An initial formal model for spatial data infrastructures

The Commission on Spatial Data Standards of the International Cartographic Association is working to define formal models and technical characteristics of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI). To date, this work has been restricted to the Enterprise and Information Viewpoints from the ISO Reference Model for Open Distributed Processing standard. The Commission has developed models for these two viewpoints. These models describe how the different parts of an SDI fit together in the viewpoints in question. These models should be seen as a contribution towards the overall model of the SDI and its technical characteristics. During the model development process, the roles of the different Actors in an SDI in the Enterprise and Information Viewpoints have also been identified in Use Case diagrams of an SDI. All the models have been developed using the Unified Modeling Language.     

Spatial data infrastructures as complex adaptive systems

Many researchers throughout the world have been struggling to better understand and describe spatial data infrastructures (SDIs). Our knowledge of the real forces and mechanisms behind SDIs is still very limited. The reason for this difficulty might lie in the complex, dynamic and multifaceted nature of SDIs. To evaluate the functioning and effects of SDIs we must have a proper theory and understanding of their nature. This article describes a new approach to understanding SDIs by looking at them through the lens of complex adaptive systems (CASs). CASs are frequently described by the following features and behaviours: complexity, components, self-organization, openness, unpredictability, nonlinearity and adaptability, scale-independence, existence of feedback loop mechanism and sensitivity to initial conditions. In this article both CAS and SDI features are presented, examined and compared using three National SDI case studies from the Netherlands, Australia and Poland. These three National SDIs were carefully analysed to identify CAS features and behaviours. In addition, an Internet survey of SDI experts was carried out to gauge the degree to which they consider SDIs and CASs to be similar. This explorative study provides evidence that to a certain extent SDIs can be viewed as CASs because they have many features in common and behave in a similar way. Studying SDIs as CASs has significant implications for our understanding of SDIs. It will help us to identify and better understand the key factors and conditions for SDI functioning. Assuming that SDIs behave much like CASs, this also has implications for their assessment: assessment techniques typical for linear and predictable systems may not be valid for complex and adaptive systems. This implies that future studies on the development of an SDI assessment framework must consider the complex and adaptive nature of SDIs.     

Investigating the system dynamics technique for the modeling and simulation of the development of spatial data infrastructures

Spatial data infrastructure (SDI) is a complex system for which huge investments are being made worldwide. These large-scale investments in the development of SDIs incontrovertibly require reliable design and planning that guarantee a successful outcome. One approach to deal with such an expectation is to model the development process of the SDI system over time. If the model can be translated into the computer-based environment to be used as a virtual world, then the real situation can also be simulated. Such a simulation will enable the SDI coordinators/managers to gain knowledge about the behavior of the system under different decisions and situations and eventually help them to better develop the SDI through the informed decision making. However, a limited number of tools and techniques are currently available in the SDI modeling history in terms of the modeling and simulation of such a complex system. The system dynamics technique based on systems theory is a method for modeling and managing the feedback systems that are complex, dynamic and nonlinear over time. This article addresses the applicability of the system dynamics technique for modeling and simulating the development process of SDIs. It is argued that the system dynamics technique is capable of modeling the interactions among the factors affecting the SDI, the feedback loops and the delays. It is also highlighted that an SDI model based on the system dynamics technique enables the SDI coordinators/managers to simulate the effect of different factors or decisions on various aspects of SDI and evaluate alternative decisions and/or policies prior to making any commitment.     

A semantic registry using a Feature Type Catalogue instead of ontologies to support spatial data infrastructures

The use of a semantically rich registry containing a Feature Type Catalogue (FTC) to represent the semantics of geographic feature types including operations, attributes and relationships between feature types is required to realise the benefits of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDIs). Specifically, such information provides a more complete representation of the semantics of the concepts used in the SDI, and enables advanced navigation, discovery and utilisation of discovered resources. The presented approach creates an FTC implementation in which attributes, associations and operations for a given feature type are encapsulated within the FTC, and these conceptual representations are separated from the implementation aspects of the web services that may realise the operations in the FTC. This differs from previous approaches that combine the implementation and conceptual aspects of behaviour in a web service ontology, but separate the behavioural aspects from the static aspects of the semantics of the concept or feature type. These principles are demonstrated by the implementation of such a registry using open standards. The ebXML Registry Information Model (ebRIM) was used to incorporate the FTC described in ISO 19110 by extending the Open Geospatial Consortium ebRIM Profile for the Web Catalogue Service (CSW) and adding a number of stored queries to allow the FTC component of the standards‐compliant registry to be interrogated. The registry was populated with feature types from the marine domain, incorporating objects that conform to both the object and field views of the world. The implemented registry demonstrates the benefits of inheritance of feature type operations, attributes and associations, the ability to navigate around the FTC and the advantages of separating the conceptual from the implementation aspects of the FTC. Further work is required to formalise the model and include axioms to allow enhanced semantic expressiveness and the development of reasoning capabilities.     

The reserves of extracted resources: Historical data

The available data on known reserves of extracted resources have not previously been tabulated and graphed. In this article we compile the reserves data in one place for the first time. This serves to (1) show the trends in the reserves series, (2) make the series available to others, and (3) place the reserves data in the context of price data for which longer series have been available, and with which they can now be seen to be consistent in both showing increasing availability rather than increasing scarcity.     

Landscape diversity in the Russian part of the Lesser Khingan

Three key types of natural-territorial complexes (NTCs) ensuring geosystem stability are identified on the basis of assessing landscape diversity in the Russian part of the Lesser Khingan. Landscape representativity for special protected natural territories of the Lesser Khingan is outlined. A need to increase the protected area of taiga landscapes is revealed.     

Integrating GIS and spatial data analysis: problems and possibilities

Abstract

This article is an agreed summary of a workshop held in Sheffield between 18-20 March 1991. The focus here is on three of the themes of the workshop: the mutual benefits of closer links between geographical information systems (GIS) and the methods of spatial data analysis (SDA); the specific areas of SDA that should be linked with GIS; how the linkage should be made in practice. Directions for future research are also reviewed. The emphasis throughout is on statistical SDA and principally from the perspective of human rather than physical geography.     

空间数据分析与空间模型

虽然GIS已在各个领域得到广泛应用,但它相对较弱的空间分析功能正在限制其应用的广度和深度。文中系统论述了空间数据的基本特征,GIS中空间数据分析的基本需求,空间统计分析,空间数据探索分析以及空间模型,探讨了GIS与空间模型结合的必要性,结合途径以及结合中的问题与对策。     

空间信息分析技术

在GIS技术日趋成熟和空间数据极大丰富的今天,通过分析空间数据探索空间过程机理正变得日益迫切。空间信息分析技术至少包括以下六个主要方面:(1)空间数据获取和预处理;(2)属性数据空间化和空间尺度转换;(3)空间信息探索分析;(4)地统计;(5)格数据分析;(6)复杂信息反演和预报。本文提出了解决具体应用问题一般的空间数据分析计算、结果解释和反馈程序。认为空间过程的一般共性和作为共同的研究对象,各种不同的方法技术最终可能导致空间数学(spatialmathematics)的产生,同时发展鲁棒的空间分析软件包对于普及空间数学是必要的。     

A data model and algorithms for a spatial data marketplace

A data marketplace is a platform that facilitates online data trading. It gives sellers the capabilities of publishing data, defining the price function, the authorization rules and the data contract. It gives customers the capabilities to search for data services, to query for their price, to invoke them and to pay for the usage. As data are more and more emphasized as a payable asset, the need for data marketplaces rises. There is a lack of marketplace proposals for spatial data. This paper contributes to fill-in this gap. We propose a data model for representing the different types of data involved. The logical representation of data is a quadtree, and the physical representation fits into a key-value store. The model is thus logically simple and extensible, and physically scalable and highly available. We discuss price queries in detail and propose evaluation algorithms.     

气象要素空间插值方法优化

在区域水土平衡模型的研究中 ,空间插值可提供每个计算栅格的气象要素资料。本文运用反距离加权法 (IDW )和梯度距离反比法 (GIDW ) ,对 196 1～ 2 0 0 0年甘肃省及其周围85个气象站点的多年平均温度与降雨量进行了内插。交叉验证结果表明 :对于IDW和GIDW ,二者温度插值的平均绝对误差 (MAE)分别为 2 2 8℃和 0 73℃ ,平均相对误差(MRE)分别为 2 9 0 2 %和 9 4 1% ,降雨插值的MAE值依次为 5 5 2mm和 4 90mm ,MRE值分别为 19 4 3%和 17 80 % ,GIDW明显优于IDW。需要指出的是 :对于降雨 ,当其经纬度和海拔高程的复相关系数大于 0 80时 ,GIDW插值结果优于IDW ;否则相反     

职业教育资源分布影响因素及空间均衡性研究

厘清中、高等职业教育资源分布及其影响因素是完善中国职业教育体系、推动职业教育区域均衡发展的重要命题。本文针对县域尺度上职业教育资源空间分布特征及影响因素认识的不足,收集制备了县域尺度多要素匹配数据集,解析了2000—2020年间中国中等与高等职业教育资源的空间分布特征及其与经济社会发展指标的关系,进而从分布均衡性、产业匹配的角度诊断了中国职业教育资源的布局优化方向,提炼了优化发展建议。研究表明,中国中等与高等职业教育资源在不同空间尺度上均呈现以“胡焕庸线”为界东密西疏的分布格局。从影响因素差异上看,15岁以下人口占比和二、三产企业数量分别对中职、高职院校规模起到积极正影响。同时,中职教育资源分布显示出普遍性、下沉性及西部欠均衡的特征,而高职教育资源则表现出地级市内部区县间差异占主导,东部地区均衡性弱的特征。因此,研究建议根据地方与周边经济发展、产业和人才需求,优化分级、分类职业教育资源的配置。东部地区合理调控市域间高职院校资源配置,西部地区加大均衡性较差区县的中职教育资源投入,实现跨区协同合作;构建依托高职院校资源聚集的市域,带动周边县域专业相衔接的中职院校发展,持续提升其社会认可度,助力乡村振兴与新型城镇化建设。     

The space-time cube as part of a GeoVisual analytics environment to support the understanding of movement data

This paper reports the results of an empirical usability experiment on the performance of the space-time cube in a GeoVisual analytics environment. It was developed to explore movement data based on the requirements of human geographers. The interactive environment consists of multiple coordinated views incorporating three graphical representations. For the experiment, two groups of the user, domain experts and non-domain experts, had to execute several map-use tasks to answers specific question. The data collected during the experiment were analysis resulting in a set of usability metrics related to the effectiveness, efficiency and user satisfaction of developed application. The comparison of both groups showed that domain experts were able to operate the visual analytical environment more effectively and efficiently due to their interest to explore their data. The user feedback derived from the analysis of both experiments was further processed for the improvement of the application.     

Developing geographic information infrastructures: the role of access policies

Within societies, information availability is a key issue affecting society's well‐being. For geographic information, a geographic information infrastructure (GII) facilitates availability and access to geographic information for all levels of government, the commercial sector, the non‐profit sector, academia, and ordinary citizens. Although the importance of access policies in the development of a GII is commonly understood, research that has assessed the impact of access policies on this development is scant. This article adds this perspective. Based on information acquired from case‐study and literature research, the author argues that open‐access policies do not always promote GII development and in specific instances are counter‐productive. These findings may explain why many nations still adhere to cost‐recovery policies instead of following access policies recommended by research. The article provides alternatives for changing current policies into new access policies that promote GII development.     

Incremental infrastructures: material improvisation and social collaboration across post-colonial Accra

Approaching the informal construction and extension of infrastructures through the terrain of what I term “the incremental” opens up new platforms of analysis for post-colonial urban systems. This refers to ad hoc actions on the part of slum dwellers to connect to energy networks or carve out informal living spaces. I argue that incrementalism is produced and subsequently secured and scaled through material configurations that seek to test and prefigure new forms of infrastructure and accompanying resource flows. I use a case study of energy and housing systems in a low-income neighborhood in Accra to define and examine these incremental infrastructures. I examine shifts in the Accra energy network as urban dwellers rework connections to flows of electricity. I also consider the material adjustment of housing and the role of cooperation in responding to threats of demolition and displacement. Together, incremental infrastructures and the ways that they are constituted articulate a prefigurative politics in which residents seek to generate access to new infrastructural worlds.