Community-based production of geographic information using open source software and Web 2.0

This article presents an innovative approach to citizen-led production of Web-based geographic information where new and/or existing digital map features are linked to annotations or commentary and citizens engage in synchronous and/or asynchronous discussion. The article discusses the relationship of the approach to public participation geographic information systems (PPGISs) and the emerging challenges associated with volunteered geographic information. A custom-developed, open source software tool named MapChat is used to facilitate the citizen inputs and discussions. The information generated from applying the approach through a series of community workshops is presented and discussed in light of current issues in PPGIS and volunteered geographic information research.     

OpenGIS参考模型ORM及地理信息服务应用模式

地理信息语义互操作是地理信息共享应用的基础,为解决OpenGIS抽象规范与实施规范在地理信息语义描述上的不足,OGC建立了OpenGIS参考模型(OpenGIS Reference Model,ORM),旨在通过ORM实现地理信息共享与互操作。该文从空间信息应用政策、空间信息语义描述、空间信息服务定义与分类、多网络服务配置、共享开发标准五个层面介绍ORM,并分析基于ORM的地理信息服务应用模式。     

A Local Example of Land-Use Change: Southern Illinois—1807, 1938, and 1993*

Abstract

This article provides an analysis of a wetland site in southern Illinois from presettlement to the present. The study area is part of the Cache River-Cypress Creek Wetland, which has international importance, as recognized by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. Land-cover data for 1807, 1938, and 1993 were created and analyzed with a geographic information system (GIS). Land-use change by topographic setting (uplands, transitional, and bottomlands) and soil productivity was quantified and studied. Interviews with local experts informed this analysis. Results illustrate the complexity of environmental change and its driving forces. First, notable forest and swamp acreage was converted to cropland between 1807 and 1938 and, to a lesser degree, from 1938 to 1993. Second, there were land-use variations by topographic region. Between 1807 and 1938, the largest transformation occurred in the uplands, with substantial acreage converted from forest to cropland. Between 1938 and 1993, however, agriculture decreased in the upland areas as hilly areas reverted to forest cover. At the same time, agriculture expanded in the bottomlands as this land was drained for farming. Third, there are interesting patterns within these categories of land-use change, as soil productivity is an indicator of what lands were taken out of cropland and converted back to grassland and forest.     

OutDet: an algorithm for extracting the outer surfaces of building information models for integration with geographic information systems

The integration of Building Information Modelling (BIM) and geographic information systems (GIS) is a promising but challenging topic to solve problems in construction industry. However, loading and rendering rich BIM geometric data and large-scale GIS spatial information in a unified system is still technologically challenging. Current efforts mainly simplify the geometry in BIM models, or convert BIM geometric data to a lower level of detail (LOD). By noticing that only exterior features of BIM models are visible from outdoor observation points, culling BIM interior facilities can dramatically reduce the computational burden when visualizing BIM models in GIS. This study explores the outline detection problem and presents the OutDet algorithm, which selects representative observation points, transforms & projects the BIM geometric data into the same coordinate system, and detects the visible facilities. Empirical study results show that OutDet can cull a large portion of unnecessary features when rendering BIM models in GIS. The use of outlines of BIM models is not an alternative but rather a supplementary approach for current solutions. Jointly using LOD and outer surface can help improve the efficiency of integrated BIM-GIS visualization.Because OutDet retains BIM geometry and semantics, it can be applied to more BIM-GIS applications..     

Designing spatially cohesive nature reserves with backup coverage

Natural habitats continue to dwindle due to a variety of natural and human-induced stressors. In response, sufficient land must be set aside for conservation to preserve long-term biodiversity. In this paper, we propose a bi-objective optimization model to form spatially cohesive nature reserves by minimizing the distance from habitat patches to the center of their reserve, while simultaneously maximizing the ecological condition of the patches set aside for preservation. Our model can accommodate multiple reserves which, combined with a minimum separation distance requirement, enforces backup coverage to mitigate the possible effects of natural and anthropogenic stressors. The model fully capitalizes on GIS functionalities to extract information on spatial relationships and visualize optimization results. Given the complexity of the separation constraint, we propose a genetic algorithm (GA) and a two-phase heuristic where the GA solves the selection of the reserves, while a solver attempts to optimize the allocation of patches to the selected reserves. The behavior of our model and its sensitivity to the parameters are illustrated on a simulated data set, while its real-world problem-solving capabilities are demonstrated on a case study in New Hampshire. Our model provides an alternative modeling tool for conservation planning, particularly when backup reserves are desired.     

1992-2013年巢湖流域土壤侵蚀动态变化

基于GIS和RS技术,利用修正的通用土壤流失方程（RUSLE）模型,结合遥感影像、DEM数据、土壤类型数据及相关统计确定了模型中参数因子,计算出巢湖流域1992-2013年土壤侵蚀模数,分析了土壤侵蚀强度的时空动态变化特征。结果表明：巢湖流域土壤侵蚀区域主要呈东北至西南方向分布。微度、轻度、中度、强度、极强和剧烈侵蚀占土壤侵蚀总面积百分比分别是93.46%、6.25%、0.68%、0.19%、0.01%、0.01%。1992-2006年土壤侵蚀模数由510.70 t/（km²·a）减少到129.79 t/（km²·a）,降幅为74.59%,同时植被覆盖率由37.0%增至47.80%,土壤侵蚀的面积比例变化明显,轻度、中度、强度、极强和剧烈侵蚀由8.93%、2.33%、1.32%、0.09%、0.05%分别减少为4.74%、1.39%、0.28%、0.02%、0.01%,微度侵蚀由87.88%增加到94.16%。但2013年土壤微度侵蚀又减少为93.46%,土壤微度侵蚀有向高一级转换趋势。2006-2013年土壤侵蚀模数也由129.79 t/（km²·a）增加到149.44 t/（km²·a）,增幅为15.14%。     

A Local Example of Land‐Use Change: Southern Illinois—1807, 1938, and 1993*

This article provides an analysis of a wetland site in southern Illinois from presettlement to the present. The study area is part of the Cache River‐Cypress Creek Wetland, which has international importance, as recognized by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. Land‐cover data for 1807, 1938, and 1993 were created and analyzed with a geographic information system (GIS). Land‐use change by topographic setting (uplands, transitional, and bottomlands) and soil productivity was quantified and studied. Interviews with local experts informed this analysis. Results illustrate the complexity of environmental change and its driving forces. First, notable forest and swamp acreage was converted to cropland between 1807 and 1938 and, to a lesser degree, from 1938 to 1993. Second, there were land‐use variations by topographic region. Between 1807 and 1938, the largest transformation occurred in the uplands, with substantial acreage converted from forest to cropland. Between 1938 and 1993, however, agriculture decreased in the upland areas as hilly areas reverted to forest cover. At the same time, agriculture expanded in the bottomlands as this land was drained for farming. Third, there are interesting patterns within these categories of land‐use change, as soil productivity is an indicator of what lands were taken out of cropland and converted back to grassland and forest.     

Spatial Scale and Population Assignment Choices in Environmental Justice Analyses1

Environmental justice laws protect certain populations against discriminatory actions that may result from a myriad of enterprises, including transportation activities. Previous environmental equity studies examining the effects of transportation‐engendered externalities have been criticized on several points, including (1) that the choice of a reference population for comparison to the criterion variable may influence the outcome of research results and (2) that the selection and use of inappropriate methodologies intended to identify and characterize populations may foreordain research outcomes. This article examines the potentially confounding effects of selected spatial scale and population assignment strategies as applied to a study of excessive noise levels at a large Midwestern airport, finding that reported outcomes can vary significantly as a function of methodological choices.     

Spatial Scale and Population Assignment Choices in Environmental Justice Analyses 1

Abstract

Environmental justice laws protect certain populations against discriminatory actions that may result from a myriad of enterprises, including transportation activities. Previous environmental equity studies examining the effects of transportation-engendered externalities have been criticized on several points, including (1) that the choice of a reference population for comparison to the criterion variable may influence the outcome of research results and (2) that the selection and use of inappropriate methodologies intended to identify and characterize populations may foreordain research outcomes. This article examines the potentially confounding effects of selected spatial scale and population assignment strategies as applied to a study of excessive noise levels at a large Midwestern airport, finding that reported outcomes can vary significantly as a function of methodological choices.     

地理本体及其应用初探

将本体论的思想和方法引入到地理信息领域,提出了本体论在地理信息科学中的确切含义,并阐述了建立地理本体的意义。重点研究了基于本体的地理信息服务,并在对各种本体表示语言进行分析比较之后,选择最有发展前景的OWL语言构建了一些简单的地理本体,用实例说明如何将本体应用到地理信息服务中。     

Developing a GIS-Based Online Survey Instrument to Elicit Perceived Neighborhood Geographies to Address the Uncertain Geographic Context Problem

Although neighborhood factors have been consistently associated with health, technological difficulties in eliciting self-defined neighborhoods from large cohorts have compromised the interpretability of this research. Here, we offer a mixed-methods approach to elicit and validate self-defined neighborhoods. Participants used a customized Google.Maps interface to “draw” their neighborhood and answered questions about perceived map accuracy, neighborhood definition, and neighborhood activities. We compared geographic concordance of drawn and narrative neighborhood definitions, quantified differential accuracy by demographic characteristics, and examined factors influencing neighborhood definitions. We found similar geographic concordance between narrative and mapped boundaries in two cities, with no differences by neighborhood size. Self-reported neighborhoods had greater concordance with larger administrative areas (e.g., police precincts) than for smaller units (e.g., census tracts). To delineate their neighborhood boundaries, participants reported using administrative definitions, walking distance, their familiarity with people and structures, where they spend time, and physical landmarks. In New York City, participants also reported considering sociodemographic characteristics and transportation. Our method demonstrates the feasibility of collecting perceived (egocentric) neighborhoods through online mapping surveys, adaptable to many study settings.     

洞庭湖区钉螺及疫情的空间分布与水环境质量关系

在地理信息系统空间分析模块的支持下,对洞庭湖区钉螺及疫情的空间分布特征及其原因进行了深入探讨,并对两者之间的关系进行了研究;同时,通过对洞庭湖营养状态的评价,对钉螺及疫情分布与水环境质量的关系进行了研究。结果表明:洞庭湖区螺情及疫情呈现出比较复杂的空间分布特征,表现为益阳市南县及其周围地区以及长沙市望城区居民感染率和钉螺感染率均偏低;岳阳市临湘市的居民感染率与钉螺感染率之间、岳阳市湘阴县的居民感染率、耕牛感染率与钉螺感染率之间呈负相关关系;各监测点钉螺分布与疫情分布之间没有显著的相关性;洞庭湖水体的富营养化现象有利于钉螺的生存,一定程度上将加剧疫情的控制难度。     

Spatial analysis of geometric design consistency and road sight distance

Because of the high number of crashes occurring on highways, it is necessary to intensify the search for new tools that help in understanding their causes. This research explores the use of a geographic information system (GIS) for an integrated analysis, taking into account two accident-related factors: design consistency (DC) (based on vehicle speed) and available sight distance (ASD) (based on visibility). Both factors require specific GIS software add-ins, which are explained. Digital terrain models (DTMs), vehicle paths, road centerlines, a speed prediction model, and crash data are integrated in the GIS. The usefulness of this approach has been assessed through a study of more than 500 crashes. From a regularly spaced grid, the terrain (bare ground) has been modeled through a triangulated irregular network (TIN). The length of the roads analyzed is greater than 100 km. Results have shown that DC and ASD could be related to crashes in approximately 4% of cases. In order to illustrate the potential of GIS, two crashes are fully analyzed: a car rollover after running off road on the right side and a rear-end collision of two moving vehicles. Although this procedure uses two software add-ins that are available only for ArcGIS, the study gives a practical demonstration of the suitability of GIS for conducting integrated studies of road safety.     

Vario-scale data structures supporting smooth zoom and progressive transfer of 2D and 3D data

This paper introduces the concept of the smooth topological Generalized Area Partitioning (tGAP) structure represented by a space-scale partition, which we term the space-scale cube. We take the view of ‘map generalization as extrusion of data into an additional dimension’. For 2D objects the resulting vario-scale representation is a 3D structure, while for 3D objects the result is a 4D structure.

This paper provides insights in: (1) creating valid data for the cube and proof that this is always possible for the implemented 2D tGAP generalization operators (line simplification, merge and split/collapse), (2) obtaining a valid 2D polygonal map representation at arbitrary scale from the cube, (3) using the vario-scale structure to provide smooth zoom and progressive transfer between server and client, (4) exploring which other possibilities the cube brings for obtaining maps having non-homogenous scales over their domain (which we term mixed-scale maps), and (5) using the same principles also for higher dimensional data; illustrated with 3D input data represented in a 4D hypercube.

The proposed new structure has very significant advantages over existing multi-scale/multi-representation solutions (in addition to being truly vario-scale): (1) due to tight integration of space and scale, there is guaranteed consistency between scales, (2) it is relatively easy to implement smooth zoom, and (3) compact, object-oriented encoding is provided for a complete scale range.     

格网技术对GIS发展的影响

格网技术作为新一代的Web技术,必将深刻影响GIS的发展。格网计算为数据密集型空间分析提供了资源支持。数据格网为海量空间数据分布式存储、管理、传输、分析提供了一体化的解决方法。格网技术为VRGIS实时场景渲染和海量场景数据存储以及GIS互操作问题的解决提供了一种新思路。格网中的智能体组件动态组装应用软件将对GIS应用开发方式产生重大影响。通过建立空间信息格网可以实现中国GIS产业的跨越式发展。     

Bringing Time Back In: A Study on the Influence of Travel Time Variations and Facility Opening Hours on Individual Accessibility

Although recent studies of individual accessibility have used detailed representations of urban street networks, unrealistic measures of travel time based on assumptions about constant travel speeds through the network were often used. Utilizing constant travel times does not allow for daily congestion and assumes that the effects of congestion are uniform throughout the city and affect all people equally. This research measures individual space‐time accessibility in order to show that the incorporation of locally specific travel times within a street network allows a significant increase in the ability to realistically evaluate individual accessibility within cities. The results show that the accessibility of individuals within cities is not homogenous, and neither does access to employment or shopping opportunities vary according to common expectations about urban form and human behavior. Instead, the role of distance in predicting accessibility variations within cities is quite limited. This article also shows that incorporating time into accessibility measures in the form of congestion and business hours leads to additional (and highly spatially uneven) reductions in accessibility, revealing that the temporal dimension is very important to accurately assessing individual accessibility.     

Bringing Time Back In: A Study on the Influence of Travel Time Variations and Facility Opening Hours on Individual Accessibility

Although recent studies of individual accessibility have used detailed representations of urban street networks, unrealistic measures of travel time based on assumptions about constant travel speeds through the network were often used. Utilizing constant travel times does not allow for daily congestion and assumes that the effects of congestion are uniform throughout the city and affect all people equally. This research measures individual space-time accessibility in order to show that the incorporation of locally specific travel times within a street network allows a significant increase in the ability to realistically evaluate individual accessibility within cities. The results show that the accessibility of individuals within cities is not homogenous, and neither does access to employment or shopping opportunities vary according to common expectations about urban form and human behavior. Instead, the role of distance in predicting accessibility variations within cities is quite limited. This article also shows that incorporating time into accessibility measures in the form of congestion and business hours leads to additional (and highly spatially uneven) reductions in accessibility, revealing that the temporal dimension is very important to accurately assessing individual accessibility.     

Characterization of neighborhood sensitivity of an irregular cellular automata model of urban growth

The neighborhood definition, which determines the influence on a cell from its nearby cells within a localized region, plays a critical role in the performance of a cellular automaton (CA) model. Raster CA models use a cellular grid to represent geographic space, and are sensitive to the cell size and neighborhood configuration. However, the sensitivity of vector-based CAs, an alternative to the raster-based counterpart, to neighborhood type and size remains uninvestigated. The present article reports the results of a detailed sensitivity analysis of an irregular CA model of urban land use dynamics. The model uses parcel data at the cadastral scale to represent geographic space, and was implemented to simulate urban growth in Central Texas, USA. Thirty neighborhood configurations defined by types and sizes were considered in order to examine the variability in the model outcome. Results from accuracy assessments and landscape metrics confirmed the model’s sensitivity to neighborhood configurations. Furthermore, the centroid intercepted neighborhood with a buffer of 120 m produced the most accurate simulation result. This neighborhood produced scattered development while the centroid extent-wide neighborhood resulted in a clustered development predominantly near the city center.