns of hurricane variability, estimate hurricane return periods, and assess local risk to future storms. This paleotempestology study used original primary data to make the historical record as comprehensive and accurate as possible for three major hurricanes: October 1844, October 1846, and September 1848. This thesis presents the reconstructed storm tracks, assesses the societal impacts, and evaluates the storm intensity of these three major hurricanes for the eastern U.S. and Cuba. The data utilized in this study include ship logbooks, newspapers, diaries, and instrumental meteorological records. A geographic information system (GIS) …

Locating Provisioning Ecosystem Services In Urban Forests: Forageable Woody Species In New York City, Usa, Patrick T. Hurley, Marla R. Emery

Environment and Sustainability Faculty Publications

Scholarship on the ecosystem services provided by urban forests has focused on regulating and supporting services, with a growing body of research examining provisioning and cultural ecosystem services from farms and gardens in metropolitan areas. Using the case of New York, New York, USA, we propose a method to assess the supply of potential provisioning ecosystem services from species and spaces other than those explicitly designated for food production. We analyze the abundance and spatial distribution of trees and shrubs with known uses for food, medicine, craft, and other purposes across urban greenspace types. To do so, we created a …

Impact Of Drought On Land Cover Changes In Diné Bikéyah – A Study Through Remote Sensing, Anjanette A.J. Hawk

Geography ETDs

This study identifies land cover changes associated with a ten-year drought period and discusses the importance of vegetation change in Diné Bikéyah, a semi-arid land located in a remote part of the southwestern United States (US). This study concludes that drought produced slight changes in vegetation within a 540 km² study area in the Tselani-Cottonwood Chapter (TCC) in Diné Bikéyah. The data for this study consist of three Landsat images for the years 1998, 2002, and 2009. The methods used to analyze these Landsat images included image pre-processing, calculation of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) images, and supervised (maximum …

Quantitative Map Literacy: A Cross Between Map Literacy And Quantitative Literacy, Ming Xie, H. L. Vacher, Steven Reader, Elizabeth Walton

Numeracy

We define quantitative map literacy (QML), a cross between map literacy and quantitative literacy (QL), as the concepts and skills required to accurately read, use, interpret, and understand the quantitative information embedded in a geospatial representation of data on a geographic background. Long used as tools in technical geographic fields, maps are now a common vehicle for communicating quantitative information to the public. As such, QML has potential to stand alongside health numeracy and financial literacy as an identifiable subdomain of transdisciplinary QL.

What concepts and skills are crucial for QML? The obvious answer is, “It depends on the type …

Final Internship Report: Gis Research And Analysis At The Center For Homicide Research, Paul Jeffrey Tatting

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This final internship report is being submitted as an Alternate Plan Paper as partial fulfillment for the Degree of Master of Science in Geography at Minnesota State University, Mankato. The internship took place at the Center for Homicide Research (CHR) in Minneapolis, Minnesota from January through June of 2018.

This paper is organized into seven chapters. This chapter, Chapter 1, is the introduction to the internship. Chapter 2 examines the scope of the internship. It includes a background of CHR, the duties of a GIS Intern, and discusses the benefits of the internship. Chapter 3 details presentations that were made …

Risk Perception In Small Island Developing States: A Case Study In The Commonwealth Of Dominica, Hannah Eboh

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) face high vulnerability to natural hazards. Understanding risk perception in SIDS is an essential step towards reducing vulnerability on these at-risk island states. A case study in the Eastern Caribbean's Commonwealth of Dominica, which has a notable volcanic risk, is used to explore risk perception. Specifically, focus groups were conducted in 18 villages throughout Dominica where participants produced hand-colored maps to show where they believed volcanic risk existed on the island and shared their reasoning behind their maps.

Surveys were administered to all focus group participants to collect necessary socio-demographic information. Subsequently, participant’s hand-drawn maps …

A Method For Determining Damage Within Historic Cemeteries: A First Step For Digital Heritage, Justin E. Malcolm

Honors Undergraduate Theses

While it is true that historic cemeteries are places that contain a wealth of knowledge about the history of a community they are sometimes not well maintained. The information within can be lost as grave-markers are damaged either by natural causes or human interaction. In larger cemeteries preserving these significant places can sometimes be difficult due to a number of different factors. Therefore focusing preservation efforts on specific locations where damage is more likely to occur is crucial to ensure that the monuments that are the most at risk are preserved. One possible way of accomplishing this is through the …

Using Virtual Reality And Photogrammetry To Enrich 3d Object Identity, Cole Juckette, Heather Richards-Rissetto, Hector Eluid Guerra Aldana, Norman Martinez

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

The creation of digital 3D models for cultural heritage is commonplace. With the advent of efficient and cost effective technologies archaeologists are making a plethora of digital assets. This paper evaluates the identity of 3D digital assets and explores how to enhance or expand that identity by integrating photogrammetric models into VR. We propose that when a digital object acquires spatial context from its virtual surroundings, it gains an identity in relation to that virtual space, the same way that embedding the object with metadata gives it a specific identity through its relationship to other information. We explore this concept …

The Gundlach Collection : A Study Of Projectile Points From The Albeni Falls Reservoir, Jeffrey Cortlund Johnson

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

A formerly private collection of projectile points belonging to the Kalispel Tribe of Indians Cultural Resources Program provides stylistic, temporal, and geographic information for sites in the Albeni Falls Reservoir, Idaho. Specifically, there are 462 artifacts from 24 sites based on information derived from the collector’s and tribal archaeologist’s notes. Depositional information is unknown and artifacts are as surface finds. Analyses performed in this study include the morphological and technological dimensions of style, geographic and temporal distribution of artifacts by site, comparative results of obsidian x-ray fluorescence, and high-resolution photography. The results demonstrate the collection as a pragmatic dataset yielding …

Modeling Pre-Settlement Wetlands In Northern Minnesota, Johnathon T. Salfer

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Modern land use has dramatically altered the native landscape across much of Minnesota and the United States. “Manifest Destiny” has ingrained the idea in American society that wetlands and related lands of “low value” need to be tamed and made profitable. In many places, wetlands have been drained and removed so that agriculture can take over. In recent years, people have begun to see the unintended consequences of this method, and importance is now being given to natural wetlands through various government projects and programs. Using National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) data, Drainage Index (DI) values calculated from Soil Survey Geographic …

Cemetery Management In A Gis Framework: A Case Study Of Woodland Hills Memorial Park, Maureen Schmidt

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

his paper aims to examine the potential uses and applications of geospatial technologies for cemetery management. The Woodland Hills Memorial Park in Mankato, Minnesota, was used as a case study. The hard copy, handwritten records of the Woodland Hills Memorial Park were converted to digital formats, and then combined with GPS gathered data using GIS. The traditional method of storing and keeping these records is time consuming, as the curator must hand write all the information into the physical books. The maps of the park are also hand-drawn, which makes their examination and upkeep tedious. By creating digital copies of …

Modeling The In-State Geographic Market Changes Of South Dakota Public University Enrollments, 2006 To 2015, John Green

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The spatial nature of how high school students choose a college has become an integral part of the recruitment process at universities across the country. In South Dakota, the impact of distance on enrollment at state operated institutions influences the geographic footprint of each university. Between 2006 and 2015, the nature of those enrollment numbers and geographic footprints changed within the state, creating enrollment stagnation or decline at state run institutions. This research paper addresses the geographic nature of those enrollment declines, models the college enrollment decision of students in the state, and applies those findings towards potential enrollment projections. …

The Impact Of Data Sovereignty On American Indian Self-Determination: A Framework Proof Of Concept Using Data Science, Joseph Carver Robertson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Data Sovereignty Initiative is a collection of ideas that was designed to create SMART solutions for tribal communities. This concept was to develop a horizontal governance framework to create a strategic act of sovereignty using data science. The core concept of this idea was to present data sovereignty as a way for tribal communities to take ownership of data in order to affect policy and strategic decisions that are data driven in nature. The case studies in this manuscript were developed around statistical theories of spatial statistics, exploratory data analysis, and machine learning. And although these case studies are …

Noise Mapping Of An Educational Environment: A Case Study Of South Dakota State University, Sujan Parajuli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sound is the subjective dimension of what we hear when vibrations reach our ears. Noise, or unwanted sound (mostly human caused), is an objective function of the pressure of those vibrations and is often measured using decibels (dB). Noise is a type of pollution that has both direct and indirect negative impacts on humans, with significant implications for public health plus social, economic, and environmental well-being. Mapping the acoustic landscape (i.e., soundscape) using noise and sound data provides important insights for evaluating, interpreting, understanding, and managing environmental noise. The objectives of this research are threefold; to map the spatial and …

Visual Variables On Mobile Devices : An Empirical Study Of Their Roles In Gaining Spatial Awareness, Andrew Donghyun Kim

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

More people are used to and comfortable using mobile devices compared to traditional paper maps. Multiple studies have suggested that user's spatial awareness tends to decrease as the user passively follows directions on a mobile device with diminished screen size. One way to overcome the shortcoming of the small screen is through displaying discrete off-screen objects (landmarks) located beyond the extent of mobile map displays. The current study empirically examines the effectiveness of using visual variables including size, fuzziness, and transparency to embed distance and direction information in implicit icons of off-screen objects. This study investigates the effectiveness of these …