Estimating spatial efficiency using cyber search,GIS, and spatial optimization: a case study of fire service deployment in Los Angeles County

ABSTRACT

The efficiency of public investments and services has been of interest to geographic researchers for several decades. While in the private sector inefficiency often leads to higher prices, loss of competitiveness, and loss of business, in the public sector inefficiency in service provision does not necessarily lead to immediate changes. In many cases, it is not an entirely easy task to analyze a particular service as appropriate data may be difficult to obtain and hidden in detailed budgets. In this paper, we develop an integrative approach that uses cyber search, Geographic Information System (GIS), and spatial optimization to estimate the spatial efficiency of fire protection services in Los Angeles (LA) County. We develop a cyber-search process to identify current deployment patterns of fire stations across the major urban region of LA County. We compare the results of our search to existing databases. Using spatial optimization, we estimate the level of deployment that is needed to meet desired coverage levels based upon the location of an ideal fire station pattern, and then compare this ideal level of deployment to the existing system as a means of estimating spatial efficiency. GIS is adopted throughout the paper to simulate the demand locations, to conduct location-based spatial analysis, to visualize fire station data, and to map model simulation results. Finally, we show that the existing system in LA County has considerable room for improvement. The methodology presented in this paper is both novel and groundbreaking, and the automated assessments are readily transferable to other counties and jurisdictions.     

省市级基础地理信息框架数据联动更新探究

基于潍坊市寿光基础地理信息数据库建设更新工程与省地理信息公共服务平台框架数据更新工程,探索了省市基础地理信息框架数据联动更新的工作模式,提出了通过建立多比例尺基础框架数据的方式,建立省市基础框架数据库的联系,通过增量更新的模式完成省市两级基础框架数据库联动更新的方法。     

John Turnbull Thomson,Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society: An early New Zealand geographer

John Turnbull Thomson is more known in New Zealand for his work as Chief Surveyor of Otago Province (1856–1876) and first Surveyor General of New Zealand (1877–1879). He was also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society of London from 1848 until his death in 1884. Thomson was an important and early self‐declared ‘does’ of geographer in New Zealand, prior to the establishment of university geography in 1937. Thomson's contribution included survey and mapping but he also gave public lectures on geography and contributed to debates about glaciation.     

Map-Based Web Tools Supporting Climate Change Adaptation

This article discusses the state of the art in geovisualization supporting climate change adaptation. We reviewed twenty selected map-based Web tools, classified by their content and functionality, and assessed them by visual representations, interactive functions, information type, target audience, and how vulnerability and adaptation to climate change are addressed. Our study concludes that the tools (1) can be classified as data viewers with basic functionality and data explorers offering more sophisticated interactive functions; (2) mostly feature moderate or high richness of data content; and (3) predominantly target expert users.     

基于潜在语义信息的城市功能区识别————广州市浮动车GPS时空数据挖掘

随着中国城市化进程的不断推进和深入,城市内部空间结构正发生不断的变化.城市内部形成的不同功能区标识研究,对城市结构理论以及政策制定,资源配置等方面具有非常重要的意义.这些不同的功能区包括住宅区,工业区,教育区以及办公区等.本文以大数据为依托,重点研究城市功能区的特点和分布状态,选取广州市6个区为样本,以最新道路网络为分割依据把研究样本分为439个区域.对历时一周的海量浮动车(GPS)数据以及兴趣点数据采用时空语义挖掘方法,建立潜在的狄利克雷模型(LDA)以及狄利克雷多项式回归模型(DMR);通过OPTICS聚类方法对不同模型的结果进行聚类,进而利用POI类别密度,居民出行特征等方法进行分区结果识别.同时,参考百度地图的地理信息,将研究得到的广州市功能分区结果与广州市城镇用地现状图,居民日常出行特征进行对比验证分析.研究表明,该方法基本能识别出具明显特征的城市功能区,如成熟居住区,科教文化区,商业娱乐区,开发区等.识别出的广州市不同类型的功能区呈现了以居住区和商业区为主导,其他类型功能区围绕其展开的特点.研究证明,利用大规模,高质量的个体时空数据开展人们移动行为和日常活动组织及社会空间的研究,能从一个新的视角揭示城市功能区的形成及其机制.     

The Pedagogical Benefits of SimCity in Urban Geography Education

This article investigated the pedagogical potential of the SimCity simulation game in an urban geography course. University students used SimCity to build their own cities and applied a wide range of theories to support their urban structures. Moreover, the students critically evaluated the logic and functioning of the SimCity simulation compared to real-world contexts and urban geography principles. The students believed the SimCity activity provided them with opportunities to promote their geographic creativity, resulting in diverse, unique, and interesting cities. The findings demonstrate that the use of SimCity can be an effective tool for geography education.     

Phylogeography of the pelagic fish Seriola lalandi at different scales: confirmation of inter-ocean population structure and evaluation of southern African genetic diversity

The study investigated the global and regional phylogeography of the yellowtail kingfish Seriola lalandi by examining genetic diversity and population genetic structure of this species at inter-and intra-ocean level and on a regional scale. DNA fragments of two mitochondrial genes, cytochrome b (Cytb) and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and one nuclear gene, recombination activating gene 1 (RAG1), were sequenced to investigate the global-scale phylogeography of this species. The population genetic structure within the South Pacific, as well as along the South African coastline, was examined further using six microsatellite markers. Three distinct clades were identified for S. lalandi, which correspond with previously described subspecies of the North-East Pacific, North-West Pacific and the Southern Hemisphere. Within the latter, additional divergence was observed between the South Pacific and the South-East Atlantic regions. Divergence estimates were indicative of a Pacific origin for S. lalandi populations, because of Pleistocene vicariant events. Microsatellite analyses revealed overall significant genetic differentiation between South African and South Pacific samples. This corroborates recent findings on the global phylogeography of the species. No population differentiation was observed within South Africa, indicating high levels of gene flow.     

风积沙环境下高等级公路冻土块石路基降温性能分析

青藏高原脆弱的生态系统以及人类工程活动,加剧了青藏工程走廊线性工程两侧沙漠化、荒漠化发展趋势,尤其冻土块石路基面临日益严重的风积沙灾害问题。以多年冻土区高等级公路块石路基为研究对象,采用数值模拟分析风积沙环境下封闭块石路基的降温性能和长期热稳定性。结果表明：风积沙堆积对封闭块石路基下部土层冻土温度的影响程度高于冻土上限,1.0 m湿沙工况降低冻土温度,0.2 m干沙则增大冻土温度。升温背景下,随年平均气温增加风沙堆积对路基冻土上限影响程度增强,干沙增大冻土融化深度,湿沙抬升冻土上限。随冻土含冰量减小,路基中心冻土上限对气候升温敏感性增加,风沙堆积影响减弱。气候升温和风沙堆积条件下,在年平均气温低于-5.5℃时,宽幅沥青路面封闭块石路基能够满足降温要求,使人为冻土上限保持在块石层内。研究成果可为风沙危害区多年冻土块石路基的病害治理和拟建青藏高速公路块石路基设计提供科学依据。     

高寒区抽水融冰渠道水温沿程衰减规律——以红山嘴水电站为例

抽水融冰技术是解决高寒区引水式电站冬季运行冰害问题的有效措施之一。为研究抽水融冰对电站引水渠道冬季引水的水温控制规律,以红山嘴水电站为例,基于RNG κ-ε模型数值模拟研究结果,从热流量比角度探讨了渠道水温沿程衰减规律,并采用2013年2月和2014年1月原型观测结果进行了验证。结果表明:渠道水温沿程衰减过程可分为骤降段、过渡段和缓降段3部分,各段范围受外界条件控制;衰减曲线呈幂函数分布,相关系数达到98%;对比气温对渠温沿程衰减的影响表明,随着大气温度的降低,渠道水温沿程衰减速度明显加快;-10 ℃为水温衰减过程变化转折点,当气温高于-10 ℃时,可以近似认为渠温衰减规律一致,渠温沿程变化主要受到热流量比值影响;低于-10 ℃时,气温对渠道水温沿程变化影响显著。     

华蓥山中段地区地下水资源量评价

四川华蓥山中段地区水流失比较严重,供需矛盾突出,水环境持续恶化,不但影响到居民正常的生产和生活,而且严重影响了该地区国民经济的建设和发展。通过野外调查和综合分析现场收集的资料,总结出华蓥山中段地区地下水资源量流失情况:该区每年流失的水资源量约为0.914 4亿m3,且华蓥山褶皱西翼水流失总量大于东翼,而西翼北端是区内水流失量最严重的区域,其水资源量流失的影响因素主要为气候、社会发展及人类活动等。