Racism and Intolerance in Eastern Australia: a geographic perspective

Racism has become a fact of life in Australia over the past decade or so, yet there are relatively few studies of its nature or extent, and still fewer on its geography. Using a social constructivist approach, this study draws on a survey of 5056 respondents to investigate attitudes to racism and cultural diversity in New South Wales and Queensland, and of perceptions of out-groups as instances of ‘strangers in our midst’. On racism, results show the presence of a continuum of attitudes ranging from generally tolerant to generally intolerant, a presence which cuts across compositional (social or aspatial) characteristics to emphasise the existence of a distinctive geography, an everywhere different nature to racist and non-racist attitudes which transcends urban–rural and traditional social layers. On the other hand, perceptions of out-groups are not uniformly correlated with presence or absence of cultural diversity. In many cases, the ability to make judgements about significant ‘others’ or out-groups has been shown to relate more to abstract notions of self and national identity, reproduced in public by mainstream news media and political leaders. In particular, it may reflect an Anglo (or Anglo-Celtic) view on nationalism, which is a hallmark of the ‘new racism’: an assimilationist or ethnocultural view of Australian society which is different from the ‘civic nation’ ideal envisaged by multiculturalism. That the geography of attitudes and perceptions people have towards and about different cultural groups is so ‘everywhere different’ has important implications for attempts to address and redress issues of intolerance in Australia.     

SOCIAL RELATIONS SPATIALLY FIXED: CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN SAN ANTONIO,TEXAS

ABSTRACT. More than 140 court cases filed in the United States between 1970 and 2003 argued that unacceptable and unconstitutional funding disparities exist among school districts in most states. In those arguments, stories, statistics, and maps are used to compare various school districts to prove that conditions are indeed unequal. Both sides—plaintiff and defendant—use such information to disprove each other's contentions. In so doing, each assumes that the political spaces of the school districts are absolute, timeless, and independent. Failure to recognize that these spaces—the school districts—are not objective but, in fact, constitutive of the class and race relations actually being argued and debated in court further legitimates local geographies of privilege and deprivation. I examine the formation of the school districts around San Antonio, Texas to illustrate that these districts are far from independent of one another and were formed to isolate privileged communities from the rest of the city. A relational view of space‐time allows such spaces as school districts to assume a political role, as opposed to the absolute, independent spaces they now represent.     

Driving forces of tropical deforestation: The role of remote sensing and spatial models

Remote sensing technologies are increasingly used to monitor landscape change in many parts of the world. While the availability of extensive and timely imagery from various satellite sensors can aid in identifying the rates and patterns of deforestation, modelling techniques can evaluate the socioeconomic and biophysical forces driving deforestation processes. This paper briefly reviews some emerging spatial methodologies aimed at identifying driving forces of land use change and applies one such methodology to understand deforestation in Mexico. Satellite image classification, change analysis and econometric modelling are used to identify the rates, hotspots and drivers of deforestation in a case study of the southern Yucatán peninsular region, an enumerated global hotspot of biodiversity and tropical deforestation. In particular, the relative roles of biophysical and socioeconomic factors in driving regional deforestation rates are evaluated. Such methodological approaches can be applied to other regions of the forested tropics and contribute insights to conservation planning and policy.     

Towards a method for postcolonial development geography? Possibilities and challenges

In this paper we explore the contours of a 'method' for postcolonial development geography, which makes it possible to imagine another 'world-picturing'. We suggest three steps towards such a method. First, we propose that a postcolonial method involves thinking about why we are doing research in the south in the first place; how we come to and produce our questions; and how we analyze and represent our findings based on our subject positionings. Second, that we need to recognize theorization as an inherent part of method, rethink how we currently theorize and reconfigure our methods of theorization to address wider political aims. Problematizing theorization helps challenge the universalism of Eurocentric theories, thus enabling development geography to move towards more decolonized versions and visions. Finally, that this must be accompanied by firmer recognition of our multiple investments – personal, institutional and geopolitical – and how they frame the possibilities for change. These are some possible steps that we think can reconfigure the 'scholarly track' that postcolonial development geographers traverse.     

Potential of High-Resolution Satellite Data in the Context of Vulnerability of Buildings

High-resolution space-borne remote sensing data are investigated for their potential to extract relevant parameters for a vulnerability analysis of buildings in European countries. For an evaluation of large earthquake scenarios, the number of parameters in models for vulnerability is reduced to a minimum of relevant information such as the type of building (age, material, number of storeys) and the geological and spatial context. Building-related parameters can be derived from remote sensing data either directly (e.g. height) or indirectly based on the recognition of the urban structure type in which the buildings are located. With the potential of a fully- or semi-automatic inventory of the buildings and their parameters, high-resolution satellite data and techniques for their processing are a useful supporting tool for the assessment of vulnerability.     

基于遥感技术的中国北方沙漠及沙质荒漠化土地区划研究

根据影响沙漠、沙质荒漠化土地的地质地貌、植被、气候和人类活动等特征,通过确定地域分异、发生学、多级序列等区划原则,建立了以地质地貌类型组合、气候为沙漠、沙质荒漠化土地区(Ⅰ级区)划分和以沙质荒漠化土地类型空间分布特征为沙漠、沙质荒漠化土地亚区(Ⅱ级区)划分的指标体系。采用遥感方法,将中国北方沙漠、沙质荒漠化土地划分为贺兰山以西干旱沙漠、沙质荒漠化区;贺兰山-大兴安岭干旱、半干旱沙漠、沙质荒漠化区和大兴安岭以东半干旱、半湿润沙质荒漠化区等3个区和17个亚区。并对沙漠、沙质荒漠化土地区进行了现状分析。     

遥感技术在煤炭地质中的应用现状及前景

介绍了遥感技术在煤炭资源调查和评价、煤矿区地质灾害调查和评估、生态环境及污染调查评价和监测以及煤矿三维可视化仿真规划系统建设方面的应用研究现状及所取得的主要成果，并结合遥感技术的发展方向，展望了其在煤炭地质中的应用前景。     

SPOT5影像严格几何纠正方法研究

根据SPOT卫星的成像原理和特点,讨论了对SPOT5卫星影像按共线方程法进行有控制点的几何纠正的方法,经对关中、陕北和陕南三种地形的影像纠正结果进行对比检验,证明了该方法精度达到了较高水平。     

遥控飞艇数字航空摄影系统

提出快速获得航空影像并及时制作DOM、DLG的一种手段.介绍遥控飞艇数字摄影系统的工作原理,探讨存在的问题.     

基于高光谱卫星遥感数据的UPDM分析方法

提出了一种用于处理多高光谱卫星数据的UPDM分析方法。研究结果证明．该方法应用干Landsat／TM(ETM^-)、Terra／MODIS和ADEOS—II／GLI等高光谱卫星传感器时．光谱重构均方根误差小于0．029适用于研究高光谱卫星遥感数据。