Visual characterization technique for gravel‐cobble river bed surface sediments; validation and environmental applications Contribution to the programme of CIRSA (Centre Interuniversitaire de Recherche sur le Saumon Atlantique)

This paper presents an evaluation of the feasibility and the reliability of a visual characterization technique for gravel–cobble river bed surface substrate. Based on principal axis regressions, using phi scale (ϕ), comparisons of visual estimation and grid sampling techniques show that useful predictive relations (R² = 0·78–0·88) exist between visual estimates of the surface d₁₆, d₅₀ and d₈₄ and estimates obtained for the same percentiles with the grid sampling technique. Comparisons of visual estimation and the surface‐bulk sampling technique also indicate a predictive relation (R² = 0·70) between the d₅₀ of the two methods. Trained operators can visually estimate gravel–cobble bed surface d₁₆ to uncertainties of 41 per cent, d₅₀ to 15 per cent and d₈₄ to 11 per cent (for example, there is a 5·5 mm error on a d₈₄ size of 50 mm). Furthermore, evidence shows that if operators are properly trained, a calibration relation for each percentile can be applied independently of operators. This visual characterization allows effective detailed mapping of spatial patterns in substrate size distribution along extensive reaches of gravel‐bed rivers. The technique can be very useful in creating terrain models for various geomorphological, hydrological and biological applications such as the determination of entrainment thresholds, hydraulic roughness and substrate suitability for benthic insects or salmonid habitat. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

DATABASE OF LANDSLIDES TRIGGERED BY 2015 GORKHA(NEPAL) MW7.8 EARTHQUAKE

In this study, a detailed database of landslides triggered by the 25 April 2015 Gorkha (Nepal)M_W7.8 earthquake is constructed based on visual interpretation of pre- and post-earthquake high-resolution satellite images and field reconnaissance. Results show the earthquake triggered at least 47 200 landslides, which have a NWW direction spatial distribution, similar with the location and strike of the seismogenic fault. The landslides are of a total area about 110km² and an oval distribution area about 35 700km². On the basis of a scale relationship between landslide area (A)and volume (V), V=1.314 7×A^{1.208 5}, the total volume of the coseismic landslides is estimated to be about 9.64×10⁸m³. In the oval landslide distribution area, the landslide number density, area density, and volume density were calculated and the results are 1.32km^-2, 0.31%, and 0.027m, respectively. This study provides a detailed and objective inventory of landslides triggered by the Gorkha earthquake, which provides very important and essential basic data for study of mechanics of coseismic landslides, spatial pattern, distribution law, and hazard assessment. In addition, the landslide database related to an individual earthquake also provides an important earthquake case in a subduction zone for studying landslides related to multiple earthquakes from a global perspective.     

考虑视觉传达效果的震后区域三维图像虚拟重建

传统二维震害图像方法对震后区域进行研究时,由于其拍摄角度具有局限性,震后区域图像的视觉效果不理想。提出基于三维激光扫描技术的震后区域三维虚拟重建方法,采用三维激光扫描仪测量震后区域,获取该区域的点云数据,采用Cyclone软件合并点云数据后,得到震后区域拼接后的整体点云图,将该图点云数据进行去体外孤点、去噪声点以及点云取样等处理后实施封装,在封装的点云数据上采用Sketch模型实施贴图操作,实现视觉传达效果理想的震后区域三维图形的虚拟重建。实验证明,所提方法对震后区域的三维图像虚拟重建结果精度高、视觉效果好。     

基于可用性电子地图符号测试系统的设计与实现

电子地图符号测试系统对提高电子地图符号的信息传输效率,与用户达成认知的一致性、准确性,促进电子地图符号的发展等都有重要的理论研究意义和实际应用价值。本文分析了现有电子地图符号测试系统中存在的问题,探讨了可用性理论在电子地图符号测试系统中的应用。最后,分别从功能设计、界面设计、测试项目设计、测试环境设计等四个方面研究了电子地图符号测试系统的设计方法,并用VC++语言对其编程实现。     

significance of high-resolution loess stratification based on grain size and magnetic susceptibility analysis to paleo-earthquake study: a case study of dongyugou loess section,at hongtong,shanxi province

As an important technology to paleoseismologic research, trenching has been used to identify paleo-earthquakes recorded in strata, combined with dating technology. However, there have been some bigger uncertainties and limitations. For instance, subtle strata in loess sediment cannot be interpreted only by naked-eye, which seriously affects identifying paleo-earthquake horizon and time. Therefore, how to improve the accuracy and reduce the uncertainty of paleo-earthquake identification is the important problem we are currently facing. Dongyugou loess section, located in the northeastern corner of Linfen Basin, Shanxi Province, cuts across the Huoshan piedmont fault. The section exposes not only the well-developed loess sequence, but also several obvious faulting events. Thus, this loess section is a better site to make a high resolution study to improve the accuracy and reduce the uncertainty of paleo-earthquake identification. Based on the high-resolution grain size and magnetic susceptibility analysis, and associated with visual interpretation by naked-eye, we made a high-resolution stratification of Dongyugou loess section, including high-resolution thickness of each stratum and its upper and bottom boundaries. Based on the high-resolution stratification and their comparison between two fault walls, we identified three earthquake events, which occurred after formation of u5-7, u4 and u2, corresponding to their stratification depth of 7.1m, 4.7m and 2.9m in hanging wall. Based on results of OSL dating and average sedimentation rate of hanging wall, we estimated that the three events occurred around 45.8ka(between (48.1±1.5)～(43.2±2.5)ka), 32.8ka(between (35.0±2.4)～(30.6±1.3)ka) and 23.3ka(between (26.4±0.8)～(20.9±0.7)ka). According to the thickness difference of three loess-paleosol sedimentary cycles between two fault walls, we calculated the coseismic vertical displacements of the three events as 0.5m, 0.4 and 1.3m, respectively. Compared with other segments of the Huoshan piedmont fault zone, we found the southernmost segment is the weakest, with longer recurrence interval of about 11ka and lower vertical slip rate of 0.048mm/a. The high-accuracy grain size and magnetic susceptibility analysis offers an effective method for reducing the uncertainties of the paleo-earthquake research in loess area.     

企业三维仿真Web GIS系统的设计

随着Internet的发展和人们对各类信息需求的增加及企业面向社会提高知名度的需要,使得企业三维仿真WebGIS系统有着较为广泛的应用前景。文章探讨了利用VisualBasic等开发企业三维仿真webGIS系统的过程和方法。     

爆炸装置搜索视景仿真训练系统的设计与实现

为解决搜爆人员在爆炸装置搜索训练过程中,真实训练环境搭建繁琐、人力与物资成本投入大等问题,在分析搜索爆炸装置训练过程的基础上,设计了一套爆炸装置搜索训练视景仿真系统。该系统通过搜爆场景逐级细化的方法构建虚拟场景,且以具有感应能力的三维模型模拟摩尔探测仪与非线性节点探测仪等搜爆工具。基于Open Scene Graph(OSG)图形开发库,以VC++为开发环境实现了爆炸装置搜索训练视景仿真。实践证明:该系统仿真度高,达到了爆炸装置搜索仿真训练的效果,并且运行流畅,沉浸感强。     

Integrating geography with physics and visual arts: Analysis of student essays

The article investigates the potential and challenges of integrating geography with other school subjects. The analysis is based on the outcomes of a course that introduced the principles of discipline-based integration. The course was included in multicultural-class teacher education programme at the University of Helsinki. For a project within the course, the students worked in small groups and made short films that integrated three subjects – geography, physics, and visual arts – in order to evoke questions of space in children's minds. The students were asked to write essays in which they analysed their understanding of space from the three subjects’ viewpoints, describe the aims and contents of their short films, and lastly reflect on their experiences of the potential and possible problems in discipline integration. In this article, the authors analyse the students’ experience of the integration between the geography, physics, and visual arts. In general, the students experienced discipline-based integration as an interesting way of working. Moreover, the project seemed to deepen their understanding of different grounds for integrative pedagogy. Although the students reported some difficulties regarding the subject knowledge required for fruitful integration, the process enabled them to construct a better understanding of the identity of each discipline.     

Harveys and Walking Maps

Abstract

Geographical information is connected to everyday life in many ways. Web cartography has made geospatial data more available to the public. In the next few years, the average age of the population will be over 51 years, with more than 15% of the population over the age of 65 years. The fact that the senior population is increasing suggests that online mapping and map viewer design should be aware of the senior population’s visual restrictions, as well as restrictions of other potential map users, including colour-vision-impaired users. This paper describes the senior population’s visual restrictions that can be compared with colour-vision-impaired users and provides guidelines with regard to online mapping and map viewer design for this growing segment of the elderly population.     

Motion of animated streamlets appears to surpass their graphical alterations in human visual detection of vector field maxima

ABSTRACT

Animations have become a frequently utilized illustration technique on maps but changes in their graphical loading remain understudied in empirical geovisualization and cartographic research. Animated streamlets have gained attention as an illustrative animation technique and have become popular on widely viewed maps. We conducted an experiment to investigate how altering four major animation parameters of animated streamlets affects people’s reading performance of field maxima on vector fields. The study involved 73 participants who performed reaction-time tasks on pointing maxima on vector field stimuli. Reaction times and correctness of answers changed surprisingly little between visually different animations, with only a few occasional statistical significances. The results suggest that motion of animated streamlets is such a strong visual cue that altering graphical parameters makes only little difference when searching for the maxima. This leads to the conclusion that, for this kind of a task, animated streamlets on maps can be designed relatively freely in graphical terms and their style fitted to other contents of the map. In the broader visual and geovisual analytics context, the results can lead to more generally hypothesizing that graphical loading of animations with continuous motion flux could be altered without severely affecting their communicative power.