Watermarking of digital geospatial datasets: a review of technical,legal and copyright issues

Gathering data accounts for more than 80% of the cost of any GIS project. Fast Internet connections and digital datasets threaten the investments of data producers through data piracy. Outside the GIS community this problem has been known for a long time, and possible solutions exist for digital imagery, formatted text, 3D meshes and so on, showing possible links to typical spatial data. This is largely achieved through embedding hidden information in a dataset without producing perceptible changes in the data, a process known as watermarking. The producer can recover the embedded information on request in order to produce evidence of ownership in a court, so the overall strategy relies on a legal basis rather than technical ones. This paper analyses the state-of-the-art for watermarking protection in digital geographical datasets. Digital imagery is demonstrably a more mature area than geographical information, even with multiple commercial vendors offering watermarking protection. 2D vector and point datasets have received less attention from the research community; however, 3D meshes have been considered by the CAD community and a handful of techniques are available for that case, and they are reviewed here.     

A spatially explicit methodology for a priori estimation of field survey effort in environmental observation networks

When establishing environmental monitoring programmes, it crucial to make reliable cost estimates, especially where a field survey is involved. This paper presents a methodology for creating a spatial measure of a field survey effort (SE). A set of relevant variables affecting a SE (e.g. areas with rough terrain, or distant from the main road network) was classified using fuzzy sets and then combined to produce spatially explicit effort indicators, which were integrated to a single measure using an analytic hierarchy process (AHP). To evaluate this approach and identify the limits for its application, three spatially nested case studies were used to test the spatial expression of SE and the scalable capacity of the method itself. The presented methodology could cope with variations in the scale and data resolution, retrieving a coherent estimate of SE across the different case studies. The presented methodology is therefore useful for (i) testing the network designs for sampling bias related to SE, (ii) comparing alternative sampling designs, (iii) assessing the sampling costs and (iv) supporting the human and logistical resource management.     

Similarity measures of conditional intensity functions to test separability in multidimensional point processes

Separability in the context of multidimensional point processes assumes a multiplicative form for the conditional intensity function. This hypothesis is especially convenient since each component of a separable process may be modeled and estimated individually, and this greatly facilitates model building, fitting, and assessment. This is also related to the problem of reduction in the number of dimensions. Following previous approximations to this problem, we focus on the conditional intensity function, by considering nonparametric kernel-based estimators. Our approach calculates thinning probabilities under the conditions of separability and nonseparability and compares them through divergence measures. Based on Monte Carlo experiments, we approximate the statistical properties of our tests under a variety of practical scenarios. An application on modeling the spatio-temporal first-order intensity of forest fires is also developed.     

Geophysical-Archaeological Survey in Lake Tequesquitengo,Morelos, Mexico

In August 2009, a marine geophysical survey was conducted in Lake Tequesquitengo (located in the state of Morelos, Mexico) to delineate the extent of the remains of a small town that has been submerged since the mid 19th century. The survey consists of the acquisition and mapping of magnetic, single beam bathymetric and side-scan sonar data. A dual receiver marine GPS navigation system was used to position the boat during the survey. Except for the larger structural remains that are visible on the side scan sonar images, the magnetic anomaly map proved to be most useful in delineating the extent of the town. These anomalies exhibit short wavelength components in the area surrounding a submerged church, with the shortest wavelength components being confined to the area immediately east of the church. These short wavelength components are only observed near the church; therefore, we propose that they delineate the buried remnants of the submerged town.     

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Abstract

This paper investigates for a 25-year period the sediment distribution in a semi-arid Brazilian basin (2 × 10⁴ km²) with a network containing more than 4000 surface reservoirs. The methodology is based on rating curves and fitted parameters derived from field data. The results showed that suspended load corresponded to 70% of the total sediment yield (148 t km^-2 year^-1). The relatively low contribution of the suspended load (compared with other semi-arid regions) was attributed to the impact of the numerous upstream reservoirs, which retained 235 t km^-2 year^-1. The micro (<1 hm³), small (1–10 hm³), medium-sized (10–50 hm³), and large or strategic (>50 hm³) reservoirs responded to, respectively, 5, 17, 30 and 48% of the total sediment retention by the reservoir network. This indicates that retention in the non-strategic reservoirs has a positive impact on water availability, since siltation of the strategic reservoirs would be expected to more than double if only such reservoirs existed.

Citation Lima Neto, I. E., Wiegand, M. C. &; de Araújo, J. C. (2011) Sediment redistribution due to a dense reservoir network in a large semi-arid Brazilian basin. Hydrol. Sci. J. 56(2), 319–333.     

The use of radon as tracer in environmental sciences

Radon can be used as a naturally occurring tracer for environmental processes. By means of grab-sampling or continuous monitoring of radon concentration, it is possible to assess several types of dynamic phenomena in air and water. We present a review of the use of radon and its progeny at the University of Cantabria. Radon can be an atmospheric dynamics indicator related with air mass interchange near land-sea discontinuities as well as for the study of vertical variations of air parameters (average values of different types of stability: 131–580 Bq m^?3). Concerning indoor gas, we present some results obtained at Altamira Cave (Spain): from 222 to 6549 Bq m^?3 (Hall) and from 999 to 6697 Bq m^?3 (Paintings Room). Finally, variations of radon concentration in soil (0.3 to 9.1 kBq m^?3) and underground water (values up to 500 Bq l^?1) provide relevant information about different geophysical phenomena.     

Projections of severe droughts in future climate in Southeast Brazil: a case study in Southern Minas Gerais State,Brazil

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - South of Minas Gerais state, in Southeast Brazil, is known for the coffee crop production (more than 30% of country’s production) and hydroelectricity...     

The 2011 submarine volcanic eruption in El Hierro (Canary Islands)

Forty years after the Teneguía Volcano (La Palma, 1971), a submarine eruption took place off the town of La Restinga, south of El Hierro, the smallest and youngest island of the Canarian Archipelago. Precursors allowed an early detection of the event and its approximate location, suggesting it was submarine. Uncertainties derived from insufficient scientific information available to the authorities during the eruption, leading to disproportionate civil protection measures, which had an impact on the island's economy—based primarily on tourism—while residents experienced extra fear and distress.     

Identification and isotopic studies of early Cambrian magmatism (El Carancho Igneous Complex) at the boundary between Pampia terrane and the Río de la Plata craton,La Pampa province,Argentina

We have identified late Early Cambrian metaigneous rocks very poorly exposed at the Estancia El Carancho, in central La Pampa province, Argentina. They comprise calc–alkaline metadiorite and metagranite, and tholeiitic metapyroxenite and metagabbro. They are jointly referred to as the El Carancho Igneous Complex, and regarded to pertain to the Pampean magmatic arc and backarc, respectively. Titanite U–Pb SHRIMP dating of the metapyroxenite yielded 528 ± 5 Ma, and zircon U–Pb SHRIMP dating of the metadiorite yielded 520 ± 1.4 Ma. Hafnium isotope determinations on the dated zircons show ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf ratios corresponding to positive εHf values from + 7.18 to + 9.37; Hf model ages of the Cambrian zircons yielded 884 Ma. It is interpreted that the metadiorites of the Complex crystallized from an Early Neoproterozoic (Tonian) juvenile source. We argue that the inferred occurrence of juvenile Tonian magmatic rocks in the (otherwise, mostly Paleo-Mesoproterozoic) substratum of the southern Pampia terrane could indicate a zone of thinned basement possibly associated with the early stage of Rodinia's breakup. In addition, the studied segment of the Pampean magmatic arc is contaminated by also juvenile, Late Mesoproterozoic crust, as evidenced by the presence of xenocrystic cores of 1140–1194 Ma – T_DM-Hf 1720 Ma and εHf values of + 3.24 to + 4.85 – in the Cambrian zircons, hence suggesting that the studied segment of the Pampean magmatic arc was intruded into juvenile Late Mesoproterozoic magmatic arc rocks. The El Carancho Igneous Complex would be located at the tectonic boundary between the Pampia terrane and the Río de la Plata craton. This boundary stands out in the aeromagnetic data as a change in the structural orientation about a roughly N-S line located approximately at 65° W and representing the suture zone between the Pampia terrane and the Río de la Plata craton. Our geotectonic model envisages westward dipping subduction of oceanic crust beneath the Pampia terrane; the El Carancho Igneous Complex would, therefore, have been originated on the Pampia side (upper plate) of the suture. Slivers of the arc- and backarc-type rocks would have been tectonically imbricated in the suture zone during the Pampean orogeny.