Crowd Simulation

Geography

Paul M. Torrens, an Associate Professor in Geography at Arizone State University is using artificial intelligence to model crowd behavior in order to help architects and public safety officials. Torrens has developed geosimulation software that uses avatars that can individually plan their own route and respond to external stimulus such as the jostling of ... read more

Museum of Online Museums

Geography

The Museum of Online Museums houses links not only to the virtual versions of well known museums from around the world but also a growing collection of offbeat and downright odd online collections. Of note is the collection of “Airline Spoons of the World” and the “Penny Postcard Archive“.

Visit the Museum of Online Museums

African Data

Data

Data sources, both commercial and free, in GIS format covering the continent of Africa. Find cadastral, environmental and cultural data. Africa Data Dissemination Service Land use and base GIS data. Africover Land cover and agricultural data for 10 nations in eastern Africa from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations. Safari 2000 Project Environmental and elevation data ... read more

Dotting the Dot Map

Cartography

If you’ve ever been curious about how to precisely size your dot density map, this PDF presentation by A. Jon Kimmerling of Oregon State University provides a detailed and mathematical approach to calculating the most appropriate size when creating a dot density map.

Dotting the Dot Map, Revisited – A. Jon Kimmerling

MapIconFactory 1.0

Internet Mapping

Now available in the open source utility library, MapIconFactory v1.0 enables you to more easily create variably sized and colored markers for your Google Maps mashup. This post over at the Official Google Maps API blog has more information including their Google Maps Election demo.

Geographic Information System Blogs – GeoBlogs

Link Library

Listed here are select GIS, cartography, and mapping related blogs. A Reader’s Buide to Geoblogs Adena Schutzberg from Directions Magazine provides a helpful roundup of the must read GIS related blogs. With the multitude of geospatial blogs out there, this guide helps narrow down the top blogs based on your interests. All Things Geography Encompassing blog for ... read more

State Plane Coordinate System

Features, Projection and Coordinate Systems

If you’ve ever worked with GIS data regionally within the United States you’ve probably come across the State Plane Coordinate System. What is the State Plane Coordinate System? The State Plane Coordinate System (SPCS) is not a projection; rather it is a system for specifying positions of geodetic stations using plane rectangular coordinates. This coordinate system that ... read more

ArcGIS 9.2 Service Pack 5 is Now Available

Software

The latest Service Pack for ArcGIS is now available.  ESRI had announced earlier this month that ArcGIS 9.2 Service Pack 5 would be available for download by the end of March.    Also available is a PDF that lists and describes “What’s New in ArcGIS 9.2 Service Packs.”

Planning to avoid bullets

Geography

The Los Angeles Times has an interesting article about the growing integration of safety elements into buildings and community areas in order to protect residents living in high gang and crime ridden areas from gun shots.  Examples included are a senior center built 30 feet above the street level (including an aboveground courtyard) and a dirt ... read more

Tipping Elements in Climate Warming

Geography

Forbes has an article with a round-up of the earth systems considered by scientists to having tipping points considered a danger to global climate systems.  The tipping points were extracted from an article entitled “Tipping Elements in the Earth’s Climate System,” published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.  Tipping Elements A Global Warning ... read more