Date archive for October, 2007
| October 23, 2007Educational GIS SurveyEducationAn invitation to participate in a survey on the establishment of a new GIS related Distance Learning degree program: California University of Pennsylvania is developing an online Master’s of Geography and Regional Planning degree. As we consider how best to structure the program, we believe feedback from professionals in the field will prove valuable in developing ... read more This American Life on MappingMapsThe radio show This American Life devoted last week’s broadcast to mapping (rebroadcast from September 4, 1998). The broadcast focuses not only on traditional mapping but also looks at mapping uses the other senses of smell, sound, touch, and taste. The first section of the broadcast profiles Denis Wood who is the ... read more Using GPS to help preserve the AmazonGPSWired Magazine has an interesting article on the use of GPS by Amazonian tribes to help survey the Amazon. The organization Amazon Conservation Team is helping to protect tribal lands by providing equipment, training and funds to help map out tribal lands in an effort to protect them from exploitation by developers, loggers and other ... read more October 22, 2007Southern California WildfiresInternet MappingWith multiple fires raging across the Southern California region, local newspapers have adopted mapping technology to help illustrate the extension of the disaster. The Santa Clarita Daily News has a Google Map embedded on their site showing fire locations, mandatory evacuations and evacuation centers for areas within the Santa Clarita Valley. The Los Angeles Times has a ... read more October 20, 2007Birth of an icebergGeographyThe European Space Agency has a web page animation of imagery from Envisat’s Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) instrument, that shows the breaking away of a giant iceberg from the Pine Island Glacier in West Antarctica. The newly formed iceberg covers an area of 34 km in length by 20 km in width. The animation highlights the ... read more October 19, 2007East Sea still not widely used on mapsGeographyMatt from the About Geography site recently reintroduced the question of “should geographers and cartographers change the name of the Sea of Japan to the East Sea in deference to Korean sensibilities?” Since 2002, Korea has been campaigning to officially change the name from Sea of Japan to the East Sea. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) originally called ... read more Podcasts from the USGSGeographyWith the tagline, “It’s natural science from the inside out”, the USGS has made available a series of podcasts they are calling Corecasts. Each podcasts is relatively short (ranging from two to fifteen minutes in length) and addresses a range of topics such as “When is an Earthquake not an Earthquake?”, “Polar Bear Research”, and ... read more New Geological Mapping Standards for the USGSCartographyThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Association of American State Geologists (AASG) have announced the creation of new geologic time scale and color schemes for use in creating geologic maps of the United States. A PDF, entitled “Divisions of Geologic Time—Major Chronostratigraphic and Geochronologic Units” can be downloaded from the USGS site. Additionally, in a ... read more October 18, 2007 New GPS satellite launchedGPSA new, $75 million satellite was launched yesterday as part of a series of eight launches to improve the GPS network. According to the web site Spaceflight Now, “The modernized satellites transmit additional signals and feature improvements aimed at greater accuracy, tougher resistance to interference and enhanced performance for users around the world. The new ... read more October 16, 2007How long will the North Pole ice cap last?GeographyPen Hadow of Vanco Artic Survey hopes to answer that question with the most detailed survey ever of the Arctic ice thickness at the North Pole. Starting next February 2008, a team of scientists and explorers will undertake a 120 -day, 3,200 mile journey to cross the ice cap. The team will start in Point Barrow, Alaska ... read more |
