WorldWideScience

Sample records for subhumid geographical environment

  1. Conceptual Model of Dynamic Geographic Environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martínez-Rosales Miguel Alejandro

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available In geographic environments, there are many and different types of geographic entities such as automobiles, trees, persons, buildings, storms, hurricanes, etc. These entities can be classified into two groups: geographic objects and geographic phenomena. By its nature, a geographic environment is dynamic, thus, it’s static modeling is not sufficient. Considering the dynamics of geographic environment, a new type of geographic entity called event is introduced. The primary target is a modeling of geographic environment as an event sequence, because in this case the semantic relations are much richer than in the case of static modeling. In this work, the conceptualization of this model is proposed. It is based on the idea to process each entity apart instead of processing the environment as a whole. After that, the so called history of each entity and its spatial relations to other entities are defined to describe the whole environment. The main goal is to model systems at a conceptual level that make use of spatial and temporal information, so that later it can serve as the semantic engine for such systems.

  2. Yield, Phenotypical Stability and Micronutrients Contents in the Biofortified Bean in the Colombian Sub-humid Caribbean

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriana Patricia Tofiño-Rivera,

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The intake of protein and micronutrients in the Colombian sub-humid Caribbean has been a concern in recent years. About 57 % of the population in the sub-humid Caribbean region, has a deficit of amino acids —iron (Fe and zinc (Zn— in their diet. This study shows the results of the agronomic evaluation of the performance and quality of nine genotypes of biofortified bean and one local control in four environments of Cesar. The methodology included chemical and microbio-logical soil characterization, reaction evaluation to pests and diseases, multi-sited valuation by AMMI and selection of two varieties with better yield and nutritional content by ACP. In addition to these two prioritized genotypes, the Pearson correlation coefficient between seed micronutrient content for locations and years was determined. The biofortified genotypes surpassed the control group significantly in both yield and precocity. According to the ACP, the biofortified group differed from the control group in iron and zinc content in the seed, confirming its superior characteristics in nutritional quality, and resistance to pests and diseases. The AMMI showed that the genotype SMR43 reflected stability and predi-ctability between environments and SMR39 had specific adaptation in the best location for grain production. Both genotypes retained high levels of micronutrients between locations and years as according to the Pearson correlation.

  3. Modelling soil moisture under different land covers in a sub-humid ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    in the sub-humid climate within the Western Ghats, Karnataka, India. ... carried out with respect to the water-holding capacity of the soils with the aim of explaining ... changes have taken place in the land-use/cover of ... about 20–25 km inland.

  4. Using Metadata to Build Geographic Information Sharing Environment on Internet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chih-hong Sun

    1999-12-01

    Full Text Available Internet provides a convenient environment to share geographic information. Web GIS (Geographic Information System even provides users a direct access environment to geographic databases through Internet. However, the complexity of geographic data makes it difficult for users to understand the real content and the limitation of geographic information. In some cases, users may misuse the geographic data and make wrong decisions. Meanwhile, geographic data are distributed across various government agencies, academic institutes, and private organizations, which make it even more difficult for users to fully understand the content of these complex data. To overcome these difficulties, this research uses metadata as a guiding mechanism for users to fully understand the content and the limitation of geographic data. We introduce three metadata standards commonly used for geographic data and metadata authoring tools available in the US. We also review the current development of geographic metadata standard in Taiwan. Two metadata authoring tools are developed in this research, which will enable users to build their own geographic metadata easily.[Article content in Chinese

  5. Dynamic management of geographic data in a virtual environment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Jense, G.J.; Donkers, K.

    1996-01-01

    In order to achieve true 3D user interaction with geographic information, an interface between a virtual environment system and a geographic information system has been designed and implemented. This VE/GIS interface is based on a loose coupling of the underlying geographic database and the virtual

  6. Framework for Virtual Cognitive Experiment in Virtual Geographic Environments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fan Zhang

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Virtual Geographic Environment Cognition is the attempt to understand the human cognition of surface features, geographic processes, and human behaviour, as well as their relationships in the real world. From the perspective of human cognition behaviour analysis and simulation, previous work in Virtual Geographic Environments (VGEs has focused mostly on representing and simulating the real world to create an ‘interpretive’ virtual world and improve an individual’s active cognition. In terms of reactive cognition, building a user ‘evaluative’ environment in a complex virtual experiment is a necessary yet challenging task. This paper discusses the outlook of VGEs and proposes a framework for virtual cognitive experiments. The framework not only employs immersive virtual environment technology to create a realistic virtual world but also involves a responsive mechanism to record the user’s cognitive activities during the experiment. Based on the framework, this paper presents two potential implementation methods: first, training a deep learning model with several hundred thousand street view images scored by online volunteers, with further analysis of which visual factors produce a sense of safety for the individual, and second, creating an immersive virtual environment and Electroencephalogram (EEG-based experimental paradigm to both record and analyse the brain activity of a user and explore what type of virtual environment is more suitable and comfortable. Finally, we present some preliminary findings based on the first method.

  7. Impacts of Present and Future Climate Variability On Agriculture and Forestry in the Humid and Sub-Humid Tropics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao, Y.; Wang, C.; Wang, S.; Tibig, Lourdes V.

    2005-01-01

    Although there are different results from different studies, most assessments indicate that climate variability would have negative effects on agriculture and forestry in the humid and sub-humid tropics. Cereal crop yields would decrease generally with even minimal increases in temperature. For commercial crops, extreme events such as cyclones, droughts and floods lead to larger damages than only changes of mean climate. Impacts of climate variability on livestock mainly include two aspects; impacts on animals such as increase of heat and disease stress-related death, and impacts on pasture. As to forestry, climate variability would have negative as well as some positive impacts on forests of humid and sub-humid tropics. However, in most tropical regions, the impacts of human activities such as deforestation will be more important than climate variability and climate change in determining natural forest cover

  8. Plio-Pleistocene climate change and geographic heterogeneity in plant diversity-environment relationships

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Svenning, J.-C.; Normand, Signe; Skov, Flemming

    2009-01-01

    Plio-Pleistocene climate change may have induced geographic heterogeneity in plant species richness-environment relationships in Europe due to greater in situ species survival and speciation rates in southern Europe. We formulate distinct hypotheses on how Plio-Pleistocene climate change may have...... affected richness-topographic heterogeneity and richness-water-energy availability relationships, causing steeper relationships in southern Europe. We investigated these hypotheses using data from Atlas Florae Europaeae on the distribution of 3069 species and geographically weighted regression (GWR). Our...... analyses showed that plant species richness generally increased with topographic heterogeneity (ln-transformed altitudinal range) and actual evapotranspiration (AET). We also found evidence for strong geographic heterogeneity in the species richness-environment relationship, with a greater increase...

  9. WebGeoOlap: Multidimensional geographic data visualization for web environments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    SILVA, R. O. L.

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available As the web is continuously maturing platform, a growing number of technology is leading Geographic Information Systems (GIS and Analytical (OLAP closer to being developed for the web environment. The great challenge of this work is to integrate these technologies, OLAP and GIS, in a single application, using Ajax, so that the user can perform the analysis of analytical data and view data geographic in the map, using Google Maps.

  10. Humid to arid to subhumid vegetation shift on Pilliga Sandstone, Ulungra Springs, New South Wales

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dodson, J. R.; Wright, R. V. S.

    1989-09-01

    The Pilliga Sandstone region of the northwest slope of New South Wales has a natural vegetation cover of sclerophyllous relatively closed to open forests with a largely heathy understorey, and a warm, subhumid and continental climate. Pollen analysis of spring-fed deposits gives a vegetation history extending from at least 30,000 yr B.P. to the late Holocene. Tree pollen became scarce after about 25,000 yr B.P. and an assemblage dominated by Chenopodiaceae, Liguliflorae, Tubuliflorae, and probably Poaceae developed. No similar assemblage is known from present pollen rain studies carried out in Australia. However, it clearly represents a treeless open shrub-steppe formation and therefore an arid or semiarid environment. The site thus provides evidence of an eastward late Pleistocene extension of the arid zone in Australia, and is the first full-glacial vegetation record between 20° and 35° latitude in Australia. The present vegetation cover did not become reestablished until the beginning of the Holocene, which raises questions about the form in which Pilliga Sandstone vegetation survived full-glacial conditions.

  11. Generation of 3D Virtual Geographic Environment Based on Laser Scanning Technique

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    DU Jie; CHEN Xiaoyong; FumioYamazaki

    2003-01-01

    This paper demonstrates an experiment on the generation of 3D virtual geographic environment on the basis of experimental flight laser scanning data by a set of algorithms and methods that were developed to automatically interpret range images for extracting geo-spatial features and then to reconstruct geo-objects. The algorithms and methods for the interpretation and modeling of laser scanner data include triangulated-irregular-network (TIN)-based range image interpolation ; mathematical-morphology(MM)-based range image filtering,feature extraction and range image segmentation, feature generalization and optimization, 3D objects reconstruction and modeling; computergraphics (CG)-based visualization and animation of geographic virtual reality environment.

  12. Effective crop evapotranspiration measurement using time-domain reflectometry technique in a sub-humid region

    Science.gov (United States)

    Srivastava, R. K.; Panda, R. K.; Halder, Debjani

    2017-08-01

    The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of the time-domain reflectometry (TDR) technique for daily evapotranspiration estimation of peanut and maize crop in a sub-humid region. Four independent methods were used to estimate crop evapotranspiration (ETc), namely, soil water balance budgeting approach, energy balance approach—(Bowen ratio), empirical methods approach, and Pan evaporation method. The soil water balance budgeting approach utilized the soil moisture measurement by gravimetric and TDR method. The empirical evapotranspiration methods such as combination approach (FAO-56 Penman-Monteith and Penman), temperature-based approach (Hargreaves-Samani), and radiation-based approach (Priestley-Taylor, Turc, Abetw) were used to estimate the reference evapotranspiration (ET0). The daily ETc determined by the FAO-56 Penman-Monteith, Priestley-Taylor, Turc, Pan evaporation, and Bowen ratio were found to be at par with the ET values derived from the soil water balance budget; while the methods Abetw, Penman, and Hargreaves-Samani were not found to be ideal for the determination of ETc. The study illustrates the in situ applicability of the TDR method in order to make it possible for a user to choose the best way for the optimum water consumption for a given crop in a sub-humid region. The study suggests that the FAO-56 Penman-Monteith, Turc, and Priestley-Taylor can be used for the determination of crop ETc using TDR in comparison to soil water balance budget.

  13. Crop coefficients for winter wheat in a sub-humid climate regime

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjærsgaard, Jeppe Hvelplund; Plauborg, Finn; Mollerup, Mikkel

    2008-01-01

    Estimations of evapotranspiration (ET) from natural surfaces are used in a large number of applications such as agricultural water management and water resources planning. Lack of reliable, cheap and easy-to-use instruments, associated with the chaotic and varying nature of the meteorological...... coefficients for a winter wheat crop growing under standard conditions, i.e. not short of water and growing under optimal agronomic conditions, were estimated for a cold sub-humid climate regime. One of the two methods used to estimate ET from a reference crop required net radiation (Rn) as input. Two sets...... of coefficients were used for calculating Rn. Weather data from a meteorological station was used to estimate Rn and ET from the reference crop. The winter wheat ET was measured using an eddy covariance system during the main parts of the growing seasons 2004 and 2005. The meteorological data and field...

  14. Comparison of lysimeter based and calculated ASCE reference evapotranspiration in a subhumid climate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nolz, Reinhard; Cepuder, Peter; Eitzinger, Josef

    2016-04-01

    The standardized form of the well-known FAO Penman-Monteith equation, published by the Environmental and Water Resources Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE-EWRI), is recommended as a standard procedure for calculating reference evapotranspiration (ET ref) and subsequently plant water requirements. Applied and validated under different climatic conditions it generally achieved good results compared to other methods. However, several studies documented deviations between measured and calculated reference evapotranspiration depending on environmental and weather conditions. Therefore, it seems generally advisable to evaluate the model under local environmental conditions. In this study, reference evapotranspiration was determined at a subhumid site in northeastern Austria from 2005 to 2010 using a large weighing lysimeter (ET lys). The measured data were compared with ET ref calculations. Daily values differed slightly during a year, at which ET ref was generally overestimated at small values, whereas it was rather underestimated when ET was large, which is supported also by other studies. In our case, advection of sensible heat proved to have an impact, but it could not explain the differences exclusively. Obviously, there were also other influences, such as seasonal varying surface resistance or albedo. Generally, the ASCE-EWRI equation for daily time steps performed best at average weather conditions. The outcomes should help to correctly interpret ET ref data in the region and in similar environments and improve knowledge on the dynamics of influencing factors causing deviations.

  15. Mapping Annual Forest Cover in Sub-Humid and Semi-Arid Regions through Analysis of Landsat and PALSAR Imagery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuanwei Qin

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Accurately mapping the spatial distribution of forests in sub-humid to semi-arid regions over time is important for forest management but a challenging task. Relatively large uncertainties still exist in the spatial distribution of forests and forest changes in the sub-humid and semi-arid regions. Numerous publications have used either optical or synthetic aperture radar (SAR remote sensing imagery, but the resultant forest cover maps often have large errors. In this study, we propose a pixel- and rule-based algorithm to identify and map annual forests from 2007 to 2010 in Oklahoma, USA, a transitional region with various climates and landscapes, using the integration of the L-band Advanced Land Observation Satellite (ALOS PALSAR Fine Beam Dual Polarization (FBD mosaic dataset and Landsat images. The overall accuracy and Kappa coefficient of the PALSAR/Landsat forest map were about 88.2% and 0.75 in 2010, with the user and producer accuracy about 93.4% and 75.7%, based on the 3270 random ground plots collected in 2012 and 2013. Compared with the forest products from Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA, National Land Cover Database (NLCD, Oklahoma Ecological Systems Map (OKESM and Oklahoma Forest Resource Assessment (OKFRA, the PALSAR/Landsat forest map showed great improvement. The area of the PALSAR/Landsat forest was about 40,149 km2 in 2010, which was close to the area from OKFRA (40,468 km2, but much larger than those from JAXA (32,403 km2 and NLCD (37,628 km2. We analyzed annual forest cover dynamics, and the results show extensive forest cover loss (2761 km2, 6.9% of the total forest area in 2010 and gain (3630 km2, 9.0% in southeast and central Oklahoma, and the total area of forests increased by 684 km2 from 2007 to 2010. This study clearly demonstrates the potential of data fusion between PALSAR and Landsat images for mapping annual forest cover dynamics in sub-humid to semi-arid regions, and the resultant forest maps would be

  16. Modelling Technology for Building Fire Scene with Virtual Geographic Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Y.; Zhao, L.; Wei, M.; Zhang, H.; Liu, W.

    2017-09-01

    Building fire is a risky activity that can lead to disaster and massive destruction. The management and disposal of building fire has always attracted much interest from researchers. Integrated Virtual Geographic Environment (VGE) is a good choice for building fire safety management and emergency decisions, in which a more real and rich fire process can be computed and obtained dynamically, and the results of fire simulations and analyses can be much more accurate as well. To modelling building fire scene with VGE, the application requirements and modelling objective of building fire scene were analysed in this paper. Then, the four core elements of modelling building fire scene (the building space environment, the fire event, the indoor Fire Extinguishing System (FES) and the indoor crowd) were implemented, and the relationship between the elements was discussed also. Finally, with the theory and framework of VGE, the technology of building fire scene system with VGE was designed within the data environment, the model environment, the expression environment, and the collaborative environment as well. The functions and key techniques in each environment are also analysed, which may provide a reference for further development and other research on VGE.

  17. Real-geographic-scenario-based virtual social environments: integrating geography with social research

    OpenAIRE

    Min Chen; Li He; Hui Lin; Chunxiao Zhang; Mingyuan Hu

    2013-01-01

    Existing online virtual worlds, or electronic environments, are of great significance to social science research, but are somewhat lacking in rigour. One reason is that users might not participate in those virtual worlds in the way they act in real daily life, communicating with each other in familiar environments and interacting with natural phenomena under the constraints of the human–land relationship. To help solve this problem we propose the real-geographic-scenario-based virtual social ...

  18. Geographic Disparity in Funding for School Nutrition Environments: Evidence from Mississippi Schools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Yunhee; Carithers, Teresa; Leeke, Shannon; Chin, Felicia

    2016-01-01

    Background: Despite the federal initiatives on equitable provision of school nutrition programs, geographic disparity in childhood obesity persists. It may be partly because built-in school nutrition environments rely on each school's efficient use of existing operational funds or its ability to obtain expanded financial support. This study…

  19. A Novel Petri Nets-Based Modeling Method for the Interaction between the Sensor and the Geographic Environment in Emerging Sensor Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Feng; Xu, Yuetong; Chou, Jarong

    2016-01-01

    The service of sensor device in Emerging Sensor Networks (ESNs) is the extension of traditional Web services. Through the sensor network, the service of sensor device can communicate directly with the entity in the geographic environment, and even impact the geographic entity directly. The interaction between the sensor device in ESNs and geographic environment is very complex, and the interaction modeling is a challenging problem. This paper proposed a novel Petri Nets-based modeling method for the interaction between the sensor device and the geographic environment. The feature of the sensor device service in ESNs is more easily affected by the geographic environment than the traditional Web service. Therefore, the response time, the fault-tolerant ability and the resource consumption become important factors in the performance of the whole sensor application system. Thus, this paper classified IoT services as Sensing services and Controlling services according to the interaction between IoT service and geographic entity, and classified GIS services as data services and processing services. Then, this paper designed and analyzed service algebra and Colored Petri Nets model to modeling the geo-feature, IoT service, GIS service and the interaction process between the sensor and the geographic enviroment. At last, the modeling process is discussed by examples. PMID:27681730

  20. A Novel Petri Nets-Based Modeling Method for the Interaction between the Sensor and the Geographic Environment in Emerging Sensor Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Feng Zhang

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The service of sensor device in Emerging Sensor Networks (ESNs is the extension of traditional Web services. Through the sensor network, the service of sensor device can communicate directly with the entity in the geographic environment, and even impact the geographic entity directly. The interaction between the sensor device in ESNs and geographic environment is very complex, and the interaction modeling is a challenging problem. This paper proposed a novel Petri Nets-based modeling method for the interaction between the sensor device and the geographic environment. The feature of the sensor device service in ESNs is more easily affected by the geographic environment than the traditional Web service. Therefore, the response time, the fault-tolerant ability and the resource consumption become important factors in the performance of the whole sensor application system. Thus, this paper classified IoT services as Sensing services and Controlling services according to the interaction between IoT service and geographic entity, and classified GIS services as data services and processing services. Then, this paper designed and analyzed service algebra and Colored Petri Nets model to modeling the geo-feature, IoT service, GIS service and the interaction process between the sensor and the geographic enviroment. At last, the modeling process is discussed by examples.

  1. Understanding the Geographic Controls of Hazardous Convective Weather Environments in the United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reed, K. A.; Chavas, D. R.

    2017-12-01

    Hazardous Convective Weather (HCW), such as severe thunderstorms and tornadoes, poses significant risk to life and property in the United States every year. While these HCW events are small scale, they develop principally within favorable larger-scale environments (i.e., HCW environments). Why these large-scale environments are confined to specific regions, particularly the Eastern United States, is not well understood. This can, in part, be related to a limited fundamental knowledge of how the climate system creates HCW environment, which provides uncertainty in how HCW environments may be altered in a changing climate. Previous research has identified the Gulf of Mexico to the south and elevated terrain upstream as key geographic contributors to the generation of HCW environments over the Eastern United States. This work investigates the relative role of these geographic features through "component denial" experiments in the Community Atmosphere Model version 5 (CAM5). In particular, CAM5 simulations where topography is removed (globally and regionally) and/or the Gulf of Mexico is converted to land is compared to a CAM5 control simulation of current climate following the Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project (AMIP) protocols. In addition to exploring differences in general characteristics of the large-scale environments amongst the experiments, HCW changes will be explored through a combination of high shear and high Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE) environments. Preliminary work suggests that the removal of elevated terrain reduces the inland extent of HCW environments in the United States, but not the existence of these events altogether. This indicates that topography is crucial for inland HCW environments but perhaps not for their existence in general (e.g., near the Gulf of Mexico). This initial work is a crucial first step to building a reduced-complexity framework within CAM5 to quantify how land-ocean contrast and elevated terrain control

  2. Eco-Environment Status Evaluation and Change Analysis of Qinghai Based on National Geographic Conditions Census Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, M.; Zhu, M.; Wang, Y.; Xu, C.; Yang, H.

    2018-04-01

    As the headstream of the Yellow River, the Yangtze River and the Lantsang River, located in the hinterland of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Qinghai province is hugely significant for ecosystem as well as for ecological security and sustainable development in China. With the accomplishment of the first national geographic condition census, the frequent monitoring has begun. The classification indicators of the census and monitoring data are highly correlated with Technical Criterion for Ecosystem Status Evaluation released by Ministry of Environmental Protection in 2015. Based on three years' geographic conditions data (2014-2016), Landsat-8 images and thematic data (water resource, pollution emissions, meteorological data, soil erosion, etc.), a multi-years and high-precision eco-environment status evaluation and spatiotemporal change analysis of Qinghai province has been researched on the basis of Technical Criterion for Ecosystem Status Evaluation in this paper. Unlike the evaluation implemented by environmental protection department, the evaluation unit in this paper is town rather than county. The evaluation result shows that the eco-environment status in Qinghai is generally in a fine condition, and has significant regional differences. The eco-environment status evaluation based on national geographic conditions census and monitoring data can improve both the time and space precision. The eco-environment status with high space precise and multi-indices is a key basis for environment protection decision-making.

  3. Geographic variation in the relationship between body mass index and the built environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adachi-Mejia, Anna M; Lee, Chanam; Lee, Chunkuen; Carlos, Heather A; Saelens, Brian E; Berke, Ethan M; Doescher, Mark P

    2017-07-01

    Studies examining associations between weight status and neighborhood built environment (BE) have shown inconsistent results and have generally focused on urban settings. However, many Americans do not live in metropolitan areas and BE impacts may be different outside of metropolitan areas. We sought to examine whether the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and neighborhood BE exists and varies by geographic region across small towns in the United States. We conducted telephone surveys with 2156 adults and geographic information systems data in nine towns located within three geographic regions (Northeast, Texas, Washington) in 2011 and 2012. Multiple regression models examined the relationship between individual BMI and BE measures. Most physical activity variables were significantly associated with lower BMI in all geographic regions. We saw variation across geographic region in the relationship between characteristics of the BE variables and BMI. Some perceived and objectively-measured characteristics of the BE were significantly associated with adult BMI, but significant relationships varied by geographic region. For example, in the Northeast, perceived attractiveness of the neighborhood as a reason for why they chose to live there was associated with lower BMI; in Texas, the perceived presence of a fast food restaurant was negatively associated with BMI; in Washington, perceived presence of trees along the streets was associated with lower BMI. Our findings suggest that regional variation plays a role in the relationship between adult BMI and BE characteristics in small towns. Regardless of geographic location, interventions should encourage utilitarian walking and other forms of physical activity. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. The role of groundwater in streamflow in a headwater catchment with sub-humid climate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yaping; Tian, Fuqiang; Hu, Hongchang; Tie, Qiang

    2015-04-01

    Recent studies have suggested that bedrock groundwater can exert considerable influence on streamflow in headwater catchments under humid climate. However, study of the role of bedrock groundwater is still challenged due to limited direct observation data. In this study, by utilizing observed hydrometric and hydrochemical data, we aimed at characterize the bedrock groundwater's response to rainfall at hillslope and catchment scales in a small headwater catchment with sub-humid climate. We selected Xitaizi catchment with area of 6.7 km in the earth-rock mountain region, which located in the north of Beijing, China, as study area. The catchment bedrock is mainly consist of fractured granite. Four weather stations were installed to observe the weather condition and soil volumetric water content (VWC) at depth of 10-60 cm with 10-minute interval. Five wells with depth of 10 m were drilled in two slopes to monitor the bedrock water table by pneumatic water gauge. At slope 1, the soil VWC at depth of 10-80 cm were also observed by soil moisture sensors, and surface/subsurface hillslope runoff at three different layers (0-20cm, 20-80cm, 80-300cm) was observed by three recording buckets. Field works were conducted from July 2013 to November 2014. During the period, precipitation, river, spring and groundwater were sampled nearly monthly. Water temperature, electrical conductivity (EC) and pH were measured in site with portable instruments. In addition, the precipitation, river and groundwater were also sampled intensively during two storm events. All the samples were subjected to stable isotope analysis, the samples taken monthly during the period from July 2013 to July 2014 were subjected to hydrochemistry analysis. Our results show that: (1) the bedrock groundwater is the dominant component of streamflow in the headwater catchment with sub-humid climate; (2) stream is recharged by groundwater sourcing from different mountains with different hydrochemistry characteristics

  5. Places and faces: Geographic environment influences the ingroup memory advantage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rule, Nicholas O; Garrett, James V; Ambady, Nalini

    2010-03-01

    The preferential allocation of attention and memory to the ingroup (the ingroup memory advantage) is one of the most replicated effects in the psychological literature. But little is known about what factors may influence such effects. Here the authors investigated a potential influence: category salience as determined by the perceiver's geographic environment. They did so by studying the ingroup memory advantage in perceptually ambiguous groups for whom perceptual cues do not make group membership immediately salient. Individuals in an environment in which a particular group membership was salient (Mormon and non-Mormon men and women living in Salt Lake City, Utah) showed better memory for faces belonging to their ingroup in an incidental encoding paradigm. Majority group participants in an environment where this group membership was not salient (non-Mormon men and women in the northeastern United States), however, showed no ingroup memory advantage whereas minority group participants (Mormons) in the same environment did. But in the same environment, when differences in group membership were made accessible via an unobtrusive priming task, non-Mormons did show an ingroup memory advantage and Mormons' memory for ingroup members increased. Environmental context cues therefore influence the ingroup memory advantage for categories that are not intrinsically salient.

  6. Morphological dynamics of gully systems in the subhumid Ethiopian Highlands: the Debre Mawi watershed

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zegeye, Assefa D.; Langendoen, Eddy J.; Stoof, Cathelijne R.; Tilahun, Seifu A.; Dagnew, Dessalegn C.; Zimale, Fasikaw A.; Guzman, Christian D.; Yitaferu, Birru; Steenhuis, Tammo S.

    2016-09-01

    Gully expansion in the Ethiopian Highlands dissects vital agricultural lands with the eroded materials adversely impacting downstream resources, for example as they accumulate in reservoirs. While gully expansion and rehabilitation have been more extensively researched in the semiarid region of Ethiopia, few studies have been conducted in the (sub)humid region. For that reason, we assessed the severity of gully erosion by measuring the expansion of 13 selected permanent gullies in the subhumid Debre Mawi watershed, 30 km south of Lake Tana, Ethiopia. In addition, the rate of expansion of the entire drainage network in the watershed was determined using 0.5 m resolution aerial imagery from flights in 2005 and 2013. About 0.6 Mt (or 127 t ha-1 yr-1) of soil was lost during this period due to actively expanding gullies. The net gully area in the entire watershed increased more than 4-fold from 4.5 ha in 2005 to 20.4 ha in 2013 (> 3 % of the watershed area), indicating the growing severity of gully erosion and hence land degradation in the watershed. Soil losses were caused by upslope migrating gully heads through a combination of gully head collapse and removal of the failed material by runoff. Collapse of gully banks and retreat of headcuts was most severe in locations where elevated groundwater tables saturated gully heads and banks, destabilizing the soils by decreasing the shear strength. Elevated groundwater tables were therefore the most important cause of gully expansion. Additional factors that strongly relate to bank collapse were the height of the gully head and the size of the drainage area. Soil physical properties (e.g., texture and bulk density) only had minor effects. Conservation practices that address factors controlling erosion are the most effective in protecting gully expansion. These consist of lowering water table and regrading the gully head and sidewalls to reduce the occurrence of gravity-induced mass failures. Planting

  7. a Conceptual Framework for Virtual Geographic Environments Knowledge Engineering

    Science.gov (United States)

    You, Lan; Lin, Hui

    2016-06-01

    VGE geographic knowledge refers to the abstract and repeatable geo-information which is related to the geo-science problem, geographical phenomena and geographical laws supported by VGE. That includes expert experiences, evolution rule, simulation processes and prediction results in VGE. This paper proposes a conceptual framework for VGE knowledge engineering in order to effectively manage and use geographic knowledge in VGE. Our approach relies on previous well established theories on knowledge engineering and VGE. The main contribution of this report is following: (1) The concepts of VGE knowledge and VGE knowledge engineering which are defined clearly; (2) features about VGE knowledge different with common knowledge; (3) geographic knowledge evolution process that help users rapidly acquire knowledge in VGE; and (4) a conceptual framework for VGE knowledge engineering providing the supporting methodologies system for building an intelligent VGE. This conceptual framework systematically describes the related VGE knowledge theories and key technologies. That will promote the rapid transformation from geodata to geographic knowledge, and furtherly reduce the gap between the data explosion and knowledge absence.

  8. Joint Service Common Operating Environment (COE) Common Geographic Information System functional requirements

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Meitzler, W.D.

    1992-06-01

    In the context of this document and COE, the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are decision support systems involving the integration of spatially referenced data in a problem solving environment. They are digital computer systems for capturing, processing, managing, displaying, modeling, and analyzing geographically referenced spatial data which are described by attribute data and location. The ability to perform spatial analysis and the ability to combine two or more data sets to create new spatial information differentiates a GIS from other computer mapping systems. While the CCGIS allows for data editing and input, its primary purpose is not to prepare data, but rather to manipulate, analyte, and clarify it. The CCGIS defined herein provides GIS services and resources including the spatial and map related functionality common to all subsystems contained within the COE suite of C4I systems. The CCGIS, which is an integral component of the COE concept, relies on the other COE standard components to provide the definition for other support computing services required.

  9. Modelling approach for the rainfall erosivity index in sub-humid urban areas in northern Algeria

    Science.gov (United States)

    Touaibia, I.; Abderrahmane Guenim, N.; Touaibia, B.

    2014-09-01

    This work presents an approach for storm water erosivity index modelling in the absence of measurement in an urban area, in a sub-humid climate. In torrential storms, floods, loaded with sediments, obstruct storm water drainage. With the aim of estimating the amount of sediment that can be deposited on a stretch of road, adjacent to the study area, the erosivity index is determined from a count of 744 rain showers recorded over a period of 19 years. The Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) of Wischmeier and Smith is applied, where only the index of erosivity is calculated; it is based on the intensity of the rain starting the process of erosion in the basin. Functional relations are required between this factor and the explanatory variables. A power type regression model is reached, making it possible to bring a decision-making aid in absences of measurements.

  10. Modelling approach for the rainfall erosivity index in sub-humid urban areas in northern Algeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. Touaibia

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available This work presents an approach for storm water erosivity index modelling in the absence of measurement in an urban area, in a sub-humid climate. In torrential storms, floods, loaded with sediments, obstruct storm water drainage. With the aim of estimating the amount of sediment that can be deposited on a stretch of road, adjacent to the study area, the erosivity index is determined from a count of 744 rain showers recorded over a period of 19 years. The Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE of Wischmeier and Smith is applied, where only the index of erosivity is calculated; it is based on the intensity of the rain starting the process of erosion in the basin. Functional relations are required between this factor and the explanatory variables. A power type regression model is reached, making it possible to bring a decision-making aid in absences of measurements.

  11. Viable cold-tolerant iron-reducing microorganisms in geographically diverse subglacial environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nixon, Sophie L.; Telling, Jon P.; Wadham, Jemma L.; Cockell, Charles S.

    2017-03-01

    Subglacial environments are known to harbour metabolically diverse microbial communities. These microbial communities drive chemical weathering of underlying bedrock and influence the geochemistry of glacial meltwater. Despite its importance in weathering reactions, the microbial cycling of iron in subglacial environments, in particular the role of microbial iron reduction, is poorly understood. In this study we address the prevalence of viable iron-reducing microorganisms in subglacial sediments from five geographically isolated glaciers. Iron-reducing enrichment cultures were established with sediment from beneath Engabreen (Norway), Finsterwalderbreen (Svalbard), Leverett and Russell glaciers (Greenland), and Lower Wright Glacier (Antarctica). Rates of iron reduction were higher at 4 °C compared with 15 °C in all but one duplicated second-generation enrichment culture, indicative of cold-tolerant and perhaps cold-adapted iron reducers. Analysis of bacterial 16S rRNA genes indicates Desulfosporosinus were the dominant iron-reducing microorganisms in low-temperature Engabreen, Finsterwalderbreen and Lower Wright Glacier enrichments, and Geobacter dominated in Russell and Leverett enrichments. Results from this study suggest microbial iron reduction is widespread in subglacial environments and may have important implications for global biogeochemical iron cycling and export to marine ecosystems.

  12. Environment and geographic distance differ in relative importance for determining fungal community of rhizosphere and bulk soil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Kaoping; Adams, Jonathan M; Shi, Yu; Yang, Teng; Sun, Ruibo; He, Dan; Ni, Yingying; Chu, Haiyan

    2017-09-01

    Rhizospheric fungi play major roles in both natural and agricultural ecosystems. However, little is known about the determinants of their diversity and biogeographic patterns. Here, we compared fungal communities in rhizosphere and bulk soils of wheat fields in the North China Plain. The rhizosphere had a lower fungal diversity (observed OTUs and Chao1) than bulk soil, and a distinct fungal community structure in rhizosphere compared with bulk soil. The relative importance of environmental factors and geographic distance for fungal distribution differed between rhizosphere and bulk soil. Environmental factors were the primary cause of variations in total fungal community and major fungal phyla in bulk soil. By contrast, fungal communities in soils loosely attached to roots were predictable from both environmental factors and influences of geographic distance. Communities in soils tightly attached to roots were mainly determined by geographic distance. Our results suggest that both contemporary environment processes (present-day abiotic and biotic environment characters) and historical processes (spatial isolation, dispersal limitation occurred in the past) dominate variations of fungal communities in wheat fields, but their relative importance of all these processes depends on the proximity of fungal community to the plant roots. © 2017 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  13. Connecting streamlined subglacial bedforms with the geological/geographical environment in which they are located.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dowling, Tom; Möller, Per; Greenwood, Sarah; Spagnolo, Matteo; Åkesson, Maria; Fraser, Stephen; Hughs, Anna; Clark, Chris

    2016-04-01

    Much work has qualitatively shown that there appears to be a relationship between the morphology of streamlined subglacial bedforms (drumlinoids) and the geological/geographical environment in which said bedforms are located upon, particularly in terms of bedrock influence. However, the one quantitative study that has been carried out on this connectivity (Greenwood and Clark, 2010) found that there appears to be a connection between bedrock type and morphology only at a local scale. At a regional scale the most important geological factor seemed to be the properties of the substrate, usually till. In order to investigate these connections further, self-organising maps (SOM) are used to investigate the role of contextual geology/geography in drumlinoid morphology. The SOM method allows the statistical exploration of data that cannot normally be evaluated by traditional means; categorical data (e.g. bedrock type) can be used in the same analysis as continuous/vector data (e.g. drift depth). Here, three large morphological data sets from Sweden (20 041), Britain (36 104) and Ireland (13 454) are combined with bedrock type, drift depth, basal elevation and distance to esker to see if there are any relationships to be found between them. The results indicate that there are pervasive, statistically significant, and weak to very weak correlations between contextual geological/geographical factors and drumlinoid morphology. The most important contextual factor appears to be 'drift depth', followed by 'distance to esker'. Therefore, models of drumlinoid formation and any efforts to use such features for palaeo-ice reconstruction must take into account the geological and geographical environment in which they are situated. The logical extension of this is that models of ice-sheet growth and retreat must also take into account and be sensitive to the type of substratum present beneath the ice. Further research into the effect of drift properties on the flow of ice is needed.

  14. Geographic approaches to quantifying the risk environment: a focus on syringe exchange program site access and drug-related law enforcement activities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cooper, Hannah LF; Bossak, Brian; Tempalski, Barbara; Des Jarlais, Don C.; Friedman, Samuel R.

    2009-01-01

    The concept of the “risk environment” – defined as the “space … [where] factors exogenous to the individual interact to increase the chances of HIV transmission” – draws together the disciplines of public health and geography. Researchers have increasingly turned to geographic methods to quantify dimensions of the risk environment that are both structural and spatial (e.g., local poverty rates). The scientific power of the intersection between public health and geography, however, has yet to be fully mined. In particular, research on the risk environment has rarely applied geographic methods to create neighbourhood-based measures of syringe exchange programs (SEPs) or of drug-related law enforcement activities, despite the fact that these interventions are widely conceptualized as structural and spatial in nature and are two of the most well-established dimensions of the risk environment. To strengthen research on the risk environment, this paper presents a way of using geographic methods to create neighbourhood-based measures of (1) access to SEP sites and (2) exposure to drug-related arrests, and then applies these methods to one setting (New York City). NYC-based results identified substantial cross-neighbourhood variation in SEP site access and in exposure to drug-related arrest rates (even within the subset of neighbourhoods nominally experiencing the same drug-related police strategy). These geographic measures – grounded as they are in conceptualizations of SEPs and drug-related law enforcement strategies – can help develop new arenas of inquiry regarding the impact of these two dimensions of the risk environment on injectors’ health, including exploring whether and how neighbourhood-level access to SEP sites and exposure to drug-related arrests shape a range of outcomes among local injectors. PMID:18963907

  15. Geographical and meteorological factors associated with isolation of Listeria species in New York State produce production and natural environments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chapin, Travis K; Nightingale, Kendra K; Worobo, Randy W; Wiedmann, Martin; Strawn, Laura K

    2014-11-01

    Listeria species have been isolated from diverse environments, often at considerable prevalence, and are known to persist in food processing facilities. The presence of Listeria spp. has been suggested to be a marker for Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Therefore, a study was conducted to (i) determine the prevalence and diversity of Listeria spp. in produce production and natural environments and (ii) identify geographical and/or meteorological factors that affect the isolation of Listeria spp. in these environments. These data were also used to evaluate Listeria spp. as index organisms for L. monocytogenes in produce production environments. Environmental samples collected from produce production (n = 588) and natural (n = 734) environments in New York State were microbiologically analyzed to detect and isolate Listeria spp. The prevalence of Listeria spp. was approximately 33 and 34% for samples obtained from natural environments and produce production, respectively. Co-isolation of L. monocytogenes and at least one other species of Listeria in a given sample was recorded for 3 and 9% of samples from natural environments and produce production, respectively. Soil moisture and proximity to water and pastures were highly associated with isolation of Listeria spp. in produce production environments, while elevation, study site, and proximity to pastures were highly associated with isolation of Listeria spp. in natural environments, as determined by randomForest models. These data show that Listeria spp. were prevalent in both agricultural and nonagricultural environments and that geographical and meteorological factors associated with isolation of Listeria spp. were considerably different between the two environments.

  16. Assessing reference evapotranspiration in a subhumid climate in NE Austria

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nolz, Reinhard; Eitzinger, Josef; Cepuder, Peter

    2015-04-01

    Computing reference evapotranspiration and multiplying it with a specific crop coefficient as recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is the most widely accepted approach to estimate plant water requirements. The standardized form of the well-known FAO Penman-Monteith equation, published by the Environmental and Water Resources Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE-EWRI), is recommended as a standard procedure for calculating reference evapotranspiration. Applied and validated under different climatic conditions it generally achieved good results compared to other methods. However, several studies documented deviations between measured and calculated reference evapotranspiration depending on local environmental conditions. Consequently, it seems advisable to evaluate the model under local environmental conditions. Evapotranspiration was determined at a subhumid site in Austria (48°12'N, 16°34'E; 157 m asl) using a large weighing lysimeter operated at (limited) reference conditions and compared with calculations according to ASCE-EWRI. The lysimeter had an inner diameter of 1.9 m and a hemispherical bottom with a maximum depth of 2.5 m. Seepage water was measured at a free draining outlet using a tipping bucket. Lysimeter mass changes were sensed by a weighing facility with an accuracy of ±0.1 mm. Both rainfall and evapotranspiration were determined directly from lysimeter data using a simple water balance equation. Meteorological data for the ASCE-EWRI model were obtained from a weather station of the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics, Austria (ZAMG). The study period was from 2005 to 2010, analyses were based upon daily time steps. Daily calculated reference evapotranspiration was generally overestimated at small values, whereas it was rather underestimated when evapotranspiration was large, which is supported also by other studies. In the given case, advection of sensible heat proved

  17. Geographical patterns of onchocerciasis in southern Venezuela: relationships between environment and infection prevalence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Botto, C; Escalona, E; Vivas-Martinez, S; Behm, V; Delgado, L; Coronel, P

    2005-03-01

    Onchocerciasis is a chronic filarial infection transmitted by Simulium flies that has a focal geographical distribution in Latin America. The southern Venezuelan focus has a gradient of endemicity that includes the largest number of hyperendemic communities in the continent, many of them in remote forest and mountainous areas, where it is an important public health problem among the Yanomami indigenous population. The recent introduction of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) tools and a landscape epidemiology approach for study of vector borne diseases is helping to understand relationships between environment and transmission dynamics of onchocerciasis. Striking differences in the transmission dynamics of onchocerciasis between different river courses were detected. A significant relationship between onchocerciasis and temperature was also demonstrated. The geologic substrate, kind of landscape and vegetation seemed also to influence the transmission of onchocerciasis. In the Venezuelan Amazon, different kinds of landscapes associated with distinctive vector species, show different intensities of transmission of onchocerciasis. In this sense, landscape analysis aided by GIS, may prove to be a useful tool for better identification of the spatial distribution of onchocerciasis risk in the Orinoco basin.

  18. Geographic scale matters in detecting the relationship between neighbourhood food environments and obesity risk: an analysis of driver license records in Salt Lake County, Utah.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, Jessie X; Hanson, Heidi A; Zick, Cathleen D; Brown, Barbara B; Kowaleski-Jones, Lori; Smith, Ken R

    2014-08-19

    Empirical studies of the association between neighbourhood food environments and individual obesity risk have found mixed results. One possible cause of these mixed findings is the variation in neighbourhood geographic scale used. The purpose of this paper was to examine how various neighbourhood geographic scales affected the estimated relationship between food environments and obesity risk. Cross-sectional secondary data analysis. Salt Lake County, Utah, USA. 403,305 Salt Lake County adults 25-64 in the Utah driver license database between 1995 and 2008. Utah driver license data were geo-linked to 2000 US Census data and Dun & Bradstreet business data. Food outlets were classified into the categories of large grocery stores, convenience stores, limited-service restaurants and full-service restaurants, and measured at four neighbourhood geographic scales: Census block group, Census tract, ZIP code and a 1 km buffer around the resident's house. These measures were regressed on individual obesity status using multilevel random intercept regressions. Obesity. Food environment was important for obesity but the scale of the relevant neighbourhood differs for different type of outlets: large grocery stores were not significant at all four geographic scales, limited-service restaurants at the medium-to-large scale (Census tract or larger) and convenience stores and full-service restaurants at the smallest scale (Census tract or smaller). The choice of neighbourhood geographic scale can affect the estimated significance of the association between neighbourhood food environments and individual obesity risk. However, variations in geographic scale alone do not explain the mixed findings in the literature. If researchers are constrained to use one geographic scale with multiple categories of food outlets, using Census tract or 1 km buffer as the neighbourhood geographic unit is likely to allow researchers to detect most significant relationships. Published by the BMJ

  19. Hierarchical Distributed-Lag Models: Exploring Varying Geographic Scale and Magnitude in Associations Between the Built Environment and Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baek, Jonggyu; Sanchez-Vaznaugh, Emma V; Sánchez, Brisa N

    2016-03-15

    It is well known that associations between features of the built environment and health depend on the geographic scale used to construct environmental attributes. In the built environment literature, it has long been argued that geographic scales may vary across study locations. However, this hypothesized variation has not been systematically examined due to a lack of available statistical methods. We propose a hierarchical distributed-lag model (HDLM) for estimating the underlying overall shape of food environment-health associations as a function of distance from locations of interest. This method enables indirect assessment of relevant geographic scales and captures area-level heterogeneity in the magnitudes of associations, along with relevant distances within areas. The proposed model was used to systematically examine area-level variation in the association between availability of convenience stores around schools and children's weights. For this case study, body mass index (weight kg)/height (m)2) z scores (BMIz) for 7th grade children collected via California's 2001-2009 FitnessGram testing program were linked to a commercial database that contained locations of food outlets statewide. Findings suggested that convenience store availability may influence BMIz only in some places and at varying distances from schools. Future research should examine localized environmental or policy differences that may explain the heterogeneity in convenience store-BMIz associations. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  20. The role of local environment and geographical distance in determining community composition of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi at the landscape scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hazard, Christina; Gosling, Paul; van der Gast, Christopher J; Mitchell, Derek T; Doohan, Fiona M; Bending, Gary D

    2013-03-01

    Arbuscular fungi have a major role in directing the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems yet little is known about their biogeographical distribution. The Baas-Becking hypothesis ('everything is everywhere, but, the environment selects') was tested by investigating the distribution of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) at the landscape scale and the influence of environmental factors and geographical distance in determining community composition. AMF communities in Trifolium repens and Lolium perenne roots were assessed in 40 geographically dispersed sites in Ireland representing different land uses and soil types. Field sampling and laboratory bioassays were used, with AMF communities characterised using 18S rRNA terminal-restriction fragment length polymorphism. Landscape-scale distribution of AMF was driven by the local environment. AMF community composition was influenced by abiotic variables (pH, rainfall and soil type), but not land use or geographical distance. Trifolium repens and L. perenne supported contrasting communities of AMF, and the communities colonising each plant species were consistent across pasture habitats and over distance. Furthermore, L. perenne AMF communities grouped by soil type within pasture habitats. This is the largest and most comprehensive study that has investigated the landscape-scale distribution of AMF. Our findings support the Baas-Becking hypothesis at the landscape scale and demonstrate the strong influence the local environment has on determining AMF community composition.

  1. Geographic patterns of cigarette butt waste in the urban environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marah, Maacah; Novotny, Thomas E

    2011-05-01

    This reports the initial phase of a study to quantify the spatial pattern of cigarette butt waste in an urban environment. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) was used to create a weighted overlay analysis model which was then applied to the locations of businesses where cigarettes are sold or are likely to be consumed and venues where higher concentrations of butts may be deposited. The model's utility was tested using a small-scale litter audit in three zip codes of San Diego, California. We found that cigarette butt waste is highly concentrated around businesses where cigarettes are sold or consumed. The mean number of butts for predicted high waste sites was 38.1 (SD 18.87), for predicted low waste sites mean 4.8 (SD 5.9), psales and consumption. A GIS and weighted overlay model may be a useful tool in predicting urban locations of greater and lesser amounts of cigarette butt waste. These data can in turn be used to develop economic cost studies and plan mitigation strategies in urban communities.

  2. Geographical point cloud modelling with the 3D medial axis transform

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Peters, R.Y.

    2018-01-01

    A geographical point cloud is a detailed three-dimensional representation of the geometry of our geographic environment.
    Using geographical point cloud modelling, we are able to extract valuable information from geographical point clouds that can be used for applications in asset management,

  3. Representation of geographic terrain surface using global indexing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kolar, Jan

    2004-01-01

    . Unlike cartographic maps, 3D models can capture the geometry of geographic features without flattening the environment, without cartographic projection?can avoid geometric distortion. More interestingly, however, 3D models can be composed into a single model spanning the whole world; it can be navigated...... visually in order to access information and data in the same geometric space as we navigate ourselves in our real environment.   This article attempts to narrow down the overhead of problems in visualization of 3D geographic information and intends to identify fundamental issues common to other systems......A global 3D geographic model a feasible solution for its visualization and management remains a challenging vision. The existence of a reusable platform would provide an unprecedented potential for development of applications related to geography and facilitate comprehension of geographic data...

  4. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to assess the role of the built environment in influencing obesity: a glossary.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thornton, Lukar E; Pearce, Jamie R; Kavanagh, Anne M

    2011-07-01

    Features of the built environment are increasingly being recognised as potentially important determinants of obesity. This has come about, in part, because of advances in methodological tools such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS). GIS has made the procurement of data related to the built environment easier and given researchers the flexibility to create a new generation of environmental exposure measures such as the travel time to the nearest supermarket or calculations of the amount of neighbourhood greenspace. Given the rapid advances in the availability of GIS data and the relative ease of use of GIS software, a glossary on the use of GIS to assess the built environment is timely. As a case study, we draw on aspects the food and physical activity environments as they might apply to obesity, to define key GIS terms related to data collection, concepts, and the measurement of environmental features.

  5. Transient peat properties in two pond-peatland complexes in the sub-humid Western Boreal Plain, Canada

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R.M. Petrone

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available In the Canadian Western Boreal Plain (WBP, wetlands (ponds and peatlands comprise up to 50% of the landscape and represent unique habitat where summer precipitation is often outpaced by evapotranspiration and hillslope groundwater position does not follow topography. In this sub-humid location, groundwater fluxes and stores in riparian peatlands influence pond water levels and root zone moisture sources for forested uplands. To accurately describe the transport and retention of water in peat, it is important to consider peat subsidence. This paper quantifies the amount and effect of seasonal subsidence in a riparian peatland in the Utikuma Lake region in north-central Alberta, Canada. Results demonstrate that the deep and poorly decomposed peat deposits are resistant to compression, and that thick (and persistent ground frost hinders pore collapse (shrinkage above the water table until late summer when the ground has thawed. Even then, subsidence is still limited to the top 50 cm and is not closely related to changes in peatland water table or pond water level. Thus the water balance of these ponds and riparian areas appears to be less sensitive to peat volume changes than it is to the persistence of a substantial frost layer well into the snow-free period.

  6. 40 CFR 51.25 - What geographic area must my state's inventory cover?

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... Emissions Reporting Requirements Specific Reporting Requirements § 51.25 What geographic area must my state... 40 Protection of Environment 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What geographic area must my state's inventory cover? 51.25 Section 51.25 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED...

  7. The relative stability of prehistorical geographic environment in China's tropics on the basis of archaeology

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    2002-01-01

    According to archaeological data from about sixty samples the relative stability ofphysical and human geographical environment in the tropical zone of China is discussed in thispaper. Because of the superior natural environment, sufficient food resources and a sparsepopulation resulting in the absence of social requirement to transform the productive forces, theadvancement of economy and society was stagnated during prehistorical period in China's tropics.Compared with northern China, the appearance of ground stone tool stagnated about 3,000 years,the beginning of Bronze Age, about 1,000 years, and the agriculture, 2,500-3,000 years. The noceramics age continued till the early Neolithic Age and the appearance of colour or white ceramicswas 2,000 years later than that in northern China. The life form of migration to gather and to huntcontinued till the middle Neolithic Age, and the fixed settlement based on agriculture 1,000-2,000years stagnated. The clan commune just appeared at the end of the Neolithic Age which was 2,000-3,000 years later than that in northern China.

  8. Organohalogen contamination in passerine birds from three metropolises in China: Geographical variation and its implication for anthropogenic effects on urban environments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yu, Le-Huan; Luo, Xiao-Jun; Liu, Hong-Ying; Zeng, Yan-Hong; Zheng, Xiao-Bo; Wu, Jiang-Ping; Yu, Yun-Jiang; Mai, Bi-Xian

    2014-01-01

    Contamination of organohalogen pollutants (OHPs), including dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane and its metabolites (DDTs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), decabromodiphenylethane (DBDPE), hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs), and dechlorane plus (DP) in three metropolises of China, Beijing, Wuhan, and Guangzhou, and a reference rural site were determined using terrestrial residential passerine species as bioindicator. DDTs dominated in Wuhan whereas flame retardants dominated in Guangzhou and Beijing. No geographical variation was found for PCB levels but it exhibited different homologue profiles among different sites which could be attributed to different dietary sources of birds. Industry characteristics of the sampling location contributed to the geographical differences in the occurrence and contamination profile of OHPs. The transformation of traditional agriculture characterized contamination profiles to industry characterized profiles in Beijing and Guangzhou implicates significantly environmental concern on the flame retardants contamination in non-hot-spot regions of China. - Highlights: • Various OHPs were determined in passerine birds from three metropolises of China. • Geographical variations of OHPs levels and contamination profiles were observed. • More concern should be taken on the dominance of FRs in Chinese developed cities. • Diet source characterized by δ 13 C plays a key role in PCB pattern determination. - Geographical variations of OHPs contamination profiles indicate significant impact of industrialization and urbanization on Chinese urban environment

  9. Deciphering the adjustment between environment and life history in annuals: lessons from a geographically-explicit approach in Arabidopsis thaliana.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manzano-Piedras, Esperanza; Marcer, Arnald; Alonso-Blanco, Carlos; Picó, F Xavier

    2014-01-01

    context of current global warming, geographically-explicit approaches, evaluating the match between organisms and the environments where they live, may contribute to better assess and predict the consequences of global warming.

  10. Geographical data structures supporting regional analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Edwards, R.G.; Durfee, R.C.

    1978-01-01

    In recent years the computer has become a valuable aid in solving regional environmental problems. Over a hundred different geographic information systems have been developed to digitize, store, analyze, and display spatially distributed data. One important aspect of these systems is the data structure (e.g. grids, polygons, segments) used to model the environment being studied. This paper presents eight common geographic data structures and their use in studies of coal resources, power plant siting, population distributions, LANDSAT imagery analysis, and landuse analysis

  11. The role of local environment and geographical distance in determining community composition of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi at the landscape scale

    OpenAIRE

    Hazard, Christina; Gosling, Paul; van der Gast, Christopher J; Mitchell, Derek T; Doohan, Fiona M; Bending, Gary D

    2012-01-01

    Arbuscular fungi have a major role in directing the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems yet little is known about their biogeographical distribution. The Baas-Becking hypothesis (‘everything is everywhere, but, the environment selects') was tested by investigating the distribution of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) at the landscape scale and the influence of environmental factors and geographical distance in determining community composition. AMF communities in Trifolium repens and Loliu...

  12. Formation and distribution of international tourism flows in geographical space

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oleksandr Korol

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Properties of geographical space that are of key importance for international tourism, as length and discreteness, are analyzed in the article. Length makes tourists cover distances, whereas discreteness manifests itself in spatial heterogeneity. Tourism in conditions of homogeneous space is vain. That is, heterogeneity brings sense to travels as well as determines their direction. So, the effect of geographical space’s length and spatial heterogeneity on formation and distribution of tourism flows is assessed, international tourism’s geographical essence is disclosed also. Apperception of geographical space in usual environment and its effect on tourist’s original motives are described. Following the bases of behaviorism, the tourism original motives, in particular those for migration, comfort, contrast and aesthetics are substantiated. The motive for migration is a kind of “pushing” tourists outside their usual environment. To stop all fears that may cause anxiety in destination, the latter should guarantee satisfaction of those human needs which A. Maslow refers to as basic needs. The necessity to satisfy these needs forms in tourists the motive for comfort. Closely located destinations in neighboring countries can be of little difference form usual environment. Driven by the motive for contrast, tourists aspire to visit places that totally differ from their usual environment, and contrast (are exotic to it. Thus, the motive for contrast seemingly “pulls” the tourists up to certain (exotic destinations. Finally, following the considered spatial specificities of land surface and tourist-driving original motives, a conceptual model of formation and distribution of international tourism flows in geographical space is developed.

  13. SCHOOL LINGUISTIC CREATIVITY BASED ON SCIENTIFIC GEOGRAPHICAL TEXTS

    OpenAIRE

    VIORICA BLÎNDĂ

    2012-01-01

    The analysis and observation of the natural environment and of the social and economic one, observing phenomena, objects, beings, and geographical events are at the basis of producing geographical scientific texts. The symbols of iconotexts and cartotexts are another source of inspiration for linguistic interpretation. The linguistic creations that we selected for our study are the scientific analysis, the commentary, the characteriz...

  14. Geographical National Condition and Complex System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    WANG Jiayao

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The significance of studying the complex system of geographical national conditions lies in rationally expressing the complex relationships of the “resources-environment-ecology-economy-society” system. Aiming to the problems faced by the statistical analysis of geographical national conditions, including the disunity of research contents, the inconsistency of range, the uncertainty of goals, etc.the present paper conducted a range of discussions from the perspectives of concept, theory and method, and designed some solutions based on the complex system theory and coordination degree analysis methods.By analyzing the concepts of geographical national conditions, geographical national conditions survey and geographical national conditions statistical analysis, as well as investigating the relationships between theirs, the statistical contents and the analytical range of geographical national conditions are clarified and defined. This investigation also clarifies the goals of the statistical analysis by analyzing the basic characteristics of the geographical national conditions and the complex system, and the consistency between the analysis of the degree of coordination and statistical analyses. It outlines their goals, proposes a concept for the complex system of geographical national conditions, and it describes the concept. The complex system theory provides new theoretical guidance for the statistical analysis of geographical national conditions. The degree of coordination offers new approaches on how to undertake the analysis based on the measurement method and decision-making analysis scheme upon which the complex system of geographical national conditions is based. It analyzes the overall trend via the degree of coordination of the complex system on a macro level, and it determines the direction of remediation on a micro level based on the degree of coordination among various subsystems and of single systems. These results establish

  15. Training for Internationalization through Domestic Geographical Dispersion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Santangelo, Grazia D.; Stucchi, Tamara

    Traditionally created to deal with the unfriendly domestic environment, business groups (BGs) are increasingly internationalizing. However, how BGs can reconcile their strictly domestic orientation with an international dimension still remains an open question. Drawing on arguments from...... organizational learning, we seek to solve this puzzle in relation to the internationalization of Indian BGs. In particular, we argue that in heterogeneous domestic emerging markets BG’s geographical dispersion across sub-national states provides training for internationalization. To internationalize successfully......, BGs need to develop the capability of managing geographically dispersed units in institutional heterogeneous contexts. Domestic geographical dispersion would indeed help the BG dealing with different regulations, customers and infrastructures. However, there is less scope for such training as BGs...

  16. Origins of streamflow in a crystalline basement catchment in a sub-humid Sudanian zone: The Donga basin (Benin, West Africa): Inter-annual variability of water budget

    Science.gov (United States)

    Séguis, L.; Kamagaté, B.; Favreau, G.; Descloitres, M.; Seidel, J.-L.; Galle, S.; Peugeot, C.; Gosset, M.; Le Barbé, L.; Malinur, F.; Van Exter, S.; Arjounin, M.; Boubkraoui, S.; Wubda, M.

    2011-05-01

    SummaryDuring the last quarter of the 20th century, West Africa underwent a particularly intense and generalized drought. During this period, the biggest drops in streamflow were observed in the Sudanian zone rather than in the Sahelian zone, but the reasons are still poorly understood. In 2000, a meso-scale hydrological observatory was set up in the sub-humid Sudanian zone of the Upper Ouémé Valley (Benin). Three embedded catchments of 12-586 km 2 located on a crystalline bedrock were intensively instrumented to document the different terms of the water budget and to identify the main streamflow generating processes and base-flow mechanisms at different scales. Geophysical, hydrological and geochemical data were collected throughout the catchments from 2002 to 2006. Crossing these data helped define their hydrological functioning. The region has seasonal streamflow, and the permanent groundwater in the weathered mantle does not drain to rivers, instead, seasonal perched groundwaters are the major contributor to annual streamflow. The perched groundwaters are mainly located in seasonally waterlogged sandy layers in the headwater bottom-lands called bas-fonds in French-speaking West Africa of 1st order streams. During the period 2003-2006, regolith groundwater recharge ranged between 10% and 15% of the annual rainfall depth. Depletion of permanent groundwater during the dry season is probably explained by local evapotranspiration which was seen not to be limited to gallery forests. During the 4-year study period, a reduction of 20% in annual rainfall led to a 50% reduction in streamflow. This reduction was observed in the two components of the flow: direct runoff and drainage of perched groundwater. Thanks to the comprehensive dataset obtained, the results obtained for the Donga experimental catchment are now being extrapolated to the whole upper Ouémé valley, which can be considered as representative of sub-humid Sudanian rivers flowing on a crystalline

  17. The Impact of Geographical Environment on Urban Place Names: Case of Şanlıurfa City

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Veysi GÜNAL

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available This study which holds Şanlıurfa city’s place names consists of three chapters. First, the factors that impact streets and district names are being held. Also, development of names is examined and classified. The purpose of this study is to understand the impact of geographical environment on naming of streets and districts. Natural environment characteristics have an impact on urban naming. City’s areal extension and an increase in population, national and local historical events, social and economic structure have an impact on urban place names too. While naming, the political party which includes mayor and councilors has an important mission. In this concept, there are a lot of places which have been named after person’s names, sites and historical-political events. Out of 149 names, 78 of it have taken its names after human activities. In the human activities based names (78, person’s names have an outstanding place (60. And in those names, governmental-military-political names (24 and religious person’s names come into prominence. In the city there are 22 natural environment names, 6 streets and 14 districts. There are a lot of urban places’ names which have been named after economic activities. These activities have given names to 36 districts and streets. Names which unknown the origin and others are 13

  18. Application of artificial intelligence to estimate the reference evapotranspiration in sub-humid Doon valley

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nema, Manish K.; Khare, Deepak; Chandniha, Surendra K.

    2017-11-01

    Estimation of evapotranspiration (ET) is an essential component of the hydrologic cycle, which is also requisite for efficient irrigation water management planning and hydro-meteorological studies at both the basin and catchment scales. There are about twenty well-established methods available for ET estimation which depends upon various meteorological parameters and assumptions. Most of these methods are physically based and need a variety of input data. The FAO-56 Penman-Monteith method (PM) for estimating reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is recommend for irrigation scheduling worldwide, because PM generally yields the best results under various climatic conditions. This study investigates the abilities of artificial neural networks (ANN) to improve the accuracy of monthly evaporation estimation in sub-humid climatic region of Dehradun. In the first part of the study, different ANN models, comprising various combinations of training function and number of neutrons were developed to estimate the ET0 and it has been compared with the Penman-Monteith (PM) ET0 as the ideal (observed) ET0. Various statistical approaches were considered to estimate the model performance, i.e. Coefficient of Correlation ( r), Sum of Squared Errors, Root Mean Square Error, Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency Index (NSE) and Mean Absolute Error. The ANN model with Levenberg-Marquardt training algorithm, single hidden layer and nine number of neutron schema was found the best predicting capabilities for the study station with Coefficient of Correlation ( r) and NSE value of 0.996 and 0.991 for calibration period and 0.990 and 0.980 for validation period, respectively. In the subsequent part of the study, the trend analysis of ET0 time series revealed a rising trend in the month of March, and a falling trend during June to November, except August, with more than 90% significance level and the annual declining rate was found to 1.49 mm per year.

  19. Depositional environments and cyclo- and chronostratigraphy of uppermost Carboniferous-Lower Triassic -lacustrine deposits, southern Bogda Mountains, NW China - A terrestrfluvialial paleoclimatic record of mid-latitude NE Pangea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, W.; Feng, Q.; Liu, Yajing; Tabor, N.; Miggins, D.; Crowley, J.L.; Lin, J.; Thomas, S.

    2010-01-01

    Two uppermost Carboniferous–Lower Triassic fluvial–lacustrine sections in the Tarlong–Taodonggou half-graben, southern Bogda Mountains, NW China, comprise a 1834 m-thick, relatively complete sedimentary and paleoclimatic record of the east coast of mid-latitude NE Pangea. Depositional environmental interpretations identified three orders (high, intermediate, and low) of sedimentary cycles. High-order cycles (HCs) have five basic types, including fluvial cycles recording repetitive changes of erosion and deposition and lacustrine cycles recording repetitive environmental changes associated with lake expansion and contraction. HCs are grouped into intermediate-order cycles (ICs) on the basis of systematic changes of thickness, type, and component lithofacies of HCs. Nine low-order cycles (LCs) are demarcated by graben-wide surfaces across which significant long-term environmental changes occurred. A preliminary cyclostratigraphic framework provides a foundation for future studies of terrestrial climate, tectonics, and paleontology in mid-latitude NE Pangea.Climate variabilities at the intra-HC, HC, IC, and LC scales were interpreted from sedimentary and paleosol evidence. Four prominent climatic shifts are present: 1) from the humid–subhumid to highly-variable subhumid–semiarid conditions at the beginning of Sakamarian; 2) from highly-variable subhumid–semiarid to humid–subhumid conditions across the Artinskian-Capitanian unconformity; 3) from humid–subhumid to highly-variable subhumid–semiarid conditions at early Induan; and 4) from the highly-variable subhumid–semiarid to humid–subhumid conditions across the Olenekian-Anisian unconformity. The stable humid–subhumid condition from Lopingian to early Induan implies that paleoclimate change may not have been the cause of the end-Permian terrestrial mass extinction. A close documentation of the pace and timing of the extinction and exploration of other causes are needed. In addition, the

  20. A Systems Perspective on Volunteered Geographic Information

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Victoria Fast

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Volunteered geographic information (VGI is geographic information collected by way of crowdsourcing. However, the distinction between VGI as an information product and the processes that create VGI is blurred. Clearly, the environment that influences the creation of VGI is different than the information product itself, yet most literature treats them as one and the same. Thus, this research is motivated by the need to formalize and standardize the systems that support the creation of VGI. To this end, we propose a conceptual framework for VGI systems, the main components of which—project, participants, and technical infrastructure—form an environment conducive to the creation of VGI. Drawing on examples from OpenStreetMap, Ushahidi, and RinkWatch, we illustrate the pragmatic relevance of these components. Applying a system perspective to VGI allows us to better understand the components and functionality needed to effectively create VGI.

  1. ENVIRONMENT IN THE HUMAN PERCEPTION: GEOGRAPHICAL ASPECTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Diana Dushkova

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available The present work highlights the different aspects of human perception of environment, specific characteristics of the subjective estimation of its state and attitudes to environmental quality. The authors claim more scientific awareness for the understanding of the motivations determining human behavior during interaction with the environment and knowledge about the objective functional system “perception—action” as part of complex geoecological analyses. Furthermore the populations view on the further development of the landscape to improve its living conditions etc. is a crucial part of this concept.

  2. Sex-specific differences of craniofacial traits in Croatia: the impact of environment in a small geographic area.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buretic-Tomljanovic, Alena; Giacometti, Jasminka; Ostojic, Sasa; Kapovic, Miljenko

    2007-01-01

    Craniometric variation in humans reflects different genetic and environmental influences. Long-term climatic adaptation is less likely to show an impact on size and shape variation in a small local area than at the global level. The aim of this work was to assess the contribution of the particular environmental factors to body height and craniofacial variability in a small geographic area of Croatia. A total of 632 subjects, aged 18-21, participated in the survey. Body height, head length, head breadth, head height, head circumference, cephalic index, morphological face height, face breadth, and facial index were analysed regarding geographic, climatic and dietary conditions in different regions of the country, and correlated with the specific climatic variables (cumulative multiyear sunshine duration, cumulative multiyear average precipitation, multiyear average air temperatures) and calcium concentrations in drinking water. Significant differences between groups classified according to geographic, climatic or dietary affiliation, and the impact of the environmental predictors on the variation in the investigated traits were assessed using multiple forward stepwise regression analyses. Higher body height measures in both sexes were significantly correlated with Mediterranean diet type. Mediterranean diet type also contributed to higher head length and head circumference measures in females. Cephalic index values correlated to geographic regions in both sexes, showing an increase from southern to eastern Croatia. In the same direction, head length significantly decreased in males and head breadth increased in females. Mediterranean climate was associated with higher and narrower faces in females. The analysis of the particular climatic variables did not reveal a significant influence on body height in either sex. Concurrently, climatic features influenced all craniofacial traits in females and only head length and facial index in males. Mediterranean climate

  3. PHYLOGEOrec: A QGIS plugin for spatial phylogeographic reconstruction from phylogenetic tree and geographical information data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nashrulloh, Maulana Malik; Kurniawan, Nia; Rahardi, Brian

    2017-11-01

    The increasing availability of genetic sequence data associated with explicit geographic and environment (including biotic and abiotic components) information offers new opportunities to study the processes that shape biodiversity and its patterns. Developing phylogeography reconstruction, by integrating phylogenetic and biogeographic knowledge, provides richer and deeper visualization and information on diversification events than ever before. Geographical information systems such as QGIS provide an environment for spatial modeling, analysis, and dissemination by which phylogenetic models can be explicitly linked with their associated spatial data, and subsequently, they will be integrated with other related georeferenced datasets describing the biotic and abiotic environment. We are introducing PHYLOGEOrec, a QGIS plugin for building spatial phylogeographic reconstructions constructed from phylogenetic tree and geographical information data based on QGIS2threejs. By using PHYLOGEOrec, researchers can integrate existing phylogeny and geographical information data, resulting in three-dimensional geographic visualizations of phylogenetic trees in the Keyhole Markup Language (KML) format. Such formats can be overlaid on a map using QGIS and finally, spatially viewed in QGIS by means of a QGIS2threejs engine for further analysis. KML can also be viewed in reputable geobrowsers with KML-support (i.e., Google Earth).

  4. Geographical Simulation and Optimization System (GeoSOS and Its Application in the Analysis of Geographic National Conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    LI Xia

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Since the Chinese first survey on geographic national conditions has completed, an urgent need is to analyze these geographical data, such as mining of spatial distribution patterns, land use transition rules, development trends. The analysis is crucial for extracting the knowledge from these big data about geographic national conditions. The remote sensing interpretation data and land use/cover data generated by these geographic national conditions monitoring projects are the basic data sources for a variety of research and applications in terms of land use change detection, urban dynamic analysis, and urban/land use planning. The information can be used for assisting in the coordination of land resource use and decision making for urban and rural development, ecological environment protection and other issues that depends on spatial intelligent decisions. We proposed the theoretical framework of geographical simulation and optimization system (GeoSOS, which coupled geographic process simulation/prediction and spatial optimization, provides powerful theoretical support and practical tools for above researches. This paper develops the extension of GeoSOS software-GeoSOS for ArcGIS, which is an ArcGIS Add-In runs on ArcGIS platform for facilitating the above analyses. We take the urban expansion and ecological protection research in rapid urbanization area as an example, use the software to tackle a series of urbanization issues in the study area. The simulation results show that the predicted land development intensity of Guangdong Province will exceed the constraint index in 2020 according to the national development plan. However, the urbanization expansion based on the constraints of land development intensity and ecological protection can satisfy these constraints, and obtain a more compact landscape pattern. The analysis has shown that GeoSOS can be a useful tool for assisting in the analysis of geographic national conditions information

  5. International variation in neighborhood walkability, transit, and recreation environments using geographic information systems: the IPEN adult study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adams, Marc A; Frank, Lawrence D; Schipperijn, Jasper; Smith, Graham; Chapman, James; Christiansen, Lars B; Coffee, Neil; Salvo, Deborah; du Toit, Lorinne; Dygrýn, Jan; Hino, Adriano Akira Ferreira; Lai, Poh-chin; Mavoa, Suzanne; Pinzón, José David; Van de Weghe, Nico; Cerin, Ester; Davey, Rachel; Macfarlane, Duncan; Owen, Neville; Sallis, James F

    2014-10-25

    The World Health Organization recommends strategies to improve urban design, public transportation, and recreation facilities to facilitate physical activity for non-communicable disease prevention for an increasingly urbanized global population. Most evidence supporting environmental associations with physical activity comes from single countries or regions with limited variation in urban form. This paper documents variation in comparable built environment features across countries from diverse regions. The International Physical Activity and the Environment Network (IPEN) study of adults aimed to measure the full range of variation in the built environment using geographic information systems (GIS) across 12 countries on 5 continents. Investigators in Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, China, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States followed a common research protocol to develop internationally comparable measures. Using detailed instructions, GIS-based measures included features such as walkability (i.e., residential density, street connectivity, mix of land uses), and access to public transit, parks, and private recreation facilities around each participant's residential address using 1-km and 500-m street network buffers. Eleven of 12 countries and 15 cities had objective GIS data on built environment features. We observed a 38-fold difference in median residential densities, a 5-fold difference in median intersection densities and an 18-fold difference in median park densities. Hong Kong had the highest and North Shore, New Zealand had the lowest median walkability index values, representing a difference of 9 standard deviations in GIS-measured walkability. Results show that comparable measures can be created across a range of cultural settings revealing profound global differences in urban form relevant to physical activity. These measures allow cities to be ranked more precisely than previously

  6. The New Trends for Librarians in Management of Geographic Information

    OpenAIRE

    Vardakosta, Ifigenia; Kapidakis, Sarantos

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to examine the tools (e.g. CSDGM – FGDC, Gazetteers) used for the subject description and organization, of materials (maps, aerial photos, geospatial data, remote sense images etc) related to the geographic information in today's hybrid library environment. Furthermore we aim to identify changes (e.g. RDA) and determine the new forms (e.g. Linked Data) that have arisen in the management and use of geographic information in order to further enrich access to digital...

  7. APPLICATION OF GIS AND STATISTICAL METHODS IN ESTABLISHMENT OF THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN GEOCHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF DISEASE INCIDENCE RATE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ante Kutle

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Geochemical environment can influence human health causing chronic medical problems related to long-term, low-level exposures to toxic agents such are trace elements. Humans can be directly exposed to toxic substances by inhalation of air dust or indirectly through food chain or by consumption of local water for drinking, cooking, personal hygiene and recreational purposes. Chronic medical problems related to geochemical characteristics of the environment can also be caused by chronic deficit of chemical elements essential for humans. In this paper we will present several applications of the GIS and statistical methods for relating the geographical distribution of diseases with geochemical characteristics of the environment. In addition, we are presenting methods applied for distinguishing natural distribution of elements from anthropogenic contribution, which is important information for establishing protective measures necessary for decreasing the health risk (the paper is published in Croatian.

  8. SCHOOL LINGUISTIC CREATIVITY BASED ON SCIENTIFIC GEOGRAPHICAL TEXTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    VIORICA BLÎNDĂ

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The analysis and observation of the natural environment and of the social and economic one, observing phenomena, objects, beings, and geographical events are at the basis of producing geographical scientific texts. The symbols of iconotexts and cartotexts are another source of inspiration for linguistic interpretation. The linguistic creations that we selected for our study are the scientific analysis, the commentary, the characterization, the parallel, the synthesis, epitomizing and abstracting, the scientific communication, the essay, and the scientific description. The representations on maps, photos, graphics and profiles are translated into verbal or written expression in order to render geographical scientific information from diagrams and images through diverse discursive procedures. Through school linguistic creations, teachers develop their students’ observation spirit, in a written and oral form, their geographical thinking through metaphors, they develop and stimulate their students’ imagination and fantasy, their cognitive, reflexive and affective sensitivity, their abilities to express themselves, to present and argument in a scientific way according to different criteria (sufficiency, demonstrative reasoning, lineal reasoning, pros and cons, giving examples, inferential deduction through using truth tables, etc.. Trough description, students give names and define geographical objects and beings (plants, animals, and people according to their form and aspect, they explain toponyms and appellatives, they classify and make hierarchies, they define their identity through processes of differentiation, emblematizing, personification, location in time and space.

  9. Geographical Environment Factors and Risk Assessment of Tick-Borne Encephalitis in Hulunbuir, Northeastern China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yifan; Wang, Juanle; Gao, Mengxu; Fang, Liqun; Liu, Changhua; Lyu, Xin; Bai, Yongqing; Zhao, Qiang; Li, Hairong; Yu, Hongjie; Cao, Wuchun; Feng, Liqiang; Wang, Yanjun; Zhang, Bin

    2017-05-26

    Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is one of natural foci diseases transmitted by ticks. Its distribution and transmission are closely related to geographic and environmental factors. Identification of environmental determinates of TBE is of great importance to understanding the general distribution of existing and potential TBE natural foci. Hulunbuir, one of the most severe endemic areas of the disease, is selected as the study area. Statistical analysis, global and local spatial autocorrelation analysis, and regression methods were applied to detect the spatiotemporal characteristics, compare the impact degree of associated factors, and model the risk distribution using the heterogeneity. The statistical analysis of gridded geographic and environmental factors and TBE incidence show that the TBE patients mainly occurred during spring and summer and that there is a significant positive spatial autocorrelation between the distribution of TBE cases and environmental characteristics. The impact degree of these factors on TBE risks has the following descending order: temperature, relative humidity, vegetation coverage, precipitation and topography. A high-risk area with a triangle shape was determined in the central part of Hulunbuir; the low-risk area is located in the two belts next to the outside edge of the central triangle. The TBE risk distribution revealed that the impact of the geographic factors changed depending on the heterogeneity.

  10. ROMANIA: GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOPOLITICAL POSITION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ciprian Beniamin Benea

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper intends to bring to the reader’s attention the importance of understanding the role education plays in creating a good geopolitical position for a state which has a good geographical position, and which is well endowed in natural resources. The case of Romania is the main focus of the paper. There is presented a peculiar strange situation of a country (Romania which is very well located from geographical point of view but which is incapable to exploit its natural endowments and special location. One reason for this situation is the fact that most people living in present Romania belong to a category named in this paper ‘individuals’. Individuals are not aware of their country’s geography and history, let alone its possible future development possibilities. They do not know the role their country could play, and living in an atomized society, they choose emigration as the easiest way to escape harsh social and economic environment. Contrary to this attitude is that of a citizen, a man conscious about his country’s potential, and which is dedicated to work hardly together with his fellows in order to promote national interests in a peaceful manner. Even there was found remnants of an ancient city close to present day Romanian territory – proves of well endowed environment – moral and psychological factors have contributed after 1990 in an crucial manner to push Romania from its civilization path back to the archaic spirit, from active urban spirit to rural mentality. In such a situation it is not uncommon for a nation to lose its means for projecting power, which could promote the value and the importance of a geographical position – transportation; rural mentality has nothing to do with modern transportation as they are technical tools with geopolitical essence for controlling space. It is a well known fact that transportation and geopolitics are closely interrelated. Furthermore, social dissolution in post communist

  11. DEVELOPMENT OF A GEOGRAPHIC VISUALIZATION AND COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS (GVCS) FOR MONITORING REMOTE VEHICLES

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    COLEMAN, P.; DUNCAN, M.; DURFEE, R.C.; GOELTZ, R; HARRISON, G.; HODGSON, M.E.; KOOK, M.; MCCLAIN, S.

    1998-03-30

    The purpose of this project is to integrate a variety of geographic information systems capabilities and telecommunication technologies for potential use in geographic network and visualization applications. The specific technical goals of the project were to design, develop, and simulate the components of an audio/visual geographic communications system to aid future real-time monitoring, mapping and managing of transport vehicles. The system components of this feasibility study are collectively referred to as a Geographic Visualization and Communications System (GVCS). State-of-the-art techniques will be used and developed to allow both the vehicle operator and network manager to monitor the location and surrounding environment of a transport vehicle during shipment.

  12. Geographic Names

    Data.gov (United States)

    Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), developed by the United States Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Board of Geographic Names, provides...

  13. Eco–geographical characterization of aquatic microhabitats used by amphibians in the Mediterranean Basin

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Benítez, M.

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Small freshwater ecosystems, whether natural or artificial origin, are aquatic microhabitats for many species and are particularly important in the Mediterranean region. This study characterizes the aquatic microhabitats suitable for amphibian reproduction in the Andalusian Mediterranean Basin and identifies the environmental and geographical features that determine the presence of different amphibian species in these water bodies. Geographical and environmental favourability models were performed to determine the relationship between characteristics of the microhabitats and species presence. The characteristics analysed were geographical location, external environment (climate and topography, surrounding conditions (connectivity and conservation, type of water body, water conditions, and water dimensions. Microhabitats located in the western and central part of the study area were geographically favourable for most species. In descending order, the most common environmental factors characterizing the microhabitats were typology, surrounding conditions, water condition, external environment and size of the water body. The most common variables in the models were the connectivity between water bodies and old wells, a frequent type of microhabitat in areas of traditional cultures. Management plans should take these results into account in efforts to preserve these habitats for wildlife and especially amphibians.

  14. The Chthonomonas calidirosea Genome Is Highly Conserved across Geographic Locations and Distinct Chemical and Microbial Environments in New Zealand's Taupō Volcanic Zone.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kevin C; Stott, Matthew B; Dunfield, Peter F; Huttenhower, Curtis; McDonald, Ian R; Morgan, Xochitl C

    2016-06-15

    Chthonomonas calidirosea T49(T) is a low-abundance, carbohydrate-scavenging, and thermophilic soil bacterium with a seemingly disorganized genome. We hypothesized that the C. calidirosea genome would be highly responsive to local selection pressure, resulting in the divergence of its genomic content, genome organization, and carbohydrate utilization phenotype across environments. We tested this hypothesis by sequencing the genomes of four C. calidirosea isolates obtained from four separate geothermal fields in the Taupō Volcanic Zone, New Zealand. For each isolation site, we measured physicochemical attributes and defined the associated microbial community by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Despite their ecological and geographical isolation, the genome sequences showed low divergence (maximum, 1.17%). Isolate-specific variations included single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), restriction-modification systems, and mobile elements but few major deletions and no major rearrangements. The 50-fold variation in C. calidirosea relative abundance among the four sites correlated with site environmental characteristics but not with differences in genomic content. Conversely, the carbohydrate utilization profiles of the C. calidirosea isolates corresponded to the inferred isolate phylogenies, which only partially paralleled the geographical relationships among the sample sites. Genomic sequence conservation does not entirely parallel geographic distance, suggesting that stochastic dispersal and localized extinction, which allow for rapid population homogenization with little restriction by geographical barriers, are possible mechanisms of C. calidirosea distribution. This dispersal and extinction mechanism is likely not limited to C. calidirosea but may shape the populations and genomes of many other low-abundance free-living taxa. This study compares the genomic sequence variations and metabolisms of four strains of Chthonomonas calidirosea, a rare thermophilic bacterium from

  15. Mixed crop-livestock production systems of smallholder farmers in sub-humid and semi-arid areas of Zambia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lungu, J.C.N.

    2002-01-01

    Livestock production activities among small-scale farmers of semi-arid (Agro-ecological zone 1) and sub-humid (Agro-ecological zone 2) areas of Zambia are integrated with crop production activities in what is termed as crop/livestock farming system. This is a closed system in which production of one enterprise depends on the other. In Zambia, crop production depends on draught animals for tillage of cropping area, animal manure for fertilisation of crops while livestock depend on crop residues for dry season feeding. Good quality grass is generally available in adequate amounts to support reasonable level of livestock productivity during the rainy season. But livestock rely on low quantity and poor quality, highly fibrous perennial grass from veld and fibrous crop residues during the dry season. These resources are inadequate to support optimum livestock productivity activities. Poor nutrition results in low rates of reproduction and production as well as increased susceptibility to diseases. With the increasing human population cropping land is expanding, leading to increased production of crop residues. This has however, reduced the grazing land available for ruminant production. In Zambia large quantities of crop residues (stovers, husks and straws, legume tops and hulls, sugar cane tops, cassava leaves, potato vines, etc.) are left in the field where they are wasted each year because small-scale farmers lack the knowledge on how best to use them. There is a need to find ways to reverse this situation by adapting known and workable technologies to local conditions and by introducing new approaches for improving the use of crop residues and poor quality fibrous feeds. Efforts should also be made to enlarge feed resource base. The technologies should be simple and effective. In the presence of a dynamic market system, livestock production in a crop/livestock system could be intensified and made profitable for small-scale farmers. (author)

  16. Geographic Media Literacy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lukinbeal, Chris

    2014-01-01

    While the use of media permeates geographic research and pedagogic practice, the underlying literacies that link geography and media remain uncharted. This article argues that geographic media literacy incorporates visual literacy, information technology literacy, information literacy, and media literacy. Geographic media literacy is the ability…

  17. Plants and geographical names in Croatia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cargonja, Hrvoje; Daković, Branko; Alegro, Antun

    2008-09-01

    The main purpose of this paper is to present some general observations, regularities and insights into a complex relationship between plants and people through symbolic systems like geographical names on the territory of Croatia. The basic sources of data for this research were maps from atlas of Croatia of the scale 1:100000. Five groups of maps or areas were selected in order to represent main Croatian phytogeographic regions. A selection of toponyms from each of the map was made in which the name for a plant in Croatian language was recognized (phytotoponyms). Results showed that of all plant names recognized in geographical names the most represented are trees, and among them birch and oak the most. Furthermore, an attempt was made to explain the presence of the most represented plant species in the phytotoponyms in the light of general phytogeographical and sociocultural differences and similarities of comparing areas. The findings confirm an expectation that the genera of climazonal vegetation of particular area are the most represented among the phytotoponyms. Nevertheless, there are ample examples where representation of a plant name in the names of human environment can only be ascribed to ethno-linguistic and socio-cultural motives. Despite the reductionist character of applied methodology, this research also points out some advantages of this approach for ethnobotanic and ethnolinguistic studies of greater areas of human environment.

  18. The Importance of Geographical Indications in Regional Tourism Development: The Case of Çanakkale

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Şefik Okan Mercan

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Many products unique to Turkey, the origins of which are recognized with the name of region. Turkey, its geographical location and climatic zone having three different soil structure and cultural heritage and human capital due to a rich variety of geographical product has the potential. Features of geographical environment revealed  this product wealth, this product also requires the protection of geographical indications through. In this study, in Çanakkale who have registered geographical indication products, to examine the importance of the development of regional tourism and how these products can be assessed on a tourism product relevant institutions/organizations are intended to be of the opinion. According to the findings, the general opinion of Canakkale geographical indication products are properly and effectively with the regional tourism promotion and marketing work done in the development of a tool is that it will undertake the task. 

  19. Spatio-temporal monitoring of vegetation phenology in the dry sub-humid region of Nigeria using time series of AVHRR NDVI and TAMSAT datasets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Osunmadewa, Babatunde Adeniyi; Gebrehiwot, Worku Zewdie; Csaplovics, Elmar; Adeofun, Olabinjo Clement

    2018-03-01

    Time series data are of great importance for monitoring vegetation phenology in the dry sub-humid regions where change in land cover has influence on biomass productivity. However few studies have inquired into examining the impact of rainfall and land cover change on vegetation phenology. This study explores Seasonal Trend Analysis (STA) approach in order to investigate overall greenness, peak of annual greenness and timing of annual greenness in the seasonal NDVI cycle. Phenological pattern for the start of season (SOS) and end of season (EOS) was also examined across different land cover types in four selected locations. A significant increase in overall greenness (amplitude 0) and a significant decrease in other greenness trend maps (amplitude 1 and phase 1) was observed over the study period. Moreover significant positive trends in overall annual rainfall (amplitude 0) was found which follows similar pattern with vegetation trend. Variation in the timing of peak of greenness (phase 1) was seen in the four selected locations, this indicate a change in phenological trend. Additionally, strong relationship was revealed by the result of the pixel-wise regression between NDVI and rainfall. Change in vegetation phenology in the study area is attributed to climatic variability than anthropogenic activities.

  20. Spatio-temporal monitoring of vegetation phenology in the dry sub-humid region of Nigeria using time series of AVHRR NDVI and TAMSAT datasets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Osunmadewa Babatunde Adeniyi

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Time series data are of great importance for monitoring vegetation phenology in the dry sub-humid regions where change in land cover has influence on biomass productivity. However few studies have inquired into examining the impact of rainfall and land cover change on vegetation phenology. This study explores Seasonal Trend Analysis (STA approach in order to investigate overall greenness, peak of annual greenness and timing of annual greenness in the seasonal NDVI cycle. Phenological pattern for the start of season (SOS and end of season (EOS was also examined across different land cover types in four selected locations. A significant increase in overall greenness (amplitude 0 and a significant decrease in other greenness trend maps (amplitude 1 and phase 1 was observed over the study period. Moreover significant positive trends in overall annual rainfall (amplitude 0 was found which follows similar pattern with vegetation trend. Variation in the timing of peak of greenness (phase 1 was seen in the four selected locations, this indicate a change in phenological trend. Additionally, strong relationship was revealed by the result of the pixel-wise regression between NDVI and rainfall. Change in vegetation phenology in the study area is attributed to climatic variability than anthropogenic activities.

  1. Geographical baselines of sustainable planning of the regional development of Zasavje region

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dušan Plut

    2002-12-01

    Full Text Available Geographical baselines of planning the regional development and interventions into the geographical environment derive from the premises of the concept of permanent adjusting the anthropogenic changes in the landscape to specific capacities and limitations of landscape-forming components. In the landscape-degraded region of Zasavje the improvement of environmental quality (curative measures and regional economic progress within the scope of carrying capacities and space (preventative measures are the primary, developmentaly-environmentally devised goal of developmental strategy.

  2. Common mental disorders and the built environment in Santiago, Chile.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Araya, Ricardo; Montgomery, Alan; Rojas, Graciela; Fritsch, Rosemarie; Solis, Jaime; Signorelli, Andres; Lewis, Glyn

    2007-05-01

    There is growing research interest in the influence of the built environment on mental disorders. To estimate the variation in the prevalence of common mental disorders attributable to individuals and the built environment of geographical sectors where they live. A sample of 3870 adults (response rate 90%) clustered in 248 geographical sectors participated in a household cross-sectional survey in Santiago, Chile. Independently rated contextual measures of the built environment were obtained. The Clinical Interview Schedule was used to estimate the prevalence of common mental disorders. There was a significant association between the quality of the built environment of small geographical sectors and the presence of common mental disorders among its residents. The better the quality of the built environment, the lower the scores for psychiatric symptoms; however, only a small proportion of the variation in common mental disorder existed at sector level, after adjusting for individual factors. Findings from our study, using a contextual assessment of the quality of the built environment and multilevel modelling in the analysis, suggest these associations may be more marked in non-Western settings with more homogeneous geographical sectors.

  3. Dinosaurs reveal the geographical signature of an evolutionary radiation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Donovan, Ciara; Meade, Andrew; Venditti, Chris

    2018-03-01

    Dinosaurs dominated terrestrial ecosystems across the globe for over 100 million years and provide a classic example of an evolutionary radiation. However, little is known about how these animals radiated geographically to become globally distributed. Here, we use a biogeographical model to reconstruct the dinosaurs' ancestral locations, revealing the spatial mechanisms that underpinned this 170-million-year-long radiation. We find that dinosaurs spread rapidly initially, followed by a significant continuous and gradual reduction in their speed of movement towards the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary (66 million years ago). This suggests that the predominant mode of dinosaur speciation changed through time with speciation originally largely driven by geographical isolation-when dinosaurs speciated more, they moved further. This was gradually replaced by increasing levels of sympatric speciation (species taking advantage of ecological opportunities within their existing environment) as terrestrial space became a limiting factor. Our results uncover the geographical signature of an evolutionary radiation.

  4. Modelling Virtual Environments for Geovisualization

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bodum, Lars

    2005-01-01

    The use of virtual environments in geovisualization has become a major topic within the last few years. The main reason for this interest in the growing use of 3D models and visual realizations in a wide range of applications concerned with the geographic element of information. The implementation...... within the geographic domain. A categorization of the virtual environments is offered through which the differences between them are highlighted. It is possible to achieve this categorization in many ways from many perspectives since this is not and will not be research of a purely positive nature...

  5. [Use of indicators of geographical accessibility to primary health care centers in addressing inequities].

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Pietri, Diana; Dietrich, Patricia; Mayo, Patricia; Carcagno, Alejandro; de Titto, Ernesto

    2013-12-01

    Characterize geographical indicators in relation to their usefulness in measuring regional inequities, identify and describe areas according to their degree of geographical accessibility to primary health care centers (PHCCs), and detect populations at risk from the perspective of access to primary care. Analysis of spatial accessibility using geographic information systems (GIS) involved three aspects: population without medical coverage, distribution of PHCCs, and the public transportation network connecting them. The development of indicators of demand (real, potential, and differential) and analysis of territorial factors affecting population mobility enabled the characterization of PHCCs with regard to their environment, thereby contributing to local and regional analysis and to the detection of different zones according to regional connectivity levels. Indicators developed in a GIS environment were very useful in analyzing accessibility to PHCCs by vulnerable populations. Zoning the region helped identify inequities by differentiating areas of unmet demand and fragmentation of spatial connectivity between PHCCs and public transportation.

  6. Response of apple (malus domestica borkh.) cultivars grafted on two rootstocks under sub-humid temperate climate of azad jammu and kashmir

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmed, M.J.; Gillani, G.M.; Kiani, F.A.

    2013-01-01

    Nine apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) cultivars grafted on two rootstocks were assessed on morphological and biochemical basis under sub-humid temperate region of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Starking Delicious, Kala Kulu, Fuji, Red Chief, Royal Gala, Red Labnani, Red Delicious, Star Crimson and Sky Spur grafted on local Crab apple and MM.111 were studied for various growth characteristics. Red Chief exhibited maximum (415.8 cm) plant height on crab apple whereas, more flower (1866) tree-1, higher number (967.0) of fruit set tree/sup -1/, fruits matured (490.0) tree/sup -1/ and maximum (46.33 kg) weight of fruits tree/sup -1/ were recorded on MM.111. Minimum duration (5 days) of flowering was presented by Sky Spur on local crab apple while minimum (92.0) days for fruit maturation were required by Royal Gala on MM.111. Maximum (112.5 g) fruit weight, total soluble solids (13.95%), total sugars (10.9 %) and reducing sugars (7.94%) were recorded for Starking Delicious on MM.111. On the other hand more pH (3.51) and ascorbic acid (9.2 %) content were recorded for Kala Kulu on crab apple. Red Chief found to be high yielding cultivar on MM.111 than crab apple while total sugars, TSS and average fruit weight were better for Starking Delicious. It was concluded that performance of apple cultivars were variable on both rootstocks. However, MM.111 proved better than local crab apple under prevailing conditions. (author)

  7. Exploration of the relationship between geographical environment and human diseases in ancient China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Jian-Ping

    2011-12-01

    The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine, created in the Warring States period (475 to 221 BC) described a phenomenon whereby the eastern, western, northern, southern, and central regions were liable to different diseases. It brought forward the principle of treatment in accordance with local conditions. Lv's Spring and Autumn Annals, Huai Nan Tzu (Huainanzi), and the Regiment of Health (Yangshenglun) in the Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties all describe regional diseases such as goiter (endemic goiter) and yellowish teeth (dental fluorosis) as being caused by geologic and climatic factors. Zhang (miasma), first mentioned in the Han Dynasty, was considered related to the summer heat and dampness particular to the geographical environment of the south. Zhang was further associated with malaria in the Jin Dynasty. General Treatise on the Etiology and Symptomology of Diseases (Zhubingyuanhou Lun), in the Sui Dynasty, held that as a type of poisonous gas, Zhang was the predisposing cause of malaria, seasonal disease, and barbiers, among other conditions. General Guide (Zhinan Zonglun), in the Southern Song Dynasty, regarded Zhang malaria as a separate disease. Healthy Prescription in the Southern Wuling District (Lingnan Weisheng Fang), in the late Song and early Yuan Dynasties, explicitly put forward the concepts of cold Zhang, hot Zhang, and lockjaw Zhang. Guidelines for Treatment of Zhang Malaria (Zhangnue Zhinan), in the Ming Dynasty, maintained that cold Zhang was equivalent to malaria, while hot Zhang and lockjaw Zhang were equivalent to cold damage, the latter of which can be treated by prescriptions for cold damage. Records on Zhang gas and Zhang disease decreased during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

  8. CONTEMPORARY TRENDS IN GEOGRAPHICAL EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Wasileva

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The geography includes rich, diverse and comprehensive themes that give us an understanding of our changing environment and interconnected world. It includes the study of the physical environment and resources; cultures, economies and societies; people and places; and global development and civic participation. As a subject, geography is particularly valuable because it provides information for exploring contemporary issues from a different perspective. This geographical information affects us all at work and in our daily lives and helps us make informed decisions that shape our future. All these facts result in a wide discussion on many topical issues in contemporary geography didactics. Subjects of research are the new geography and economics curriculum as well as construction of modern learning process. The paper presents briefly some of the current trends and key issues of geodidactics. As central notions we consider and analyze the training/educational goals, geography curriculum, target groups and environment of geography training, training methods as well as the information sources used in geography education. We adhere that all the above-mentioned finds its reflection in planning, analysis and assessment of education and thus in its quality and effectiveness.

  9. The challenges of teaching geographical information systems integrated into the management of environment and natural resources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Escobar, John; Betancur, Teresita; Palacio, Carlos

    2008-01-01

    The Geographic Information Systems, GIS, have the potential to become tools and methodologies for the solution of practical problems that involve complex spatial analyses, like the associated with natural resources and environmental management areas. The university, with its postgraduate programs, can help with the social adaptation processes for this new technology and can contribute to achieve the success sooner and with more effectiveness. To do so, three main challenges must be reached in the users of this technology: first, a spatial thinking second, skills to design and to make use of this instrument as supporting in environmental and natural resources analyses and finally, the identification of strategies to use this technology in projects and corporative surroundings. The Antioquia University in its Engineering Faculty (at first, in agreement with the Education Faculty)developed a Specialization in Environment and Geoinformatic. In this, the curriculum is worked in three moments (one for each challenge): first, a moment to building a common language and to adopting conceptual and technical instruments? second, a moment to put together instruments and methods and finally, a moment to make the practical application of the environmental management supported in the geo information spatial systems. This article gives account of this institutional experience.

  10. The Effect of Geographic Units of Analysis on Measuring Geographic Variation in Medical Services Utilization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agnus M. Kim

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the effect of geographic units of analysis on measuring geographic variation in medical services utilization. For this purpose, we compared geographic variations in the rates of eight major procedures in administrative units (districts and new areal units organized based on the actual health care use of the population in Korea. Methods: To compare geographic variation in geographic units of analysis, we calculated the age–sex standardized rates of eight major procedures (coronary artery bypass graft surgery, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, surgery after hip fracture, knee-replacement surgery, caesarean section, hysterectomy, computed tomography scan, and magnetic resonance imaging scan from the National Health Insurance database in Korea for the 2013 period. Using the coefficient of variation, the extremal quotient, and the systematic component of variation, we measured geographic variation for these eight procedures in districts and new areal units. Results: Compared with districts, new areal units showed a reduction in geographic variation. Extremal quotients and inter-decile ratios for the eight procedures were lower in new areal units. While the coefficient of variation was lower for most procedures in new areal units, the pattern of change of the systematic component of variation between districts and new areal units differed among procedures. Conclusions: Geographic variation in medical service utilization could vary according to the geographic unit of analysis. To determine how geographic characteristics such as population size and number of geographic units affect geographic variation, further studies are needed.

  11. Geographical information systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Möller, Bernd

    2004-01-01

    The chapter gives an introduction to Geographical Information Systems (GIS) with particular focus on their application within environmental management.......The chapter gives an introduction to Geographical Information Systems (GIS) with particular focus on their application within environmental management....

  12. A Comprehensive Characterisation of Rosemary tea Obtained from Rosmarinus officinalis L. Collected in a sub-Humid Area of Tunisia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Achour, Mariem; Mateos, Raquel; Ben Fredj, Maha; Mtiraoui, Ali; Bravo, Laura; Saguem, Saad

    2018-01-01

    Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) is an aromatic plant common in Tunisia and it is widely consumed as a tea in traditional cuisine and in folk medicine to treat various illnesses. Currently, most research efforts have been focused on rosemary essential oil, alcoholic and aqueous extracts, however, little is reported on rosemary infusion composition. To investigate compounds present in rosemary tea obtained from Rosmarinus officinalis L. collected in a sub-humid area of Tunisia in order to assess whether the traditional rosemary tea preparation method could be considered as a reference method for rosemary's compounds extraction. Qualitative characterisation of Rosmarinus officinalis tea obtained after rosemary infusion in boiled water was determined by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionisation quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS). Quantitative analysis relies on high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detector (HPLC-DAD). Forty-nine compounds belonging to six families, namely flavonoids, phenolic acids, phenolic terpenes, jasmonate, phenolic glycosides, and lignans were identified. To the best of the authors' knowledge eucommin A is characterised for the first time in rosemary. Rosmarinic acid (158.13 μg/g dried rosemary) was the main compound followed then by feruloylnepitrin (100.87 μg/g) and luteolin-3'-O-(2″-O-acetyl)-β-d-glucuronide (44.04 μg/g). Among quantified compounds, luteolin-7-O-rutinoside was the compound with the lowest concentration. The infusion method allows several polyphenols present in rosemary tea to be extracted, therefore it could be a reference method for rosemary's compounds extraction. Moreover, traditional Tunisian Rosmarinus officinalis tea consumption is of interest for its rich phenolic content. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  13. Impacts of Green Infrastructure on the Water Budget and Other Ecosystem Services in Subhumid Urban Areas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Y.; Burian, S. J.; Pardyjak, E.; Pomeroy, C. A.

    2014-12-01

    Green infrastructure (GI) measures have been well established as part of low-impact development approaches for stormwater (SW) management. The origin of the concepts, practices and the preponderance of research have taken place in humid climates. Recent work has begun to explore and adapt GI to subhumid and semi-arid climates, which experience warmer and drier periods. But much remains unknown about effects of GI on the water cycle and how to effectively implement to maximize ecosystem benefits. This research synthesizes observation and modeling to address questions related to changes in evapotranspiration (ET), SW runoff volume, and other water cycle processes from GI introduction in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. First, the water budget of green roofs is being studied via weighing lysimeter systems on two rooftop gardens on the University of Utah campus. ET, outflow, and soil moisture have been measured for approximately one year. Up to this early summer, average ET rates for lysimeters of pure medium, Sedums, and Bluegrass are 1.85±1.01, 1.97±0.94, and 2.31±0.91 mm/d respectively; the maximum ET rate could reach 6.11 mm/d from Sedums. Over 2/3 of total rainfall and irrigation were slowly consumed via ET from green roof. Second, the observation studies are leading to new ET modeling techniques that are being incorporated into the U.S. EPA Storm Water Management Model (SWMM). The modified SWMM has been used to simulate ET, SW runoff volume, and overall water budget changes from GI implementation. Preliminary result shows that ET could account for 10% of the total inflows into bioretentions, and 25% of the inflows into landscapes; potential ET rates could vary up to 0.95 mm/hr across 53 subcatchments in the 29 acres catchment. The influence of various design factors for GI on SW runoff reduction and the water budget is also to be estimated. The application of the research is to analyze the water budget of the Red Butte Creek Watershed in Salt Lake City and to

  14. Geographic Ontologies, Gazetteers and Multilingualism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert Laurini

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Different languages imply different visions of space, so that terminologies are different in geographic ontologies. In addition to their geometric shapes, geographic features have names, sometimes different in diverse languages. In addition, the role of gazetteers, as dictionaries of place names (toponyms, is to maintain relations between place names and location. The scope of geographic information retrieval is to search for geographic information not against a database, but against the whole Internet: but the Internet stores information in different languages, and it is of paramount importance not to remain stuck to a unique language. In this paper, our first step is to clarify the links between geographic objects as computer representations of geographic features, ontologies and gazetteers designed in various languages. Then, we propose some inference rules for matching not only types, but also relations in geographic ontologies with the assistance of gazetteers.

  15. TEMPORALLY VARIABLE GEOGRAPHICAL DISTANCE EFFECTS CONTRIBUTE TO THE ASSEMBLY OF ROOT-ASSOCIATED FUNGAL COMMUNITIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christopher James Barnes

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Root-associated fungi are key contributors to ecosystem functioning, however the factors which determine community assembly are still relatively poorly understood. This study simultaneously quantified the roles of geographical distance, environmental heterogeneity and time in determining root-associated fungal community composition at the local scale within a short rotation coppice (SRC willow plantation. Culture independent molecular analyses of the root-associated fungal community suggested a strong but temporally variable effect of geographical distance between fungal communities on composition at the local geographical level. Whilst these distance effects were most prevalent on October communities, soil pH had an effect on structuring of the communities throughout the sampling period. Given the temporal variation in the effects of geographical distance and the environment for shaping root-associated fungal communities, there is clearly need for a temporal component to sampling strategies in future investigations of fungal biogeography.

  16. U Plant Geographic Zone Cleanup Prototype

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Romine, L.D.; Leary, K.D.; Lackey, M.B.; Robertson, J.R.

    2006-01-01

    The U Plant geographic zone (UPZ) occupies 0.83 square kilometers on the Hanford Site Central Plateau (200 Area). It encompasses the U Plant canyon (221-U Facility), ancillary facilities that supported the canyon, soil waste sites, and underground pipelines. The UPZ cleanup initiative coordinates the cleanup of the major facilities, ancillary facilities, waste sites, and contaminated pipelines (collectively identified as 'cleanup items') within the geographic zone. The UPZ was selected as a geographic cleanup zone prototype for resolving regulatory, technical, and stakeholder issues and demonstrating cleanup methods for several reasons: most of the area is inactive, sufficient characterization information is available to support decisions, cleanup of the high-risk waste sites will help protect the groundwater, and the zone contains a representative cross-section of the types of cleanup actions that will be required in other geographic zones. The UPZ cleanup demonstrates the first of 22 integrated zone cleanup actions on the Hanford Site Central Plateau to address threats to groundwater, the environment, and human health. The UPZ contains more than 100 individual cleanup items. Cleanup actions in the zone will be undertaken using multiple regulatory processes and decision documents. Cleanup actions will include building demolition, waste site and pipeline excavation, and the construction of multiple, large engineered barriers. In some cases, different cleanup actions may be taken at item locations that are immediately adjacent to each other. The cleanup planning and field activities for each cleanup item must be undertaken in a coordinated and cohesive manner to ensure effective execution of the UPZ cleanup initiative. The UPZ zone cleanup implementation plan (ZCIP) [1] was developed to address the need for a fundamental integration tool for UPZ cleanup. As UPZ cleanup planning and implementation moves forward, the ZCIP is intended to be a living document that will

  17. Smart Geographic object: Toward a new understanding of GIS Technology in Ubiquitous Computing

    OpenAIRE

    Zakaria, Sakyoud; Rey, Gaëtan; Mohamed, Eladnani; Lavirotte, Stéphane; Abdelaziz, El Fazziki; Tigli, Jean-Yves

    2015-01-01

    International audience; One of the fundamental aspects of ubiquitous computing is the instrumentation of the real world by smart devices. This instrumentation constitutes an opportunity to rethink the interactions between human beings and their environment on the one hand, and between the components of this environment on the other. In this paper we discuss what this understanding of ubiquitous computing can bring to geographic science and particularly to GIS technology. Our main idea is the ...

  18. GEOGRAPHIC NAMES INFORMATION SYSTEM (GNIS) ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), developed by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN), contains information about physical and cultural geographic features in the United States and associated areas, both current and historical, but not including roads and highways. The database also contains geographic names in Antarctica. The database holds the Federally recognized name of each feature and defines the location of the feature by state, county, USGS topographic map, and geographic coordinates. Other feature attributes include names or spellings other than the official name, feature designations, feature class, historical and descriptive information, and for some categories of features the geometric boundaries. The database assigns a unique feature identifier, a random number, that is a key for accessing, integrating, or reconciling GNIS data with other data sets. The GNIS is our Nation's official repository of domestic geographic feature names information.

  19. Ustvarjanje produktivnega geografskega učnega okolja z vidika učnih stilov, oblik in metod = Creating the productive geographical learning environment from the point of view of learning-styles and learning-methods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lea Nemec

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Experiences, which we receive in space (indirectly influence on education process respectivelyon learning-environment. Because of that is the most productive learning-environmentthose witch founded on experiential-learning. In this research experience took the leadingplace in forming didactical approaches in teaching geography and to define learning-stylesand methods respectively in the direction of creating representative geographical learningenvironment.

  20. Volunteered Geographic Information in Wikipedia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hardy, Darren

    2010-01-01

    Volunteered geographic information (VGI) refers to the geographic subset of online user-generated content. Through Geobrowsers and online mapping services, which use geovisualization and Web technologies to share and produce VGI, a global digital commons of geographic information has emerged. A notable example is Wikipedia, an online collaborative…

  1. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) for Lousiana, Geographic NAD83, USGS (2007) [GNIS_LA_USGS_2007

    Data.gov (United States)

    Louisiana Geographic Information Center — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  2. SPATIAL ANALYSIS TO SUPPORT GEOGRAPHIC TARGETING OF GENOTYPES TO ENVIRONMENTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Glenn eHyman

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Crop improvement efforts have benefited greatly from advances in available data, computing technology and methods for targeting genotypes to environments. These advances support the analysis of genotype by environment interactions to understand how well a genotype adapts to environmental conditions. This paper reviews the use of spatial analysis to support crop improvement research aimed at matching genotypes to their most appropriate environmental niches. Better data sets are now available on soils, weather and climate, elevation, vegetation, crop distribution and local conditions where genotypes are tested in experimental trial sites. The improved data are now combined with spatial analysis methods to compare environmental conditions across sites, create agro-ecological region maps and assess environment change. Climate, elevation and vegetation data sets are now widely available, supporting analyses that were much more difficult even five or ten years ago. While detailed soil data for many parts of the world remains difficult to acquire for crop improvement studies, new advances in digital soil mapping are likely to improve our capacity. Site analysis and matching and regional targeting methods have advanced in parallel to data and technology improvements. All these developments have increased our capacity to link genotype to phenotype and point to a vast potential to improve crop adaptation efforts.

  3. Changes at the National Geographic Society

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schwille, Kathleen

    2016-01-01

    For more than 125 years, National Geographic has explored the planet, unlocking its secrets and sharing them with the world. For almost thirty of those years, National Geographic has been committed to K-12 educators and geographic education through its Network of Alliances. As National Geographic begins a new chapter, they remain committed to the…

  4. Russian and Foreign Experience of Integration of Agent-Based Models and Geographic Information Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Konstantin Anatol’evich Gulin

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available The article provides an overview of the mechanisms of integration of agent-based models and GIS technology developed by Russian and foreign researchers. The basic framework of the article is based on critical analysis of domestic and foreign literature (monographs, scientific articles. The study is based on the application of universal scientific research methods: system approach, analysis and synthesis, classification, systematization and grouping, generalization and comparison. The article presents theoretical and methodological bases of integration of agent-based models and geographic information systems. The concept and essence of agent-based models are explained; their main advantages (compared to other modeling methods are identified. The paper characterizes the operating environment of agents as a key concept in the theory of agent-based modeling. It is shown that geographic information systems have a wide range of information resources for calculations, searching, modeling of the real world in various aspects, acting as an effective tool for displaying the agents’ operating environment and allowing to bring the model as close as possible to the real conditions. The authors also focus on a wide range of possibilities for various researches in different spatial and temporal contexts. Comparative analysis of platforms supporting the integration of agent-based models and geographic information systems has been carried out. The authors give examples of complex socio-economic models: the model of a creative city, humanitarian assistance model. In the absence of standards for research results description, the authors focus on the models’ elements such as the characteristics of the agents and their operation environment, agents’ behavior, rules of interaction between the agents and the external environment. The paper describes the possibilities and prospects of implementing these models

  5. Development of hardwood seed zones for Tennessee using a geographic information system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Post, L.S.; Schlarbaum, S.E.; Van Manen, F.; Cecich, R.A.; Saxton, A.M.; Schneider, J.F.

    2003-01-01

    For species that have no or limited information on genetic variation and adaptability to nonnative sites, there is a need for seed collection guidelines based on biological, climatological, and/or geographical criteria. Twenty-eight hardwood species are currently grown for reforestation purposes at the East Tennessee State Nursery. The majority of these species have had no genetic testing to define guidelines for seed collection location and can be distributed to sites that have a very different environment than that of seed origin(s). Poor survival and/or growth may result if seedlings are not adapted to environmental conditions at the planting location. To address this problem, 30 yr of Tennessee county precipitation and minimum temperature data were analyzed and grouped using a centroid hierarchical cluster analysis. The weather data and elevational data were entered into a Geographic Information System (GIS) and separately layered over Bailey's Ecoregions to develop a seed zone system for Tennessee. The seed zones can be used as a practical guideline for collecting seeds to ensure that the resulting seedlings will be adapted to planting environments.

  6. Geographic Gossip: Efficient Averaging for Sensor Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dimakis, Alexandros D. G.; Sarwate, Anand D.; Wainwright, Martin J.

    Gossip algorithms for distributed computation are attractive due to their simplicity, distributed nature, and robustness in noisy and uncertain environments. However, using standard gossip algorithms can lead to a significant waste in energy by repeatedly recirculating redundant information. For realistic sensor network model topologies like grids and random geometric graphs, the inefficiency of gossip schemes is related to the slow mixing times of random walks on the communication graph. We propose and analyze an alternative gossiping scheme that exploits geographic information. By utilizing geographic routing combined with a simple resampling method, we demonstrate substantial gains over previously proposed gossip protocols. For regular graphs such as the ring or grid, our algorithm improves standard gossip by factors of $n$ and $\\sqrt{n}$ respectively. For the more challenging case of random geometric graphs, our algorithm computes the true average to accuracy $\\epsilon$ using $O(\\frac{n^{1.5}}{\\sqrt{\\log n}} \\log \\epsilon^{-1})$ radio transmissions, which yields a $\\sqrt{\\frac{n}{\\log n}}$ factor improvement over standard gossip algorithms. We illustrate these theoretical results with experimental comparisons between our algorithm and standard methods as applied to various classes of random fields.

  7. Groundwater in the Boreal Plains: How Climate and Geology Interact to Control Water Table Configurations in a Sub-Humid, Low-Relief Region

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hokanson, K. J.; Devito, K.; Mendoza, C. A.

    2017-12-01

    The Boreal Plain (BP) region of Canada, a landscape characterized by low-relief, a sub-humid climate and heterogeneous glacial landforms, is experiencing unprecedented anthropogenic and natural disturbance, including climate change and oil & gas operations. Understanding the controls on and the natural variability of water table position, and subsequently predicting changes in water table position under varying physical and climatic scenarios will become important as water security becomes increasingly threatened. The BP is composed of a mosaic of forestland, wetland, and aquatic land covers that contrast in dominant vegetation cover, evapotranspiration, and soil storage that, in turn, influence water table configurations. Additionally, these land-covers overlie heterogeneous glacial landforms with large contrasts in storage and hydraulic properties which, when coupled with wet-dry climate cycles, result in complex water table distributions in time and space. Several forestland-wetland-pond complexes were selected at the Utikuma Research Study Area (URSA) over three distinct surficial geologic materials (glacial fluvial outwash, stagnant ice moraine, lacustrine clay plain) to explore the roles of climate (cumulative departure from the long term yearly mean precipitation), geology, topographic position, and land cover on water table configurations over 15 years (2002 - 2016). In the absence of large groundwater flow systems, local relief and shallow low conductivity substrates promote the formation of near-surface water tables that are less susceptible to climate variation, regardless of topography. Furthermore, in areas of increased storage, wet and dry climate conditions can result in appreciably different water table configurations over time, ranging from mounds to hydraulic depressions, depending on the arrangement of land-covers, dominant surficial geology, and substrate layering.

  8. Barley Breeding for Quality Improvement in Tunisia

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    TOSHIBA

    2012-11-06

    Nov 6, 2012 ... sub-humid environment at Beja and a semi-arid one at Kef. Heading date ... State of art showed that barley was a main food crop in. North Africa for ... rably to many other food grains (wheat, rye, and oats) and played a .... rates both analysis of variance (ANOVA) and principal component analysis (PCA) into ...

  9. The Usability of Online Geographic Virtual Reality for Urban Planning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, S.; Moore, A. B.

    2013-08-01

    Virtual reality (VR) technology is starting to become widely and freely available (for example the online OpenSimulator tool), with potential for use in 3D urban planning and design tasks but still needing rigorous assessment to establish this. A previous study consulted with a small group of urban professionals, who concluded in a satisfaction usability test that online VR had potential value as a usable 3D communication and remote marketing tool but acknowledged that visual quality and geographic accuracy were obstacles to overcome. This research takes the investigation a significant step further to also examine the usability aspects of efficiency (how quickly tasks are completed) and effectiveness (how successfully tasks are completed), relating to OpenSimulator in an urban planning situation. The comparative study pits a three-dimensional VR model (with increased graphic fidelity and geographic content to address the feedback of the previous study) of a subdivision design (in a Dunedin suburb) against 3D models built with GIS (ArcGIS) and CAD (BricsCAD) tools, two types of software environment well established in urban professional practice. Urban professionals participated in the study by attempting to perform timed tasks correctly in each of the environments before being asked questions about the technologies involved and their perceived importance to their professional work. The results reinforce the positive feedback for VR of the previous study, with the graphical and geographic data issues being somewhat addressed (though participants stressed the need for accurate and precise object and terrain modification capabilities in VR). Ease-ofuse and associated fastest task completion speed were significant positive outcomes to emerge from the comparison with GIS and CAD, pointing to a strong future for VR in an urban planning context.

  10. The importance of environment on respiratory genotype/phenotype relationships in the Inuit

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Candelaria, P V; Backer, V; Khoo, S-K

    2010-01-01

    Genetic and environmental influences and their interactions are central to asthma pathogenesis. This study aimed to investigate the effects of different macro-environments on asthma genotype-phenotype associations in two geographically separated populations with common ancestry.......Genetic and environmental influences and their interactions are central to asthma pathogenesis. This study aimed to investigate the effects of different macro-environments on asthma genotype-phenotype associations in two geographically separated populations with common ancestry....

  11. Geographical Variations in the Environmental Determinants of Physical Inactivity among U.S. Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    An, Ruopeng; Li, Xinye; Jiang, Ning

    2017-10-31

    Physical inactivity is a major modifiable risk factor for morbidity, disability and premature mortality worldwide. This study assessed the geographical variations in the impact of environmental quality on physical inactivity among U.S. adults. Data on county-level prevalence of leisure-time physical inactivity came from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. County environment was measured by the Environmental Quality Index (EQI), a comprehensive index of environmental conditions that affect human health. The overall EQI consists of five subdomains-air, water, land, social, and built environment. Geographically weighted regressions (GWRs) were performed to estimate and map county-specific impact of overall EQI and its five subdomains on physical inactivity prevalence. The prevalence of leisure-time physical inactivity among U.S. counties was 25% in 2005. On average, one standard deviation decrease in the overall EQI was associated with an increase in county-level prevalence of leisure-time physical inactivity by nearly 1%. However, substantial geographical variations in the estimated environmental determinants of physical inactivity were present. The estimated changes of county-level prevalence of leisure-time physical inactivity resulted from one standard deviation decrease of the overall EQI ranged from an increase of over 3% to a decrease of nearly 2% across U.S. counties. Analogous, the estimated changes of county-level prevalence of leisure-time physical inactivity resulted from one standard deviation decrease of the EQI air, water, land, social, and built environment subdomains ranged from an increase of 2.6%, 1.5%, 2.9%, 3.3%, and 1.7% to a decrease of 2.9%, 1.4%, 2.4%, 2.4%, and 0.8% across U.S. counties, respectively. Given the substantial heterogeneities in the environmental determinants of physical inactivity, locally customized physical activity interventions are warranted to address the most concerning area-specific environmental issue.

  12. Applying dam height-storage curve to geomorphic features analysis within virtual geographic environment: a case study of the Hong-Shi-Mao watershed

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Daojun; Gong, Jianhua; Ma, Ainai; Li, Wenhang; Wang, Xijun

    2005-10-01

    There are generally two kinds of approaches to studying geomorphic features in terms of the quantification level and difference of major considerations. One is the earlier qualitative characterization, and the other is the 2-dimension measurement that includes section pattern and projection pattern. With the development of geo-information technology, especially the 3-D geo-visualization and virtual geographic environments (VGE), 3-dimension measurement and dynamic interactive between users and geo-data/geo-graphics can be developed to understand geomorphic features deeply, and to benefit to the effective applications of such features for geographic projects like dam construction. Storage-elevation curve is very useful for site selection of projects and flood dispatching in water conservancy region, but it is just a tool querying one value from the other one. In fact, storage-elevation curve can represent comprehensively the geomorphic features including vertical section, cross section of the stream and the landform nearby. In this paper, we use quadratic regression equation shaped like y = ax2 + bx + c and the DEM data of Hong-Shi-Mao watershed, Zi Chang County, ShaanXi Province, China to find out the relationship between the coefficients of the equation and the geomorphic features based on VGE platform. It's exciting that the coefficient "a" appear to be correlative strongly with the stream scale, and the coefficient "b" may give an index to the valley shape. In the end, we use a sub-basin named Hao-Jia-Gou of the watershed as an application. The result of correlative research about quadratic regression equation and geomorphic features can save computing and improve the efficiency in silt dam systems planning.

  13. A methodology for combining multiple commercial data sources to improve measurement of the food and alcohol environment: applications of geographical information systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dara D. Mendez

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Commercial data sources have been increasingly used to measure and locate community resources. We describe a methodology for combining and comparing the differences in commercial data of the food and alcohol environment. We used commercial data from two commercial databases (InfoUSA and Dun&Bradstreet for 2003 and 2009 to obtain infor- mation on food and alcohol establishments and developed a matching process using computer algorithms and manual review by applying ArcGIS to geocode addresses, standard industrial classification and North American industry classification tax- onomy for type of establishment and establishment name. We constructed population and area-based density measures (e.g. grocery stores and assessed differences across data sources and used ArcGIS to map the densities. The matching process resulted in 8,705 and 7,078 unique establishments for 2003 and 2009, respectively. There were more establishments cap- tured in the combined dataset than relying on one data source alone, and the additional establishments captured ranged from 1,255 to 2,752 in 2009. The correlations for the density measures between the two data sources was highest for alcohol out- lets (r = 0.75 and 0.79 for per capita and area, respectively and lowest for grocery stores/supermarkets (r = 0.32 for both. This process for applying geographical information systems to combine multiple commercial data sources and develop meas- ures of the food and alcohol environment captured more establishments than relying on one data source alone. This replic- able methodology was found to be useful for understanding the food and alcohol environment when local or public data are limited.

  14. REINVENTING THE GEOGRAPHIC EDUCATION IN TIMES OF CRISIS: ICT IN THE UNIVERSITY CLASSROOM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matilde Peinado Rodríguez

    Full Text Available INTRODUCCTION: The objective of this work is to carry out a reflection on the changes that we have been forced to address from the teaching of the social sciences, and in particular, in the course “Didactics of Social Sciences: geographical space and its didactic treatment”, a subject which is greatly enriched with school trips and educational itineraries for which we lack economic funding, although new technologies are erected in an indispensable resource to offset, at least in part, these deficiencies. We propose to use ICT resources to bring the environment into the classroom, natural and virtual, to have their space in the process of teaching and learning in geographical discipline.

  15. WEB GIS SUPPORT OF ENVIRONMENTAL-GEOGRAPHICAL ASSESSMENT OF LAND RESOURCES IN THE NEW MOSCOW TERRITORY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. K. Lurie

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available In 2011, the area of Moscow, one of the largest urbanized megacomplexes, increased by more than 1440 km2 due to the accession of the Troitsky and Novomoskovsky аutonomous districts. That called for conducting detailed comprehensive environmental-geographical research, integrated assessment of the lands state of the annexed territories and the corresponding cartographic support to maintain further socio-economic development of the area. In the same 2011, at Lomonosov Moscow State University, MSU Geoportal started working as a new instrument of collective access and processing of spatial data to provide innovative research and educational activities with relevant materials of remote sensing data of the Earth and analytical tools for conducting geographic data analysis in the Geoportal environment. Cartographic support of the «New Moscow» project has been realized by means of collection, processing and systematization of geo-spatial data, formation of a geo-data bank and a series of thematic maps, created on its basis. It has been decided to develop Web GIS software by creating a geo-resource on the existed MSU Geoportal, which main purpose is forming the information and cartographic support for the New Moscow territories, based on the profound study of different components of the environment and affecting factors. The realization of this project has required the creation of a few dozens of maps for the comprehensive ecological and geographical assessment of the lands of the new annexed territories because of their status, economic and socio-geographical state changes.

  16. Geographic Clusters of Basal Cell Carcinoma in a Northern California Health Plan Population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ray, G Thomas; Kulldorff, Martin; Asgari, Maryam M

    2016-11-01

    Rates of skin cancer, including basal cell carcinoma (BCC), the most common cancer, have been increasing over the past 3 decades. A better understanding of geographic clustering of BCCs can help target screening and prevention efforts. Present a methodology to identify spatial clusters of BCC and identify such clusters in a northern California population. This retrospective study used a BCC registry to determine rates of BCC by census block group, and used spatial scan statistics to identify statistically significant geographic clusters of BCCs, adjusting for age, sex, and socioeconomic status. The study population consisted of white, non-Hispanic members of Kaiser Permanente Northern California during years 2011 and 2012. Statistically significant geographic clusters of BCC as determined by spatial scan statistics. Spatial analysis of 28 408 individuals who received a diagnosis of at least 1 BCC in 2011 or 2012 revealed distinct geographic areas with elevated BCC rates. Among the 14 counties studied, BCC incidence ranged from 661 to 1598 per 100 000 person-years. After adjustment for age, sex, and neighborhood socioeconomic status, a pattern of 5 discrete geographic clusters emerged, with a relative risk ranging from 1.12 (95% CI, 1.03-1.21; P = .006) for a cluster in eastern Sonoma and northern Napa Counties to 1.40 (95% CI, 1.15-1.71; P Costa and west San Joaquin Counties, compared with persons residing outside that cluster. In this study of a northern California population, we identified several geographic clusters with modestly elevated incidence of BCC. Knowledge of geographic clusters can help inform future research on the underlying etiology of the clustering including factors related to the environment, health care access, or other characteristics of the resident population, and can help target screening efforts to areas of highest yield.

  17. 5 CFR 536.303 - Geographic conversion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... after geographic conversion is the employee's existing payable rate of basic pay in effect immediately before the action. (b) Geographic conversion when a retained rate employee's official worksite is changed... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Geographic conversion. 536.303 Section...

  18. Changes related to gender, geographic population and habitat in the antennal phenotype of Triatoma patagonica Del Ponte, 1929 (Hemiptera: Reduviidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodríguez, Claudia S; Crocco, Liliana; Altamirano, Alejandra; Catalá, Silvia

    2013-02-01

    Triatomines undergo morphological changes as an adaptive response to different habitats (wild, peridomestic, domestic, laboratory). The characterization of the antennal phenotype provides information on intraspecific variation caused by geographical origin and/or habitat. Triatoma patagonica Del Ponte, 1929 is known to occur in peridomiciles of rural areas in Argentina, where it also invades non-colonized dwellings. Here we describe and compare the antennal phenotype of T. patagonica in populations of different geographic origin, and explore possible modifications induced by laboratory rearing with the aim of investigating the range of phenotypic variation of the species for the first time. Sixty antennas of adult males and females of T. patagonica belonging to two peridomiciliary populations of different geographical origin were analyzed. Four types of sensilla were observed in three antennal segments, showing sexual dimorphism in the species. The multivariate analysis separated the populations of similar habitat (peridomicile) but different geographical origin, without showing differences between the peridomiciliary and laboratory populations of the same geographical origin. These results suggest phenotypic plasticity in T. patagonica, which would allow the species to adapt to a wide range of habitats without having a close association with a given host and its environment. The range of antennal phenotypic variation of T. patagonica would also be an indicator of its current stage of adaptation to the human environment. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. The Oklahoma Geographic Information Retrieval System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blanchard, W. A.

    1982-01-01

    The Oklahoma Geographic Information Retrieval System (OGIRS) is a highly interactive data entry, storage, manipulation, and display software system for use with geographically referenced data. Although originally developed for a project concerned with coal strip mine reclamation, OGIRS is capable of handling any geographically referenced data for a variety of natural resource management applications. A special effort has been made to integrate remotely sensed data into the information system. The timeliness and synoptic coverage of satellite data are particularly useful attributes for inclusion into the geographic information system.

  20. Geographical-radioecological aspects of nuclear energy exploitation and environment contamination by man-made radionuclides in Russian Federation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kurucova, S.; Blazik, T.; Kuruc, J.

    2005-01-01

    Radioactive contamination of the environment is one of the most dangerous forms of environmental pollution in Russian Federation. The aim of this work was to localize and analyse places of nuclear energy exploitation for peaceful and military purposes in Russian Federation, in aim to find out whether observed places are potential or real sources of contamination of Russian environment by man-made radionuclides. Nuclear activities in nuclear industry enterprises and research organizations, in Russian Northern fleet, Russian Pacific Fleet, Russian civilian nuclear fleet and in nuclear power plants were analysed and the places where the nuclear explosions were carried out were localized. In contaminated regions the goal was to analyse geographical and some radioecological aspects of contamination of environment. Great part of Russian territory has been subjected to some form of radioactive contamination, mainly because of large radiation accidents in Mayak Production Association (PA) in the Urals (1949-1956, 1957 and 1967) and in Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (1986). The largest region in Russian Federation with environment contaminated by man-made radionuclides is region of Chernobyl NPP accident influence, which is situated in central, densely populated and economically relatively good developed part of Russian Federation where the agriculture has an important role. The most contaminated administrative units in region are Bryansk Region, Kaluga Region, Oryol Region and Tula Region where high soil density of cesium-137 are observed. Present radioecological situation in this region is analysed. By analysing of dynamics of demographic indicators in four most contaminated regions authors found out similar trends with Russian nationwide indicators and with indicators for Central Federal District but much more unfavourable values were observed in four regions, particularly in Tula Region. Health situation of liquidators and of affected population who live in contaminated

  1. From The Human-Environment Theme Towards Sustainability – Danish Geography and Education for Sustainable Development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Grindsted, Thomas Skou

    2013-01-01

    Research on geography in relation to education for sustainable development (ESD), has only recently climbed the research agenda. The geopolitics of intended learning outcomes in the ESD debate, carries policy that produce dilemmas and challenges confronted with disciplinary traditions....... In this article it is examined dialectically how the changing climate and the paradigm of sustainability have been dealt with in Danish geographical university education. It is shown how curriculum programs in higher geographical education have taken different approaches to address issues of sustainability...... and climate change and how geographers articulate their role and function as knowledge on human-environment interactions changes. The analysis of the geographical education reveal that geographers’ find their discipline contribute considerably to ESD, and thus the human environment theme seems...

  2. Organizational structures in Collaborative Work Environments: the return of the matrix?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Guldemond, E.; Have, K. ten; Knoppe, R.

    2010-01-01

    After major petroleum companies successfully implemented the hardware, tools and applications in Collaborative Work Environments (CWE), human factor issues remain unsolved. Working in these Collaborative Work Environments cuts across traditional disciplinary and geographically dispersed boundaries.

  3. Assessing associations between socio-economic environment and self-reported health in Amsterdam using bespoke environments

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Veldhuizen, Eleonore M.; Stronks, Karien; Kunst, Anton E.

    2013-01-01

    The study of the relationship between residential environment and health at micro area level has a long time been hampered by a lack of micro-scale data. Nowadays data is registered at a much more detailed scale. In combination with Geographic Information System (GIS)-techniques this creates

  4. Composing Models of Geographic Physical Processes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hofer, Barbara; Frank, Andrew U.

    Processes are central for geographic information science; yet geographic information systems (GIS) lack capabilities to represent process related information. A prerequisite to including processes in GIS software is a general method to describe geographic processes independently of application disciplines. This paper presents such a method, namely a process description language. The vocabulary of the process description language is derived formally from mathematical models. Physical processes in geography can be described in two equivalent languages: partial differential equations or partial difference equations, where the latter can be shown graphically and used as a method for application specialists to enter their process models. The vocabulary of the process description language comprises components for describing the general behavior of prototypical geographic physical processes. These process components can be composed by basic models of geographic physical processes, which is shown by means of an example.

  5. Louisiana State Soil Geographic, General Soil Map, Geographic NAD83, NWRC (1998) [statsgo_soils_NWRC_1998

    Data.gov (United States)

    Louisiana Geographic Information Center — This data set contains vector line map information. The vector data contain selected base categories of geographic features, and characteristics of these features,...

  6. Incorporating Geographic Information Science in the BSc Environ-mental Science Program in Botswana

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akinyemi, Felicia O.

    2018-05-01

    Critical human capacity in Geographic Information Science (GISc) is developed at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology, a specialized, research university. Strategies employed include GISc courses offered each semester to students from various programs, the conduct of field-based projects, enrolment in online courses, geo-spatial initiatives with external partners, and final year research projects utilizing geospatial technologies. A review is made of available GISc courses embedded in the Bachelor of Science Environmental Science program. GISc courses are incorporated in three Bachelor degree programs as distinct courses. Geospatial technologies are employed in several other courses. Student researches apply GIS and Remote Sensing methods to environmental and geological themes. The overarching goals are to equip students in various disciplines to utilize geospatial technologies, and enhance their spatial thinking and reasoning skills.

  7. FEATURES OF THE GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF TERRESTRIAL MOLLUSCS IN THE CAUCASUS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Z. Magomedova

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim. High population, high proliferation rates, a large species diversity, low mobility and small ability to overcome geographic barriers, ease of collecting material and sensitive response to changes in the external environment makes this group a convenient object of biogeographic and ecological research. Methods. The inventory of Caucasian ground malacofauna made it possible to make a complete list of species; their characteristics were determined by the geographical distribution of major natural regions of the Caucasus. Results. The comparative analysis of the geographical distribution of terrestrial molluscs on key areas of the Caucasus showed that among the 352 species belonging to 140 genera of 36 families, most richly represented Western Caucasus, which accounts for 51% or 181 species from 80 genera of 20 families, while the share of Armenian, Eastern and Central Caucasus accounts for 35-37%. Talysh, in turn, is characterized by the presence of only 11% of the species composition of the Caucasian land mollusc. Caucasus limited in distribution among the analyzed species is 72% or 255 species belonging to 104 genera of 24 families. Conclusion. The results prove the species diversity of the different regions of theCaucasus and could serve as the basis to reconsider the possible ways of formation of fauna of the region discussed. 

  8. The Use of Lead Isotope and Rare Earth Element Geochemistry for Forensic Geographic Provenancing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carey, A.; Darrah, T.; Harrold, Z.; Prutsman-Pfeiffer, J.; Poreda, R.

    2008-12-01

    Lead isotope and rare earth element composition of modern human bones are analyzed to explore their utility for geographical provenancing. DNA analysis is the standard for identification of individuals. DNA analysis requires a DNA match for comparison. Thus, DNA analysis is of limited use in cases involving unknown remains. Trace elements are incorporated into bones and teeth during biomineralization, recording the characteristics of an individual's geochemical environment. Teeth form during adolescence, recording the geochemical environment of an individual's youth. Bones remodel throughout an individual's lifetime. Bones consist of two types of bone tissue (cortical and trabecular) that remodel at different rates, recording the geochemical environment at the time of biomineralization. Cortical bone tissue, forming the outer surface of bones, is dense, hard tissue that remodels in 25-30 yrs. Conversely, trabecular bone tissue, the inner cavity of bones, is low density, porous and remodels in 2-5 years. Thus, analyzing teeth and both bone tissues allows for the development of a geographical time line capable of tracking immigration patterns through time instead of only an individual's youth. Geochemical isotopic techniques (Sr, O, C, N) have been used for geographical provenancing in physical anthropology. The isotopic values of Sr, C, O, N are predominantly a function of soil compositions in areas where food is grown or water is consumed. Application of these provenancing techniques has become difficult as an individual's diet may reflect the isotopic composition of foods obtained at the local grocer as opposed to local soil compositions. Thus, we explore the use of REEs and Pb isotopes for geographical provenancing. Pb and REEs are likely more reliable indicators of modern geographical location as their composition are high in bio-available sources such as local soils, atmospheric aerosols, and dust as opposed to Sr, C, O, N that are controlled by food and

  9. Determinants of Dentists' Geographic Distribution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beazoglou, Tryfon J.; And Others

    1992-01-01

    A model for explaining the geographic distribution of dentists' practice locations is presented and applied to particular market areas in Connecticut. Results show geographic distribution is significantly related to a few key variables, including demography, disposable income, and housing prices. Implications for helping students make practice…

  10. A framework for investigating geographical variation in diseases, based on a study of Legionnaires' disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhopal, R S

    1991-11-01

    Demonstration of geographical variations in disease can yield powerful insight into the disease pathway, particularly for environmentally acquired conditions, but only if the many problems of data interpretation can be solved. This paper presents the framework, methods and principles guiding a study of the geographical epidemiology of Legionnaires' Disease in Scotland. A case-list was constructed and disease incidence rates were calculated by geographical area; these showed variation. Five categories of explanation for the variation were identified: short-term fluctuations of incidence in time masquerading as differences by place; artefact; and differences in host-susceptibility, agent virulence, or environment. The methods used to study these explanations, excepting agent virulence, are described, with an emphasis on the use of previously existing data to test hypotheses. Examples include the use of mortality, census and hospital morbidity data to assess the artefact and host-susceptibility explanations; and the use of ratios of serology tests to disease to examine the differential testing hypothesis. The reasoning and process by which the environmental focus of the study was narrowed and the technique for relating the geographical pattern of disease to the putative source are outlined. This framework allows the researcher to plan for the parallel collection of the data necessary both to demonstrate geographical variation and to point to the likely explanation.

  11. Development of Geographic Information Systems and their use in National Libraries of Russia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natalya Kotelnikova

    2005-04-01

    Full Text Available By the end of the 20th century cartography has amassed a vast array of information on major aspects of existence, interaction and the functioning of nature and society owing to vigorous automation and computerisation. These are applied for the purpose of creating geographic information systems (GIS. The main function of geographic information systems is the storage and use of computer (electronic maps and atlases. Geographic information systems differ from each other in their territorial levels (global, national, regional, municipal and others and by their subjects (land, cadastre, ecological, sea and other maps. The geographic information system, ‘Black Sea’ is cited as an example. This is an information-based project compiled with a view to taking decisions on the protection of the resources of the basin of the Black Sea. The Black Sea GIS was developed for use by governments, scientists, the general public, NGOs and the media for the following purposes: · planning for marine environment activities and impacts on a regional scale; · public awareness through training, education, workshops, lectures and media; · scientific analysis, modelling, ecological impact assessment, science planning. The main GIS components are designed to perform the following functions: · data input; · data storage and database management; · data analysis and processing; · interaction with the user (graphical/map editing; and · data output and presentation (plotting.

  12. Community-environment relations and development of rural ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    user

    African Journal of Environmental Science and. Technology ... Structured questionnaire was applied to collect data on 35 independent and 22 dependent variables. .... environment have wide applicability for rural development hence the variables are ...... African Development: A geographical Perspective. Longman,. London.

  13. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Structures

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  14. Crafting Disaster Risk Science: Environmental and geographical science sans frontières

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ailsa Holloway

    2009-11-01

    Full Text Available In keeping with the University of Cape Town’s commitment to social responsiveness (http://www.socialresponsiveness.uct.ac.za/, this article traces the process that underpinned the development and introduction of a postgraduate programme in Disaster Risk Science (DRS. It foregrounds the programme’s conceptualisation within the Department of Environmental and Geographical Science (EGS at the University of Cape Town (UCT, with particular emphasis on examining how disciplinary and theoretical coherence was balanced with cross-disciplinary application and social responsiveness. The article begins by describing the contextual conditions external to UCT’s formal teaching and learning environment that provided the necessary impetus for the new programme. It also traces the iterative relationship between context and curriculum that occurred over the period 1998–2008. This engagement was facilitated and mediated by the Disaster Mitigation for Sustainable Livelihoods Programme (DiMP, an interfacing research and advocacy unit, located within UCT’s Department of Environmental and Geographical Science. An explanation of subsequent content and sequencing of the postgraduate curriculum then follow. They illustrate the programme’s articulation with South Africa’s newly promulgated disaster management legislation, as well as its relevance and rigour in relation to the complex risk environment of South Africa’s Western Cape. The article specifically applies a transdisciplinary lens to the new programmme, in which Disaster Risk Science is conceptualized as a Mode 2 knowledge, but one that draws theoretically and methodologically on environmental and geographical science as its foundation or Mode 1 domain. It concludes by examining the DRS programme’s positive contributions both to scholarship and local risk management practices as well as the obstacles that constrained the new programme and continue to challenge its institutional sustainability.

  15. The evolution of cooperation on geographical networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yixiao; Wang, Yi; Sheng, Jichuan

    2017-11-01

    We study evolutionary public goods game on geographical networks, i.e., complex networks which are located on a geographical plane. The geographical feature effects in two ways: In one way, the geographically-induced network structure influences the overall evolutionary dynamics, and, in the other way, the geographical length of an edge influences the cost when the two players at the two ends interact. For the latter effect, we design a new cost function of cooperators, which simply assumes that the longer the distance between two players, the higher cost the cooperator(s) of them have to pay. In this study, network substrates are generated by a previous spatial network model with a cost-benefit parameter controlling the network topology. Our simulations show that the greatest promotion of cooperation is achieved in the intermediate regime of the parameter, in which empirical estimates of various railway networks fall. Further, we investigate how the distribution of edges' geographical costs influences the evolutionary dynamics and consider three patterns of the distribution: an approximately-equal distribution, a diverse distribution, and a polarized distribution. For normal geographical networks which are generated using intermediate values of the cost-benefit parameter, a diverse distribution hinders the evolution of cooperation, whereas a polarized distribution lowers the threshold value of the amplification factor for cooperation in public goods game. These results are helpful for understanding the evolution of cooperation on real-world geographical networks.

  16. Geographical differences in food allergy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartra, Joan; García-Moral, Alba; Enrique, Ernesto

    2016-06-01

    Food allergy represents a health problem worldwide and leads to life-threatening reactions and even impairs quality of life. Epidemiological data during the past decades is very heterogeneous because of the use of different diagnostic procedures, and most studies have only been performed in specific geographical areas. The aim of this article is to review the available data on the geographical distribution of food allergies at the food source and molecular level and to link food allergy patterns to the aeroallergen influence in each area. Systematic reviews, meta-analysis, studies performed within the EuroPrevall Project and EAACI position papers regarding food allergy were analysed. The prevalence of food allergy sensitization differs between geographical areas, probably as a consequence of differences among populations, their habits and the influence of the cross-reactivity of aeroallergens and other sources of allergens. Geographical differences in food allergy are clearly evident at the allergenic molecular level, which seems to be directly influenced by the aeroallergens of each region and associated with specific clinical patterns.

  17. The University Environment: A Comprehensive Assessment of Health-Related Advertisements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Szymona, Katie; Quick, Virginia; Olfert, Melissa; Shelnutt, Karla; Kattlemann, Kendra K.; Brown-Esters, Onikia; Colby, Sarah E.; Beaudoin, Christina; Lubniewski, Jocelyn; Maia, Angelina Moore; Horacek, Tanya; Byrd-Bredbenner, Carol

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: Little is known about health-related advertising on university environments. Given the power of advertising and its potential effect on health behaviors, the purpose of this paper is to assess the health-related advertisement environment and policies on university campuses. Design/methodology/approach: In total, ten geographically and…

  18. Spatiotemporal Distribution of U5MR and Their Relationship with Geographic and Socioeconomic Factors in China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Zeng; Fu, Jingying; Jiang, Dong; Lin, Gang; Dong, Donglin; Yan, Xiaoxi

    2017-11-21

    Epidemiological studies conducted around the world have reported that the under-five mortality rate (U5MR) is closely associated with income and educational attainment. However, geographic elements should also remain a major concern in further improving child health issues, since they often play an important role in the survival environment. This study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between the U5MR, geographic, and socioeconomic factors, and to explore the associated spatial variance of the relationship in China using the geographically weighted regression (GWR) model. The results indicate that the space pattern of a high U5MR had been narrowed notably during the period from 2001 to 2010. Nighttime lights (NL) and the digital elevation model (DEM) both have obvious influences on the U5MR, with the NL having a negative impact and DEM having a positive impact. Additionally, the relationship between the NL and DEM varied over space in China. Moreover, the relevance between U5MR and DEM was narrowed in 2010 compared to 2001, which indicates that the development of economic and medical standards can overcome geographical limits.

  19. Spatiotemporal Distribution of U5MR and Their Relationship with Geographic and Socioeconomic Factors in China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zeng Li

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Epidemiological studies conducted around the world have reported that the under-five mortality rate (U5MR is closely associated with income and educational attainment. However, geographic elements should also remain a major concern in further improving child health issues, since they often play an important role in the survival environment. This study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between the U5MR, geographic, and socioeconomic factors, and to explore the associated spatial variance of the relationship in China using the geographically weighted regression (GWR model. The results indicate that the space pattern of a high U5MR had been narrowed notably during the period from 2001 to 2010. Nighttime lights (NL and the digital elevation model (DEM both have obvious influences on the U5MR, with the NL having a negative impact and DEM having a positive impact. Additionally, the relationship between the NL and DEM varied over space in China. Moreover, the relevance between U5MR and DEM was narrowed in 2010 compared to 2001, which indicates that the development of economic and medical standards can overcome geographical limits.

  20. Royal Engineer Geographic Technicians: Exploring their attitudes to education and training

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knight, John Anthony

    A creative approach is presented for understanding the attitudes of Royal Engineer (RE) Geographic Technicians (Geo Techs) to training and education. Through a grounded theory methodology, participants' experiences of learning and teaching are explored. These provide a greater awareness and perception of attitudes than have emerged through more established, formal methods of evaluating the effectiveness of training. Recent developments in technology, doctrine, requirements and operations have brought about significant changes to the range and complexity of subjects taught in the field of Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT). This in turn has increased the challenges to RE staff and students, many of whom find themselves instructing on or undertaking demanding degree level courses without the requisite formal qualifications. Grounded theory, based on guidelines rather than rigid rules, is adopted to provide a study of RE Geographic Technicians' learning experiences from the perspective of those who live it and for an interpretive understanding of their meanings to emerge. The policies, culture and social processes in which the RE Geo training takes place are explored to appreciate the influence of the training environment on learning. Data obtained through focus groups held with students and instructors, and through in-depth interviews with individuals who hold key roles associated with the course, recognises the relativism of multiple social realities in developing a rich source of knowledge on attitudes to learning. The collection, synthesis and analysis of data led to the emergence of core categories: context, commitment, expectations, motivation, qualifications, relevance and respect. Through their engagement the research participants' awareness, in particular of instructors, of Geographic Technicians' attitudes to training and education has been raised. Using the theoretical framework of communities of practice, the challenges and effectiveness of the RSMS as a

  1. Representations built from a true geographic database

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bodum, Lars

    2005-01-01

    the whole world in 3d and with a spatial reference given by geographic coordinates. Built on top of this is a customised viewer, based on the Xith(Java) scenegraph. The viewer reads the objects directly from the database and solves the question about Level-Of-Detail on buildings, orientation in relation...... a representation based on geographic and geospatial principles. The system GRIFINOR, developed at 3DGI, Aalborg University, DK, is capable of creating this object-orientation and furthermore does this on top of a true Geographic database. A true Geographic database can be characterized as a database that can cover...

  2. International variation in neighborhood walkability, transit, and recreation environments using geographic information systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Adams, Marc A; Frank, Lawrence D; Schipperijn, Jasper

    2014-01-01

    associations with physical activity comes from single countries or regions with limited variation in urban form. This paper documents variation in comparable built environment features across countries from diverse regions. METHODS: The International Physical Activity and the Environment Network (IPEN) study...... recreation facilities around each participant's residential address using 1-km and 500-m street network buffers. RESULTS: Eleven of 12 countries and 15 cities had objective GIS data on built environment features. We observed a 38-fold difference in median residential densities, a 5-fold difference in median......, and the United States followed a common research protocol to develop internationally comparable measures. Using detailed instructions, GIS-based measures included features such as walkability (i.e., residential density, street connectivity, mix of land uses), and access to public transit, parks, and private...

  3. Geographic patterns and environmental factors associated with human yellow fever presence in the Americas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamrick, Patricia Najera; Aldighieri, Sylvain; Machado, Gustavo; Leonel, Deise Galan; Vilca, Luz Maria; Uriona, Sonia; Schneider, Maria Cristina

    2017-09-01

    In the Americas, yellow fever virus transmission is a latent threat due to the proximity between urban and wild environments. Although yellow fever has nearly vanished from North and Central America, there are still 13 countries in the Americas considered endemic by the World Health Organization. Human cases usually occur as a result of the exposure to sylvatic yellow fever in tropical forested environments; but urban outbreaks reported during the last decade demonstrate that the risk in this environment still exists. The objective of this study was to identify spatial patterns and the relationship between key geographic and environmental factors with the distribution of yellow fever human cases in the Americas. An ecological study was carried out to analyze yellow fever human cases reported to the Pan American Health Organization from 2000 to 2014, aggregated by second administrative level subdivisions (counties). Presence of yellow fever by county was used as the outcome variable and eight geo-environmental factors were used as independent variables. Spatial analysis was performed to identify and examine natural settings per county. Subsequently, a multivariable logistic regression model was built. During the study period, 1,164 cases were reported in eight out of the 13 endemic countries. Nearly 83.8% of these cases were concentrated in three countries: Peru (37.4%), Brazil (28.1%) and Colombia (18.4%); and distributed in 57 states/provinces, specifically in 286 counties (3.4% of total counties). Yellow fever presence was significantly associated with altitude, rain, diversity of non-human primate hosts and temperature. A positive spatial autocorrelation revealed a clustered geographic pattern in 138/286 yellow fever positive counties (48.3%). A clustered geographic pattern of yellow fever was identified mostly along the Andes eastern foothills. This risk map could support health policies in endemic countries. Geo-environmental factors associated with presence

  4. Jovan Mišković: A forgotten ethnographer and geographer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Đapović Lasta

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper describes the life and work of Jovan Mišković, a forgotten ethnographer and geographer. Born in Negotin (1844-1908, he had received military education and took on several important functions in the government and had served bravely in three wars. In addition, he was also a gifted scientist, whose interests included geography, ethnography, history archeology and topography. He was a distinguished member of Serbian medical society, Serbian Royal Academy and several other important associations. The paper presents Misković’s contribution to science and discuses cultural/scientific environment where he worked and lived.

  5. The geographic applications program of the U. S. Geological Survey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gerlach, Arch C.

    1969-01-01

    The fundamental objective of modern Geography is to improve man's level of living through a better understanding of man-environment inter actions. Related goals of the USGS program for applications of remote sensor data to Geographical research are: (1) the analysis and improvement of land use, with special emphasis on urban problems; and (2) more effective use of the total available energy budget, including insolation, mineral fuels, atomic energy, human resources, and mental energy, all of which are integrated into man-environment interactions. The collection of data through remote sensors in air craft and spacecraft is financed largely by funds from NASA, and is part of the much broader EROS Program of the Department of the Interior. Results to date have achieved much toward the identification of remote sensor signatures for Earth features and human activities, and toward evaluation of instruments for collecting essential information.

  6. Soil erosion fragility assessment using an impact model and geographic information system

    OpenAIRE

    Jorge,Luiz Alberto Blanco

    2009-01-01

    A study was taken in a 1566 ha watershed situated in the Capivara River basin, municipality of Botucatu, São Paulo State, Brazil. This environment is fragile and can be subjected to different forms of negative impacts, among them soil erosion by water. The main objective of the research was to develop a methodology for the assessment of soil erosion fragility at the various different watershed positions, using the geographic information system ILWIS version 3.3 for Windows. An impact model wa...

  7. On the relevance of Gibson's affordance concept for geographical information science (GISc).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jonietz, David; Timpf, Sabine

    2015-09-01

    J. J. Gibson's concept of affordances has provided a theoretical basis for various studies in geographical information science (GISc). This paper sets out to explain its popularity from a GISc perspective. Based on a short review of previous work, it will be argued that its main contributions to GISc are twofold, including an action-centered view of spatial entities and the notion of agent-environment mutuality. Using the practical example of pedestrian behavior simulation, new potentials for using and extending affordances are discussed.

  8. 25 CFR 571.10 - Geographical location.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Geographical location. 571.10 Section 571.10 Indians NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT PROVISIONS MONITORING AND INVESTIGATIONS Subpoenas and Depositions § 571.10 Geographical location. The attendance of...

  9. Socioeconomic Development Inequalities among Geographic Units ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Socio-economic development inequality among geographic units is a phenomenon common in both the developed and developing countries. Regional inequality may result in dissension among geographic units of the same state due to the imbalance in socio-economic development. This study examines the inequality ...

  10. Ring distributions leading to species formation: a global topographic analysis of geographic barriers associated with ring species.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monahan, William B; Pereira, Ricardo J; Wake, David B

    2012-03-12

    In the mid 20th century, Ernst Mayr and Theodosius Dobzhansky championed the significance of circular overlaps or ring species as the perfect demonstration of speciation, yet in the over 50 years since, only a handful of such taxa are known. We developed a topographic model to evaluate whether the geographic barriers that favor processes leading to ring species are common or rare, and to predict where other candidate ring barriers might be found. Of the 952,147 geographic barriers identified on the planet, only about 1% are topographically similar to barriers associated with known ring taxa, with most of the likely candidates occurring in under-studied parts of the world (for example, marine environments, tropical latitudes). Predicted barriers separate into two distinct categories: (i) single cohesive barriers (barriers - formed by groups of barriers (each 184,000 to 1.7 million km2) in close geographic proximity (totaling 1.9 to 2.3 million km2) - associated with taxa that differentiate at larger spatial scales (birds: Phylloscopus trochiloides and Larus (sp. argentatus and fuscus)). When evaluated globally, we find a large number of cohesive barriers that are topographically similar to those associated with known ring taxa. Yet, compared to cohesive barriers, an order of magnitude fewer composite barriers are similar to those that favor ring divergence in species with higher dispersal. While these findings confirm that the topographic conditions that favor evolutionary processes leading to ring speciation are, in fact, rare, they also suggest that many understudied natural systems could provide valuable demonstrations of continuous divergence towards the formation of new species. Distinct advantages of the model are that it (i) requires no a priori information on the relative importance of features that define barriers, (ii) can be replicated using any kind of continuously distributed environmental variable, and (iii) generates spatially explicit hypotheses of

  11. Development Trends of Cartography and Geographic Information Engineering

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    WANG Jiayao

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Aimed at the problems of cartography and geographic information engineering and increasing demands of national and military infomationization construction, the paper proposes six hotspots on the research of cartography and geographic information engineering for the future on the foundation of analyzing the development track of cartology, which are heterogeneous geospatial data assimilation, transferring from emphasizing geography infor-mation gaining to user-oriented geographic information deep processing, web or grid geographic information service. intelligent spatial data generalization. integration of GIS and VGE. cartography and geographic information engineering theory system with multi-mode(Map,.GlS..VGE spatial-temporal integrated cognition as the core. And discusses the necessity ,existing groundwork and research contents on studying these hotspots.

  12. Evaluation of The Role and Contribution of UNDP in Environment and Energy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wells, Michael P.; Marcussen, Henrik Secher; Uitto, Juha I.

    Evaluation and assessment of UNDP´s positioning and contribution to managing environment and energy for sustainable development. The scope of the evaluation covers all programmatic and operational aspects of the environment and energy area in all UNDP´s geographic regions and at the global...

  13. Use of geographic indicators of healthcare, environment and socioeconomic factors to characterize environmental health disparities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Padilla, Cindy M; Kihal-Talantikit, Wahida; Perez, Sandra; Deguen, Severine

    2016-07-22

    An environmental health inequality is a major public health concern in Europe. However just few studies take into account a large set of characteristics to analyze this problematic. The aim of this study was to identify and describe how socioeconomic, health accessibility and exposure factors accumulate and interact in small areas in a French urban context, to assess environmental health inequalities related to infant and neonatal mortality. Environmental indicators on deprivation index, proximity to high-traffic roads, green space, and healthcare accessibility were created using the Geographical Information System. Cases were collected from death certificates in the city hall of each municipality in the Nice metropolitan area. Using the parental addresses, cases were geocoded to their census block of residence. A classification using a Multiple Component Analysis following by a Hierarchical Clustering allow us to characterize the census blocks in terms of level of socioeconomic, environmental and accessibility to healthcare, which are very diverse definition by nature. Relation between infant and neonatal mortality rate and the three environmental patterns which categorize the census blocks after the classification was performed using a standard Poisson regression model for count data after checking the assumption of dispersion. Based on geographic indicators, three environmental patterns were identified. We found environmental inequalities and social health inequalities in Nice metropolitan area. Moreover these inequalities are counterbalance by the close proximity of deprived census blocks to healthcare facilities related to mother and newborn. So therefore we demonstrate no environmental health inequalities related to infant and neonatal mortality. Examination of patterns of social, environmental and in relation with healthcare access is useful to identify census blocks with needs and their effects on health. Similar analyzes could be implemented and considered

  14. [Species composition and geographical distribution of threatened fishes in Yunnan Province of Southwest China].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Qian; Zhong, Jin-Xin

    2013-05-01

    Based on the related published papers, and by using Geographic Information System (ArcGIS 9.3), this paper analyzed the species composition and geographical distribution of threatened fishes in Yunnan Province of Southwest China. There were 83 threatened species living in the Province, belonging to 5 orders, 13 families, and 47 genera. Cypriniformes was absolutely dominant, with 64 species, followed by Siluriformes, with 16 species. Cyprinidae fishes had 51 species, accounting for 79.7% of Cypriniformes. The most species of Cyprinid fishes were of Barbinae (14 species), Cyprininae (10 species), and Cultrinae (10 species). The threatened fishes could be divided into two zoogeographical regions, i. e., Tibetan Plateau region and Oriental region, and their species composition and geographical distribution were resulted from the historical evolution adapted to the related environments. Whatever in rivers and in lakes, the Cyprinid fishes were both absolutely dominant, occupying 36.1% and 31.3% of the total, respectively. The Cyprinid fishes in rivers were mostly of endangered species, while those in lakes were mostly of vulnerable species. The factors affecting the threatened fishes in the Province were discussed from the two aspects of geodynamic evolution and present situation.

  15. [What potential do geographic information systems have for population-wide health monitoring in Germany? : Perspectives and challenges for the health monitoring of the Robert Koch Institute].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thißen, Martin; Niemann, Hildegard; Varnaccia, Gianni; Rommel, Alexander; Teti, Andrea; Butschalowsky, Hans; Manz, Kristin; Finger, Jonas David; Kroll, Lars Eric; Ziese, Thomas

    2017-12-01

    Geographic information systems (GISs) are computer-based systems with which geographical data can be recorded, stored, managed, analyzed, visualized and provided. In recent years, they have become an integral part of public health research. They offer a broad range of analysis tools, which enable innovative solutions for health-related research questions. An analysis of nationwide studies that applied geographic information systems underlines the potential this instrument bears for health monitoring in Germany. Geographic information systems provide up-to-date mapping and visualization options to be used for national health monitoring at the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). Furthermore, objective information on the residential environment as an influencing factor on population health and on health behavior can be gathered and linked to RKI survey data at different geographic scales. Besides using physical information, such as climate, vegetation or land use, as well as information on the built environment, the instrument can link socioeconomic and sociodemographic data as well as information on health care and environmental stress to the survey data and integrate them into concepts for analyses. Therefore, geographic information systems expand the potential of the RKI to present nationwide, representative and meaningful health-monitoring results. In doing so, data protection regulations must always be followed. To conclude, the development of a national spatial data infrastructure and the identification of important data sources can prospectively improve access to high quality data sets that are relevant for the health monitoring.

  16. Geographic Literacy and Moral Formation among University Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bascom, Jonathan

    2011-01-01

    This study extends analysis of geographic literacy further by examining the relationship of geographic knowledge with the primary goal of geographic educators--cultivation of cultural understanding and moral sensitivity for global citizenry. The main aim is to examine contributors to moral formation during the university years based on a survey…

  17. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Transportation Features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  18. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Historical Features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  19. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Admin Features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  20. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Hydrography Lines

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  1. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Cultural Features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  2. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Landform Features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  3. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Hydrography Points

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  4. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Community Features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  5. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Antarctica Features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Homeland Security — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  6. Remote sensing research in geographic education: An alternative view

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, H.; Cary, T. K.; Goward, S. N.

    1981-01-01

    It is noted that within many geography departments remote sensing is viewed as a mere technique a student should learn in order to carry out true geographic research. This view inhibits both students and faculty from investigation of remotely sensed data as a new source of geographic knowledge that may alter our understanding of the Earth. The tendency is for geographers to accept these new data and analysis techniques from engineers and mathematicians without questioning the accompanying premises. This black-box approach hinders geographic applications of the new remotely sensed data and limits the geographer's contribution to further development of remote sensing observation systems. It is suggested that geographers contribute to the development of remote sensing through pursuit of basic research. This research can be encouraged, particularly among students, by demonstrating the links between geographic theory and remotely sensed observations, encouraging a healthy skepticism concerning the current understanding of these data.

  7. Survey of Collaboration Technologies in Multi-level Security Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-04-28

    urban area. It evaluates how municipal fire service, law enforcement, emergency management, and public health organizations have used federal government...heterogeneous operational environments. Mercado , A. (2008) Exploring Data Sharing Between Geographically Distributed Mobile and Fixed Nodes Supporting

  8. Personality Homophily and Geographic Distance in Facebook.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Noë, Nyala; Whitaker, Roger M; Allen, Stuart M

    2018-05-24

    Personality homophily remains an understudied aspect of social networks, with the traditional focus concerning sociodemographic variables as the basis for assortativity, rather than psychological dispositions. We consider the effect of personality homophily on one of the biggest constraints to human social networks: geographic distance. We use the Big five model of personality to make predictions for each of the five facets: Openness to experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. Using a network of 313,669 Facebook users, we investigate the difference in geographic distance between homophilous pairs, in which both users scored similarly on a particular facet, and mixed pairs. In accordance with our hypotheses, we find that pairs of open and conscientious users are geographically further apart than mixed pairs. Pairs of extraverts, on the other hand, tend to be geographically closer together. We find mixed results for the Neuroticism facet, and no significant effects for the Agreeableness facet. The results are discussed in the context of personality homophily and the impact of geographic distance on social connections.

  9. Surveying and Mapping Geographical Information from the Perspective of Geography

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    LÜ Guonian

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available It briefly reviewed the history of geographic information content development since the existence of geographic information system. It pointed out that the current definition of geographic information is always the extension from the "spatial+ attributes" basic mapping framework of geographic information. It is increasingly difficult to adapt to the analysis and application of spatial-temporal big data. From the perspective of geography research subject and content, it summarized systematically that the content and extension of the "geographic information" that geography needs. It put forward that a six-element expression model of geographic information, including spatial location, semantic description, attribute characteristics, geometric form, evolution process, and objects relationship.Under the guidance of the laws of geography, for geographical phenomenon of spatial distribution, temporal pattern and evolution process, the interaction mechanism of the integrated expression, system analysis and efficient management, it designed that a unified GIS data model which is expressed by six basic elements, a new GIS data structure driven by geographical rules and interaction, and key technologies of unstructured spatio-temporal data organization and storage. It provided that a theoretical basis and technical support for the shift from the surveying and mapping geographic information to the scientific geographic information, and it can help improving the organization, management, analysis and expression ability of the GIS of the geographical laws such as geographical pattern, evolution process, and interaction between elements.

  10. Geographical PCB and DDT patterns in shearwaters (Calonectris sp.) breeding across the NE Atlantic and the Mediterranean archipelagos.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roscales, Jose L; Muñoz-Arnanz, Juan; González-Solís, Jacob; Jiménez, Begoña

    2010-04-01

    Although seabirds have been proposed as useful biomonitors for organochlorine contaminants (OCs) in marine environments, their suitability is still unclear. To understand the geographic variability and the influence of seabird trophic ecology in OC levels, we analyzed PCBs, DDTs, delta(13)C, and delta(15)N in the blood of adult Calonectris shearwaters throughout a vast geographic range within the northeast Atlantic Ocean (from Cape Verde to Azores) and the Mediterranean Sea (from the Alboran Sea to Crete). OC concentrations were greater in birds from the Mediterranean than in those from the Atlantic colonies, showing higher and lower chlorinated PCB profiles, respectively. This large-scale pattern may reflect the influence of historical European runoffs in the Mediterranean basin and diffused sources for OCs in remote Atlantic islands. Spatial patterns also emerged within the Atlantic basin, probably associated with pollutant long-range transport and recent inputs of DDT in the food webs of shearwaters from Cape Verde and the Canary islands. Moreover, a positive association of OC concentrations with delta(15)N within each locality points out diet specialization as a major factor explaining differences in OCs at the intraspecific level. Overall, this study highlights wide range breeding seabirds, such as Calonectris shearwaters, as suitable organisms for biomonitoring large geographic trends of organochlorine contamination in the marine environment.

  11. Fine scale distribution constrains cadmium accumulation rates in two geographical groups of Franciscana dolphin from Argentina

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Polizzi, P.S.; Chiodi Boudet, L.N.; Romero, M.B.; Denuncio, P.E.; Rodríguez, D.H.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • Fine scale distribution of two Argentine stocks constrains the Cd accumulation rates. • Cadmium levels and accumulation patterns were different between geographic groups. • Marine diet has a major influence than the impact degree of origin environment. • Engraulis anchoita is the main Cd vector species in Argentine shelf for Franciscana. • Information is valuable for the conservation of Franciscana, a vulnerable species. -- Abstract: Franciscana dolphin is an endemic cetacean in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean and is classified as Vulnerable A3d by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Cadmium accumulation was assessed in two geographic groups from Argentina; one inhabits the La Plata River estuary, a high anthropogenic impacted environment, and the other is distributed in marine coastal, with negligible pollution. Despite the environment, marine dolphins showed an increase of renal Cd concentrations since trophic independence; while in estuarine dolphins was from 6 years. This is associated with dietary Argentine anchovy which was absent in the diet of estuarine dolphins, being a trophic vector of cadmium in shelf waters of Argentina. Cluster analysis also showed high levels of cd in association with the presence of anchovy in the stomach. The difference in the fine scale distribution of species influences dietary exposure to Cd and, along with other data, indicates two stocks in Argentina

  12. A Heterogeneous Distributed Virtual Geographic Environment—Potential Application in Spatiotemporal Behavior Experiments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shen Shen

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Due to their strong immersion and real-time interactivity, helmet-mounted virtual reality (VR devices are becoming increasingly popular. Based on these devices, an immersive virtual geographic environment (VGE provides a promising method for research into crowd behavior in an emergency. However, the current cheaper helmet-mounted VR devices are not popular enough, and will continue to coexist with personal computer (PC-based systems for a long time. Therefore, a heterogeneous distributed virtual geographic environment (HDVGE could be a feasible solution to the heterogeneous problems caused by various types of clients, and support the implementation of spatiotemporal crowd behavior experiments with large numbers of concurrent participants. In this study, we developed an HDVGE framework, and put forward a set of design principles to define the similarities between the real world and the VGE. We discussed the HDVGE architecture, and proposed an abstract interaction layer, a protocol-based interaction algorithm, and an adjusted dead reckoning algorithm to solve the heterogeneous distributed problems. We then implemented an HDVGE prototype system focusing on subway fire evacuation experiments. Two types of clients are considered in the system: PC, and all-in-one VR. Finally, we evaluated the performances of the prototype system and the key algorithms. The results showed that in a low-latency local area network (LAN environment, the prototype system can smoothly support 90 concurrent users consisting of PC and all-in-one VR clients. HDVGE provides a feasible solution for studying not only spatiotemporal crowd behaviors in normal conditions, but also evacuation behaviors in emergency conditions such as fires and earthquakes. HDVGE could also serve as a new means of obtaining observational data about individual and group behavior in support of human geography research.

  13. The Value of Open Geographical Data - The Danish Case

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colding, T. S.; Folner, M.; Krarup, S.; Kongsbak, J.

    2013-12-01

    Good basic data for everyone is part of the common public-sector digitization strategy for 2011 to 2015. The vision is that basic data is to be the high-quality common foundation for public sector administration; efficiently updated at one place, and used by everyone - including the private sector. Open basic data will benefit public-sector efficiency as well as innovation and value creation by Danish society in general. With basic data as a new digital raw material, commercial products can be developed and public information and services can be improved, providing for greater insight and stronger democracy. On the first of January 2013 Denmark released this digital raw material. As a general rule, all basic data is to be made freely available to all public authorities, private businesses and individuals. This makes basic data a common digital resource, which can be exploited freely for commercial as well as non-commercial purposes. A positive business case contributed in convincing Danish politicians to approve the basic data program. Once the initiatives have been fully implemented, the revenues for society are expected to be approx. DKK 800 million annually. Private-sector revenues will be up to DKK half a billion annually, and it is expected that e.g. the real estate, insurance, financial, and telecom sectors, as well as GPS (sat-nav) manufacturers, public companies and entrepreneurs will be among those to benefit hugely from the initiatives. The financial gain for the private sector of open geographical data alone is expected to be approx. 100 million DKK annually. As part of the Basic data program The Danish Geodata Agency (Ministry of the Environment) gave free access to all topographic data, cadastral maps and Digital Elevation Model on Jan. 1st, 2013. The Danish Geodata Agency has decided to measure the effect of the open geographic data in the public sector (efficiency) and in the private sector (growth). The effect will be measured by using reference

  14. Studies on radioactivity and risk assessment in the riverine environs of Cauvery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaliprasad, C.S.; Narayana, Y.

    2016-01-01

    Aquatic environment is important to transfer all contaminants to the geographic area through water and sediments. When compared to all other aquatic environments, the riverine environs are vital for study of the natural radionuclides concentration. River sediments are used as construction materials and water used in agriculture, industries and house hold purposes. River sediments contains the natural radionuclides accumulated from the soil due to erosion, weathering of rocks and river bed itself. Monitoring the release of radiation from gamma sources is important to assess the radiation dose received by the human population. The natural radionuclide mainly arises from radioactive series 238 U and 232 Th and singly occurring radionuclide 40 K. The external gamma radiation exposure to the population changes due to the geology and geographical condition of the area and its associated radioactivity level in the soil

  15. Thematic cartography as a geographical application

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Drago Perko

    2002-12-01

    Full Text Available A thematic map may be a geographical application (tool in itself or the basis for some other geographical work. The development of Slovene thematic cartography accelerated considerably following the independence of the country in 1991. From the viewpoint of content and technology, its greatest achievements are the Geographical Atlas of Slovenia and the National Atlas of Slovenia, which are outstanding achievements at the international level and of great significance for the promotion of Slovenia and Slovene geography and cartography. However, this rapid development has been accompanied by numerous problems, for example, the ignoring of various Slovene and international conventions for the preparation of maps including United Nations resolutions, Slovene and international (SIST ISO, and copyright laws.

  16. National Geographic Education. An Interview with Gilbert M. Grosvenor, President and Chairman of the Board, National Geographic Society.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jumper, Sidney R.

    1991-01-01

    Presents an interview with Gilbert Grosvenor, president and chairman of the board of the National Geographic Society. Examines student and public ignorance about geography. Describes the Society's Geography Education Project, Geographic Alliance Project, and Education Foundation. Includes Grosvenor's call for greater emphasis on geography in…

  17. Geographic information systems, remote sensing, and spatial analysis activities in Texas, 2002-07

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pearson, D.K.; Gary, R.H.; Wilson, Z.D.

    2007-01-01

    Geographic information system (GIS) technology has become an important tool for scientific investigation, resource management, and environmental planning. A GIS is a computer-aided system capable of collecting, storing, analyzing, and displaying spatially referenced digital data. GIS technology is particularly useful when analyzing a wide variety of spatial data such as with remote sensing and spatial analysis. Remote sensing involves collecting remotely sensed data, such as satellite imagery, aerial photography, or radar images, and analyzing the data to gather information or investigate trends about the environment or the Earth's surface. Spatial analysis combines remotely sensed, thematic, statistical, quantitative, and geographical data through overlay, modeling, and other analytical techniques to investigate specific research questions. It is the combination of data formats and analysis techniques that has made GIS an essential tool in scientific investigations. This document presents information about the technical capabilities and project activities of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Texas Water Science Center (TWSC) GIS Workgroup from 2002 through 2007.

  18. Prediction Schemes to Enhance the Routing Process in Geographical GPSR Ad Hoc Protocol

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raed Saqour

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Geographical routing protocols have received a serious attention due to more advantages they have in comparison to the conventional routing protocols. They require information about the physical position of nodes needed to be available. Commonly, each node determines its own position through the use of Global Positioning System (GPS or some other type of positioning service. Greedy Perimeter Stateless Routing (GPSR protocol, which is one of geographical routing protocols, limits the forwarding decision of the packet based on the node's own position, the destination's position and the position of the forwarding node's neighbors. Location information has some inaccuracy depending on the localization system and the environment exists in. This paper aims to study the impact of mobility metrics (beacon interval, and node speed on introducing location information error in GPSR protocol using different mobility models. The effect of these metrics is identified in GPSR as Neighbor Break Link (NBL problem. Based on simulation analysis, mobility prediction schemes are proposed to migrate the observed problem.

  19. Viruses in acidic geothermal environments of the Kamchatka Peninsula

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bize, Ariane; Peng, Xu; Prokofeva, Maria

    2008-01-01

    Screening for viruses in samples taken from acidic hot springs of Kamchatka (Russia) revealed a collection of morphotypes, including linear, spherical and complex fusiform shapes, which show partial similarity to those found in acidic geothermal environments in other geographical locations. One...

  20. Cartography and Geographic Information Science in Current Contents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nedjeljko Frančula

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available The Cartography and Geographic Information Science (CaGIS journal was published as The American Cartographer from 1974 to 1989, after that as Cartography and Geographic Information System, and since then has been published with its current name. It is published by the Cartography and Geographic Information Society, a member of the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping.

  1. a New Ontological Perspective for Integration of Social and Physical Environments: Disability and Rehabilitation Context

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gharebaghi, Amin; Abolfazl Mostafavi, Mir

    2016-06-01

    Social dimension of environment is an important aspect that should be reflected in research works related to studying the interactions between human and the environment. However, this dimension is usually neglected when representing the environment in geographic information systems for different applications. For instance, disability as a result of the interaction between human and environment is influenced by social and physical dimensions of environment. Although, this aspect is highlighted in most conceptual disability models by defining various taxonomies of the environment, from ontological perspective justifying and connecting social dimension to the physical dimension of the environment is not clearly determined. Integrating social dimension of the environment with its physical dimension for disability studies is a challenging task, which is the main objective of the present study. Here, we review some of the disability models and their perspective about classifying the environment. Then, from ontological perspective, their limitations are discussed and a new approach for the classification of concepts form the environment is presented. This approach facilitates and simplifies integration of social dimension in ontologies for more effective assessment of disability issue in Geographic Information System.

  2. Environment and environmental impacts

    OpenAIRE

    Rejane de Fátima Victor Vasconcelos

    2009-01-01

    The article shows what can be environmental impacts and how those happen, both by the actions made by human kind and by natural disasters. Another concern of the research is the unstoppable incident of the natural resources destruction, result f the globalization actions and the economy, and that the environment impacts have happen in every direction, independently of the geographic scale, harming the life in earth, without giving importance who is the target. The article made reference to in...

  3. Micro- and macro-geographic scale effect on the molecular imprint of selection and adaptation in Norway spruce.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marta Scalfi

    Full Text Available Forest tree species of temperate and boreal regions have undergone a long history of demographic changes and evolutionary adaptations. The main objective of this study was to detect signals of selection in Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst, at different sampling-scales and to investigate, accounting for population structure, the effect of environment on species genetic diversity. A total of 384 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs representing 290 genes were genotyped at two geographic scales: across 12 populations distributed along two altitudinal-transects in the Alps (micro-geographic scale, and across 27 populations belonging to the range of Norway spruce in central and south-east Europe (macro-geographic scale. At the macrogeographic scale, principal component analysis combined with Bayesian clustering revealed three major clusters, corresponding to the main areas of southern spruce occurrence, i.e. the Alps, Carpathians, and Hercynia. The populations along the altitudinal transects were not differentiated. To assess the role of selection in structuring genetic variation, we applied a Bayesian and coalescent-based F(ST-outlier method and tested for correlations between allele frequencies and climatic variables using regression analyses. At the macro-geographic scale, the F(ST-outlier methods detected together 11 F(ST-outliers. Six outliers were detected when the same analyses were carried out taking into account the genetic structure. Regression analyses with population structure correction resulted in the identification of two (micro-geographic scale and 38 SNPs (macro-geographic scale significantly correlated with temperature and/or precipitation. Six of these loci overlapped with F(ST-outliers, among them two loci encoding an enzyme involved in riboflavin biosynthesis and a sucrose synthase. The results of this study indicate a strong relationship between genetic and environmental variation at both geographic scales. It also

  4. Micro- and macro-geographic scale effect on the molecular imprint of selection and adaptation in Norway spruce.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scalfi, Marta; Mosca, Elena; Di Pierro, Erica Adele; Troggio, Michela; Vendramin, Giovanni Giuseppe; Sperisen, Christoph; La Porta, Nicola; Neale, David B

    2014-01-01

    Forest tree species of temperate and boreal regions have undergone a long history of demographic changes and evolutionary adaptations. The main objective of this study was to detect signals of selection in Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst), at different sampling-scales and to investigate, accounting for population structure, the effect of environment on species genetic diversity. A total of 384 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) representing 290 genes were genotyped at two geographic scales: across 12 populations distributed along two altitudinal-transects in the Alps (micro-geographic scale), and across 27 populations belonging to the range of Norway spruce in central and south-east Europe (macro-geographic scale). At the macrogeographic scale, principal component analysis combined with Bayesian clustering revealed three major clusters, corresponding to the main areas of southern spruce occurrence, i.e. the Alps, Carpathians, and Hercynia. The populations along the altitudinal transects were not differentiated. To assess the role of selection in structuring genetic variation, we applied a Bayesian and coalescent-based F(ST)-outlier method and tested for correlations between allele frequencies and climatic variables using regression analyses. At the macro-geographic scale, the F(ST)-outlier methods detected together 11 F(ST)-outliers. Six outliers were detected when the same analyses were carried out taking into account the genetic structure. Regression analyses with population structure correction resulted in the identification of two (micro-geographic scale) and 38 SNPs (macro-geographic scale) significantly correlated with temperature and/or precipitation. Six of these loci overlapped with F(ST)-outliers, among them two loci encoding an enzyme involved in riboflavin biosynthesis and a sucrose synthase. The results of this study indicate a strong relationship between genetic and environmental variation at both geographic scales. It also suggests that an

  5. Geographical patterns of cholera in Mexico, 1991-1996.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borroto, R J; Martinez-Piedra, R

    2000-08-01

    The seventh cholera pandemic has been ongoing in Mexico since 1991 and threatens to become endemic. This paper aims to determine the geographical pattern of cholera in Mexico to define areas at high risk of endemic cholera. Ecologic research was conducted based upon the cartography of disease incidence. The 32 Mexican states were grouped into five strata according to the value of the 1991-1996 cumulative incidence rate of cholera. Rate ratios were computed for strata of states classified by geographical situation, urbanization, and poverty level. Cholera incidence was 2.47 times higher in coastal states than in the interior (95% CI : 2.42-2.52). The disease was negatively associated with urbanization. Incidence in the least urbanized stratum was four times as high as in the most urban stratum (95% CI : 3.9-4.12). The poorest stratum showed the most remarkable incidence, i.e. 5.9 times higher than the rate in the least poor stratum (95% CI : 5.73-6.04). This ecologic research suggests that high poverty level, low urbanization, and southern location are the most important predictors of endemic cholera in Mexican states. It is hypothesized that the natural environment of the coastal plains in southern states may also play a significant role in cholera incidence. Poor communities residing in the southern, predominantly rural, coastal states should be prioritized when it comes to investing in safe water supply facilities, adequate excreta disposal systems and cholera surveillance.

  6. Airports Geographic Information System -

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Transportation — The Airports Geographic Information System maintains the airport and aeronautical data required to meet the demands of the Next Generation National Airspace System....

  7. Relationships between soil and leaf mineral composition are element-specific, environment-dependent and geographically structured in the emerging model Arabidopsis halleri.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stein, Ricardo J; Höreth, Stephan; de Melo, J Romário F; Syllwasschy, Lara; Lee, Gwonjin; Garbin, Mário L; Clemens, Stephan; Krämer, Ute

    2017-02-01

    Leaf mineral composition, the leaf ionome, reflects the complex interaction between a plant and its environment including local soil composition, an influential factor that can limit species distribution and plant productivity. Here we addressed within-species variation in plant-soil interactions and edaphic adaptation using Arabidopsis halleri, a well-suited model species as a facultative metallophyte and metal hyperaccumulator. We conducted multi-element analysis of 1972 paired leaf and soil samples from 165 European populations of A. halleri, at individual resolution to accommodate soil heterogeneity. Results were further confirmed under standardized conditions upon cultivation of 105 field-collected genotypes on an artificially metal-contaminated soil in growth chamber experiments. Soil-independent between- and within-population variation set apart leaf accumulation of zinc, cadmium and lead from all other nutrient and nonessential elements, concurring with differential hypothesized ecological roles in either biotic interaction or nutrition. For these metals, soil-leaf relationships were element-specific, differed between metalliferous and nonmetalliferous soils and were geographically structured both in the field and under standardized growth conditions, implicating complex scenarios of recent ecological adaptation. Our study provides an example and a reference for future related work and will serve as a basis for the molecular-genetic dissection and ecological analysis of the observed phenotypic variation. © 2016 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2016 New Phytologist Trust.

  8. Hierarchical spatial organization of geographical networks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Travencolo, Bruno A N; Costa, Luciano da F

    2008-01-01

    In this work, we propose a hierarchical extension of the polygonality index as the means to characterize geographical planar networks. By considering successive neighborhoods around each node, it is possible to obtain more complete information about the spatial order of the network at progressive spatial scales. The potential of the methodology is illustrated with respect to synthetic and real geographical networks

  9. Geographic Variation in Camouflage Specialization by a Decorator Crab.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stachowicz, John J; Hay, Mark E

    2000-07-01

    In North Carolina, the decorator crab Libinia dubia camouflages almost exclusively with the chemically noxious alga Dictyota menstrualis. By placing this alga on its carapace, the crab behaviorally sequesters the defensive chemicals of the plant and gains protection from omnivorous consumers. However, Dictyota is absent north of North Carolina, whereas Libinia occurs as far north as New England. Crabs from three northern locations where Dictyota is absent (Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Jersey) camouflaged to match their environment, rather than selectively accumulating any one species. When D. menstrualis was offered to crabs from northern sites, they did not distinguish between it and other seaweeds for camouflage, whereas crabs from Alabama and two locations in North Carolina used D. menstrualis almost exclusively. In addition, in winter and spring, when Dictyota was seasonally absent in North Carolina, Libinia selectively camouflaged with the sun sponge Hymeniacidon heliophila, which was chemically unpalatable to local fishes. Thus, southern crabs were consistent specialists on chemically defended species for camouflage, while northern crabs were more generalized. The geographic shift in crab behavior away from specialization coincides with a reported decrease in both total predation pressure and the frequency of omnivorous consumers. These shifts in the nature and intensity of predation pressure may favor different camouflage strategies (generalist vs. specialist), contributing to the observed geographic differences in camouflage behavior.

  10. Multiple sclerosis: a geographical hypothesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carlyle, I P

    1997-12-01

    Multiple sclerosis remains a rare neurological disease of unknown aetiology, with a unique distribution, both geographically and historically. Rare in equatorial regions, it becomes increasingly common in higher latitudes; historically, it was first clinically recognized in the early nineteenth century. A hypothesis, based on geographical reasoning, is here proposed: that the disease is the result of a specific vitamin deficiency. Different individuals suffer the deficiency in separate and often unique ways. Evidence to support the hypothesis exists in cultural considerations, in the global distribution of the disease, and in its historical prevalence.

  11. Ring distributions leading to species formation: a global topographic analysis of geographic barriers associated with ring species

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monahan William B

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background In the mid 20th century, Ernst Mayr and Theodosius Dobzhansky championed the significance of circular overlaps or ring species as the perfect demonstration of speciation, yet in the over 50 years since, only a handful of such taxa are known. We developed a topographic model to evaluate whether the geographic barriers that favor processes leading to ring species are common or rare, and to predict where other candidate ring barriers might be found. Results Of the 952,147 geographic barriers identified on the planet, only about 1% are topographically similar to barriers associated with known ring taxa, with most of the likely candidates occurring in under-studied parts of the world (for example, marine environments, tropical latitudes. Predicted barriers separate into two distinct categories: (i single cohesive barriers (2, associated with taxa that differentiate at smaller spatial scales (salamander: Ensatina eschscholtzii; tree: Acacia karroo; and (ii composite barriers - formed by groups of barriers (each 184,000 to 1.7 million km2 in close geographic proximity (totaling 1.9 to 2.3 million km2 - associated with taxa that differentiate at larger spatial scales (birds: Phylloscopus trochiloides and Larus (sp. argentatus and fuscus. When evaluated globally, we find a large number of cohesive barriers that are topographically similar to those associated with known ring taxa. Yet, compared to cohesive barriers, an order of magnitude fewer composite barriers are similar to those that favor ring divergence in species with higher dispersal. Conclusions While these findings confirm that the topographic conditions that favor evolutionary processes leading to ring speciation are, in fact, rare, they also suggest that many understudied natural systems could provide valuable demonstrations of continuous divergence towards the formation of new species. Distinct advantages of the model are that it (i requires no a priori information on the

  12. The fungal community structure of barley malts from diverse geographical regions correlates with malt quality parameters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaur, Mandeep; Bowman, John P; Stewart, Doug C; Evans, David E

    2015-12-23

    Malt is a preferred base for fermentations that produce beer or whisky. Barley for malt is grown under diverse environments in different geographical locations. Malt provides an ecological niche for a varied range of microorganisms with both positive and negative effects on its quality for brewing. Little information exists in the literature on the microbial community structure of Australian malt as well as broader global geographical differences in the associated fungal and bacterial communities. The aims of the present study were to compare the bacterial and fungal community structures of Australian commercial malt with its international counterparts originating from different geographical regions using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (TRFLP) fingerprinting and clone library analyses of ribosomal RNA genes. Further, the relationship between malt associated microbial communities and conventional malt quality parameters was also compared. Results showed that differences in fungal communities of malts from different geographical location were more pronounced than bacterial communities. TRFLP analysis discriminated high quality commercial malts with low fungal loads from malts deliberately infected with fungal inocula (Fusarium/Penicillium). Malt moisture, beta-amylase, α-amylase and limit dextrinase contents showed significant correlations with fungal community structure. This investigation concluded that fungal community structure was more important to subsequent malt quality outcomes than bacteria. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. Energy Facility Siting by Means of Environmental Modelling with LANDSAT, Thematic Mapper and Geographic Information System (GIS) Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    1982-01-01

    Currently based on ground and aerial surveys, the land cover data base of the Pennsylvania Power and Light Company is routinely used for modelling the effects of alternative generating plant and transmission line sites on the local and regional environment. The development of a satellite-based geographic information system would facilitate both the preparation of environmental impact statements by power companies and assessment of the data by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. A cooperative project is planned to demonstrate the methodology for integrating satellite data into an existing geographic information system, d to further evaluate the ability of satellite data in modeling environmental conditions that would be applied in the preparation and assessment of environmental impact statements.

  14. Evaluating the Contribution of the Built Environment on Obesity Among New York State Students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dwicaksono, Adenantera; Brissette, Ian; Birkhead, Guthrie S; Bozlak, Christine T; Martin, Erika G

    2017-12-01

    One third of school-aged children in New York State (NYS) are overweight or obese, with large geographic disparities across local regions. We used NYS student obesity surveillance data to assess whether these geographical variations are attributable to the built environment. We combined NYS Student Weight Status Category Reporting System 2010-2012 data with other government publicly available data. Ordinary least squares regression models identified key determinants of school district-level student obesity rates for elementary and middle/high schools. Geographical weighted regression models explored spatial variations in local coefficients of the built environment predictors. From ordinary least squares models, higher farmers' market density was only significantly associated with lower obesity rates among elementary school students (b = -0.116; p fast-food restaurant density was significantly associated with higher obesity rates (b = 0.014; p fast-food restaurant density and higher obesity rates among middle/high school students was found in the southeastern portion of the state. Different patterns of food consumption may explain varying determinants of obesity between younger and older students. Regional variations in local associations between the built environment variables and obesity may suggest differences in how healthy food sources are accessed locally.

  15. Antropogenic landscapes in Kharkiv region: information and sightseeing material for knowledge of environment in geographical education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Людмила Поліщук

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to development of information material for the study of anthropogenic landscapes in Kharkiv region in the school course in Geography. Analysis of the State Standard of complete secondary education and school programs of Ukraine has showed that the features of transformation natural landscapes given in school geographical education are insufficient. In present-day natural science education it is important not only to expand educational material and increase its complexity but also to deepen the knowledge through disclosure of connections and relationships. This especially applies to geography, the content of which consists of a number of knowledge systems being formed within several courses. Thus, the focus should be directed on development of ideas about the unity of nature, indissolubility of all the components of nature, laws and mechanisms of anthropogenic impacts on the constituents of biosphere, and through them to the biosphere as a whole. Formation of a holistic image of nature begins from the study of real natural objects of the native locality (city, district, region, which allows to understand global laws and processes. Based on informational development about anthropogenic landscapes in Kharkiv region, the authors offered promising areas of work with students in the mode of excursions. Information about anthropogenic landscapes of Kharkiv region is important for visual use in obtaining knowledge about them in the geographical education and will provide attraction of students to practical research activities of study about anthropogenic landscapes. This approach will allow the students to form a spatial idea, and consciously navigate in the social and economic, social and political and environmental problems of the state and its region.

  16. Society and Environment Interaction. The Environment of the Laguna de los Tollos (Western Andalusia, 13th-15th Centuries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emilio MARTÍN GUTIÉRREZ

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Environment of the Laguna de los Tollos is studied between 13th and 15th Centuries. The research, which aims to analyse the interaction environment-society, is part of a project that will deepen the knowledge of wetlands in this geographical area. In these ecosystems rural communities took advantage with their farmland for hunting, herding, fishing and gathering resources in riparian areas. The chosen chronological period includes a wide range of changes that had a direct impact on the management and organization of rural landscapes.

  17. The software environment of RODOS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schuele, O.; Rafat, M.; Kossykh, V.

    1996-01-01

    The Software Environment of RODOS provides tools for processing and managing a large variety of different types of information, including those which are categorized in terms of meteorology, radiology, economy, emergency actions and countermeasures, rules, preferences, facts, maps, statistics, catalogues, models and methods. The main tasks of the Operating Subsystem OSY, which is based on the Client-Server Model, are the control of system operation, data management, and the exchange of information among various modules as well as the interaction with users in distributed computer systems. The paper describes the software environment of RODOS, in particular, the individual modules of its Operating Subsystem OSY, its distributed database, the geographical information system RoGIS, the on-line connections to radiological and meteorological networks and the software environment for the integration of external programs into the RODOS system

  18. The software environment of RODOS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schuele, O.; Rafat, M.

    1998-01-01

    The Software Environment of RODOS provides tools for processing and managing a large variety of different types of information, including those which are categorised in terms of meteorology, radiology, economy, emergency actions and countermeasures, rules, preferences, facts, maps, statistics, catalogues, models and methods. The main tasks of the Operating Subsystem OSY, which is based on the Client-Server Model, are the control of system operation, data management, and the exchange of information among various modules as well as the interaction with users in distributed computer systems. The paper describes the software environment of RODOS, in particular, the individual modules of its Operating Subsystem OSY, its distributed database, the geographical information system RoGIS, the on-line connections to radiological and meteorological networks and the software environment for the integration of external programs into the RODOS system. (orig.)

  19. The software environment of RODOS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schuele, O; Rafat, M [Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Institut fuer Neutronenphysik und Reaktortechnik, Karlsruhe (Germany); Kossykh, V [Scientific Production Association ' TYPHOON' , Emergency Centre, Obninsk (Russian Federation)

    1996-07-01

    The Software Environment of RODOS provides tools for processing and managing a large variety of different types of information, including those which are categorized in terms of meteorology, radiology, economy, emergency actions and countermeasures, rules, preferences, facts, maps, statistics, catalogues, models and methods. The main tasks of the Operating Subsystem OSY, which is based on the Client-Server Model, are the control of system operation, data management, and the exchange of information among various modules as well as the interaction with users in distributed computer systems. The paper describes the software environment of RODOS, in particular, the individual modules of its Operating Subsystem OSY, its distributed database, the geographical information system RoGIS, the on-line connections to radiological and meteorological networks and the software environment for the integration of external programs into the RODOS system.

  20. Kornati Islands on Old Geographic Maps and Charts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Josip Faričić

    2005-09-01

    Full Text Available Based on the analysis of cartographic sources, the paper analyses the historical and geographical development of the Kornati islands, the largest group of Croatian islands. The old maps were used first of all as the means of geographic research that, being necessarily correlated to the simultaneous historical written sources and modern topographic and maritime maps, make the basis for creating a research platform for relevant scientific results to be achieved. On the basis of the old maps it is possible, among other things to anticipate that the Kornati islands used to have great geotraffic significance on the eastern Adriatic sailing route. According to the development of geographic concepts and cartographic methods, the geographic vision of the Kornati islands has been gradually clarified ever since the 16th century. The chart from the Carta di cabotaggio del Mare Adriatico edition published by the Military and Geographic Institute from Milan (1822-1824 presents the turning point with the first complete and mostly precise presentation of the Kornati islands group on the basis of hydrographic and topographic field measurements.

  1. Vegetation Responses to Climate Variability in the Northern Arid to Sub-Humid Zones of Sub-Saharan Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khaldoun Rishmawi

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available In water limited environments precipitation is often considered the key factor influencing vegetation growth and rates of development. However; other climate variables including temperature; humidity; the frequency and intensity of precipitation events are also known to affect productivity; either directly by changing photosynthesis and transpiration rates or indirectly by influencing water availability and plant physiology. The aim here is to quantify the spatiotemporal patterns of vegetation responses to precipitation and to additional; relevant; meteorological variables. First; an empirical; statistical analysis of the relationship between precipitation and the additional meteorological variables and a proxy of vegetation productivity (the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index; NDVI is reported and; second; a process-oriented modeling approach to explore the hydrologic and biophysical mechanisms to which the significant empirical relationships might be attributed. The analysis was conducted in Sub-Saharan Africa; between 5 and 18°N; for a 25-year period 1982–2006; and used a new quasi-daily Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR dataset. The results suggest that vegetation; particularly in the wetter areas; does not always respond directly and proportionately to precipitation variation; either because of the non-linearity of soil moisture recharge in response to increases in precipitation; or because variations in temperature and humidity attenuate the vegetation responses to changes in water availability. We also find that productivity; independent of changes in total precipitation; is responsive to intra-annual precipitation variation. A significant consequence is that the degree of correlation of all the meteorological variables with productivity varies geographically; so no one formulation is adequate for the entire region. Put together; these results demonstrate that vegetation responses to meteorological variation are more

  2. The Environment and the Relative Protection Programs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Constantin Anghelache

    2007-12-01

    Full Text Available The material is presenting, under an adequate structure, an analysis of the environment of Romania. The starting point of the study is given by the natural conditions, influenced by the geographic location of Romania on the globe, evidencing the main characteristics (relief, hydrographic basin, climate, flora and fauna etc.. Afterwards, the material is pointing out the concerns as well as certain outcomes achieved in our country in the field of the environment protection. Particularly, there is the concern regarding the durable development which is emphasized, along with the part that the environment protection should play under the circumstances. Then, the material is evidencing the essence of the policies concerning the environment protection as well as the transitory steps implied in this field by the adhesion of Romania to the European Union.

  3. Comparison of immunization strategies in geographical networks

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang Bing; Aihara, Kazuyuki [Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo (Japan)] [ERATO Aihara Complexity Modelling Project, JST, Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, 153-8505 (Japan); Kim, Beom Jun, E-mail: beomjun@skku.ed [BK21 Physics Research Division and Department of Energy Science, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of)] [Department of Computational Biology, School of Computer Science and Communication, Royal Institute of Technology, 100 44 Stockholm (Sweden)

    2009-10-12

    The epidemic spread and immunizations in geographically embedded scale-free (SF) and Watts-Strogatz (WS) networks are numerically investigated. We make a realistic assumption that it takes time which we call the detection time, for a vertex to be identified as infected, and implement two different immunization strategies: one is based on connection neighbors (CN) of the infected vertex with the exact information of the network structure utilized and the other is based on spatial neighbors (SN) with only geographical distances taken into account. We find that the decrease of the detection time is crucial for a successful immunization in general. Simulation results show that for both SF networks and WS networks, the SN strategy always performs better than the CN strategy, especially for more heterogeneous SF networks at long detection time. The observation is verified by checking the number of the infected nodes being immunized. We found that in geographical space, the distance preferences in the network construction process and the geographically decaying infection rate are key factors that make the SN immunization strategy outperforms the CN strategy. It indicates that even in the absence of the full knowledge of network connectivity we can still stop the epidemic spread efficiently only by using geographical information as in the SN strategy, which may have potential applications for preventing the real epidemic spread.

  4. Comparison of immunization strategies in geographical networks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Bing; Aihara, Kazuyuki; Kim, Beom Jun

    2009-01-01

    The epidemic spread and immunizations in geographically embedded scale-free (SF) and Watts-Strogatz (WS) networks are numerically investigated. We make a realistic assumption that it takes time which we call the detection time, for a vertex to be identified as infected, and implement two different immunization strategies: one is based on connection neighbors (CN) of the infected vertex with the exact information of the network structure utilized and the other is based on spatial neighbors (SN) with only geographical distances taken into account. We find that the decrease of the detection time is crucial for a successful immunization in general. Simulation results show that for both SF networks and WS networks, the SN strategy always performs better than the CN strategy, especially for more heterogeneous SF networks at long detection time. The observation is verified by checking the number of the infected nodes being immunized. We found that in geographical space, the distance preferences in the network construction process and the geographically decaying infection rate are key factors that make the SN immunization strategy outperforms the CN strategy. It indicates that even in the absence of the full knowledge of network connectivity we can still stop the epidemic spread efficiently only by using geographical information as in the SN strategy, which may have potential applications for preventing the real epidemic spread.

  5. An integrated GIS environment enhancing the operation and planning of power utilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yared, George Antoine

    1996-05-01

    The evolution of electrical power systems was tightly geared by the development of two fields: power engineering, with the advanced technology of physical elements comprising all parts of a power system, and information processing tools to manage the performance of electric power utilities. Compared to power engineering that has gone through tremendous developments, information technology applications for electrical power systems are relatively young. The possible improvements of these applications are in their graphical, mapping an data analysis capabilities. State-of-the art information technology such as Geographic Information Systems provides these facilities. The objective of this thesis is to devise a technique that combines power system software tools with the Geographic Information Systems software to enhance the operation, control and planning of electrical transmission systems. The load flow, voltage control and fault analysis models for the transmission system will be re-engineered in a Geographic Information System environment.The research is generic, special attention is given to its application to the Lebanese electrical power system, which is recovering from an infrastructure devastating war. The research entails integrating power systems analysis and control package, or PSACP developed at the AUB within a Geographic Information Systems environment. This will enhance the power modeling capabilities by the use of powerful thematic mapping, geographic and data analysis and user interface techniques that come with Geographic Information Systems. An overview of the two technologies involved is presented, followed by a detailed description of the integration technique before describing the integrated system. Moving to a higher level, the features of the system are presented, followed by sample applications of the integrated system on the Lebanese electrical power system. The thesis contributes to the research arena by developing a software re

  6. Future Prospects for Geographical Education in Slovenia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Resnic Planinc, Tatjana

    2011-01-01

    This paper deals with future prospects for geographical education in Slovenia, with special emphasis on the development and aims of the didactics of geography. The author discusses the past development of geographical curricula and of competencies of geography teachers, and the education of future teachers of the subject in Slovenia. Her ideas are…

  7. Generalisation of geographic information cartographic modelling and applications

    CERN Document Server

    Mackaness, William A; Sarjakoski, L Tiina

    2011-01-01

    Theoretical and Applied Solutions in Multi Scale MappingUsers have come to expect instant access to up-to-date geographical information, with global coverage--presented at widely varying levels of detail, as digital and paper products; customisable data that can readily combined with other geographic information. These requirements present an immense challenge to those supporting the delivery of such services (National Mapping Agencies (NMA), Government Departments, and private business. Generalisation of Geographic Information: Cartographic Modelling and Applications provides detailed review

  8. Integrating geographical information and augmented reality techniques for mobile escape guidelines on nuclear accident sites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tsai, Ming-Kuan; Lee, Yung-Ching; Lu, Chung-Hsin; Chen, Mei-Hsin; Chou, Tien-Yin; Yau, Nie-Jia

    2012-01-01

    During nuclear accidents, when radioactive materials spread into the environment, the people in the affected areas should evacuate immediately. However, few information systems are available regarding escape guidelines for nuclear accidents. Therefore, this study constructs escape guidelines on mobile phones. This application is called Mobile Escape Guidelines (MEG) and adopts two techniques. One technique is the geographical information that offers multiple representations; the other is the augmented reality that provides semi-realistic information services. When this study tested the mobile escape guidelines, the results showed that this application was capable of identifying the correct locations of users, showing the escape routes, filtering geographical layers, and rapidly generating the relief reports. Users could evacuate from nuclear accident sites easily, even without relief personnel, since using slim devices to access the mobile escape guidelines is convenient. Overall, this study is a useful reference for a nuclear accident emergency response.

  9. Children and Nature: Linking Accessibility of Natural Environments and Children’s Health-Related Quality of Life

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Suzanne Tillmann

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available A growing body of research suggests that increasing children’s nature interactions can have positive benefits for their health-related quality of life (HRQOL; however, researchers have yet to examine how geographical context influences this relationship. The purpose of this study was to examine individual-level and environmental factors that are associated with HRQOL of children from different geographical contexts. Data were collected for 851 children from 34 elementary schools in Ontario, Canada. The natural environments around each child’s home were computed using geospatial analyses in a geographic information system. Natural environment measures were combined with HRQOL and the demographics from child surveys to be used in a series of step-wise linear regression models. These models explored the relationship between children’s HRQOL and the natural environment in urban/suburban and rural populations. In addition to important individual-level determinants, the findings revealed that characteristics of the natural environment, including the amount of greenness, park, and water, show significant relationships in the urban/suburban population. Interpersonal variables were the key predictors of HRQOL in the rural population. Where children live influences relationships between nature and HRQOL. These findings have implications for policymakers, health practitioners, educators, and parents in the design and the promotion of nature for children’s HRQOL.

  10. SITE SELECTION OF MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE LANDFILLS USING ANALYTICAL HIERARCHY PROCESS METHOD IN A GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT IN GIROFT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Javaheri, T. Nasrabadi, M. H. Jafarian, G. R. Rowshan, H. Khoshnam

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available Municipal solid waste generation is among the most significant sources which threaten the global environmental health. As an ideal selection depends on considering several independent factors concerning land use, socio economy and hydrogeology, the use of a multi criteria evaluation method seems inevitable. Taking benefit of geographic information system as a tool in combination with geographical information technology, equips the spatial decision support systems in appropriate site selection of sanitary landfills. The present study involves a kind of multi criteria evaluation method under the name of weighted linear combination by using geographical information technology as a practical instrument to evaluate the suitability of the vicinity of Giroft city in Kerman province of Iran for landfill. Water permeability, slope, distance from rivers, depth of underground watertable, distance from residential areas, distance from generation centers, general environmental criterion and distance from roads are the criteria which have been taken in to consideration in the process of analyzing. Superposing all of the raster type layers including geomorphologic, hydrologic, humanistic and land use criteria in land suitability, the final zoning of appropriate, fairly appropriate and inappropriate districts have been identified. Considering relative priority of all criteria in comparison with others, a specific weight is designated to each criterion according to their total influence on the whole process of decision making. The results from the application of the presented methodology are zones for landfill with varying zonal land suitability. Finally the zones will be ranked in descending order to indicate the priority of different options in front of the eyes of decision makers. The results achieved by this study may help policy makers of Giroft city by a variety of options for being considered as sanitary landfill locations.

  11. GNIS: Geographic Names Information Systems - All features (2013)

    Data.gov (United States)

    Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  12. Phylogenetic heritability of geographic range size in haematophagous ectoparasites: time of divergence and variation among continents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krasnov, Boris R; Shenbrot, Georgy I; van der Mescht, Luther; Warburton, Elizabeth M; Khokhlova, Irina S

    2018-04-12

    To understand existence, patterns and mechanisms behind phylogenetic heritability in the geographic range size (GRS) of parasites, we measured phylogenetic signal (PS) in the sizes of both regional (within a region) and continental (within a continent) geographic ranges of fleas in five regions. We asked whether (a) GRS is phylogenetically heritable and (b) the manifestation of PS varies between regions. We also asked whether geographic variation in PS reflects the effects of the environment's spatiotemporal stability (e.g. glaciation disrupting geographic ranges) or is associated with time since divergence (accumulation differences among species over time). Support for the former hypothesis would be indicated by stronger PS in southern than in northern regions, whereas support for the latter hypothesis would be shown by stronger PS in regions with a large proportion of species belonging to the derived lineages than in regions with a large proportion of species belonging to the basal lineages. We detected significant PS in both regional and continental GRSs of fleas from Canada and in continental GRS of fleas from Mongolia. No PS was found in the GRS of fleas from Australia and Southern Africa. Venezuelan fleas demonstrated significant PS in regional GRS only. Local Indicators of Phylogenetic Association detected significant local positive autocorrelations of GRS in some clades even in regions in which PS has not been detected across the entire phylogeny. This was mainly characteristic of younger taxa.

  13. USGS Geographic Names (GNIS) Overlay Map Service from The National Map - National Geospatial Data Asset (NGDA) Geographic Names Information System (GNIS)

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — USGS developed The National Map (TNM) Gazetteer as the Federal and national standard (ANSI INCITS 446-2008) for geographic nomenclature based on the Geographic Names...

  14. Using Geographic Information Systems in Knowledge Management Processes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dr. Filiz Gürder

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays, organizations are required to develop quick and accurate responses to internal and external changes that gain momentum. In this context, knowledge management activities become more important to all organizations. On the other hand, Geographic Information Systems (GIS become common more and more. GIS which address a broad spectrum of users such as public agencies, local communities, civil society organizations, the private sector, academic environment, and personal users have been aiming to solve problems which occurred in location-based areas. GIS are important to get, combine, analyze and transfer the spatial data. Common use of PCs for personal needs, digital geography and improvements of software technologies, also the need to make socially acceptable business decisions facilitated development and widespread use of GIS applications. The main purpose of this paper is to discuss using areas and contribution potentials of GIS in enterprise-wide knowledge management processes.

  15. [Geographic data for Neotropical bats (Chiroptera)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Noguera-Urbano, Elkin A; Escalante, Tania

    2014-03-01

    The global effort to digitize biodiversity occurrence data from collections, museums and other institutions has stimulated the development of important tools to improve the knowledge and conservation of biodiversity. The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) enables and opens access to biodiversity data of 321 million of records, from 379 host institutions. Neotropical bats are a highly diverse and specialized group, and the geographic information about them is increasing since few years ago, but there are a few reports about this topic. The aim of this study was to analyze the number of digital records in GBIF of Neotropical bats with distribution in 21 American countries, evaluating their nomenclatural and geographical consistence at scale of country. Moreover, we evaluated the gaps of information on 1 degrees latitude x 1 degrees longitude grids cells. There were over 1/2 million records, but 58% of them have no latitude and longitude data; and 52% full fit nomenclatural and geographic evaluation. We estimated that there are no records in 54% of the analyzed area; the principal gaps are in biodiversity hotspots like the Colombian and Brazilian Amazonia and Southern Venezuela. In conclusion, our study suggests that available data on GBIF have nomenclatural and geographic biases. GBIF data represent partially the bat species richness and the main gaps in information are in South America.

  16. Behavioral and physiological correlates of the geographic distributions of amphibious sea kraits (Laticauda spp.)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brischoux, François; Tingley, Reid; Shine, Richard; Lillywhite, Harvey B.

    2013-02-01

    The physiological costs of living in seawater likely influenced the secondary evolutionary transitions to marine life in tetrapods. However, these costs are alleviated for species that commute between the land and the sea, because terrestrial habitats can provide frequent access to fresh water. Here, we investigate how differences in the ecology and physiology of three sea krait species (Laticauda spp.) interact to determine their environmental tolerances and geographic distributions. These three species vary in their relative use of terrestrial versus marine environments, and they display concomitant adaptations to life on land versus at sea. A species with relatively high dehydration rates in seawater (Laticauda colubrina) occupied oceanic areas with low mean salinities, whereas a species with comparatively high rates of transcutaneous evaporative water loss on land (Laticauda semifasciata) occupied regions with low mean temperatures. A third taxon (Laticauda laticaudata) was intermediate in both of these traits, and yet occupied the broadest geographic range. Our results suggest that the abilities of sea kraits to acquire fresh water on land and tolerate dehydration at sea determine their environmental tolerances and geographic distributions. This finding supports the notion that speciation patterns within sea kraits have been driven by interspecific variation in the degree of reliance upon terrestrial versus marine habitats. Future studies could usefully examine the effects of osmotic challenges on diversification rates in other secondarily marine tetrapod species.

  17. Dynamic Signal Strength Mapping and Analysis by Means of Mobile Geographic Information System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kulawiak Marcin

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Bluetooth beacons are becoming increasingly popular for various applications such as marketing or indoor navigation. However, designing a proper beacon installation requires knowledge of the possible sources of interference in the target environment. While theoretically beacon signal strength should decay linearly with log distance, on-site measurements usually reveal that noise from objects such as Wi-Fi networks operating in the vicinity significantly alters the expected signal range. The paper presents a novel mobile Geographic Information System for measurement, mapping and local as well as online storage of Bluetooth beacon signal strength in semireal time. For the purpose of on-site geovisual analysis of the signal, the application integrates a dedicated interpolation algorithm optimized for low-power devices. The paper discusses the performance and quality of the mapping algorithms in several different test environments.

  18. Evolution of research in health geographics through the International Journal of Health Geographics (2002-2015).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pérez, Sandra; Laperrière, Vincent; Borderon, Marion; Padilla, Cindy; Maignant, Gilles; Oliveau, Sébastien

    2016-01-20

    Health geographics is a fast-developing research area. Subjects broached in scientific literature are most varied, ranging from vectorial diseases to access to healthcare, with a recent revival of themes such as the implication of health in the Smart City, or a predominantly individual-centered approach. Far beyond standard meta-analyses, the present study deliberately adopts the standpoint of questioning space in its foundations, through various authors of the International Journal of Health Geographics, a highly influential journal in that field. The idea is to find space as the common denominator in this specialized literature, as well as its relation to spatial analysis, without for all that trying to tend towards exhaustive approaches. 660 articles have being published in the journal since launch, but 359 articles were selected based on the presence of the word "Space" in either the title, or the abstract or the text over 13 years of the journal's existence. From that database, a lexical analysis (tag cloud) reveals the perception of space in literature, and shows how approaches are evolving, thus underlining that the scope of health geographics is far from narrowing.

  19. Geographical Clusters of Rape in the United States: 2000-2012

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amin, Raid; Nabors, Nicole S.; Nelson, Arlene M.; Saqlain, Murshid; Kulldorff, Martin

    2016-01-01

    Background While rape is a very serious crime and public health problem, no spatial mapping has been attempted for rape on the national scale. This paper addresses the three research questions: (1) Are reported rape cases randomly distributed across the USA, after being adjusted for population density and age, or are there geographical clusters of reported rape cases? (2) Are the geographical clusters of reported rapes still present after adjusting for differences in poverty levels? (3) Are there geographical clusters where the proportion of reported rape cases that lead to an arrest is exceptionally low or exceptionally high? Methods We studied the geographical variation of reported rape events (2003-2012) and rape arrests (2000-2012) in the 48 contiguous states of the USA. The disease Surveillance software SaTScan™ with its spatial scan statistic is used to evaluate the spatial variation in rapes. The spatial scan statistic has been widely used as a geographical surveillance tool for diseases, and we used it to identify geographical areas with clusters of reported rape and clusters of arrest rates for rape. Results The spatial scan statistic was used to identify geographical areas with exceptionally high rates of reported rape. The analyses were adjusted for age, and in secondary analyses, for both age and poverty level. We also identified geographical areas with either a low or a high proportion of reported rapes leading to an arrest. Conclusions We have identified geographical areas with exceptionally high (low) rates of reported rape. The geographical problem areas identified are prime candidates for more intensive preventive counseling and criminal prosecution efforts by public health, social service, and law enforcement agencies Geographical clusters of high rates of reported rape are prime areas in need of expanded implementation of preventive measures, such as changing attitudes in our society toward rape crimes, in addition to having the criminal

  20. Geographical analysis of diapause inducibility in European Drosophila melanogaster populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pegoraro, Mirko; Zonato, Valeria; Tyler, Elizabeth R; Fedele, Giorgio; Kyriacou, Charalambos P; Tauber, Eran

    2017-04-01

    Seasonal overwintering in insects represents an adaptation to stressful environments and in European Drosophila melanogaster females, low temperatures and short photoperiods can induce an ovarian diapause. Diapause may represent a recent (melanogaster from tropical sub-Saharan Africa, because African D. melanogaster and the sibling species D. simulans, have been reported to fail to undergo diapause. Over the past few centuries, D. melanogaster have also invaded North America and Australia, and eastern populations on both continents show a predictable latitudinal cline in diapause induction. In Europe however, a new diapause-enhancing timeless allele, ls-tim, is observed at high levels in southern Italy (∼80%), where it appears to have arisen and has spread throughout the continent with a frequency of ∼20% in Scandinavia. Given the phenotype of ls-tim and its geographical distribution, we might predict that it would work against any latitudinal cline in diapause induction within Europe. Indeed we reveal that any latitudinal cline for diapause in Europe is very weak, as predicted by ls-tim frequencies. In contrast, we determine ls-tim frequencies in North America and observe that they would be expected to strengthen the latitudinal pattern of diapause. Our results reveal how a newly arisen mutation, can, via the stochastic nature of where it initially arose, blur an otherwise adaptive geographical pattern. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  1. Geographical differences in maternal basking behaviour and offspring growth rate in a climatically widespread viviparous reptile.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cadby, Chloé D; Jones, Susan M; Wapstra, Erik

    2014-04-01

    In reptiles, the thermal environment during embryonic development affects offspring phenotypic traits and potentially offspring fitness. In viviparous species, mothers can potentially manipulate the embryonic thermal environment through their basking behaviour and, thus, may be able to manipulate offspring phenotype and increase offspring fitness. One way in which mothers can maximise offspring phenotype (and thus potentially affect offspring fitness) is by fine-tuning their basking behaviour to the environment in order to buffer the embryo from deleterious developmental temperatures. In widespread species, it is unclear whether populations that have evolved under different climatic conditions will exhibit different maternal behaviours and/or thermal effects on offspring phenotype. To test this, we provided extended or reduced basking opportunity to gravid spotted skinks (Niveoscincus ocellatus) and their offspring from two populations at the climatic extremes of the species' distribution. Gravid females fine-tuned their basking behaviour to the basking opportunity, which allowed them to buffer their embryos from potentially negative thermal effects. This fine-tuning of female basking behaviour appears to have led to the expression of geographical differences in basking behaviour, with females from the cold alpine regions being more opportunistic in their basking behaviour than females from the warmer regions. However, those differences in maternal behaviour did not preclude the evolution of geographic differences in thermal effects: offspring growth varied between populations, potentially suggesting local adaptation to basking conditions. Our results demonstrate that maternal effects and phenotypic plasticity can play a significant role in allowing species to cope in changing environmental conditions, which is particularly relevant in the context of climate change.

  2. Geographic variation in advertisement calls of a Microhylid frog - testing the role of drift and ecology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Ko-Huan; Shaner, Pei-Jen L; Lin, Yen-Po; Lin, Si-Min

    2016-05-01

    Acoustic signals for mating are important traits that could drive population differentiation and speciation. Ecology may play a role in acoustic divergence through direct selection (e.g., local adaptation to abiotic environment), constraint of correlated traits (e.g., acoustic traits linked to another trait under selection), and/or interspecific competition (e.g., character displacement). However, genetic drift alone can also drive acoustic divergence. It is not always easy to differentiate the role of ecology versus drift in acoustic divergence. In this study, we tested the role of ecology and drift in shaping geographic variation in the advertisement calls of Microhyla fissipes. We examined three predictions based on ecological processes: (1) the correlation between temperature and call properties across M. fissipes populations; (2) the correlation between call properties and body size across M. fissipes populations; and (3) reproductive character displacement (RCD) in call properties between M. fissipes populations that are sympatric with and allopatric to a congener M. heymonsi. To test genetic drift, we examined correlations among call divergence, geographic distance, and genetic distance across M. fissipes populations. We recorded the advertisement calls from 11 populations of M. fissipes in Taiwan, five of which are sympatrically distributed with M. heymonsi. We found geographic variation in both temporal and spectral properties of the advertisement calls of M. fissipes. However, the call properties were not correlated with local temperature or the callers' body size. Furthermore, we did not detect RCD. By contrast, call divergence, geographic distance, and genetic distance between M. fissipes populations were all positively correlated. The comparisons between phenotypic Q st (P st) and F st values did not show significant differences, suggesting a role of drift. We concluded that genetic drift, rather than ecological processes, is the more likely

  3. Type A natural resource damage assessment models for Great Lakes environments (NRDAM/GLE) and coastal and marine environments (NRDAM/CME)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    French, D.P.; Reed, M.

    1993-01-01

    A computer model of the physical fates, biological effects, and economic damages resulting from releases of oil and other hazardous materials has been developed by ASA to be used in Type A natural resource damage assessments under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). Natural Resource Damage Assessment Models for Great Lakes Environments (NRDAM/GLE) and for Coastal and Marine Environments (NRDAM/GLE) and for Coastal and Marine Environments (NRDAM/CME) will become available. These models will also support NOAA's damage assessment regulations under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990. The physical and biological models are three-dimensional. Direct mortality from toxic concentrations and oiling, impacts of habitat loss, and food web losses are included in the model. Estimation of natural resource damages is based both on the lost value of injured resources and on the costs for restoration or replacement of those resources. A coupled geographical information system (GIS) allows gridded representation of complex coastal boundaries, variable bathymetry, shoreline types, and multiple biological habitats. The models contain environmental, geographical, chemical, toxicological, biological, restoration and economic databases with the necessary information to estimate damages. Chemical and toxicological data are included for about 470 chemicals and oils. Biological data are unique to 77 coastal and marine plus 11 Great Lakes provinces, and to habitat type. Restoration and economic valuations are also regionally specific

  4. The importance of environment on respiratory genotype/phenotype relationships in the Inuit

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Candelaria, P V; Backer, Vibeke; Khoo, S-K

    2010-01-01

    Genetic and environmental influences and their interactions are central to asthma pathogenesis. This study aimed to investigate the effects of different macro-environments on asthma genotype-phenotype associations in two geographically separated populations with common ancestry....

  5. Geographic variation in opinions on climate change at state and local scales in the USA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howe, Peter D.; Mildenberger, Matto; Marlon, Jennifer R.; Leiserowitz, Anthony

    2015-06-01

    Addressing climate change in the United States requires enactment of national, state and local mitigation and adaptation policies. The success of these initiatives depends on public opinion, policy support and behaviours at appropriate scales. Public opinion, however, is typically measured with national surveys that obscure geographic variability across regions, states and localities. Here we present independently validated high-resolution opinion estimates using a multilevel regression and poststratification model. The model accurately predicts climate change beliefs, risk perceptions and policy preferences at the state, congressional district, metropolitan and county levels, using a concise set of demographic and geographic predictors. The analysis finds substantial variation in public opinion across the nation. Nationally, 63% of Americans believe global warming is happening, but county-level estimates range from 43 to 80%, leading to a diversity of political environments for climate policy. These estimates provide an important new source of information for policymakers, educators and scientists to more effectively address the challenges of climate change.

  6. Integrating geographical information and augmented reality techniques for mobile escape guidelines on nuclear accident sites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Ming-Kuan; Lee, Yung-Ching; Lu, Chung-Hsin; Chen, Mei-Hsin; Chou, Tien-Yin; Yau, Nie-Jia

    2012-07-01

    During nuclear accidents, when radioactive materials spread into the environment, the people in the affected areas should evacuate immediately. However, few information systems are available regarding escape guidelines for nuclear accidents. Therefore, this study constructs escape guidelines on mobile phones. This application is called Mobile Escape Guidelines (MEG) and adopts two techniques. One technique is the geographical information that offers multiple representations; the other is the augmented reality that provides semi-realistic information services. When this study tested the mobile escape guidelines, the results showed that this application was capable of identifying the correct locations of users, showing the escape routes, filtering geographical layers, and rapidly generating the relief reports. Users could evacuate from nuclear accident sites easily, even without relief personnel, since using slim devices to access the mobile escape guidelines is convenient. Overall, this study is a useful reference for a nuclear accident emergency response. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Geographic Video 3d Data Model And Retrieval

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Z.; Cui, C.; Kong, Y.; Wu, H.

    2014-04-01

    Geographic video includes both spatial and temporal geographic features acquired through ground-based or non-ground-based cameras. With the popularity of video capture devices such as smartphones, the volume of user-generated geographic video clips has grown significantly and the trend of this growth is quickly accelerating. Such a massive and increasing volume poses a major challenge to efficient video management and query. Most of the today's video management and query techniques are based on signal level content extraction. They are not able to fully utilize the geographic information of the videos. This paper aimed to introduce a geographic video 3D data model based on spatial information. The main idea of the model is to utilize the location, trajectory and azimuth information acquired by sensors such as GPS receivers and 3D electronic compasses in conjunction with video contents. The raw spatial information is synthesized to point, line, polygon and solid according to the camcorder parameters such as focal length and angle of view. With the video segment and video frame, we defined the three categories geometry object using the geometry model of OGC Simple Features Specification for SQL. We can query video through computing the spatial relation between query objects and three categories geometry object such as VFLocation, VSTrajectory, VSFOView and VFFovCone etc. We designed the query methods using the structured query language (SQL) in detail. The experiment indicate that the model is a multiple objective, integration, loosely coupled, flexible and extensible data model for the management of geographic stereo video.

  8. Geographic profiling survey : a preliminary examination of geographic profilers' views and experiences

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Emeno, Karla; Bennell, Craig; Snook, Brent; Taylor, Paul Jonathon

    Geographic profiling (GP) is an investigative technique that involves predicting a serial offender?s home location (or some other anchor point) based on where he or she committed a crime. Although the use of GP in police investigations appears to be on the rise, little is known about the procedure

  9. Implementation of cartographic symbols for planetary mapping in geographic information systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nass, A.; van Gasselt, S.; Jaumann, R.; Asche, H.

    2011-09-01

    The steadily growing international interest in the exploration of planets in our Solar System and many advances in the development of space-sensor technology have led to the launch of a multitude of planetary missions to Mercury, Venus, the Earth's moon, Mars and various Outer-Solar System objects, such as the Jovian and Saturnian satellites. Camera instruments carried along on these missions image surfaces in different wavelength ranges and under different viewing angles, permitting additional data to be derived, such as spectral data or digital terrain models. Such data enable researchers to explore and investigate the development of planetary surfaces by analyzing and interpreting the inventory of surface units and structures. Results of such work are commonly abstracted and represented in thematic, mostly geological and geomorphological, maps. In order to facilitate efficient collaboration among different planetary research disciplines, mapping results need to be prepared, described, managed, archived, and visualized in a uniform way. These tasks have been increasingly carried out by means of computer-based geographic information systems (GIS or GI systems) which have come to be widely employed in the field of planetary research since the last two decades. In this paper we focus on the simplification of mapping processes, putting specific emphasis on a cartographically correct visualization of planetary mapping data using GIS-based environments. We present and discuss the implementation of a set of standardized cartographic symbols for planetary mapping based on the Digital Cartographic Standard for Geologic Map Symbolization as prepared by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) for the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC). Furthermore, we discuss various options to integrate this symbol catalog into generic GI systems, and more specifically into the Environmental Systems Research Institute's (ESRI) ArcGIS environment, and focus on requirements for

  10. Geomorphology of coastal environments from satellite images

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Da Rocha Ribeiro, R.; Velho, L.; Schossler, V.

    2010-01-01

    This study aims at recognizing coastal environments supported by data from the Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) satellite. The digital processing of images, System Information Geographic (SIG) techniques and field observation in one section of the “Província Costeira do Rio Grande do Sul” between the Rio Grande and the São Gonçalo channels - resulted in a geomorphologic profile and mapping

  11. Geographical Tatoos

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Valéria Cazetta

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with maps tattooed on bodies. My interest in studying the corporeality is inserted in a broader project entitled Geographies and (in Bodies. There is several published research on tattoos, but none in particular about tattooed maps. However some of these works interested me because they present important discussions in contemporary about body modification that helped me locate the body modifications most within the culture than on the nature. At this time, I looked at pictures of geographical tattoos available in several sites of the internet.

  12. The role of Geographic Information Systems in the Office of the Supervising Scientist

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Riley, S.J.

    1992-01-01

    A Geographic Information System (GIS), embedded in a Decision Support System linking spatial data bases and biophysical models of the environment, will be an important tool in the design and assessment of rehabilitation of uranium mines in the Alligator Rivers Region. The Office of the Supervising Scientist (OSS) and the Northern Territory of University are collaborating in the development of GIS and its introduction into rehabilitation planning. The achievements obtained to date are briefly outlined. There is every expectation that the system developed by OSS will be of general use in environmental assessment and management. 33 refs., 1 fig

  13. Geographic variation in gorilla limb bones.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jabbour, Rebecca S; Pearman, Tessa L

    2016-06-01

    Gorilla systematics has received increased attention over recent decades from primatologists, conservationists, and paleontologists. Studies of geographic variation in DNA, skulls, and teeth have led to new taxonomic proposals, such as recognition of two gorilla species, Gorilla gorilla (western gorilla) and Gorilla beringei (eastern gorilla). Postcranial differences between mountain gorillas (G. beringei beringei) and western lowland gorillas (G. g. gorilla) have a long history of study, but differences between the limb bones of the eastern and western species have not yet been examined with an emphasis on geographic variation within each species. In addition, proposals for recognition of the Cross River gorilla as Gorilla gorilla diehli and gorillas from Tshiaberimu and Kahuzi as G. b. rex-pymaeorum have not been evaluated in the context of geographic variation in the forelimb and hindlimb skeletons. Forty-three linear measurements were collected from limb bones of 266 adult gorillas representing populations of G. b. beringei, Gorilla beringei graueri, G. g. gorilla, and G. g. diehli in order to investigate geographic diversity. Skeletal elements included the humerus, radius, third metacarpal, third proximal hand phalanx, femur, tibia, calcaneus, first metatarsal, third metatarsal, and third proximal foot phalanx. Comparisons of means and principal components analyses clearly differentiate eastern and western gorillas, indicating that eastern gorillas have absolutely and relatively smaller hands and feet, among other differences. Gorilla subspecies and populations cluster consistently by species, although G. g. diehli may be similar to the eastern gorillas in having small hands and feet. The subspecies of G. beringei are distinguished less strongly and by different variables than the two gorilla species. Populations of G. b. graueri are variable, and Kahuzi and Tshiaberimu specimens do not cluster together. Results support the possible influence of

  14. LEGAL INSTRUMENT FOR PROTECTION OF GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION PRODUCT IN INDONESIA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Almusawir Nansa

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available As an archipelago country, Indonesia comprises of a large territory where every region is capable of producing distinctive and characterized products due to its geographical, social, and cultural factors, in addition to its higher quality compared to imported products. In the market, goods with distinct characterization as a result of various geographical locations of production regions is known as Geographical Indication Products. Geographical Indication defines as a characterization that indicates the origin of a product, which includes several influencing factors such as geographical factor, natural factor, human factor or the combination of both factors which eventually contribute to establish a certain distinction and quality upon a product. Several geographical indicated products in Indonesia are widely known to have excellent reputation on the market, namely Delinese tobacco, Temanggung tobacco, Ciancur rice, Muntok white pepper, Lampung black pepper, Kerinci cinnamon, Cilembu cassava, Bandanese nutmeg, Proboliggo sweet mango, Balinese Kintamani coffee, Kalosi coffee, Papuan matoa, etc. Those are several richness of goods from certain regions in Indonesia widely known for their characterization. Characterization of goods are resulted by variation of geographic locations of producing regions in Indonesia. These goods possess high quality and high economic value. Consequently, certain instruments are required to provide protection upon the regions producing those goods against the act of counterfeiting.

  15. Authorization policy in a PKI environment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thompson, Mary R.; Mudumbai, Srilekha S.; Essiari, Abdelilah; Chin, Willie

    2002-04-10

    The major emphasis of Public Key Infrastructure has been to provide a cryptographically secure means of authenticating identities. While there are a number of proposed standards for authorization structures and protocols based on X.509 or other key-based identities, none have been widely adopted. As part of an effort to use X.509 identities to provide authorization in highly distributed environments, we have developed and deployed an authorization service based on X.509 identified users and access policy contained in certificates signed by X.509 identified stakeholders. The major goal of this system, called Akenti, is to produce a usable authorization system for an environment consisting of distributed resources used by geographically and administratively distributed users.

  16. Authorization policy in a PKI environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thompson, Mary R.; Mudumbai, Srilekha S.; Essiari, Abdelilah; Chin, Willie

    2002-01-01

    The major emphasis of Public Key Infrastructure has been to provide a cryptographically secure means of authenticating identities. While there are a number of proposed standards for authorization structures and protocols based on X.509 or other key-based identities, none have been widely adopted. As part of an effort to use X.509 identities to provide authorization in highly distributed environments, we have developed and deployed an authorization service based on X.509 identified users and access policy contained in certificates signed by X.509 identified stakeholders. The major goal of this system, called Akenti, is to produce a usable authorization system for an environment consisting of distributed resources used by geographically and administratively distributed users

  17. The National Geographic Names Data Base: Phase II instructions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orth, Donald J.; Payne, Roger L.

    1987-01-01

    The Geographic Names Information System is a computer-based information system developed to meet major national needs by providing information for named entities in the United States, its territories, and outlying areas. The National Geographic Names Data Base, a component of the Geographic Names Information System, currently contains most names and associated information recorded on the 1:24,000-scale (or largest scale available) topographic maps of the U.S. Geological Survey. The work involved in this initial compilation of names shown on the topographic-map series, and the development and editing of the National Geographic Names Data Base, is referred to as Phase I. Optimal use and effectiveness of an automated names system require that the names of features

  18. Interoperability of Geographic Information: A Communication Process –Based Prototype

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jean Brodeur

    2005-04-01

    Full Text Available Since 1990, municipal, state/provincial, and federal governments have developed numerous geographic databases over the years to fulfill organizations' specific needs. As such, same real world topographic phenomena have been abstracted differently, for instance vegetation (surface, trees (surface, wooded area (line, wooded area (point and line, milieu boisé (surface, zone boisée (unknown geometry. Today, information about these geographic phenomena is accessible on the Internet from Web infrastructures specially developed to simplify their access. Early in the nineties, the development of interoperability of geographic information has been undertaken to solve syntactic, structural, and semantic heterogeneities as well as spatial and temporal heterogeneities to facilitate sharing and integration of such data. Recently, we have proposed a new conceptual framework for interoperability of geographic information based on the human communication process, cognitive science, and ontology, and introduced geosemantic proximity, a reasoning methodology to qualify dynamically the semantic similarity between geographic abstractions. This framework could be of interest to other disciplines. This paper presents the details of our framework for interoperability of geographic information as well as a prototype.

  19. Instant Messaging and Team Performance in a Simulated Command and Control Environment (Briefing Charts)

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Funke, Gregory J; Galster, Scott M; Nelson, W. T; Dukes, Allen W

    2006-01-01

    .... Personnel in this environment may be disparate in terms of rank, occupation, and even geographical location, yet are expected to rapidly coalesce into functioning teams in order to meet task requirements...

  20. The significant surface-water connectivity of "geographically isolated wetlands"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Calhoun, Aram J.K.; Mushet, David M.; Alexander, Laurie C.; DeKeyser, Edward S.; Fowler, Laurie; Lane, Charles R.; Lang, Megan W.; Rains, Mark C.; Richter, Stephen; Walls, Susan

    2017-01-01

    We evaluated the current literature, coupled with our collective research expertise, on surface-water connectivity of wetlands considered to be “geographically isolated” (sensu Tiner Wetlands 23:494–516, 2003a) to critically assess the scientific foundation of grouping wetlands based on the singular condition of being surrounded by uplands. The most recent research on wetlands considered to be “geographically isolated” shows the difficulties in grouping an ecological resource that does not reliably indicate lack of surface water connectivity in order to meet legal, regulatory, or scientific needs. Additionally, the practice of identifying “geographically isolated wetlands” based on distance from a stream can result in gross overestimates of the number of wetlands lacking ecologically important surface-water connections. Our findings do not support use of the overly simplistic label of “geographically isolated wetlands”. Wetlands surrounded by uplands vary in function and surface-water connections based on wetland landscape setting, context, climate, and geographic region and should be evaluated as such. We found that the “geographically isolated” grouping does not reflect our understanding of the hydrologic variability of these wetlands and hence does not benefit conservation of the Nation’s diverse wetland resources. Therefore, we strongly discourage use of categorizations that provide overly simplistic views of surface-water connectivity of wetlands fully embedded in upland landscapes.

  1. Geographic Differences in the Earnings of Economics Majors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winters, John V.; Xu, Weineng

    2014-01-01

    Economics has been shown to be a relatively high-earning college major, but geographic differences in earnings have been largely overlooked. The authors of this article use the American Community Survey to examine geographic differences in both absolute earnings and relative earnings for economics majors. They find that there are substantial…

  2. Geographic disparity in kidney transplantation under KAS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Sheng; Massie, Allan B; Luo, Xun; Ruck, Jessica M; Chow, Eric K H; Bowring, Mary G; Bae, Sunjae; Segev, Dorry L; Gentry, Sommer E

    2017-12-12

    The Kidney Allocation System fundamentally altered kidney allocation, causing a substantial increase in regional and national sharing that we hypothesized might impact geographic disparities. We measured geographic disparity in deceased donor kidney transplant (DDKT) rate under KAS (6/1/2015-12/1/2016), and compared that with pre-KAS (6/1/2013-12/3/2014). We modeled DSA-level DDKT rates with multilevel Poisson regression, adjusting for allocation factors under KAS. Using the model we calculated a novel, improved metric of geographic disparity: the median incidence rate ratio (MIRR) of transplant rate, a measure of DSA-level variation that accounts for patient casemix and is robust to outlier values. Under KAS, MIRR was 1.75 1.81 1.86 for adults, meaning that similar candidates across different DSAs have a median 1.81-fold difference in DDKT rate. The impact of geography was greater than the impact of factors emphasized by KAS: having an EPTS score ≤20% was associated with a 1.40-fold increase (IRR =  1.35 1.40 1.45 , P geographic disparities with KAS (P = .3). Despite extensive changes to kidney allocation under KAS, geography remains a primary determinant of access to DDKT. © 2017 The American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.

  3. Formal Ontologies and Uncertainty. In Geographical Knowledge

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matteo Caglioni

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Formal ontologies have proved to be a very useful tool to manage interoperability among data, systems and knowledge. In this paper we will show how formal ontologies can evolve from a crisp, deterministic framework (ontologies of hard knowledge to new probabilistic, fuzzy or possibilistic frameworks (ontologies of soft knowledge. This can considerably enlarge the application potential of formal ontologies in geographic analysis and planning, where soft knowledge is intrinsically linked to the complexity of the phenomena under study.  The paper briefly presents these new uncertainty-based formal ontologies. It then highlights how ontologies are formal tools to define both concepts and relations among concepts. An example from the domain of urban geography finally shows how the cause-to-effect relation between household preferences and urban sprawl can be encoded within a crisp, a probabilistic and a possibilistic ontology, respectively. The ontology formalism will also determine the kind of reasoning that can be developed from available knowledge. Uncertain ontologies can be seen as the preliminary phase of more complex uncertainty-based models. The advantages of moving to uncertainty-based models is evident: whether it is in the analysis of geographic space or in decision support for planning, reasoning on geographic space is almost always reasoning with uncertain knowledge of geographic phenomena.

  4. Geographical Gradients in Argentinean Terrestrial Mammal Species Richness and Their Environmental Correlates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Márquez, Ana L.; Real, Raimundo; Kin, Marta S.; Guerrero, José Carlos; Galván, Betina; Barbosa, A. Márcia; Olivero, Jesús; Palomo, L. Javier; Vargas, J. Mario; Justo, Enrique

    2012-01-01

    We analysed the main geographical trends of terrestrial mammal species richness (SR) in Argentina, assessing how broad-scale environmental variation (defined by climatic and topographic variables) and the spatial form of the country (defined by spatial filters based on spatial eigenvector mapping (SEVM)) influence the kinds and the numbers of mammal species along these geographical trends. We also evaluated if there are pure geographical trends not accounted for by the environmental or spatial factors. The environmental variables and spatial filters that simultaneously correlated with the geographical variables and SR were considered potential causes of the geographic trends. We performed partial correlations between SR and the geographical variables, maintaining the selected explanatory variables statistically constant, to determine if SR was fully explained by them or if a significant residual geographic pattern remained. All groups and subgroups presented a latitudinal gradient not attributable to the spatial form of the country. Most of these trends were not explained by climate. We used a variation partitioning procedure to quantify the pure geographic trend (PGT) that remained unaccounted for. The PGT was larger for latitudinal than for longitudinal gradients. This suggests that historical or purely geographical causes may also be relevant drivers of these geographical gradients in mammal diversity. PMID:23028254

  5. Geographical Gradients in Argentinean Terrestrial Mammal Species Richness and Their Environmental Correlates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana L. Márquez

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available We analysed the main geographical trends of terrestrial mammal species richness (SR in Argentina, assessing how broad-scale environmental variation (defined by climatic and topographic variables and the spatial form of the country (defined by spatial filters based on spatial eigenvector mapping (SEVM influence the kinds and the numbers of mammal species along these geographical trends. We also evaluated if there are pure geographical trends not accounted for by the environmental or spatial factors. The environmental variables and spatial filters that simultaneously correlated with the geographical variables and SR were considered potential causes of the geographic trends. We performed partial correlations between SR and the geographical variables, maintaining the selected explanatory variables statistically constant, to determine if SR was fully explained by them or if a significant residual geographic pattern remained. All groups and subgroups presented a latitudinal gradient not attributable to the spatial form of the country. Most of these trends were not explained by climate. We used a variation partitioning procedure to quantify the pure geographic trend (PGT that remained unaccounted for. The PGT was larger for latitudinal than for longitudinal gradients. This suggests that historical or purely geographical causes may also be relevant drivers of these geographical gradients in mammal diversity.

  6. Regional Geographic Information Systems of Health and Environmental Monitoring

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kurolap Semen A.

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The article describes a new scientific and methodological approach to designing geographic information systems of health and environmental monitoring for urban areas. Geographic information systems (GIS are analytical tools of the regional health and environmental monitoring; they are used for an integrated assessment of the environmental status of a large industrial centre or a part of it. The authors analyse the environmental situation in Voronezh, a major industrial city, located in the Central Black Earth Region with a population of more than 1 million people. The proposed research methodology is based on modern approaches to the assessment of health risks caused by adverse environmental conditions. The research work was implemented using a GIS and multicriteria probabilistic and statistical evaluation to identify cause-and-effect links, a combination of action and reaction, in the dichotomy ‘environmental factors — public health’. The analysis of the obtained statistical data confirmed an increase in childhood diseases in some areas of the city. Environmentally induced diseases include congenital malformations, tumors, endocrine and urogenital pathologies. The main factors having an adverse impact on health are emissions of carcinogens into the atmosphere and the negative impact of transport on the environment. The authors identify and characterize environmentally vulnerable parts of the city and developed principles of creating an automated system of health monitoring and control of environmental risks. The article offers a number of measures aimed at the reduction of environmental risks, better protection of public health and a more efficient environmental monitoring.

  7. NEPR Geographic Zone Map 2015

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This geographic zone map was created by interpreting satellite and aerial imagery, seafloor topography (bathymetry model), and the new NEPR Benthic Habitat Map...

  8. CYBERNETICS AND GEOGRAPHICAL EDUCATION: CYBERNETICS OF LEARNING AND LEARNING OF CYBERNETICS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. R. Arpentieva

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Modern geographical education implies a broad implementation of innovative technologies, allowing students to fully and deeply understand the subject and methods of professional activity, and effectively and productively act upon this understanding. Therefore, in the work of modern geographer computer and media technologies occupy a significant place, and geographic education occupies an important place in learning cybernetic disciplines: computer technologies act as an important condition for obtaining high quality professional education, as well as an important tool of professional activity of modern specialist-geographer. The article is devoted to comparing three modern approaches to the study and optimization of training Cybernetics and programming in the framework of geographical education: an approach devoted to the study of “learning styles”; the metacognitive approach to learning computer science and programming; and intersubjective, evergetic or actually cybernetic, approach. It describes their advantages and limitations in the context of geographical education, as well as the internal unity as different forms of study of productivity and conditions of the dialogical interaction between teacher and student in the context of obtaining high-quality geographical education.

  9. Environmental status of the Jilantai Basin, North China, on the northwestern margin of the modern Asian summer monsoon domain during Marine Isotope Stage 3

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, Yuxin; Wang, Yongda; Mou, Xuesong; Zhao, Hui; Zhang, Fu; Zhang, Fan; Liu, Wenhao; Hui, Zhengchuang; Huang, Xiaozhong; Ma, Jun

    2017-10-01

    Two drill cores were obtained from the Jilantai sub-depression (JLT(d)) and the neighboring Dengkou sub-uplift (DK(u)), within a huge, former lake basin in northern China. From an analysis of the lithology and pollen assemblages, combined with radiocarbon dating of extracted pollen and OSL dating of extracted quartz, we concluded the following: JLT(d) was continuously occupied by lakes since 85 ka; however, DK(u), the neighboring sub-uplift, was covered by lakes during 80-74 ka, 50-44 ka, 32.5-27.5 ka and DK(u) during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3. Evidence from shorelines, previously published cores, and the sedimentary and chronological evidence presented in this paper indicate the occurrence of a sub-humid environment, characterized by the occurrence of lakes separated by dunes, in the Jilantai Basin during MIS 3. However, further work is needed to understand the environmental significance of the co-existence of lakes and dunes during MIS 3, although a sub-humid climate background during MIS 3 is supported by well-dated geological archives along the western front of the present-day Asian Summer Monsoon domain and its eastern extensional area.

  10. Application of geographic information systems to waste minimization efforts at the national laboratories

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lyttle, T.W.; Smith, D.M.; Burns, M.; Weinrach, J.B.

    1993-01-01

    At Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), facility waste streams tend to be small but highly diverse. Initial characterization of such waste streams is often difficult in part due to a lack of tools to assist the generators themselves in completing such assessments. A methodology has been developed at LANL to allow process knowledgeable field personnel to develop baseline waste generation assessments and to evaluate potential waste minimization technology. This Process Waste Assessment (PWA) system is an application constructed within the Process Modeling System and currently being integrated with the InFoCAD Geographic Information System (GIS). The Process Modeling System (PMS) is an object-oriented, mass balance-based, discrete-event simulation framework written using the Common Lisp Object System (CLOS). Analytical capabilities supported within the PWA system include: complete mass balance specifications, historical characterization of selected waste stream and generation of facility profiles for materials consumption, resource utilization and worker exposure. Development activities include integration with the LANL facilities management Geographic Information System (GIS) and provisions for a Best Available Technologies (BAT) database. The environments used to develop these assessment tools will be discussed in addition to a review of initial implementation results

  11. Genetic data from algae sedimentary DNA reflect the influence of environment over geography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen R; Herzschuh, Ulrike; Pestryakova, Luidmila A; Klemm, Juliane; Epp, Laura S; Tiedemann, Ralph

    2015-08-11

    Genetic investigations on eukaryotic plankton confirmed the existence of modern biogeographic patterns, but analyses of palaeoecological data exploring the temporal variability of these patterns have rarely been presented. Ancient sedimentary DNA proved suitable for investigations of past assemblage turnover in the course of environmental change, but genetic relatedness of the identified lineages has not yet been undertaken. Here, we investigate the relatedness of diatom lineages in Siberian lakes along environmental gradients (i.e. across treeline transects), over geographic distance and through time (i.e. the last 7000 years) using modern and ancient sedimentary DNA. Our results indicate that closely-related Staurosira lineages occur in similar environments and less-related lineages in dissimilar environments, in our case different vegetation and co-varying climatic and limnic variables across treeline transects. Thus our study reveals that environmental conditions rather than geographic distance is reflected by diatom-relatedness patterns in space and time. We tentatively speculate that the detected relatedness pattern in Staurosira across the treeline could be a result of adaptation to diverse environmental conditions across the arctic boreal treeline, however, a geographically-driven divergence and subsequent repopulation of ecologically different habitats might also be a potential explanation for the observed pattern.

  12. Scaling the Baltic Sea environment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Henrik Gutzon

    2008-01-01

    of this development, this article suggests that environmental politics critically depend on the delineation of relatively bounded spaces that identify and situate particular environmental concerns as spatial objects for politics. These spaces are not simply determined by ‘nature' or some environmental......The Baltic Sea environment has since the early 1970s passed through several phases of spatial objectification in which the ostensibly well-defined semi-enclosed sea has been framed and reframed as a geographical object for intergovernmental environmental politics. Based on a historical analysis......-scientific logic, but should rather be seen as temporal outcomes of scale framing processes, processes that are accentuated by contemporary conceptions of the environment (or nature) in terms of multi-scalar ecosystems. This has implications for how an environmental concern is perceived and politically addressed....

  13. 47 CFR 22.911 - Cellular geographic service area.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... Cellular Geographic Service Area (CGSA) of a cellular system is the geographic area considered by the FCC... application for modification of the CGSA using FCC Form 601, a depiction of what the carrier believes the CGSA... location and the locus of points where the predicted or measured median field strength finally drops to 32...

  14. Ecoscapes: Geographical Patternings of Relations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aimar Ventsel

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Book review of the publication Ecoscapes: Geographical Patternings of Relations. Edited by Gary Backhaus and John Murungi. Lanham, Boulder, New York, Toronto, Oxford, Lexington Books, 2006, xxxiii+241 pp.

  15. Ecoscapes: Geographical Patternings of Relations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aimar Ventsel

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Book review of the publication Ecoscapes: Geographical Patternings of Relations. Edited by Gary Backhaus and John Murungi. Lanham, Boulder, New York, Toronto, Oxford, Lexington Books, 2006, xxxiii+241 pp.

  16. Web-based public health geographic information systems for resources-constrained environment using scalable vector graphics technology: a proof of concept applied to the expanded program on immunization data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kamadjeu Raoul

    2006-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Geographic Information Systems (GIS are powerful communication tools for public health. However, using GIS requires considerable skill and, for this reason, is sometimes limited to experts. Web-based GIS has emerged as a solution to allow a wider audience to have access to geospatial information. Unfortunately the cost of implementing proprietary solutions may be a limiting factor in the adoption of a public health GIS in a resource-constrained environment. Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG is used to define vector-based graphics for the internet using XML (eXtensible Markup Language; it is an open, platform-independent standard maintained by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C since 2003. In this paper, we summarize our methodology and demonstrate the potential of this free and open standard to contribute to the dissemination of Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI information by providing interactive maps to a wider audience through the Internet. Results We used SVG to develop a database driven web-based GIS applied to EPI data from three countries of WHO AFRO (World Health Organization – African Region. The system generates interactive district-level country immunization coverage maps and graphs. The approach we describe can be expanded to cover other public health GIS demanding activities, including the design of disease atlases in a resources-constrained environment. Conclusion Our system contributes to accumulating evidence demonstrating the potential of SVG technology to develop web-based public health GIS in resources-constrained settings.

  17. Web-based public health geographic information systems for resources-constrained environment using scalable vector graphics technology: a proof of concept applied to the expanded program on immunization data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kamadjeu, Raoul; Tolentino, Herman

    2006-06-03

    Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are powerful communication tools for public health. However, using GIS requires considerable skill and, for this reason, is sometimes limited to experts. Web-based GIS has emerged as a solution to allow a wider audience to have access to geospatial information. Unfortunately the cost of implementing proprietary solutions may be a limiting factor in the adoption of a public health GIS in a resource-constrained environment. Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) is used to define vector-based graphics for the internet using XML (eXtensible Markup Language); it is an open, platform-independent standard maintained by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) since 2003. In this paper, we summarize our methodology and demonstrate the potential of this free and open standard to contribute to the dissemination of Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) information by providing interactive maps to a wider audience through the Internet. We used SVG to develop a database driven web-based GIS applied to EPI data from three countries of WHO AFRO (World Health Organization - African Region). The system generates interactive district-level country immunization coverage maps and graphs. The approach we describe can be expanded to cover other public health GIS demanding activities, including the design of disease atlases in a resources-constrained environment. Our system contributes to accumulating evidence demonstrating the potential of SVG technology to develop web-based public health GIS in resources-constrained settings.

  18. Steppe of Tbilisi environs (East Georgia, South Caucasus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N.J. Lachashvili

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Steppes of Tbilisi environs are studied. In the Tbilisi surroundings the steppe vegetation is either of primary or secondary origin. Steppe vegetation in the Tbilisi environs are represented by 4 formations: (1 Bothriochloeta ischaemum, (2 Festuceta valesiaci, (3 Stipeta pennatae and (4 Gramino-Mixtoherbeta. From them Bothriochloeta ischaemum and Festuceta valesiaci formations have more area covering and characterized by the comparatively rich typological composition. Typological composition of each formation is established. For each separated plant communities the basic structural characteristics (general projective coverage, sodding degree, dominant-edificatory plant, characteristic species, number of species, moss cover, litter, species richness, spectrum of life forms, distribution area in the Tbilisi environs and main physical-geographical conditions (altitude, exposure, inclination, soil type are given.

  19. Storytelling in Interactive 3D Geographic Visualization Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matthias Thöny

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available The objective of interactive geographic maps is to provide geographic information to a large audience in a captivating and intuitive way. Storytelling helps to create exciting experiences and to explain complex or otherwise hidden relationships of geospatial data. Furthermore, interactive 3D applications offer a wide range of attractive elements for advanced visual story creation and offer the possibility to convey the same story in many different ways. In this paper, we discuss and analyze storytelling techniques in 3D geographic visualizations so that authors and developers working with geospatial data can use these techniques to conceptualize their visualization and interaction design. Finally, we outline two examples which apply the given concepts.

  20. A novel tool for assessing and summarizing the built environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kroeger Gretchen L

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A growing corpus of research focuses on assessing the quality of the local built environment and also examining the relationship between the built environment and health outcomes and indicators in communities. However, there is a lack of research presenting a highly resolved, systematic, and comprehensive spatial approach to assessing the built environment over a large geographic extent. In this paper, we contribute to the built environment literature by describing a tool used to assess the residential built environment at the tax parcel-level, as well as a methodology for summarizing the data into meaningful indices for linkages with health data. Methods A database containing residential built environment variables was constructed using the existing body of literature, as well as input from local community partners. During the summer of 2008, a team of trained assessors conducted an on-foot, curb-side assessment of approximately 17,000 tax parcels in Durham, North Carolina, evaluating the built environment on over 80 variables using handheld Global Positioning System (GPS devices. The exercise was repeated again in the summer of 2011 over a larger geographic area that included roughly 30,700 tax parcels; summary data presented here are from the 2008 assessment. Results Built environment data were combined with Durham crime data and tax assessor data in order to construct seven built environment indices. These indices were aggregated to US Census blocks, as well as to primary adjacency communities (PACs and secondary adjacency communities (SACs which better described the larger neighborhood context experienced by local residents. Results were disseminated to community members, public health professionals, and government officials. Conclusions The assessment tool described is both easily-replicable and comprehensive in design. Furthermore, our construction of PACs and SACs introduces a novel concept to approximate varying

  1. A novel tool for assessing and summarizing the built environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-01-01

    Background A growing corpus of research focuses on assessing the quality of the local built environment and also examining the relationship between the built environment and health outcomes and indicators in communities. However, there is a lack of research presenting a highly resolved, systematic, and comprehensive spatial approach to assessing the built environment over a large geographic extent. In this paper, we contribute to the built environment literature by describing a tool used to assess the residential built environment at the tax parcel-level, as well as a methodology for summarizing the data into meaningful indices for linkages with health data. Methods A database containing residential built environment variables was constructed using the existing body of literature, as well as input from local community partners. During the summer of 2008, a team of trained assessors conducted an on-foot, curb-side assessment of approximately 17,000 tax parcels in Durham, North Carolina, evaluating the built environment on over 80 variables using handheld Global Positioning System (GPS) devices. The exercise was repeated again in the summer of 2011 over a larger geographic area that included roughly 30,700 tax parcels; summary data presented here are from the 2008 assessment. Results Built environment data were combined with Durham crime data and tax assessor data in order to construct seven built environment indices. These indices were aggregated to US Census blocks, as well as to primary adjacency communities (PACs) and secondary adjacency communities (SACs) which better described the larger neighborhood context experienced by local residents. Results were disseminated to community members, public health professionals, and government officials. Conclusions The assessment tool described is both easily-replicable and comprehensive in design. Furthermore, our construction of PACs and SACs introduces a novel concept to approximate varying scales of community and

  2. Vascular plants of the Nevada Test Site and Central-Southern Nevada: ecologic and geographic distributions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Beatley, J.C.

    1976-01-01

    The physical environment of the Nevada Test Site and surrounding area is described with regard to physiography, geology, soils, and climate. A discussion of plant associations is given for the Mojave Desert, Transition Desert, and Great Basin Desert. The vegetation of disturbed sites is discussed with regard to introduced species as well as endangered and threatened species. Collections of vascular plants were made during 1959 to 1975. The plants, belonging to 1093 taxa and 98 families are listed together with information concerning ecologic and geographic distributions. Indexes to families, genera, and species are included. (HLW)

  3. Marketing Management: Monitoring the International Environment Factors Using Global Maps

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Štěpán Kala

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The article discusses the issue of the global marketing environment in line with the factors determining its external conditions. The aim is to specify the marketing-environment indicators in the international context and interpret the use of geographical maps illustratively documenting the differences of particular parameters in various parts of the global market. The research-results help update the theoretical framework of global environment factors. These data are also important for practice. Many enterprises consider the question of optimising their sources and directing their goals towards the opportunities available thanks to global markets. The global environment mapping is thereby an important basis for the marketing activities whose implementation across national boundaries is going to be mainly influenced by peculiarities of the environment involving foreign markets and their changes.

  4. Research and implementation of geographic information service mode in digital home

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lei, B.; Liu, K.; Gan, Y.; Zhong, M.

    2014-04-01

    Accompanying infrastructure improvements and networking technology innovation, the development of digital home service industry has gotten more and more attention. However, the digital home service levels have not sufficiently met rising demand from users. Therefore, it is urgent to propose and develop new service modes for the digital home. Geographic information services can provide various spatial information services such as map search, spatial information query. It has become an inevitable trend to implement geographic information services in the digital home. This paper proposes three new geographic information services modes for the digital home after sufficient requirement analysis: pushed information service mode, interactive information service mode, personalized information service mode. The key technologies to implement geographic information services on digital televisions are studied, involving digital television middleware technology, network transmission technology and visualization technology. According to the service modes' characteristics mentioned above, a service system in the digital home is established to implement geographic information services on the basis of digital television. The implementation of geographic information services in the digital home not only enriches the digital home services content, but also promotes geographic information from specialization to public popularity.

  5. Random-growth urban model with geographical fitness

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kii, Masanobu; Akimoto, Keigo; Doi, Kenji

    2012-12-01

    This paper formulates a random-growth urban model with a notion of geographical fitness. Using techniques of complex-network theory, we study our system as a type of preferential-attachment model with fitness, and we analyze its macro behavior to clarify the properties of the city-size distributions it predicts. First, restricting the geographical fitness to take positive values and using a continuum approach, we show that the city-size distributions predicted by our model asymptotically approach Pareto distributions with coefficients greater than unity. Then, allowing the geographical fitness to take negative values, we perform local coefficient analysis to show that the predicted city-size distributions can deviate from Pareto distributions, as is often observed in actual city-size distributions. As a result, the model we propose can generate a generic class of city-size distributions, including but not limited to Pareto distributions. For applications to city-population projections, our simple model requires randomness only when new cities are created, not during their subsequent growth. This property leads to smooth trajectories of city population growth, in contrast to other models using Gibrat’s law. In addition, a discrete form of our dynamical equations can be used to estimate past city populations based on present-day data; this fact allows quantitative assessment of the performance of our model. Further study is needed to determine appropriate formulas for the geographical fitness.

  6. Modeling Fire Occurrence at the City Scale: A Comparison between Geographically Weighted Regression and Global Linear Regression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Chao; Kwan, Mei-Po; Zhu, Jiping

    2017-04-08

    An increasing number of fires are occurring with the rapid development of cities, resulting in increased risk for human beings and the environment. This study compares geographically weighted regression-based models, including geographically weighted regression (GWR) and geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR), which integrates spatial and temporal effects and global linear regression models (LM) for modeling fire risk at the city scale. The results show that the road density and the spatial distribution of enterprises have the strongest influences on fire risk, which implies that we should focus on areas where roads and enterprises are densely clustered. In addition, locations with a large number of enterprises have fewer fire ignition records, probably because of strict management and prevention measures. A changing number of significant variables across space indicate that heterogeneity mainly exists in the northern and eastern rural and suburban areas of Hefei city, where human-related facilities or road construction are only clustered in the city sub-centers. GTWR can capture small changes in the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of the variables while GWR and LM cannot. An approach that integrates space and time enables us to better understand the dynamic changes in fire risk. Thus governments can use the results to manage fire safety at the city scale.

  7. GEOGRAPHICAL EDUCATION MEDIATIZATION AND MEDIASECURITY ISSUES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. R. Arpentieva

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to the interaction of legal and moral development of media technologies in the context of geographical education. The article summarizes the experience of the theoretical analysis of mediatization in geographic education, the legal and moral aspects of the disorders and ways of their prevention and correction in the process of educational interaction between teacher and student, between student and teacher, mediated mediatechnologies. It is noted that geographical education in the modern world is education, which is closely associated with the use of media technologies. In other types of education the role of media technologies in improving the quality of education is less obvious, in the field of teaching and learning geography, it speaks very clearly. Therefore, the problems associated with its mediatization, are very important and their solution is particularly compelling. These issues are primarily associated with actively flowing social, economic, political and ideological crisis in many communities and countries of the Earth. Many of them as in the “mirror” are reflected in the sphere of high technologies, including media technologies. The article provides guidance and direction to the correction of violations at the individual and social levels.

  8. Ontology for cell-based geographic information

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Bin; Huang, Lina; Lu, Xinhai

    2009-10-01

    Inter-operability is a key notion in geographic information science (GIS) for the sharing of geographic information (GI). That requires a seamless translation among different information sources. Ontology is enrolled in GI discovery to settle the semantic conflicts for its natural language appearance and logical hierarchy structure, which are considered to be able to provide better context for both human understanding and machine cognition in describing the location and relationships in the geographic world. However, for the current, most studies on field ontology are deduced from philosophical theme and not applicable for the raster expression in GIS-which is a kind of field-like phenomenon but does not physically coincide to the general concept of philosophical field (mostly comes from the physics concepts). That's why we specifically discuss the cell-based GI ontology in this paper. The discussion starts at the investigation of the physical characteristics of cell-based raster GI. Then, a unified cell-based GI ontology framework for the recognition of the raster objects is introduced, from which a conceptual interface for the connection of the human epistemology and the computer world so called "endurant-occurrant window" is developed for the better raster GI discovery and sharing.

  9. Angiostrongylus spp. in the Americas: geographical and chronological distribution of definitive hosts versus disease reports.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valente, Romina; Robles, Maria Del Rosario; Navone, Graciela T; Diaz, Julia I

    2018-03-01

    Angiostrongyliasis is an infection caused by nematode worms of the genus Angiostrongylus. The adult worms inhabit the pulmonary arteries, heart, bronchioles of the lung, or mesenteric arteries of the caecum of definitive host. Of a total of 23 species of Angiostrongylus cited worldwide, only nine were registered in the American Continent. Two species, A. cantonensis and A. costaricensis, are considered zoonoses when the larvae accidentally parasitise man. In the present study, geographical and chronological distribution of definitive hosts of Angiostrongylus in the Americas is analysed in order to observe their relationship with disease reports. Moreover, the role of different definitive hosts as sentinels and dispersers of infective stages is discussed. The study area includes the Americas. First records of Angiostrongylus spp. in definitive or accidental hosts were compiled from the literature. Data were included in tables and figures and were matched to geographic information systems (GIS). Most geographical records of Angiostrongylus spp. both for definitive and accidental hosts belong to tropical areas, mainly equatorial zone. In relation to those species of human health importance, as A. cantonensis and A. costaricensis, most disease cases indicate a coincidence between the finding of definitive host and disease record. However, in some geographic site there are gaps between report of definitive host and disease record. In many areas, human populations have invaded natural environments and their socioeconomic conditions do not allow adequate medical care. Consequently, many cases for angiostrongyliasis could have gone unreported or unrecognised throughout history and in the nowadays. Moreover, the population expansion and the climatic changes invite to make broader and more complete range of observation on the species that involve possible epidemiological risks. This paper integrates and shows the current distribution of Angiostrongylus species in America

  10. Angiostrongylus spp. in the Americas: geographical and chronological distribution of definitive hosts versus disease reports

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valente, Romina; Robles, Maria del Rosario; Navone, Graciela T; Diaz, Julia I

    2018-01-01

    BACKGROUND Angiostrongyliasis is an infection caused by nematode worms of the genus Angiostrongylus. The adult worms inhabit the pulmonary arteries, heart, bronchioles of the lung, or mesenteric arteries of the caecum of definitive host. Of a total of 23 species of Angiostrongylus cited worldwide, only nine were registered in the American Continent. Two species, A. cantonensis and A. costaricensis, are considered zoonoses when the larvae accidentally parasitise man. OBJECTIVES In the present study, geographical and chronological distribution of definitive hosts of Angiostrongylus in the Americas is analysed in order to observe their relationship with disease reports. Moreover, the role of different definitive hosts as sentinels and dispersers of infective stages is discussed. METHODS The study area includes the Americas. First records of Angiostrongylus spp. in definitive or accidental hosts were compiled from the literature. Data were included in tables and figures and were matched to geographic information systems (GIS). FINDINGS Most geographical records of Angiostrongylus spp. both for definitive and accidental hosts belong to tropical areas, mainly equatorial zone. In relation to those species of human health importance, as A. cantonensis and A. costaricensis, most disease cases indicate a coincidence between the finding of definitive host and disease record. However, in some geographic site there are gaps between report of definitive host and disease record. In many areas, human populations have invaded natural environments and their socioeconomic conditions do not allow adequate medical care. MAIN CONCLUSIONS Consequently, many cases for angiostrongyliasis could have gone unreported or unrecognised throughout history and in the nowadays. Moreover, the population expansion and the climatic changes invite to make broader and more complete range of observation on the species that involve possible epidemiological risks. This paper integrates and shows the

  11. Influence of Geographical Origin and Flour Type on Diversity of Lactic Acid Bacteria in Traditional Belgian Sourdoughs▿ †

    OpenAIRE

    Scheirlinck, Ilse; Van der Meulen, Roel; Van Schoor, Ann; Vancanneyt, Marc; De Vuyst, Luc; Vandamme, Peter; Huys, Geert

    2007-01-01

    A culture-based approach was used to investigate the diversity of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in Belgian traditional sourdoughs and to assess the influence of flour type, bakery environment, geographical origin, and technological characteristics on the taxonomic composition of these LAB communities. For this purpose, a total of 714 LAB from 21 sourdoughs sampled at 11 artisan bakeries throughout Belgium were subjected to a polyphasic identification approach. The microbial composition of the tr...

  12. Geographical education in Russia: state-of-the-art and new perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chalov, Sergey R.

    2010-05-01

    Up-today education systems of different countries face new perspectives in globalizing World. The Russian higher education framework was basically incompatible with the process of making academic degree standards and quality assurance standards more comparable throughout the World (so called Bologna process for Europe). So did Earth Sciences education framework. Today the key question in the further development of Earth sciences in Russia is the interaction with European education system. At the crossroads it is challenging to analyze the history and state-of-the-art. We considered the question on the example of one of the largest centers of the Earth Sciences education in Russia - Faculty of Geography of Lomonosov Moscow State University, which is moreover regarded to be one of the largest scientific and educational centers of geography in the World. There are 1200 students and 180 PhD students studying on the Faculty. The Faculty consists of 15 departments, 8 research laboratories and 4 field stations, where 850 employees work. Tuition of geography was established at Lomonosov Moscow State University since the day of its foundation. The significance of geographical studies at the University, which originally comprised the Faculty of Philosophy, the Faculty of Law and the Faculty of Medicine, was already mentioned in the draft plan of its establishment (1755), which said that «anyone wishing to attend professors' lectures at the University has to learn foreign languages and first scientific basis beforehand". For this purpose two «gymnasiums» consisting of four schools were es-tablished at the University. Geography was included into the curriculum of the «first scientific basis school» and the «school of the distinguished European languages» - German and French. Today Geography in Russia is regarded to be one of the base sciences that are devoted to the problem of society and environment and their interactions. Geography was gone far from the descriptive

  13. Using a Local Greenway to Study the River Environment and Urban Landscape

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lackstrom, Kirsten; Stroup, Laura J.

    2009-01-01

    Greenways are prominent features of many urban landscapes and synthesize several geographic topics: human-environment interactions, urban ecosystems, and the promotion of sustainability within riverine corridors. Greenways are easily accessible and provide an opportunity for students at various grade levels to study interactions across physical…

  14. Louisiana Parishes, Geographic NAD83, USGS (1998) [parishes_USGS_1998

    Data.gov (United States)

    Louisiana Geographic Information Center — This data set contains vector line map information. The vector data contain selected base categories of geographic features, and characteristics of these features,...

  15. Louisiana Geology, Geographic NAD83, NWRC (1998) [geology_NWRC_1998

    Data.gov (United States)

    Louisiana Geographic Information Center — This data set contains vector line map information. The vector data contain selected base categories of geographic features, and characteristics of these features,...

  16. Research on the Eco-tourism and Environment-friendly Land Use Patterns in Shangri-La

    OpenAIRE

    Yan, Fei; Li, Wei; Liu, Yun

    2014-01-01

    Through the analysis of the geographical features of the Shangri-La, the eco-tourism and environment-friendly land use patterns were proposed. And the significances of the mode of economic development in Shangri-La were analyzed.

  17. Geographic Knowledge Extraction and Semantic Similarity in OpenStreetMap

    OpenAIRE

    Ballatore, Andrea; Bertolotto, Michela; Wilson, David C.

    2012-01-01

    In recent years, a web phenomenon known as Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) has produced large crowdsourced geographic data sets. OpenStreetMap (OSM), the leading VGI project, aims at building an open-content world map through user contributions. OSM semantics consists of a set of properties (called 'tags') describing geographic classes, whose usage is defined by project contributors on a dedicated Wiki website. Because of its simple and open semantic structure, the OSM approach often...

  18. Geographic variation in health insurance benefit in Qianjiang District, China

    OpenAIRE

    Ye, Ting; Wu, Yue; Zhang, Liang

    2017-01-01

    Background: Health insurance coverage is of great importance; yet, it is unclear whether there is some geographic variation in health insurance benefit for urban and rural patients covered by a same basic health insurance, especially in China.Objective: To identify the potential geographic variation in health insurance benefit and its possible socioeconomic and geographical factors at the town level.Methods: All the beneficiaries underthe health insurance who had the in-hospital experience in...

  19. Development of the OCRWM transportation geographic information system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peck, M. III; McGuinn, E.J.; Osborne, J.W.

    1995-01-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) is responsible for disposing of the nation's high-level radioactive waste. Current plans call for OCRWM to ship commercial spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from 77 individual reactor sites to a central facility for disposal. The Transportation Geographic Information System (TGIS) is a valuable tool in planning for the SNF shipments and communicating with the public regarding the shipments. The TGIS consists of a geographic information system (GIS) combined with a set of databases that provide data on specific geographic areas, transportation networks, and point locations. Planning activities may include analyzing possible routing options or criteria, highlighting route-specific attributes such as the location of culturally sensitive areas, providing route-specific data such as accident statistics, determining the affected population density along a route to support risk assessment activities, or providing emergency response information such as responder locations and hospitals along the proposed routes. The TGIS is a useful communication tool in helping to address the public's concern over how the shipments will be managed, particularly in the area of route selection by providing graphic portrayals of potential routes in their true geographic contexts

  20. Ecosystem-groundwater interactions under changing land uses: Linking water, salts, and carbon across central Argentina

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jobbagy, E. G.; Nosetto, M. D.; Santoni, C. S.; Jackson, R. B.

    2007-05-01

    Although most ecosystems display a one-way connection with groundwater based on the regulation of deep water drainage (recharge), this link can become reciprocal when the saturated zone is shallow and plants take up groundwater (discharge). In what context is the reciprocal link most likely? How is it affected by land use changes? Has it consequences on salt and carbon cycling? We examine these questions across a precipitation gradient in the Pampas and Espinal of Argentina focusing on three vegetation change situations (mean annual rainfall): afforestation of humid (900-1300 mm) and subhumid grassland (700-900 mm/yr of rainfall), annual cultivation of subhumid grasslands (700-800 mm/yr), and annual cultivation of semiarid forests (500-700 mm). Humid and subhumid grasslands have shallow (measurements. Groundwater contributions enhance carbon uptake in plantations compared to grasslands as suggested by aboveground biomass measurements and satellite vegetation indexes from sites with and without access to groundwater. Where rainfall is 15 m deep) and recharge under natural conditions is null. The establishment of crops, however, triggers the onset of recharge, as evidenced by vadose zones getting wetter and leached of atmospheric chloride. Cropping may cause water table raises leading to a two-way coupling of ecosystems and groundwater in the future, as it has been documented for similar settings in Australia and the Sahel. In the Pampas land use change interacts with groundwater consumption leading to higher carbon uptake (humid and subhumid grasslands) and salt accumulation (subhumid grasslands). In the Espinal (semiarid forest) land use change currently involves a one-way effect on groundwater recharge that may switch to a reciprocal connection if regional water table raises occur. Neglecting the role of groundwater in flat sedimentary plains can obscure our understanding of carbon and salt cycling and curtail our attempts to sustain soil and water resources under

  1. Geographic mobility of Danish dual-erner couples

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Filges, Trine

    2010-01-01

    We analyze the relationship between geographical residence and job mobility for Danish dual-earner couples. We estimate the probability of moving residence and changing job, taking the interdependence between the events into account. The results point to the importance of addressing the interrela......We analyze the relationship between geographical residence and job mobility for Danish dual-earner couples. We estimate the probability of moving residence and changing job, taking the interdependence between the events into account. The results point to the importance of addressing...

  2. Assessing the Nexus of Built, Natural, and Social Environments and Public Health Outcomes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Archer, R.; Alexander, S.; Douglas, J.

    2017-12-01

    This study investigates community-related environmental justice concerns and chemical and non-chemical health stressors from built, natural, and social environments in Southeast Los Angeles (SELA) County and East Oakland, California. The geographical distribution of health outcomes is related to the built and natural environments, as well as impacts from the social environment. A holistic systems view is important in assessing healthy behaviors within a community, because they do not occur in isolation. Geospatial analysis will be performed to integrate a total environment framework and explore the spatial patterns of exposure to chemical and non-chemical stressors and access to health-promoting environments. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analysis using primary and secondary existing data will be performed to determine how social environments impact exposure to chemical health stressors and access to health-promoting built and natural environments. This project will develop a comprehensive list of health-promoting built and natural environments (e.g., parks and community gardens) and polluting sites (e.g., shipping ports and sources of pollution not included in federal regulatory databases) in East Oakland and SELA. California Department of Public Health and U.S. Decennial Census data will also be included for geospatial analysis to overlay the distribution of air pollution-related morbidities (e.g. asthma, diabetes, and cancer) and access to health-promoting built and natural environments and related community assets, exposure to polluting industries, social disorganization, and public health outcomes in the target areas. This research will help identify the spatial and temporal distribution and cumulative impacts of critical pollution hotspots causing community environmental health impacts. The research team will also map how social environments impact exposure to chemical health stressors and access to health-promoting built and natural environments. The

  3. Volunteered Geographic Information: Interpretation, Visualisation and Social Computing (VGIscience)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burghardt, Dirk; Nejdl, Wolfgang; Schiewe, Jochen; Sester, Monika

    2018-05-01

    In the past years Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) has emerged as a novel form of user-generated content, which involves active generation of geo-data for example in citizen science projects or during crisis mapping as well as the passive collection of data via the user's location-enabled mobile devices. In addition there are more and more sensors available that detect our environment with ever greater detail and dynamics. These data can be used for a variety of applications, not only for the solution of societal tasks such as in environment, health or transport fields, but also for the development of commercial products and services. The interpretation, visualisation and usage of such multi-source data is challenging because of the large heterogeneity, the differences in quality, the high update frequencies, the varying spatial-temporal resolution, subjective characteristics and low semantic structuring. Therefore the German Research Foundation has launched a priority programme for the next 3-6 years which will support interdisciplinary research projects. This priority programme aims to provide a scientific basis for raising the potential of VGI- and sensor data. Research questions described more in detail in this short paper span from the extraction of spatial information, to the visual analysis and knowledge presentation, taking into account the social context while collecting and using VGI.

  4. Estimating the accuracy of geographical imputation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Boscoe Francis P

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background To reduce the number of non-geocoded cases researchers and organizations sometimes include cases geocoded to postal code centroids along with cases geocoded with the greater precision of a full street address. Some analysts then use the postal code to assign information to the cases from finer-level geographies such as a census tract. Assignment is commonly completed using either a postal centroid or by a geographical imputation method which assigns a location by using both the demographic characteristics of the case and the population characteristics of the postal delivery area. To date no systematic evaluation of geographical imputation methods ("geo-imputation" has been completed. The objective of this study was to determine the accuracy of census tract assignment using geo-imputation. Methods Using a large dataset of breast, prostate and colorectal cancer cases reported to the New Jersey Cancer Registry, we determined how often cases were assigned to the correct census tract using alternate strategies of demographic based geo-imputation, and using assignments obtained from postal code centroids. Assignment accuracy was measured by comparing the tract assigned with the tract originally identified from the full street address. Results Assigning cases to census tracts using the race/ethnicity population distribution within a postal code resulted in more correctly assigned cases than when using postal code centroids. The addition of age characteristics increased the match rates even further. Match rates were highly dependent on both the geographic distribution of race/ethnicity groups and population density. Conclusion Geo-imputation appears to offer some advantages and no serious drawbacks as compared with the alternative of assigning cases to census tracts based on postal code centroids. For a specific analysis, researchers will still need to consider the potential impact of geocoding quality on their results and evaluate

  5. Developing Trainee Teacher Practice with Geographical Information Systems (GIS)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walshe, Nicola

    2017-01-01

    There is general agreement that geographical information systems (GIS) have a place within the geography classroom; they offer the potential to support geographical learning, exploring real-world problems through student-centred learning, and developing spatial thinking. Despite this, teachers often avoid engaging with GIS and research suggests…

  6. Using geographical information systems to explore disparities in preterm birth rates among foreign-born and U.S.-born Black mothers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bloch, Joan Rosen

    2011-01-01

    To examine spatial patterns of neighborhood contextual factors of stress with preterm birth (PTB) and nativity (foreign-born and U.S.-born) among Black mothers. Descriptive geographic-spatial research. Births to Philadelphia residents during 2003-2005 in the context of Philadelphia residential neighborhoods (N = 350) were studied. All data were aggregated to neighborhood levels (census tracts). Maps were created to assess geographic-spatial patterns. A geographic information system (GIS) database was created that imported geo-coded data on births, crime (assaults with guns and domestic abuse), poverty, race, and nativity (foreign-born vs. U.S.-born). Clear visual patterns of "bad" neighborhoods emerged and were significantly associated with higher prevalence of PTB for foreign-born Black and U.S.-born Black mothers (p < .0001). This study demonstrated how GIS visually clarified important spatial patterns of adverse living conditions and PTB prevalence. Nurses can use GIS to better understand living environments of mothers and their families and to target interventions in geographical areas with the greatest service needs. Further research on individual and contextual factors is warranted to address the observed health disparities among the heterogeneous groups of foreign-born Black mothers. Despite limitations of aggregate data, it is clear that where mothers live matters. This has important implications for nursing practice and policy. © 2011 AWHONN, the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses.

  7. Using Geographical Information Systems to Explore Disparities in Preterm Birth Rates Among Foreign-born and U.S.-born Black Mothers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bloch, Joan Rosen

    2012-01-01

    Objective To examine spatial patterns of neighborhood contextual factors of stress with preterm birth (PTB) and nativity (foreign-born and U.S.-born) among Black mothers. Design Descriptive geographic-spatial research. Setting & Participants Births to Philadelphia residents during 2003–2005 in the context of Philadelphia residential neighborhoods (N = 350) were studied. Methods All data were aggregated to neighborhood levels (census tracts). Maps were created to assess geographic-spatial patterns. A geographic information system (GIS) database was created that imported geo-coded data on births, crime (assaults with guns and domestic abuse), poverty, race, and nativity (foreign-born vs. U.S.-born). Results Clear visual patterns of “bad” neighborhoods emerged and were significantly associated with higher prevalence of PTB for foreign-born Black and U.S.-born Black mothers (p GIS visually clarified important spatial patterns of adverse living conditions and PTB prevalence. Nurses can use GIS to better understand living environments of mothers and their families and to target interventions in geographical areas with the greatest service needs. Further research on individual and contextual factors is warranted to address the observed health disparities among the heterogeneous groups of foreign-born Black mothers. Despite limitations of aggregate data, it is clear that where mothers live matters. This has important implications for nursing practice and policy. PMID:22273411

  8. The Influence of Technology on Geographic Cognition and Tourism Experience

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tussyadiah, Iis; Zach, Florian

    2011-01-01

    Tourists today have access to retrieve voluminous geographic information about destinations while travelling as various context-aware geographic technologies have become increasingly ubiquitous. These technologies are suggested to aid tourists in the process of destination consumption to gain...... meaningful tourism experiences. This study found that people using different types of technologies for everyday routine perceive that these technologies help them with spatial inference to acquire geographic information; making sense of direction and orientation, and interacting with and within places....... Further, within the travel context, geographic technology was found to influence the dimensions of sensory, affective and social experience, as well as the cognitive and bodily experience. The type of technology used for travel was also found to be a significant predictor of the sensory, affective...

  9. A novel ontology approach to support design for reliability considering environmental effects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Bo; Li, Yu; Ye, Tianyuan; Ren, Yi

    2015-01-01

    Environmental effects are not considered sufficiently in product design. Reliability problems caused by environmental effects are very prominent. This paper proposes a method to apply ontology approach in product design. During product reliability design and analysis, environmental effects knowledge reusing is achieved. First, the relationship of environmental effects and product reliability is analyzed. Then environmental effects ontology to describe environmental effects domain knowledge is designed. Related concepts of environmental effects are formally defined by using the ontology approach. This model can be applied to arrange environmental effects knowledge in different environments. Finally, rubber seals used in the subhumid acid rain environment are taken as an example to illustrate ontological model application on reliability design and analysis.

  10. The Space-Time Cube as part of a GeoVisual Analytics Environment to support the understanding of movement data

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kveladze, Irma; Kraak, M. J.; van Elzakker, C. P. J. M.

    2015-01-01

    This paper reports the results of an empirical usability experiment on the performance of the space-time cube in a GeoVisual analytics environment. It was developed to explore movement data based on the requirements of human geographers. The interactive environment consists of multiple coordinated...

  11. Geographic and income variations in age at diagnosis and incidence of chronic myeloid leukemia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendizabal, Adam M; Younes, Naji; Levine, Paul H

    2016-01-01

    Developing countries have a younger population of CML patients than developed countries. Patterns of age at diagnosis and incidence by geography and gross national income (GNI) are not well understood. A population-based descriptive study was conducted using data from the International Agency for Research on Cancer's population-based registry compilation. Geographical regions were classified according to the United Nations World Macro Regions and Components. Age-Standardized Incidence Rates (ASR) were adjusted to the World Standard Population. Poisson regression was used to assess age-specific interactions. 57.2% were male among 33,690 diagnoses. Median age at diagnosis was lowest in Africa and Asia (47 years) and highest in Oceania (72 years). ASR was lowest in African males (0.61 per 100,000) and Asian females (0.55 per 100,000) and highest in Oceania males and females (1.78 and 0.96 per 100,000, respectively). A significant interaction (p 50 years) and region exists; no significant differences were seen by region in the 50 age group. Population-based estimates suggest that the median age at diagnosis and incidence varies by region. Geographic and income heterogeneity suggest an important effect of environment that warrants further studies.

  12. Application of geographic information systems to waste minimization efforts at Los Alamos National Laboratory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lyttle, T.W.; Smith, D.M.; Burns, M.; Weinrach, J.B.

    1993-01-01

    At Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), facility waste streams tend to be small but highly diverse. Initial characterization of such waste streams is often difficult in part due to a lack of tools to assist the generators themselves in completing such assessments. A methodology has been developed at LANL to allow process knowledgeable field personnel to develop baseline waste generation assessments and to evaluate potential waste minimization technology. This Process Waste Assessment (PWA) system is an application constructed within the Process Modeling System and currently being integrated with the InFoCAD Geographic Information System (GIS) . The Process Modeling System (PMS) is an object-oriented, mass balance-based, discrete-event simulation framework written using the Common Lisp Object System (CLOS) . Analytical capabilities supported within the PWA system include: complete mass balance specifications, historical characterization of selected waste streams and generation of facility profiles for materials consumption, resource utilization and worker exposure. Development activities include integration with the LANL facilities management Geographic Information System (GIS) and provisions for a Best Available Technologies (BAT) database. The environments used to develop these assessment tools will be discussed in addition to a review of initial implementation results

  13. Geographical Mobility of Danish Dual-Earner Couples

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Deding, Mette; Filges, Trine

    In this paper, we analyse the empirical relationship between geographical residence mobility and geographical job mobility for Danish dual-earner couples. Based on register data from Statistics Denmark from 1999 and 2000, we estimate three probabilities, taking the interdependence between...... the work region matters for the determination of the residence region. Furthermore, although the model stresses the importance of looking at both spouses, we do not find marked differences between the men and the women. Thus, our results do not indicate that one spouse is more important than the other...

  14. Geographically isolated wetlands: Rethinking a misnomer

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mushet, David M.; Calhoun, Aram J.K.; Alexander, Laurie C.; Cohen, Matthew J.; DeKeyser, Edward S.; Fowler, Laurie G.; Lane, Charles R.; Lang, Megan W.; Rains, Mark C.; Walls, Susan

    2015-01-01

    We explore the category “geographically isolated wetlands” (GIWs; i.e., wetlands completely surrounded by uplands at the local scale) as used in the wetland sciences. As currently used, the GIW category (1) hampers scientific efforts by obscuring important hydrological and ecological differences among multiple wetland functional types, (2) aggregates wetlands in a manner not reflective of regulatory and management information needs, (3) implies wetlands so described are in some way “isolated,” an often incorrect implication, (4) is inconsistent with more broadly used and accepted concepts of “geographic isolation,” and (5) has injected unnecessary confusion into scientific investigations and discussions. Instead, we suggest other wetland classification systems offer more informative alternatives. For example, hydrogeomorphic (HGM) classes based on well-established scientific definitions account for wetland functional diversity thereby facilitating explorations into questions of connectivity without an a priori designation of “isolation.” Additionally, an HGM-type approach could be used in combination with terms reflective of current regulatory or policymaking needs. For those rare cases in which the condition of being surrounded by uplands is the relevant distinguishing characteristic, use of terminology that does not unnecessarily imply isolation (e.g., “upland embedded wetlands”) would help alleviate much confusion caused by the “geographically isolated wetlands” misnomer.

  15. Patrones biogeográficos de la avifauna de la Sierra Madre del Sur Biogeographic patterns of the avifauna of the Sierra Madre del Sur

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Epifanio Blancas-Calva

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available Analizamos la avifauna de 26 subcuencas de la provincia biótica de la Sierra Madre del Sur y sus relaciones biogeográficas utilizando el análisis de parsimonia de endemismos (PAE. A partir de información distributional de las especies obtenida de la base de datos del Atlas de las aves de México y de la literatura disponible, construimos una matriz de datos para 26 subcuencas y 437 especies. Se obtuvo un cladograma que sugiere la existencia de 3 grupos de subcuencas: el primero agrupa subcuencas de climas áridos, ubicadas geográficamente de norte a sureste en el estado de Oaxaca; el segundo, otras subcuencas de ambientes climáticos subhúmedos, y el tercero, las restantes subcuencas de ambientes climáticos húmedos de mayor complejidad ambiental.We analyzed the avifauna of 26 sub-basins of the Sierra Madre del Sur biotic province and their biogeographical relationships applying a parsimony analysis of endemicity (PAE. Based on the distributional information of the species obtained from the Atlas de las aves de México and published literature, we built a data matrix for 26 sub-basins and 437 species. The single cladogram obtained suggests the existence of three groups of sub-basins:the first with 5 sub-basins from arid environments, geographically located in north-southeastern Oaxaca; the second with another 5 sub-basins form subhumid environments; and the third one with the remaining sub-basins, from humid and environmentally more complex habitats.

  16. The geographical distribution of tremellaceous fungi in Poland

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Władysław Wojewoda

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available The geographical distribution of the Polish tremellaceous fungi is discussed in this paper. The list of localities and the maps of the distribution of 60 Polish species (45 of Tremellales, 13 of Auriculariales and 2 of Septobasidiales are given. The author distinguishes several geographical elements, and describes the vertical distribution of these fungi. This paper is a supplement to "Fungi (Mycota", vol. 8, Polish Flora (Wojewoda 1977.

  17. The influence of the cultural climate of the training environment on physicians' self-perception of competence and preparedness for practice

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Busari, Jamiu O.; Verhagen, Eduard A. A.; Muskiet, Fred D.

    2008-01-01

    Background: In current supervisory practice, the learning environment in which the training of specialist registrars (SpRs) takes place is important. Examples of such learning environments are the hospital settings and/or geographical locations where training occurs. Our objective was to investigate

  18. Terrestrial service environments for selected geographic locations. Final report. [1965--1974 data; to define solar array environment to aid in encapsulation program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thomas, R.E.; Carmichael, D.C.

    1976-06-24

    This report contains results obtained from analyses of climatic, precipitation, air pollution, and other environmental data for the years 1965 to 1974 at nine widely different geographic locations in the United States (Albuquerque, N.M.; Bismarck, N.D.; Boston, Mass.; Brownsville, TX.; Cleveland, OH; Fairbanks, AK; Los Angeles, CA; Miami, FL; and Phoenix, AZ). In addition to descriptive and diurnal statistics for 24 individual climatic variables, ''environmental cell'' statistics were computed to obtain the frequencies, durations, and transitions for the simultaneous occurrence of various combinations of environmental variables. Results are presented for the simultaneous occurrence of specific levels of air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and insolation, in addition to representative results obtained for other combinations of variables. The results characterize the environmental conditions to which terrestrial solar arrays would be exposed over a 20-year lifetime, and serve to identify environmental factors and levels that can be used in testing candidate encapsulation materials and systems for such terrestrial exposures. An innovative methodology was applied to obtain these results for combinations of environmental variables. Because of its generality and demonstrated feasibility, it is concluded that the methodology also has broad applications to other testing programs.

  19. Geographic information systems, remote sensing, and spatial analysis activities in Texas, 2008-09

    Science.gov (United States)

    ,

    2009-01-01

    Geographic information system (GIS) technology has become an important tool for scientific investigation, resource management, and environmental planning. A GIS is a computer-aided system capable of collecting, storing, analyzing, and displaying spatially referenced digital data. GIS technology is useful for analyzing a wide variety of spatial data. Remote sensing involves collecting remotely sensed data, such as satellite imagery, aerial photography, or radar images, and analyzing the data to gather information or investigate trends about the environment or the Earth's surface. Spatial analysis combines remotely sensed, thematic, statistical, quantitative, and geographical data through overlay, modeling, and other analytical techniques to investigate specific research questions. It is the combination of data formats and analysis techniques that has made GIS an essential tool in scientific investigations. This fact sheet presents information about the technical capabilities and project activities of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Texas Water Science Center (TWSC) GIS Workgroup during 2008 and 2009. After a summary of GIS Workgroup capabilities, brief descriptions of activities by project at the local and national levels are presented. Projects are grouped by the fiscal year (October-September 2008 or 2009) the project ends and include overviews, project images, and Internet links to additional project information and related publications or articles.

  20. Impacts of landuse and climate change on the dynamics and biodiversity in the Thornbush Savanna Biome

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Jeltsch, F

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available pressure on dryland ecosystem services takes place in regions of intermediate aridity and not, as might be expected, in dry subhumid ar- eas where population density is highest, or in hyperarid areas, where population is lowest. The high... of households (Ericson & Watson 2009). They can function as a model-region for a broad range of dry- lands, especially non-humid savannas, worldwide?in particular as projected climatic changes for most subhumid and semiarid savanna regions indicate major...

  1. Association Between Geographic Elevation, Bone Status, and Exercise Habits: The Shimane CoHRE Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takeda, Miwako; Hamano, Tsuyoshi; Kohno, Kunie; Yano, Shozo; Shiwaku, Kuninori; Nabika, Toru

    2015-06-30

    In recent years, there has been growing interest in the association between the residential environment and health. The association between residential environment (i.e., geographic elevation) and bone status is unknown. Furthermore, these associations could differ by exercise habits due to the chronically greater daily activity caused by steep slopes in mountainous areas. The aim of this study was to test whether the association between bone status of elderly people measured using quantitative ultrasound (QUS) and elevation varied according to the exercise habits in a mountainous area population. Data were collected from a cross-sectional study conducted during 2012-2013. QUS value was expressed as a proportion of the young adult mean (%YAM), with higher scores donating better bone status. After excluding subjects with missing data, we analyzed the data for 321 men and 500 women. Our results indicate that %YAM was not associated with elevation among men, or among women with exercise habits. However, elevation was associated with %YAM among women without exercise habits. Our results highlight the importance of considering residential environment and exercise habits when establishing promotion strategies to maintain bone status of the elderly people who live in rural mountainous areas.

  2. Association Between Geographic Elevation, Bone Status, and Exercise Habits: The Shimane CoHRE Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miwako Takeda

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, there has been growing interest in the association between the residential environment and health. The association between residential environment (i.e., geographic elevation and bone status is unknown. Furthermore, these associations could differ by exercise habits due to the chronically greater daily activity caused by steep slopes in mountainous areas. The aim of this study was to test whether the association between bone status of elderly people measured using quantitative ultrasound (QUS and elevation varied according to the exercise habits in a mountainous area population. Data were collected from a cross-sectional study conducted during 2012–2013. QUS value was expressed as a proportion of the young adult mean (%YAM, with higher scores donating better bone status. After excluding subjects with missing data, we analyzed the data for 321 men and 500 women. Our results indicate that %YAM was not associated with elevation among men, or among women with exercise habits. However, elevation was associated with %YAM among women without exercise habits. Our results highlight the importance of considering residential environment and exercise habits when establishing promotion strategies to maintain bone status of the elderly people who live in rural mountainous areas.

  3. The geographic accessibility of pharmacies in Nova Scotia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Law, Michael R; Heard, Deborah; Fisher, Judith; Douillard, Jay; Muzika, Greg; Sketris, Ingrid S

    2013-01-01

    Geographic proximity is an important component of access to primary care and the pharmaceutical services of community pharmacies. Variations in access to primary care have been found between rural and urban areas in Canadian and international jurisdictions. We studied access to community pharmacies in the province of Nova Scotia. We used information on the locations of 297 community pharmacies operating in Nova Scotia in June 2011. Population estimates at the census block level and network analysis were used to study the number of Nova Scotia residents living within 800 m (walking) and 2 km and 5 km (driving) distances of a pharmacy. We then simulated the impact of pharmacy closures on geographic access in urban and rural areas. We found that 40.3% of Nova Scotia residents lived within walking distance of a pharmacy; 62.6% and 78.8% lived within 2 km and 5 km, respectively. Differences between urban and rural areas were pronounced: 99.2% of urban residents lived within 5 km of a pharmacy compared with 53.3% of rural residents. Simulated pharmacy closures had a greater impact on geographic access to community pharmacies in rural areas than urban areas. The majority of Nova Scotia residents lived within walking or short driving distance of at least 1 community pharmacy. While overall geographic access appears to be lower than in the province of Ontario, the difference appears to be largely driven by the higher proportion of rural dwellers in Nova Scotia. Further studies should examine how geographic proximity to pharmacies influences patients' access to traditional and specialized pharmacy services, as well as health outcomes and adherence to therapy. Can Pharm J 2013;146:39-46.

  4. Sowing the Seeds of Strategic Success Across West Africa: Propagating the State Partnership Program to Shape the Security Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-06-09

    region’s continued growth in economics , population, influence, and the correlating 17 increase in risks to stability from radicalization and...environment and stem the tide of regional instability . The National Guard’s State Partnership Program is a security cooperation tool that Geographic... instability . The National Guard’s State Partnership Program is a security cooperation tool that Geographic Combatant Commanders can leverage to enhance the

  5. application of geographic information system (gis) in industrial land ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DEPHILIHS

    Land capability index mapping using Geographic Information System (GIS) principles was used for this study. The study was undertaken using Arc View ... Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is one of the best approaches for this type of ..... western segments and to a small extent the east. Some of the available lands are ...

  6. Fast, Inclusive Searches for Geographic Names Using Digraphs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donato, David I.

    2008-01-01

    An algorithm specifies how to quickly identify names that approximately match any specified name when searching a list or database of geographic names. Based on comparisons of the digraphs (ordered letter pairs) contained in geographic names, this algorithmic technique identifies approximately matching names by applying an artificial but useful measure of name similarity. A digraph index enables computer name searches that are carried out using this technique to be fast enough for deployment in a Web application. This technique, which is a member of the class of n-gram algorithms, is related to, but distinct from, the soundex, PHONIX, and metaphone phonetic algorithms. Despite this technique's tendency to return some counterintuitive approximate matches, it is an effective aid for fast, inclusive searches for geographic names when the exact name sought, or its correct spelling, is unknown.

  7. Expert geographical information system for assessing hazardous materials in aquatic environments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Regens, J.L.; White, L.; Wright, J.D.; Rene, A.; Mielke, H.; Bakeer, R.; Belkhouche, B.; Barber, M.

    1993-01-01

    Hazardous substances, including radionuclides, heavy metals, chlorinated hydrocarbons, and industrial solvents, pose unique challenges in terms of environmental restoration and waste management, especially in aquatic environments. When stored, used or disposed of improperly, hazardous materials including transuranic wastes, high level wastes, low level wastes, greater than class C wastes, mixed wastes or chemical wastes can contaminate an array of environmental receptors ranging from soils, sediments, groundwater to surface water. Depending on the specific hazardous substance and site attributes, environmental restoration and waste management can be a complex, problematic activity. This is particularly true for the major Defense Programs facilities managed by the Department of Energy (DOE). This research cluster consists of two discrete elements. Project Element No. 1 develops and applies GIS-based approaches to decision support for environmental restoration by delineating potential exposures and health risks at the Rocky Flats Plant and profiling contemporary and historical demographic/land use patterns at Sandia National Laboratories. Project Element No. 2 develops ESS software for surface water and ground water contaminants in the Mississippi River Basin

  8. Medicare Geographic Variation - Public Use File

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — The Medicare Geographic Variation Public Use File provides the ability to view demographic, utilization and quality indicators at the state level (including...

  9. Enabling Research without Geographical Boundaries via Collaborative Research Infrastructures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gesing, S.

    2016-12-01

    Collaborative research infrastructures on global scale for earth and space sciences face a plethora of challenges from technical implementations to organizational aspects. Science gateways - also known as virtual research environments (VREs) or virtual laboratories - address part of such challenges by providing end-to-end solutions to aid researchers to focus on their specific research questions without the need to become acquainted with the technical details of the complex underlying infrastructures. In general, they provide a single point of entry to tools and data irrespective of organizational boundaries and thus make scientific discoveries easier and faster. The importance of science gateways has been recognized on national as well as on international level by funding bodies and by organizations. For example, the US NSF has just funded a Science Gateways Community Institute, which offers support, consultancy and open accessible software repositories for users and developers; Horizon 2020 provides funding for virtual research environments in Europe, which has led to projects such as VRE4EIC (A Europe-wide Interoperable Virtual Research Environment to Empower Multidisciplinary Research Communities and Accelerate Innovation and Collaboration); national or continental research infrastructures such as XSEDE in the USA, Nectar in Australia or EGI in Europe support the development and uptake of science gateways; the global initiatives International Coalition on Science Gateways, the RDA Virtual Research Environment Interest Group as well as the IEEE Technical Area on Science Gateways have been founded to provide global leadership on future directions for science gateways in general and facilitate awareness for science gateways. This presentation will give an overview on these projects and initiatives aiming at supporting domain researchers and developers with measures for the efficient creation of science gateways, for increasing their usability and sustainability

  10. Geographic Analysis of Neurosurgery Workforce in Korea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Hye Ran; Park, Sukh Que; Kim, Jae Hyun; Hwang, Jae Chan; Lee, Gwang Soo; Chang, Jae-Chil

    2018-01-01

    Objective In respect of the health and safety of the public, universal access to health care is an issue of the greatest importance. The geographic distribution of doctors is one of the important factors contributing to access to health care. The aim of this study is to assess the imbalances in the geographic distribution of neurosurgeons across Korea. Methods Population data was obtained from the National Statistical Office. We classified geographic groups into 7 metropolitan cities, 78 non-metropolitan cities, and 77 rural areas. The number of doctors and neurosurgeons per 100000 populations in each county unit was calculated using the total number of doctors and neurosurgeons at the country level from 2009 to 2015. The density levels of neurosurgeon and doctor were calculated and depicted in maps. Results Between 2009 and 2015, the number of neurosurgeons increased from 2002 to 2557, and the ratio of neurosurgeons per 100000 populations increased from 4.02 to 4.96. The number of neurosurgeons per 100000 populations was highest in metropolitan cities and lowest in rural areas from 2009 to 2015. A comparison of the geographic distribution of neurosurgeons in 2009 and 2015 showed an increase in the regional gap. The neurosurgeon density was affected by country unit characteristics (p=0.000). Conclusion Distribution of neurosurgeons throughout Korea is uneven. Neurosurgeons are being increasingly concentrated in a limited number of metropolitan cities. This phenomenon will need to be accounted when planning for a supply of neurosurgeons, allocation of resources and manpower, and the provision of regional neurosurgical services. PMID:29354242

  11. Geographic Analysis of Neurosurgery Workforce in Korea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Hye Ran; Park, Sukh Que; Kim, Jae Hyun; Hwang, Jae Chan; Lee, Gwang Soo; Chang, Jae-Chil

    2018-01-01

    In respect of the health and safety of the public, universal access to health care is an issue of the greatest importance. The geographic distribution of doctors is one of the important factors contributing to access to health care. The aim of this study is to assess the imbalances in the geographic distribution of neurosurgeons across Korea. Population data was obtained from the National Statistical Office. We classified geographic groups into 7 metropolitan cities, 78 non-metropolitan cities, and 77 rural areas. The number of doctors and neurosurgeons per 100000 populations in each county unit was calculated using the total number of doctors and neurosurgeons at the country level from 2009 to 2015. The density levels of neurosurgeon and doctor were calculated and depicted in maps. Between 2009 and 2015, the number of neurosurgeons increased from 2002 to 2557, and the ratio of neurosurgeons per 100000 populations increased from 4.02 to 4.96. The number of neurosurgeons per 100000 populations was highest in metropolitan cities and lowest in rural areas from 2009 to 2015. A comparison of the geographic distribution of neurosurgeons in 2009 and 2015 showed an increase in the regional gap. The neurosurgeon density was affected by country unit characteristics ( p =0.000). Distribution of neurosurgeons throughout Korea is uneven. Neurosurgeons are being increasingly concentrated in a limited number of metropolitan cities. This phenomenon will need to be accounted when planning for a supply of neurosurgeons, allocation of resources and manpower, and the provision of regional neurosurgical services.

  12. Modeling of groundwater potential of the sub-basin of Siriri river, Sergipe state, Brazil, based on Geographic Information System and Remote Sensing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Washington Franca Rocha

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available The use of Geographic Information System (GIS and Remote Sensing for modeling groundwater potential give support for the analysis and decision-making processes about water resource management in watersheds. The objective of this work consisted in modeling the groundwater water potential of Siriri river sub-basin, Sergipe state, based on its natural environment (soil, land use, slope, drainage density, lineament density, rainfall and geology using Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System as an integration environment. The groundwater potential map was done using digital image processing procedures of ENVI 4.4 software and map algebra of ArcGIS 9.3®. The Analytical Hierarchy Method was used for modeling the weights definition of the different criteria (maps. Loads and weights of the different classes were assigned to each map according to their influence on the overall objective of the work. The integration of these maps in a GIS environment and the AHP technique application allowed the development of the groundwater potential map in five classes: very low, low, moderate, high, very high. The average flow rates of wells confirm the potential of aquifers Sapucari, Barriers and Maruim since they are the most exploited in this sub-basin, with average flows of 78,113 L/h, 19,332 L/h and 12,085 L/h, respectively.

  13. Educational Geographers and Applied Geography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frazier, John W.

    1979-01-01

    Describes the development of applied geography programs and restructuring of curricula with an emphasis on new technique and methodology courses, though retaining the liberal arts role. Educational geographers can help the programs to succeed through curriculum analysis, auditing, advising students, and liaison with other geography sources. (CK)

  14. Application of geographic information system as a tool for environmental monitoring in support of a nuclear installation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ribeiro, Glaucielen F.; Silva, Nivaldo C.; Oliveira, Alexandre P.; Ferrari, Talita N.; Dias, Danila C.; Alberti, Heber Luiz C.

    2013-01-01

    The increasing advance of technologies of geographic information systems (GIS), computer processing techniques, and the growing volume of spatial data available and demand for automated systems to aid decision making are motivating enterprises and research institutions to make use of GIS technologies and Intelligent Computing. In this context, the Laboratory of Pocos de Caldas (LAPOC) has a large collection of data that are generated from environmental monitoring of a nuclear installation. These data can be organized through a georeferenced database in order to improve the quality of information, in addition to generating new interpretations from data and existing products. Therefore, this study aims to generate a database that is capable of gathering existing data into a Geographic Information System (GIS) platform using ArcGIS 9.3.1 software which has a model of relational database that stores geographic data in Geodatabase format. The steps of this process start with the organization of spatial and descriptive data, moving through logic and conceptual modeling and finally, implementation of the database into the GIS environment. The data modeling through the Geodatabase was adequate since its structure enabled the data work to be done in an efficient manner in addition to allowing centralized management of such data. This demonstrates the great potential of the tool and improvement of the quality and availability of information. (author)

  15. The beta-diversity of species interactions: Untangling the drivers of geographic variation in plant-pollinator diversity and function across scales.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burkle, Laura A; Myers, Jonathan A; Belote, R Travis

    2016-01-01

    Geographic patterns of biodiversity have long inspired interest in processes that shape the assembly, diversity, and dynamics of communities at different spatial scales. To study mechanisms of community assembly, ecologists often compare spatial variation in community composition (beta-diversity) across environmental and spatial gradients. These same patterns inspired evolutionary biologists to investigate how micro- and macro-evolutionary processes create gradients in biodiversity. Central to these perspectives are species interactions, which contribute to community assembly and geographic variation in evolutionary processes. However, studies of beta-diversity have predominantly focused on single trophic levels, resulting in gaps in our understanding of variation in species-interaction networks (interaction beta-diversity), especially at scales most relevant to evolutionary studies of geographic variation. We outline two challenges and their consequences in scaling-up studies of interaction beta-diversity from local to biogeographic scales using plant-pollinator interactions as a model system in ecology, evolution, and conservation. First, we highlight how variation in regional species pools may contribute to variation in interaction beta-diversity among biogeographic regions with dissimilar evolutionary history. Second, we highlight how pollinator behavior (host-switching) links ecological networks to geographic patterns of plant-pollinator interactions and evolutionary processes. Third, we outline key unanswered questions regarding the role of geographic variation in plant-pollinator interactions for conservation and ecosystem services (pollination) in changing environments. We conclude that the largest advances in the burgeoning field of interaction beta-diversity will come from studies that integrate frameworks in ecology, evolution, and conservation to understand the causes and consequences of interaction beta-diversity across scales. © 2016 Botanical

  16. Estimates of global cyanobacterial biomass and its distribution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia-Pichel, Ferran; Belnap, Jayne; Neuer, Susanne; Schanz, Ferdinand

    2003-01-01

    We estimated global cyanobacterial biomass in the main reservoirs of cyanobacteria on Earth: marine and freshwater plankton, arid land soil crusts, and endoliths. Estimates were based on typical population density values as measured during our research, or as obtained from literature surveys, which were then coupled with data on global geographical area coverage. Among the marine plankton, the global biomass of Prochlorococcus reaches 120 × 1012 grams of carbon (g C), and that of Synechoccus some 43 × 1012 g C. This makes Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus, in that order, the most abundant cyanobacteria on Earth. Tropical marine blooms of Trichodesmium account for an additional 10 × 1012 g C worldwide. In terrestrial environments, the mass of cyanobacteria in arid land soil crusts is estimated to reach 54 × 1012 g C and that of arid land endolithic communities an additional 14 × 1012 g C. The global biomass of planktic cyanobacteria in lakes is estimated to be around 3 × 1012 g C. Our conservative estimates, which did not include some potentially significant biomass reservoirs such as polar and subarctic areas, topsoils in subhumid climates, and shallow marine and freshwater benthos, indicate that the total global cyanobacterial biomass is in the order of 3 × 1014 g C, surpassing a thousand million metric tons (1015 g) of wet biomass.

  17. Scrotal tongue and geographic tongue: polygenic and associated traits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eidelman, E; Chosack, A; Cohen, T

    1976-11-01

    The familial nature of scrotal and geographic tongue was investigated in parents and siblings of 156 probands having these conditions. The prevalence in parents and siblings was significantly higher than that in the control populations. The prevalence in sibilings from families in which at least one parent was also affected was significantly higher than that in siblings from families in which neither parent was affected. The prevalence of scrotal tongue alone in siblins was similar irrespective of the condition in the proband. The prevalence of geographic tongue alone was highest in siblins of probands having only geographic tongue. A polygenic mode of inheritance with some genes common to both conditions is suggested.

  18. Marc Antrop - a revolutionary transdisciplinary scientist or a traditional geographer?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brandt, Jesper

    2009-01-01

    practicians. Tree main problems have faced IALE since the very beginning: to ensure landscape science collaboration (1) between east and west, (2) between disciplines across the boundaries of nature science, social science and humanities, and (3) between academic disciplines and professionals...... for the enthusiastic radical way Marc is working in international networks and activities. He might have done it, just simply because he is a traditional geographer. With his heart beating for the regional geographic synthesis, despite all trends and fashions of many ‘geographers' trying to move this discipline...

  19. Geographic Mobility and Social Inequality among Peruvian University Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wells, Ryan; Cuenca, Ricardo; Blanco Ramirez, Gerardo; Aragón, Jorge

    2018-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to explore geographic mobility among university students in Peru and to understand how mobility patterns differ by region and by demographic indicators of inequality. The ways that students may be able to move geographically in order to access quality higher education within the educational system can be a driver of…

  20. Airland Battlefield Environment (ALBE) Tactical Decision Aid (TDA) Demonstration Program,

    Science.gov (United States)

    1987-11-12

    Management System (DBMS) software, GKS graphics libraries, and user interface software. These components of the ATB system software architecture will be... knowlede base ano auqent the decision mak:n• process by providing infocr-mation useful in the formulation and execution of battlefield strategies...Topographic Laboratories as an Engineer. Ms. Capps is managing the software development of the AirLand Battlefield Environment (ALBE) geographic

  1. Local environment but not genetic differentiation influences biparental care in ten plover populations.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Orsolya Vincze

    Full Text Available Social behaviours are highly variable between species, populations and individuals. However, it is contentious whether behavioural variations are primarily moulded by the environment, caused by genetic differences, or a combination of both. Here we establish that biparental care, a complex social behaviour that involves rearing of young by both parents, differs between closely related populations, and then test two potential sources of variation in parental behaviour between populations: ambient environment and genetic differentiation. We use 2904 hours behavioural data from 10 geographically distinct Kentish (Charadrius alexandrinus and snowy plover (C. nivosus populations in America, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa to test these two sources of behavioural variation. We show that local ambient temperature has a significant influence on parental care: with extreme heat (above 40 °C total incubation (i.e. % of time the male or female incubated the nest increased, and female share (% female share of incubation decreased. By contrast, neither genetic differences between populations, nor geographic distances predicted total incubation or female's share of incubation. These results suggest that the local environment has a stronger influence on a social behaviour than genetic differentiation, at least between populations of closely related species.

  2. 47 CFR 64.1801 - Geographic rate averaging and rate integration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Geographic rate averaging and rate integration. 64.1801 Section 64.1801 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED) MISCELLANEOUS RULES RELATING TO COMMON CARRIERS Geographic Rate Averaging and...

  3. Geographic Variation in Medicare Spending Dashboard

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — The Geographic Variation Dashboards present Medicare fee-for-service per-capita spending at the state and county level in an interactive format. We calculated the...

  4. Geographic Skills: A Case Study of Students in the United Arab Emirates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alhosani, Naeema Mohamed Dawood; Yagoub, M. M.

    2015-01-01

    The worldwide technology boom has created an information revolution. Consequently, a large number of people who previously had limited access to geographic data can now use Internet-based geographic information for a number of diverse purposes. The average person has access to geographic information for tourism, shopping, business, and even route…

  5. Biofouling community composition across a range of environmental conditions and geographical locations suitable for floating marine renewable energy generation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macleod, Adrian K; Stanley, Michele S; Day, John G; Cook, Elizabeth J

    2016-01-01

    Knowledge of biofouling typical of marine structures is essential for engineers to define appropriate loading criteria in addition to informing other stakeholders about the ecological implications of creating novel artificial environments. There is a lack of information regarding biofouling community composition (including weight and density characteristics) on floating structures associated with future marine renewable energy generation technologies. A network of navigation buoys were identified across a range of geographical areas, environmental conditions (tidal flow speed, temperature and salinity), and deployment durations suitable for future developments. Despite the perceived importance of environmental and temporal factors, geographical location explained the greatest proportion of the observed variation in community composition, emphasising the importance of considering geography when assessing the impact of biofouling on device functioning and associated ecology. The principal taxa associated with variation in biofouling community composition were mussels (Mytilus edulis), which were also important when determining loading criteria.

  6. Integrative real-time geographic visualization of energy resources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sorokine, A.; Shankar, M.; Stovall, J.; Bhaduri, B.; King, T.; Fernandez, S.; Datar, N.; Omitaomu, O.

    2009-01-01

    'Full text:' Several models forecast that climatic changes will increase the frequency of disastrous events like droughts, hurricanes, and snow storms. Responding to these events and also to power outages caused by system errors such as the 2003 North American blackout require an interconnect-wide real-time monitoring system for various energy resources. Such a system should be capable of providing situational awareness to its users in the government and energy utilities by dynamically visualizing the status of the elements of the energy grid infrastructure and supply chain in geographic contexts. We demonstrate an approach that relies on Google Earth and similar standard-based platforms as client-side geographic viewers with a data-dependent server component. The users of the system can view status information in spatial and temporal contexts. These data can be integrated with a wide range of geographic sources including all standard Google Earth layers and a large number of energy and environmental data feeds. In addition, we show a real-time spatio-temporal data sharing capability across the users of the system, novel methods for visualizing dynamic network data, and a fine-grain access to very large multi-resolution geographic datasets for faster delivery of the data. The system can be extended to integrate contingency analysis results and other grid models to assess recovery and repair scenarios in the case of major disruption. (author)

  7. Protection of Geographical Indication and Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Chinese Food Product Resources

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    SUN Zhi-guo; WANG Shu-ting; XIONG Wan-zhen; HUANG Li-min

    2012-01-01

    The geographical Indications intellectual property and intangible cultural heritage are the general focus of attention of the world today. In the Chinese food product resources, there are 44 kinds of national geographical indication products, 41 national geographical indication trademarks, 9 kinds of national and 212 kinds of provincial-level intangible cultural heritage. This article introduces the geographical indication protection and geographical indication trademark registration of the Chinese food products, the protection of intangible cultural heritage of traditional craftsmanship; discusses the countermeasures for the protection of geographical indication intellectual property and intangible cultural heritage; finally puts forth several recommendations.

  8. Virtual Geographic Simulation of Light Distribution within Three-Dimensional Plant Canopy Models

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liyu Tang

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Virtual geographic environments (VGEs have been regarded as an important new means of simulating, analyzing, and understanding complex geological processes. Plants and light are major components of the geographic environment. Light is a critical factor that affects ecological systems. In this study, we focused on simulating light transmission and distribution within a three-dimensional plant canopy model. A progressive refinement radiosity algorithm was applied to simulate the transmission and distribution of solar light within a detailed, three-dimensional (3D loquat (Eriobotrya japonica Lindl. canopy model. The canopy was described in three dimensions, and each organ surface was represented by a set of triangular facets. The form factors in radiosity were calculated using a hemi-cube algorithm. We developed a module for simulating the instantaneous light distribution within a virtual canopy, which was integrated into ParaTree. We simulated the distribution of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR within a loquat canopy, and calculated the total PAR intercepted at the whole canopy scale, as well as the mean PAR interception per unit leaf area. The ParaTree-integrated radiosity model simulates the uncollided propagation of direct solar and diffuse sky light and the light-scattering effect of foliage. The PAR captured by the whole canopy based on the radiosity is approximately 9.4% greater than that obtained using ray tracing and TURTLE methods. The latter methods do not account for the scattering among leaves in the canopy in the study, and therefore, the difference might be due to the contribution of light scattering in the foliage. The simulation result is close to Myneni’s findings, in which the light scattering within a canopy is less than 10% of the incident PAR. Our method can be employed for visualizing and analyzing the spatial distribution of light within a canopy, and for estimating the PAR interception at the organ and canopy

  9. Geographic factors as determinants of food security: a Western Australian food pricing and quality study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pollard, Christina Mary; Landrigan, Timothy John; Ellies, Pernilla Laila; Kerr, Deborah Anne; Lester, Matthew Langdon Underwood; Goodchild, Stanley Edward

    2014-01-01

    Food affordability and quality can influence food choice. This research explores the impact of geographic factors on food pricing and quality in Western Australia (WA). A Healthy Food Access Basket (HFAB) was cost and a visual and descriptive quality assessment of 13 commonly consumed fresh produce items was conducted in-store on a representative sample of 144 food grocery stores. The WA retail environment in 2010 had 447 grocery stores servicing 2.9 million people: 38% of stores the two major chains (Coles® Supermarkets Australia and Woolworths ® Limited) in population dense areas, 50% were smaller independently owned stores (Independent Grocers Association®) in regional areas as well, and 12% Indigenous community stores in very remote areas. The HFAB cost 24% (pfoods cost more and the quality of fresh produce was lower. Food affordability and quality may deter healthier food choice in geographically isolated communities. Improving affordability and quality of nutritious foods in remote communities may positively impact food choices, improve food security and prevent diet-sensitive chronic disease. Policy makers should consider influencing agriculture, trade, commerce, transport, freight, and modifying local food economies.

  10. Geographic Analysis of the Radiation Oncology Workforce

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Aneja, Sanjay [Department of Therapeutic Radiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT (United States); Cancer Outcomes, Policy, and Effectiveness Research Center at Yale, New Haven, CT (United States); Smith, Benjamin D. [University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX (United States); Gross, Cary P. [Cancer Outcomes, Policy, and Effectiveness Research Center at Yale, New Haven, CT (United States); Department of General Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT (United States); Wilson, Lynn D. [Department of Therapeutic Radiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT (United States); Haffty, Bruce G. [Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ (United States); Roberts, Kenneth [Department of Therapeutic Radiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT (United States); Yu, James B., E-mail: james.b.yu@yale.edu [Department of Therapeutic Radiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT (United States); Cancer Outcomes, Policy, and Effectiveness Research Center at Yale, New Haven, CT (United States)

    2012-04-01

    Purpose: To evaluate trends in the geographic distribution of the radiation oncology (RO) workforce. Methods and Materials: We used the 1995 and 2007 versions of the Area Resource File to map the ratio of RO to the population aged 65 years or older (ROR) within different health service areas (HSA) within the United States. We used regression analysis to find associations between population variables and 2007 ROR. We calculated Gini coefficients for ROR to assess the evenness of RO distribution and compared that with primary care physicians and total physicians. Results: There was a 24% increase in the RO workforce from 1995 to 2007. The overall growth in the RO workforce was less than that of primary care or the overall physician workforce. The mean ROR among HSAs increased by more than one radiation oncologist per 100,000 people aged 65 years or older, from 5.08 per 100,000 to 6.16 per 100,000. However, there remained consistent geographic variability concerning RO distribution, specifically affecting the non-metropolitan HSAs. Regression analysis found higher ROR in HSAs that possessed higher education (p = 0.001), higher income (p < 0.001), lower unemployment rates (p < 0.001), and higher minority population (p = 0.022). Gini coefficients showed RO distribution less even than for both primary care physicians and total physicians (0.326 compared with 0.196 and 0.292, respectively). Conclusions: Despite a modest growth in the RO workforce, there exists persistent geographic maldistribution of radiation oncologists allocated along socioeconomic and racial lines. To solve problems surrounding the RO workforce, issues concerning both gross numbers and geographic distribution must be addressed.

  11. Geographic Analysis of the Radiation Oncology Workforce

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aneja, Sanjay; Smith, Benjamin D.; Gross, Cary P.; Wilson, Lynn D.; Haffty, Bruce G.; Roberts, Kenneth; Yu, James B.

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: To evaluate trends in the geographic distribution of the radiation oncology (RO) workforce. Methods and Materials: We used the 1995 and 2007 versions of the Area Resource File to map the ratio of RO to the population aged 65 years or older (ROR) within different health service areas (HSA) within the United States. We used regression analysis to find associations between population variables and 2007 ROR. We calculated Gini coefficients for ROR to assess the evenness of RO distribution and compared that with primary care physicians and total physicians. Results: There was a 24% increase in the RO workforce from 1995 to 2007. The overall growth in the RO workforce was less than that of primary care or the overall physician workforce. The mean ROR among HSAs increased by more than one radiation oncologist per 100,000 people aged 65 years or older, from 5.08 per 100,000 to 6.16 per 100,000. However, there remained consistent geographic variability concerning RO distribution, specifically affecting the non-metropolitan HSAs. Regression analysis found higher ROR in HSAs that possessed higher education (p = 0.001), higher income (p < 0.001), lower unemployment rates (p < 0.001), and higher minority population (p = 0.022). Gini coefficients showed RO distribution less even than for both primary care physicians and total physicians (0.326 compared with 0.196 and 0.292, respectively). Conclusions: Despite a modest growth in the RO workforce, there exists persistent geographic maldistribution of radiation oncologists allocated along socioeconomic and racial lines. To solve problems surrounding the RO workforce, issues concerning both gross numbers and geographic distribution must be addressed.

  12. Different Factors of Llap as a Geographic Region

    OpenAIRE

    , F. Isufi; , S. Halimi; , F. Humolli

    2011-01-01

    In this work attempts were made to express in the best possible manner the factors which differentiate the Llap as geographic region. The Llap Region is located in the north-east of Kosovo. Within the ethnic geography, the Llap area is having peripheric position, but within the Balkan Penninsula it is having a central position, while along Llap goes the Highway which connects Kosovo and Serbia. The Llap region has important natural conditions; such as very good geographic position, running an...

  13. Veterans Affairs Geographic Distribution of Expenditures FY09 by Congressional District

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Veterans Affairs — The Geographic Distribution of VA Expenditures (GDX) is an annual report that shows estimated VA expenditures for major programmatic areas by geographic area (state,...

  14. Veterans Affairs Geographic Distribution of Expenditures FY08 by Congressional District

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Veterans Affairs — The Geographic Distribution of VA Expenditures (GDX) is an annual report that shows estimated VA expenditures for major programmatic areas by geographic area (state,...

  15. Teaching Introductory GIS Programming to Geographers Using an Open Source Python Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Etherington, Thomas R.

    2016-01-01

    Computer programming is not commonly taught to geographers as a part of geographic information system (GIS) courses, but the advent of NeoGeography, big data and open GIS means that programming skills are becoming more important. To encourage the teaching of programming to geographers, this paper outlines a course based around a series of…

  16. αA crystallin may protect against geographic atrophy-meta-analysis of cataract vs. cataract surgery for geographic atrophy and experimental studies.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peng Zhou

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Cataract and geographic atrophy (GA, also called advanced "dry" age-related macular degeneration are the two major causes of visual impairment in the developed world. The association between cataract surgery and the development of GA was controversial in previous studies. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We performed a meta-analysis by pooling the current evidence in literature and found that cataract is associated with an increased risk of geographic atrophy with a summary odds ratio (OR of 3.75 (95% CI: 95% CI: 1.84-7.62. However, cataract surgery is not associated with the risk of geographic atrophy (polled OR=3.23, 95% CI: 0.63-16.47. Further experiments were performed to analyze how the αA-crystallin, the major component of the lens, influences the development of GA in a mouse model. We found that theαA-crystallin mRNA and protein expression increased after oxidative stress induced by NaIO(3 in immunohistochemistry of retinal section and western blot of posterior eyecups. Both functional and histopathological evidence confirmed that GA is more severe in αA-crystallin knockout mice compared to wild-type mice. CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, αA-crystallin may protect against geographic atrophy. This study provides a better understanding of the relationship between cataract, cataract surgery, and GA.

  17. Tanzanian food origins and protected geographical indications

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    John, Innocensia Festo; Egelyng, Henrik; Lokina, Azack

    2016-01-01

    As the world's population is constantly growing, food security will remain on the policy Agenda, particularly in Africa. At the same time, global food systems experience a new wave focusing on local foods and food sovereignty featuring high quality food products of verifiable geographical origin...... of food origin products in Tanzania that have potential for GI certification. The hypothesis was that there are origin products in Tanzania whose unique characteristics are linked to the area of production. Geographical indications can be useful policy instruments contributing to food security...... the diversity of supply of natural and unique quality products and so contribute to enhanced food security....

  18. Place Branding – Geographical Approach. Case Study: Waterloo

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marius-Cristian Neacşu

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available This study represents an exploratory analysis of the evolution of the place branding concept, with an important focus on the geographical perspective. How has this notion, a newcomer into the geographers' analysis, changed over time and what role does it have in the decision making process of intervening into the way a certain place is organised or as an instrument of economic revival and territorial development? At least from the perspective of Romanian geographical literature, the originality and novelty of this study is obvious. An element of the originality of this research is the attempt of redefining the concept of place branding so that it is more meaningful from the perspective of spatial analyses. The reason for which Waterloo was chosen as a case study is multi-dimensional: the case studies so far have mainly focused on large cities (urban branding instead of place branding and this site has all the theoretical elements to create a stand-alone brand.

  19. Soil classification predicts differences in prokaryotic communities across a range of geographically distant soils once pH is accounted for

    OpenAIRE

    Morales, Sergio; Trouche, Blandine; Kaminsky, Rachel

    2017-01-01

    Agricultural land is typically managed based on visible plant life at the expense of the belowground majority. However, microorganisms mediate processes sustaining plant life and the soil environment. To understand the role of microbes we first must understand what controls soil microbial community assembly. We assessed the distribution and composition of prokaryotic communities from soils representing four geographic regions on the South Island of New Zealand. These soils are under three dif...

  20. Principles of logic and the use of digital geographic information systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinove, Charles Joseph

    1986-01-01

    Digital geographic information systems allow many different types of data to be spatially and statistically analyzed. Logical operations can be performed on individual or multiple data planes by algorithms that can be implemented in computer systems. Users and creators of the systems should fully understand these operations. This paper describes the relationships of layers and features in geographic data bases and the principles of logic that can be applied by geographic information systems and suggests that a thorough knowledge of the data that are entered into a geographic data base and of the logical operations will produce results that are most satisfactory to the user. Methods of spatial analysis are reduced to their primitive logical operations and explained to further such understanding.

  1. Neighborhood environment and physical activity among older adults: Do the relationships differ by driving status?

    OpenAIRE

    Ding, Ding; Sallis, James F.; Norman, Gregory J.; Frank, Lawrence D.; Saelens, Brian; Kerr, Jaqueline; Conway, Terry L.; Cain, Kelli L.; Hovell, Melbourne Frank; Hofstetter, C. Richard; King, Abby C.

    2013-01-01

    Some attributes of neighborhood environments are associated with physical activity among older adults. This study examined whether the associations were moderated by driving status. Older adults from neighborhoods differing in walkability and income completed written surveys and wore accelerometers (N=880, mean age=75 years, 56% women). Neighborhood environments were measured by geographic information systems and validated questionnaires. Driving status was defined on the basis of a driver’s ...

  2. Geographic variation in nasal cavity form among three human groups from the Japanese Archipelago: Ecogeographic and functional implications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fukase, Hitoshi; Ito, Tsuyoshi; Ishida, Hajime

    2016-05-01

    Geographic variation in human nasal form has often been interpreted as a climatic adaptation, owing to the nasal air-conditioning function. The aim of this study was to further address morphofunctional issues of the nasal cavity, using three human groups from subarctic, temperate, and subtropical regions of the Japanese Archipelago: prehistoric Okhotsk, early-modern Honshu and Okinawa groups. Using three-dimensional coordinates of craniometric landmarks surrounding the nasal cavity, we compared linear measurements regarding nasal cavity form among the three groups and also conducted 3D geometric morphometrics. Both linear measurements and morphometric analyses corroborate the previously reported covariation pattern of nasal cavity shape with climate, where humans from a cold/dry climate tend to possess a relatively tall, narrow, and deep nasal cavity compared with those from a warm/humid environment. The northern Okhotsk group had overall larger cranial airways, which may be attributable to their large facial skeleton. However, the ratio of nasal/bimaxillary breadth was significantly lower in the Okhotsk group, indicating that maxillary size does not necessarily constrain the nasal breadth. In addition, despite the presence of obvious geographic clines in anterior nasal shape, posterior choanal shape lacked the north-south geographic cline. This suggests a certain level of morphofunctional independence between the anterior and posterior nasal openings. The observed geographic variations must, however, be partly considered as a reflection of different ancestral traits and population histories of the three groups. Nevertheless, the results indicate that intergroup variations in nasal cavity morphology can be largely explained by climatic conditions. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 28:343-351, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  3. Geographical Basis for Development of Organic Olive Grow in Croatia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anica Čuka

    2002-01-01

    Full Text Available Conventional agriculture is among the biggest polluters of the environment. Overuse of synthetic pesticides, herbicides and mineral fertilisers have caused soil exhaustion, erosion, unbalance in the ecosystem, and their harmful effect on human health has been proven. This is why the author tried to point to the importance of development of organic agriculture, and olive growing as a traditional agricultural sector in coastal Croatia.The main intention is to show the basic geographical aspects of coastal Croatia and to explain the ways it can influence the development of organic olive farming. It is specially emphasized that organically produced food must be incorporated in Croatian tourist offer. It will stimulate a bigger interest for Croatia as an attractive tourist destination in the world tourist market and will simplify the sale of organically produced food. Development of organic olive farming will also contribute to the revitalisation of small villages where a strong presence of negative processes, such as deagrarisation, deruralisation and demographic regression is evident.

  4. Objective Evaluation in an Online Geographic Information System Certificate Program

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Scott L. WALKER

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective Evaluation in an Online Geographic Information System Certificate Program Asst. Professor. Dr. Scott L. WALKER Texas State University-San Marcos San Marcos, Texas, USA ABSTRACT Departmental decisions regarding distance education programs can be subject to subjective decision-making processes influenced by external factors such as strong faculty opinions or pressure to increase student enrolment. This paper outlines an evaluation of a departmental distance-education program. The evaluation utilized several methods that strived to inject objectivity in evaluation and subsequent decision-making. A rapid multi-modal approach included evaluation methods of (1 considering the online psychosocial learning environment, (2 content analyses comparing the online version of classes to face-to-face versions, (3 cost comparisons in online vs. face-to-face classes, (4 student outcomes, (5 student retention, and (6 benchmarking. These approaches offer opportunities for departmental administrators and decision-making committees to make judgments informed by facts rather than being influenced by the emotions, beliefs, or opinions of organizational dynamics.

  5. Design and Establishment of Quality Model of Fundamental Geographic Information Database

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, W.; Zhang, J.; Zhao, Y.; Zhang, P.; Dang, Y.; Zhao, T.

    2018-04-01

    In order to make the quality evaluation for the Fundamental Geographic Information Databases(FGIDB) more comprehensive, objective and accurate, this paper studies and establishes a quality model of FGIDB, which formed by the standardization of database construction and quality control, the conformity of data set quality and the functionality of database management system, and also designs the overall principles, contents and methods of the quality evaluation for FGIDB, providing the basis and reference for carry out quality control and quality evaluation for FGIDB. This paper designs the quality elements, evaluation items and properties of the Fundamental Geographic Information Database gradually based on the quality model framework. Connected organically, these quality elements and evaluation items constitute the quality model of the Fundamental Geographic Information Database. This model is the foundation for the quality demand stipulation and quality evaluation of the Fundamental Geographic Information Database, and is of great significance on the quality assurance in the design and development stage, the demand formulation in the testing evaluation stage, and the standard system construction for quality evaluation technology of the Fundamental Geographic Information Database.

  6. China's Mission in Surveying, Mapping and Geographic Information during Global Governance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jia, D.; Xue, C.; Chen, X.

    2018-04-01

    In the new era, it is proposed that China should be transformed from a participant and a cooperator into a designer, an impeller and a leader, continue taking an effect of responsible great power, increase public product supply, perfect a global governance system and contribute to China's wisdom and China's schemes during global governance, thus surveying and mapping geographic information takes on great mission. On the one hand, we have to timely grasp global geographic information data resources to provide an important scientific data support for China's wisdom and China's schemes. On the other hand, we have to provide surveying and mapping geographic information infrastructure construction and public products for developing countries, support location services within a global territorial scope, and realize the smoothness of talent flow, material flow and information flow between China and countries in the world. Meanwhile, external assistance and international communication and cooperation of surveying and mapping geographic information are also enhanced, and popularization and application of a geographic information technology in underdeveloped countries and regions are promoted.

  7. Diverse antimicrobial interactions of halophilic archaea and bacteria extend over geographical distances and cross the domain barrier.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Atanasova, Nina S; Pietilä, Maija K; Oksanen, Hanna M

    2013-10-01

    The significance of antimicrobial substances, halocins, produced by halophilic archaea and bacteria thriving in hypersaline environments is relatively unknown. It is suggested that their production might increase species diversity and give transient competitive advances to the producer strain. Halocin production is considered to be common among halophilic archaea, but there is a lack of information about halocins produced by bacteria in highly saline environments. We studied the antimicrobial activity of 68 halophilic archaea and 22 bacteria isolated from numerous geographically distant hypersaline environments. Altogether 144 antimicrobial interactions were found between the strains and aside haloarchaea, halophilic bacteria from various genera were identified as halocin producers. Close to 80% of the interactions were detected between microorganisms from different genera and in few cases, even across the domain boundary. Several of the strains produced halocins with a wide inhibitory spectrum as has been observed before. Most of the antimicrobial interactions were found between strains from distant sampling sites indicating that hypersaline environments around the world have similar microorganisms with the potential to produce wide activity range antimicrobials. © 2013 The Authors. MicrobiologyOpen published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  8. [Current progress in food geographical origin traceability by near infrared spectroscopy technology].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Dong-Hong; Wang, Xi-Chang; Liu, Li-Ping; Liu, Yuan

    2011-04-01

    The geographical origin traceability of food, an important part of traceability system, is effective in protecting the quality and safety of foodstuffs. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR), which is a powerful technique for geographical origin traceability, has attracted extensive attention by scientists due to its speediness, non-pollution and simple operation. This paper presents the advantages and disadvantages of techniques that have been used for food geographical origin traceability. The basic principles of NIR and its applications in different food geographical origin traceability are presented too. Furthermore, problems in applications are analyzed and the future development trends are discussed.

  9. Land use changes in Pak Phanang Basin using satellite images and geographic information system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yongchalermchai, C.

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available This study defined major changes in land use in Pak Phanang Basin, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province by using remote sensing and geographic information system techniques. The land use map conducted by Department of Land Development in 1988 was compared with the land use map interpreted from satelliteimages of Landsat-5 TM acquired in 1995 and 1999. The results revealed that between 1988 to 1999, forest area in the basin decreased by a total of 98.08 km2, a drastic decline of 60% that was changed to rubber plantation area. The rubber area increased about 181.7 km2 or 41%. Shrimp farm area increased by 184.87 km2, equivalent to a high increase of 886% while paddy field area decreased by 248.7 km2, or 16% that was converted to shrimp farm and rubber land. A decline in forest area caused soil erosion. The severe expansion of shrimp farm area caused the salinity and affected nearby paddy field and water source areas, that resulted in degradation of the environment. Application of remote sensing and geographic information system was utilized as a tool for monitoring the land use change and planning proper resource utilization for sustainable development in Pak Phanang Basin.

  10. When can Empirical Green Functions be computed from Noise Cross-Correlations? Hints from different Geographical and Tectonic environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matos, Catarina; Silveira, Graça; Custódio, Susana; Domingues, Ana; Dias, Nuno; Fonseca, João F. B.; Matias, Luís; Krueger, Frank; Carrilho, Fernando

    2014-05-01

    Noise cross-correlations are now widely used to extract Green functions between station pairs. But, do all the cross-correlations routinely computed produce successful Green Functions? What is the relationship between noise recorded in a couple of stations and the cross-correlation between them? During the last decade, we have been involved in the deployment of several temporary dense broadband (BB) networks within the scope of both national projects and international collaborations. From 2000 to 2002, a pool of 8 BB stations continuously operated in the Azores in the scope of the Memorandum of Understanding COSEA (COordinated Seismic Experiment in the Azores). Thanks to the Project WILAS (West Iberia Lithosphere and Astenosphere Structure, PTDC/CTE-GIX/097946/2008) we temporarily increased the number of BB deployed in mainland Portugal to more than 50 (permanent + temporary) during the period 2010 - 2012. In 2011/12 a temporary pool of 12 seismometers continuously recorded BB data in the Madeira archipelago, as part of the DOCTAR (Deep Ocean Test Array Experiment) project. Project CV-PLUME (Investigation on the geometry and deep signature of the Cape Verde mantle plume, PTDC/CTE-GIN/64330/2006) covered the archipelago of Cape Verde, North Atlantic, with 40 temporary BB stations in 2007/08. Project MOZART (Mozambique African Rift Tomography, PTDC/CTE-GIX/103249/2008), covered Mozambique, East Africa, with 30 temporary BB stations in the period 2011 - 2013. These networks, located in very distinct geographical and tectonic environments, offer an interesting opportunity to study seasonal and spatial variations of noise sources and their impact on Empirical Green functions computed from noise cross-correlation. Seismic noise recorded at different seismic stations is evaluated by computation of the probability density functions of power spectral density (PSD) of continuous data. To assess seasonal variations of ambient noise sources in frequency content, time-series of

  11. A review of geographic variation and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) applications in prescription drug use research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wangia, Victoria; Shireman, Theresa I

    2013-01-01

    While understanding geography's role in healthcare has been an area of research for over 40 years, the application of geography-based analyses to prescription medication use is limited. The body of literature was reviewed to assess the current state of such studies to demonstrate the scale and scope of projects in order to highlight potential research opportunities. To review systematically how researchers have applied geography-based analyses to medication use data. Empiric, English language research articles were identified through PubMed and bibliographies. Original research articles were independently reviewed as to the medications or classes studied, data sources, measures of medication exposure, geographic units of analysis, geospatial measures, and statistical approaches. From 145 publications matching key search terms, forty publications met the inclusion criteria. Cardiovascular and psychotropic classes accounted for the largest proportion of studies. Prescription drug claims were the primary source, and medication exposure was frequently captured as period prevalence. Medication exposure was documented across a variety of geopolitical units such as countries, provinces, regions, states, and postal codes. Most results were descriptive and formal statistical modeling capitalizing on geospatial techniques was rare. Despite the extensive research on small area variation analysis in healthcare, there are a limited number of studies that have examined geographic variation in medication use. Clearly, there is opportunity to collaborate with geographers and GIS professionals to harness the power of GIS technologies and to strengthen future medication studies by applying more robust geospatial statistical methods. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Investigation of Spatial Data with Open Source Social Network Analysis and Geographic Information Systems Applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sabah, L.; Şimşek, M.

    2017-11-01

    Social networks are the real social experience of individuals in the online environment. In this environment, people use symbolic gestures and mimics, sharing thoughts and content. Social network analysis is the visualization of complex and large quantities of data to ensure that the overall picture appears. It is the understanding, development, quantitative and qualitative analysis of the relations in the social networks of Graph theory. Social networks are expressed in the form of nodes and edges. Nodes are people/organizations, and edges are relationships between nodes. Relations are directional, non-directional, weighted, and weightless. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of social networks on the evaluation of person data with spatial coordinates. For this, the cluster size and the effect on the geographical area of the circle where the placements of the individual are influenced by the frequently used placeholder feature in the social networks have been studied.

  13. An introduction to geographic information systems as applied to a groundwater remediation program

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hammock, J.K.; Lorenz, R.

    1989-01-01

    While the attention to environmental issues has grown over the past several years, so has the focus on groundwater protection. Addressing the task of groundwater remediation often involves a large-scale program with numerous wells and enormous amounts of data. This data must be manipulated and analyzed in an efficient manner for the remediation program to be truly effective. Geographic Information System's (GIS) have proven to be an extremely effective tool in handling and interpreting this type of groundwater information. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the audience to GIS technology, describe how it is being used at the Savannah River Site (SRS) to handle groundwater data and demonstrate how it may be used in the corporate Westinghouse environment

  14. DEVELOPMENT OF A CARBON MANAGEMENT GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM (GIS) FOR THE UNITED STATES

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Howard J. Herzog

    2004-03-01

    The Lab for Energy and Environment (LFEE) at MIT is developing a Geographic Information System (GIS) for carbon management. The GIS will store, integrate, and manipulate information relating to the components of carbon management systems. Additionally, the GIS can be used to interpret and analyze the effect of developing these systems. In the first year of this three year project, we focused on two tasks: (1) specifying the system design--defining in detail the GIS data requirements, the types of analyses that can be conducted, and the forms of output we will produce, as well as designing the computer architecture of the GIS and (2) creating the ''core'' datasets--identifying data sources and converting them into a form accessible by the GIS.

  15. Issues Surrounding the Use of Virtual Reality in Geographic Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lisichenko, Richard

    2015-01-01

    As with all classroom innovations intended to improve geographic education, the adoption of virtual reality (VR) poses issues for consideration prior to endorsing its use. Of these, effectiveness, implementation, and safe use need to be addressed. Traditionally, sense of place, geographic knowledge, and firsthand experiences provided by field…

  16. Geographic Education--Where Have We Failed?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gritzner, Charles F.

    1981-01-01

    Discusses geography's rather low status and relatively poor public image in the United States and some of the consequences. Among the world's educated industrial nations, the United States ranks among the least literate in a geographical sense. (RM)

  17. Molar macrowear reveals Neanderthal eco-geographic dietary variation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luca Fiorenza

    Full Text Available Neanderthal diets are reported to be based mainly on the consumption of large and medium sized herbivores, while the exploitation of other food types including plants has also been demonstrated. Though some studies conclude that early Homo sapiens were active hunters, the analyses of faunal assemblages, stone tool technologies and stable isotopic studies indicate that they exploited broader dietary resources than Neanderthals. Whereas previous studies assume taxon-specific dietary specializations, we suggest here that the diet of both Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens is determined by ecological conditions. We analyzed molar wear patterns using occlusal fingerprint analysis derived from optical 3D topometry. Molar macrowear accumulates during the lifespan of an individual and thus reflects diet over long periods. Neanderthal and early Homo sapiens maxillary molar macrowear indicates strong eco-geographic dietary variation independent of taxonomic affinities. Based on comparisons with modern hunter-gatherer populations with known diets, Neanderthals as well as early Homo sapiens show high dietary variability in Mediterranean evergreen habitats but a more restricted diet in upper latitude steppe/coniferous forest environments, suggesting a significant consumption of high protein meat resources.

  18. Geographic profiling and animal foraging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Le Comber, Steven C; Nicholls, Barry; Rossmo, D Kim; Racey, Paul A

    2006-05-21

    Geographic profiling was originally developed as a statistical tool for use in criminal cases, particularly those involving serial killers and rapists. It is designed to help police forces prioritize lists of suspects by using the location of crime scenes to identify the areas in which the criminal is most likely to live. Two important concepts are the buffer zone (criminals are less likely to commit crimes in the immediate vicinity of their home) and distance decay (criminals commit fewer crimes as the distance from their home increases). In this study, we show how the techniques of geographic profiling may be applied to animal data, using as an example foraging patterns in two sympatric colonies of pipistrelle bats, Pipistrellus pipistrellus and P. pygmaeus, in the northeast of Scotland. We show that if model variables are fitted to known roost locations, these variables may be used as numerical descriptors of foraging patterns. We go on to show that these variables can be used to differentiate patterns of foraging in these two species.

  19. Geographical information systems and computer cartography

    CERN Document Server

    Jones, Chris B

    2014-01-01

    A concise text presenting the fundamental concepts in Geographical Information Systems (GIS), emphasising an understanding of techniques in management, analysis and graphic display of spatial information. Divided into five parts - the first part reviews the development and application of GIS, followed by a summary of the characteristics and representation of geographical information. It concludes with an overview of the functions provided by typical GIS systems. Part Two introduces co-ordinate systems and map projections, describes methods for digitising map data and gives an overview of remote sensing. Part Three deals with data storage and database management, as well as specialised techniques for accessing spatial data. Spatial modelling and analytical techniques for decision making form the subject of Part Four, while the final part is concerned with graphical representation, emphasising issues of graphics technology, cartographic design and map generalisation.

  20. Phylogenetic diversity and environment-specific distributions of glycosyl hydrolase family 10 xylanases in geographically distant soils.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guozeng Wang

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Xylan is one of the most abundant biopolymers on Earth. Its degradation is mediated primarily by microbial xylanase in nature. To explore the diversity and distribution patterns of xylanase genes in soils, samples of five soil types with different physicochemical characters were analyzed. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Partial xylanase genes of glycoside hydrolase (GH family 10 were recovered following direct DNA extraction from soil, PCR amplification and cloning. Combined with our previous study, a total of 1084 gene fragments were obtained, representing 366 OTUs. More than half of the OTUs were novel (identities of <65% with known xylanases and had no close relatives based on phylogenetic analyses. Xylanase genes from all the soil environments were mainly distributed in Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Dictyoglomi and some fungi. Although identical sequences were found in several sites, habitat-specific patterns appeared to be important, and geochemical factors such as pH and oxygen content significantly influenced the compositions of xylan-degrading microbial communities. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: These results provide insight into the GH 10 xylanases in various soil environments and reveal that xylan-degrading microbial communities are environment specific with diverse and abundant populations.

  1. Geographic divergence in upper thermal limits across insect life stages: does behavior matter?

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacLean, Heidi J; Higgins, Jessica K; Buckley, Lauren B; Kingsolver, Joel G

    2016-05-01

    Insects with complex life cycles vary in size, mobility, and thermal ecology across life stages. We examine how differences in the capacity for thermoregulatory behavior influence geographic differences in physiological heat tolerance among egg and adult Colias butterflies. Colias adults exhibit differences in morphology (wing melanin and thoracic setal length) along spatial gradients, whereas eggs are morphologically indistinguishable. Here we compare Colias eriphyle eggs and adults from two elevations and Colias meadii from a high elevation. Hatching success and egg development time of C. eriphyle eggs did not differ significantly with the elevation of origin. Egg survival declined in response to heat-shock temperatures above 38-40 °C and egg development time was shortest at intermediate heat-shock temperatures of 33-38 °C. Laboratory experiments with adults showed survival in response to heat shock was significantly greater for Colias from higher than from lower elevation sites. Common-garden experiments at the low-elevation field site showed that C. meadii adults initiated heat-avoidance and over-heating behaviors significantly earlier in the day than C. eriphyle. Our study demonstrates the importance of examining thermal tolerances across life stages. Our findings are inconsistent with the hypothesis that thermoregulatory behavior inhibits the geographic divergence of physiological traits in mobile stages, and suggest that sessile stages may evolve similar heat tolerances in different environments due to microclimatic variability or evolutionary constraints.

  2. Air pollution simulation and geographical information systems (GIS) applied to Athens International Airport.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Theophanides, Mike; Anastassopoulou, Jane

    2009-07-01

    This study presents an improved methodology for analysing atmospheric pollution around airports using Gaussian-plume numerical simulation integrated with Geographical Information Systems (GIS). The new methodology focuses on streamlining the lengthy analysis process for Airport Environmental Impact Assessments by integrating the definition of emission sources, simulating and displaying the results in a GIS environment. One of the objectives of the research is to validate the methodology applied to the Athens International Airport, "Eleftherios Venizelos", to produce a realistic estimate of emission inventories, dispersion simulations and comparison to measured data. The methodology used a combination of the Emission Dispersion and Modelling System (EDMS) and the Atmospheric Dispersion and Modelling system (ADMS) to improve the analysis process. The second objective is to conduct numerical simulations under various adverse conditions (e.g. scenarios) and assess the dispersion in the surrounding areas. The study concludes that the use of GIS in environmental assessments provides a valuable advantage for organizing data and entering accurate geographical/topological information for the simulation engine. Emissions simulation produced estimates within 10% of published values. Dispersion simulations indicate that airport pollution will affect neighbouring cities such as Rafina and Loutsa. Presently, there are no measured controls in these areas. In some cases, airport pollution can contribute to as much as 40% of permissible EU levels in VOCs.

  3. Ecophysiological Traits of Leaves of Three Marsilea Species Distributed in Different Geographical Regions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tai-Chung Wu

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Marsilea, an amphibian fern genus (containing ca. 80 species characterized by their unusual leaves and reproductive structures, is distributed over the five continents. To investigate the adaptation traits of three Marsilea species (M. crenata, M. quadrifolia, and M. schelpiana, distributed in different geographic regions, to terrestrial conditions, we compared morphological features, optical properties and photosynthetic performance of leaflets of the three species grown in terrestrial environment. The results showed that leaflets of the three species had significant differences in some of the ecophysiogical traits. Among the three species, M. quadrifolia (distributed in temperate region where receiving low precipitation had the highest trichome density on its leaflet surface and the highest water use efficiency, M. schelpiana (mainly in southern Africa where accepting high level of solar irradiance had the tallest petiole and the highest leaf dissection index, total stomatal pore area index, PSII electron transport rate and photosaturated photosynthetic rate, M. crenata (mainly in southeastern Asia region where receiving high precipitation and with high humidity had the lowest leaf dissection index and water use efficiency. Accordingly, leaf characteristics of the three Marsilea species reflect the climate pattern of their habitats. The results also suggest that water availability and light intensity are two of the important factors contributing to the geographic distribution of the three species.

  4. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) - USGS National Map Downloadable Data Collection

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board...

  5. Non-professional user`s understanding of Geographic Information

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Arleth, Mette

    2003-01-01

    of digital media, including online access to a variety of GI-based services; maps, online Geographic information systems, interactive 3D models etc. However, can we expect that a citizen, who has no relevant professional basis for understanding the concept geographic information, be able to use GI......-based online services and comprehend the information contents? Using the Gi-based online services qualitatively in the participatory process obviously requires knowledge of the non-professional user`s understanding and use of GI. This paper discusses the needs for research into this field as well as relevant...

  6. The relationship between female brooding and male nestling provisioning: does climate underlie geographic variation in sex roles?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoon, Jongmin; Sofaer, Helen R.; Sillett, T. Scott; Morrison, Scott A.; Ghalambor, Cameron K.

    2017-01-01

    Comparative studies of populations occupying different environments can provide insights into the ecological conditions affecting differences in parental strategies, including the relative contributions of males and females. Male and female parental strategies reflect the interplay between ecological conditions, the contributions of the social mate, and the needs of offspring. Climate is expected to underlie geographic variation in incubation and brooding behavior, and can thereby affect both the absolute and relative contributions of each sex to other aspects of parental care such as offspring provisioning. However, geographic variation in brooding behavior has received much less attention than variation in incubation attentiveness or provisioning rates. We compared parental behavior during the nestling period in populations of orange-crowned warblers Oreothlypis celata near the northern (64°N) and southern (33°N) boundaries of the breeding range. In Alaska, we found that males were responsible for the majority of food delivery whereas the sexes contributed equally to provisioning in California. Higher male provisioning in Alaska appeared to facilitate a higher proportion of time females spent brooding the nestlings. Surprisingly, differences in brooding between populations could not be explained by variation in ambient temperature, which was similar between populations during the nestling period. While these results represent a single population contrast, they suggest additional hypotheses for the ecological correlates and evolutionary drivers of geographic variation in brooding behavior, and the factors that shape the contributions of each sex.

  7. Combining Land Capability Evaluation, Geographic Information ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Combining Land Capability Evaluation, Geographic Information Systems, AnD Indigenous Technologies for Soil Conservation in Northern Ethiopia. ... Land capability and land use status were established following the procedures of a modified treatment-oriented capability classification using GIS. The case study ...

  8. [Characteristics and adaptation of seasonal drought in southern China under the background of climate change. V. Seasonal drought characteristics division and assessment in southern China].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Wan-Hua; Sui, Yue; Yang, Xiao-Guang; Dai, Shu-Wei; Li, Mao-Song

    2013-10-01

    Zoning seasonal drought based on the study of drought characteristics can provide theoretical basis for formulating drought mitigation plans and improving disaster reduction technologies in different arid zones under global climate change. Based on the National standard of meteorological drought indices and agricultural drought indices and the 1959-2008 meteorological data from 268 meteorological stations in southern China, this paper analyzed the climatic background and distribution characteristics of seasonal drought in southern China, and made a three-level division of seasonal drought in this region by the methods of combining comprehensive factors and main factors, stepwise screening indices, comprehensive disaster analysis, and clustering analysis. The first-level division was with the annual aridity index and seasonal aridity index as the main indices and with the precipitation during entire year and main crop growing season as the auxiliary indices, dividing the southern China into four primary zones, including semi-arid zone, sub-humid zone, humid zone, and super-humid zone. On this basis, the four primary zones were subdivided into nine second-level zones, including one semi-arid area-temperate-cold semi-arid hilly area in Sichuan-Yunnan Plateau, three sub-humid areas of warm sub-humid area in the north of the Yangtze River, warm-tropical sub-humid area in South China, and temperate-cold sub-humid plateau area in Southwest China, three humid areas of temperate-tropical humid area in the Yangtze River Basin, warm-tropical humid area in South China, and warm humid hilly area in Southwest China, and two super-humid areas of warm-tropical super-humid area in South China and temperate-cold super-humid hilly area in the south of the Yangtze River and Southwest China. According to the frequency and intensity of multiple drought indices, the second-level zones were further divided into 29 third-level zones. The distribution of each seasonal drought zone was

  9. Identification of geographical origin of sesame seeds by near infrared spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kwon, Y.K.; Cho, R.K.

    1998-01-01

    Geographical origin of the Korean, Chinese and Japanese sesame seeds were identified very high accuracy by NIR spectroscopy. The NIR instrument of filter type showed the same accuracy of the monochromator scanning type to identify the geographical origin of the sesame seeds. in case of adulteration between the Korean and Chinese sesame seeds, the ratio of addition could be determined about 10% error level. The reason of identification of geographical origin by NIR spectroscopy, it was supposed to the difference of oil cake substance

  10. Geographical assemblages of European raptors and owls

    Science.gov (United States)

    López-López, Pascual; Benavent-Corai, José; García-Ripollés, Clara

    2008-09-01

    In this work we look for geographical structure patterns in European raptors (Order: Falconiformes) and owls (Order: Strigiformes). For this purpose we have conducted our research using freely available tools such as statistical software and databases. To perform the study, presence-absence data for the European raptors and owl species (Class Aves) were downloaded from the BirdLife International website. Using the freely available "pvclust" R-package, we applied similarity Jaccard index and cluster analysis in order to delineate biogeographical relationships for European countries. According to the cluster of similarity, we found that Europe is structured into two main geographical assemblages. The larger length branch separated two main groups: one containing Iceland, Greenland and the countries of central, northern and northwestern Europe, and the other group including the countries of eastern, southern and southwestern Europe. Both groups are divided into two main subgroups. According to our results, the European raptors and owls could be considered structured into four meta-communities well delimited by suture zones defined by Remington (1968) [Remington, C.L., 1968. Suture-zones of hybrid interaction between recently joined biotas. Evol. Biol. 2, 321-428]. Climatic oscillations during the Quaternary Ice Ages could explain at least in part the modern geographical distribution of the group.

  11. Reduced pollinator service and elevated pollen limitation at the geographic range limit of an annual plant.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moeller, David A; Geber, Monica A; Eckhart, Vincent M; Tiffin, Peter

    2012-05-01

    Mutualisms are well known to influence individual fitness and the population dynamics of partner species, but little is known about whether they influence species distributions and the location of geographic range limits. Here, we examine the contribution of plant-pollinator interactions to the geographic range limit of the California endemic plant Clarkia xantiana ssp. xantiana. We show that pollinator availability declined from the center to the margin of the geographic range consistently across four years of study. This decline in pollinator availability was caused to a greater extent by variation in the abundance of generalist rather than specialist bee pollinators. Climate data suggest that patterns of precipitation in the current and previous year drove variation in bee abundance because of its effects on cues for bee emergence in the current year and the abundance of floral resources in the previous year. Experimental floral manipulations showed that marginal populations had greater outcross pollen limitation of reproduction, in parallel with the decline in pollinator abundance. Although plants are self-compatible, we found no evidence that autonomous selfing contributes to reproduction, and thus no evidence that it alleviates outcross pollen limitation in marginal populations. Furthermore, we found no association between the distance to the range edge and selfing rate, as estimated from sequence and microsatellite variation, indicating that the mating system has not evolved in response to the pollination environment at the range periphery. Overall, our results suggest that dependence on pollinators for reproduction may be an important constraint limiting range expansion in this system.

  12. Geographic Information Systems-Transportation ISTEA management systems server-net prototype pooled fund study: Phase B summary

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Espinoza, J. Jr.; Dean, C.D.; Armstrong, H.M. [and others

    1997-06-01

    The Geographic Information System-Transportation (GIS-T) ISTEA Management Systems Server Net Prototype Pooled Fund Study represents the first national cooperative effort in the transportation industry to address the management and monitoring systems as well as the statewide and metropolitan transportation planning requirements of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA). The Study was initiated in November 1993 through the Alliance for Transportation Research and under the leadership of the New Mexico State Highway and Transportation Department. Sandia National Laboratories, an Alliance partner, and Geographic Paradigm Computing. Inc. provided technical leadership for the project. In 1992, the Alliance for Transportation Research, the New Mexico State Highway and Transportation Department, Sandia National Laboratories, and Geographic Paradigm Computing, Inc., proposed a comprehensive research agenda for GIS-T. That program outlined a national effort to synthesize new transportation policy initiatives (e.g., management systems and Intelligent Transportation Systems) with the GIS-T server net ideas contained in the NCHRP project {open_quotes}Adaptation of GIS to Transportation{close_quotes}. After much consultation with state, federal, and private interests, a project proposal based on this agenda was prepared and resulted in this Study. The general objective of the Study was to develop GIS-T server net prototypes supporting the ISTEA requirements for transportation planning and management and monitoring systems. This objective can be further qualified to: (1) Create integrated information system architectures and design requirements encompassing transportation planning activities and data. (2) Encourage the development of functional GIS-T server net prototypes. (3) Demonstrate multiple information systems implemented in a server net environment.

  13. International Voluntary Health Networks (IVHNs). A social-geographical framework.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reid, Benet; Laurie, Nina; Smith, Matt Baillie

    2018-03-01

    Trans-national medicine, historically associated with colonial politics, is now central to discourses of global health and development, thrust into mainstream media by catastrophic events (earthquakes, disease epidemics), and enshrined in the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals. Volunteer human-resource is an important contributor to international health-development work. International Voluntary Health Networks (IVHNs, that connect richer and poorer countries through healthcare) are situated at a meeting-point between geographies and sociologies of health. More fully developed social-geographic understandings will illuminate this area, currently dominated by instrumental health-professional perspectives. The challenge we address is to produce a geographically and sociologically-robust conceptual framework that appropriately recognises IVHNs' potentials for valuable impacts, while also unlocking spaces of constructive critique. We examine the importance of the social in health geography, and geographical potentials in health sociology (focusing on professional knowledge construction, inequality and capital, and power), to highlight the mutual interests of these two fields in relation to IVHNs. We propose some socio-geographical theories of IVHNs that do not naturalise inequality, that understand health as a form of capital, prioritise explorations of power and ethical practice, and acknowledge the more-than-human properties of place. This sets an agenda for theoretically-supported empirical work on IVHNs. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Assessing associations between socio-economic environment and self-reported health in Amsterdam using bespoke environments.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eleonore M Veldhuizen

    Full Text Available The study of the relationship between residential environment and health at micro area level has a long time been hampered by a lack of micro-scale data. Nowadays data is registered at a much more detailed scale. In combination with Geographic Information System (GIS-techniques this creates opportunities to look at the relationship at different scales, including very local ones. The study illustrates the use of a 'bespoke environment' approach to assess the relationship between health and socio-economic environment.We created these environments by buffer-operations and used micro-scale data on 6-digit postcode level to describe these individually tailored areas around survey respondents in an accurate way. To capture the full extent of area effects we maximized variation in socio-economic characteristics between areas. The area effect was assessed using logistic regression analysis.Although the contribution of the socio-economic environment in the explanation of health was not strong it tended to be stronger at a very local level. A positive association was observed only when these factors were measured in buffers smaller than 200 meters. Stronger associations were observed when restricting the analysis to socioeconomically homogeneous buffers. Scale effects proved to be highly important but potential boundary effects seemed not to play an important role. Administrative areas and buffers of comparable sizes came up with comparable area effects.This study shows that socio-economic area effects reveal only on a very micro-scale. It underlines the importance of the availability of micro-scale data. Through scaling, bespoke environments add a new dimension to study environment and health.

  15. A Geographic Method for High Resolution Spatial Heat Planning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Steffen

    2014-01-01

    more detailed modelling that takes the geographic placement of buildings and the differences among DH systems into account. In the present article, a method for assessing the costs of DH expansions has been developed. The method was applied in a geographic information system (GIS) model that consists...... are considering distribution costs based on the geographic properties of each area and assessing transmission costs based on an iterative process that examines expansion potentials gradually. The GIS model is only applicable to a Danish context, but the method itself can be applied to other countries....... of three parts and assesses the costs of heat production, distribution, and transmission. The model was also applied to an actual case in order to show how it can be used. The model shows many improvements in the method for the assessment of distribution costs and transmission costs. Most notable...

  16. Relationship between Air Pollution and Weather Conditions under Complicated Geographical conditions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheng, Q.; Jiang, P.; Li, M.

    2017-12-01

    Air pollution is one of the most serious issues all over the world, especially in megacities with constrained geographical conditions for air pollution diffusion. However, the dynamic mechanism of air pollution diffusion under complicated geographical conditions is still be confused. Researches to explore relationship between air pollution and weather conditions from the perspective of local atmospheric circulations can contribute more to solve such problem. We selected three megacities (Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou) under different geographical condition (mountain-plain transition region, coastal alluvial plain and coastal hilly terrain) to explore the relationship between air pollution and weather conditions. RDA (Redundancy analysis) model was used to analyze how the local atmospheric circulation acts on the air pollutant diffusion. The results show that there was a positive correlation between the concentration of air pollutants and air pressure, while temperature, precipitation and wind speed have negative correlations with the concentration of air pollutants. Furthermore, geographical conditions, such as topographic relief, have significant effects on the direction, path and intensity of local atmospheric circulation. As a consequence, air pollutants diffusion modes in different cities under various geographical conditions are diverse from each other.

  17. Geographic pathology of Helicobacter pylori gastritis

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Liu, Yi; Ponsioen, Cyriel I. J.; Xiao, Shu-Dong; Tytgat, Guido N. J.; ten Kate, Fiebo J. W.

    2005-01-01

    Background and aim. Helicobacter pylori is etiologically associated with gastritis and gastric cancer. There are significant geographical differences between the clinical manifestation of H. pylori infections. The aim of this study was to compare gastric mucosal histology in relation to age among H.

  18. Canadian database for radionuclide transfer in the environment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sheppard, S C; Corbett, B J [Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., Pinawa, MB (Canada). Whiteshell Labs.

    1995-04-01

    The transfer of radionuclides throughout the biosphere is described in models that rely on a series of transfer parameters. These parameters are typically based on experimental or monitoring observations, and describe processes such as soil-to-plant transfer, soil-to-atmosphere transfer, and water-to-fish transfer. The parameters values used in many applications to date have come from around the world. However, data from Canadian settings are generally preferable for Canadian safety assessment applications. This is particularly true for geographically unique parameters relating to specific soils and environments. This database was constructed to record future radionuclide transfer parameter data systematically and completely, and to record particularly valuable existing data. The database supports element-specific parameters. Because the emphasis is on Canadian data, the data are indexed by geographic and physiographic region. In addition to the specific transfer parameter values, there is provision for a substantial amount of ancillary data. The database now operates with dBase software. (author). 1 tab.

  19. Canadian database for radionuclide transfer in the environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sheppard, S.C.; Corbett, B.J.

    1995-04-01

    The transfer of radionuclides throughout the biosphere is described in models that rely on a series of transfer parameters. These parameters are typically based on experimental or monitoring observations, and describe processes such as soil-to-plant transfer, soil-to-atmosphere transfer, and water-to-fish transfer. The parameters values used in many applications to date have come from around the world. However, data from Canadian settings are generally preferable for Canadian safety assessment applications. This is particularly true for geographically unique parameters relating to specific soils and environments. This database was constructed to record future radionuclide transfer parameter data systematically and completely, and to record particularly valuable existing data. The database supports element-specific parameters. Because the emphasis is on Canadian data, the data are indexed by geographic and physiographic region. In addition to the specific transfer parameter values, there is provision for a substantial amount of ancillary data. The database now operates with dBase software. (author). 1 tab

  20. Geographic resolution issues in RAM transportation risk analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mills G, Scott; Neuhauser, Sieglinde

    2000-01-01

    Over the years that radioactive material (RAM) transportation risk estimates have been calculated using the RADTRAN code, demand for improved geographic resolution of route characteristics, especially density of population neighboring route segments, has led to code improvements that provide more specific route definition. With the advent of geographic information systems (GISs), the achievable resolution of route characteristics is theoretically very high. The authors have compiled population-density data in 1-kilometer increments for routes extending over hundreds of kilometers without impractical expenditures of time. Achievable resolution of analysis is limited, however, by the resolution of available data. U.S. Census data typically have 1-km or better resolution within densely-populated portions of metropolitan areas but census blocks are much larger in rural areas. Geographic resolution of accident-rate data, especially for heavy/combination trucks, are typically tabulated on a statewide basis. These practical realities cause one to ask what level(s) of resolution may be necessary for meaningful risk analysis of transportation actions on a state or interstate scale

  1. 08471 Report -- Geographic Privacy-Aware Knowledge Discovery and Delivery

    OpenAIRE

    Kuijpers, Bart; Pedreschi, Dino; Saygin, Yucel; Spaccapietra, Stefano

    2009-01-01

    The Dagstuhl-Seminar on Geographic Privacy-Aware Knowledge Discovery and Delivery was held during 16 - 21 November, 2008, with 37 participants registered from various countries from Europe, as well as other parts of the world such as United States, Canada, Argentina, and Brazil. Issues in the newly emerging area of geographic knowledge discovery with a privacy perspective were discussed in a week to consolidate some of the research questions. The Dagstuhl program included...

  2. Crime Mapping and Geographical Information Systems in Crime Analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Dağlar, Murat; Argun, Uğur

    2016-01-01

    As essential apparatus in crime analysis, crime mapping and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are being progressively more accepted by police agencies. Development in technology and the accessibility of geographic data sources make it feasible for police departments to use GIS and crime mapping. GIS and crime mapping can be utilized as devices to discover reasons contributing to crime, and hence let law enforcement agencies proactively take action against the crime problems before they b...

  3. Advanced Engineering Environments for Space Transportation System Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas, L. Dale; Smith, Charles A.; Beveridge, James

    2000-01-01

    There are significant challenges facing today's launch vehicle industry. Global competition, more complex products, geographically-distributed design teams, demands for lower cost, higher reliability and safer vehicles, and the need to incorporate the latest technologies quicker, all face the developer of a space transportation system. Within NASA, multiple technology development and demonstration projects are underway toward the objectives of safe, reliable, and affordable access to space. New information technologies offer promising opportunities to develop advanced engineering environments to meet these challenges. Significant advances in the state-of-the-art of aerospace engineering practice are envisioned in the areas of engineering design and analytical tools, cost and risk tools, collaborative engineering, and high-fidelity simulations early in the development cycle. At the Marshall Space Flight Center, work has begun on development of an advanced engineering environment specifically to support the design, modeling, and analysis of space transportation systems. This paper will give an overview of the challenges of developing space transportation systems in today's environment and subsequently discuss the advanced engineering environment and its anticipated benefits.

  4. Geographical constraints to range-based attacks on links in complex networks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gong Baihua; Liu Jun; Huang Liang; Yang Kongqing; Yang Lei

    2008-01-01

    In this paper, we studied range-based attacks on links in geographically constrained scale-free networks and found that there is a continuous switching of roles of short- and long-range attacks on links when tuning the geographical constraint strength. Our results demonstrate that the geography has a significant impact on the network efficiency and security; thus one can adjust the geographical structure to optimize the robustness and the efficiency of the networks. We introduce a measurement of the impact of links on the efficiency of the network, and an effective attacking strategy is suggested

  5. Research on a Method of Geographical Information Service Load Balancing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Heyuan; Li, Yongxing; Xue, Zhiyong; Feng, Tao

    2018-05-01

    With the development of geographical information service technologies, how to achieve the intelligent scheduling and high concurrent access of geographical information service resources based on load balancing is a focal point of current study. This paper presents an algorithm of dynamic load balancing. In the algorithm, types of geographical information service are matched with the corresponding server group, then the RED algorithm is combined with the method of double threshold effectively to judge the load state of serve node, finally the service is scheduled based on weighted probabilistic in a certain period. At the last, an experiment system is built based on cluster server, which proves the effectiveness of the method presented in this paper.

  6. Environment monitoring and residents health condition monitoring of nuclear power plant Bohunice region

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Letkovicova, M.; Rehak, R.; Stehlikova, B.; Celko, M.; Hraska, S.; Klocok, L.; Kostial, J.; Prikazsky, V.; Vidovic, J.; Zirko, M.; Beno, T.; Mitosinka, J.

    1998-01-01

    The report contents final environment evaluation and selected characteristic of residents health physics of nuclear power plant Bohunice region. Evaluated data were elaborated during analytical period 1993-1997.Task solving which results are documented in this final report was going on between 1996- 1998. The report deals in individual stages with the following: Information obtaining and completing which characterize demographic situation of the area for the 1993-1997 period; Datum obtaining and completing which contain selected health physics characteristics of the area residents; Database structures for individual data archiving from monitoring and collection; Brief description of geographic information system for graphic presentation of evaluation results based on topographic base; Digital mapping structure description; Results and evaluation of radionuclide monitoring in environment performed by Environmental radiation measurements laboratory by the nuclear power plant Bohunice for the 1993-1997 period. Demographic situation evaluation and selected health physics characteristics of the area of nuclear power plant residents for the 1993-1997 period are summarized in the final part of the document. Monitoring results and their evaluation is processed in graph, table, text description and map output forms. Map outputs are processed in the geographic information system Arc View GIS 3.0a environment

  7. Investigation of the Relationship between Learning Process and Learning Outcomes in E-Learning Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yurdugül, Halil; Menzi Çetin, Nihal

    2015-01-01

    Problem Statement: Learners can access and participate in online learning environments regardless of time and geographical barriers. This brings up the umbrella concept of learner autonomy that contains self-directed learning, self-regulated learning and the studying process. Motivation and learning strategies are also part of this umbrella…

  8. Precipitation-centered Conceptual Model for Sub-humid Uplands in Lampasas Cut Plains, TX

    Science.gov (United States)

    Potter, S. R.; Tu, M.; Wilcox, B. P.

    2011-12-01

    Conceptual understandings of dominant hydrological processes, system interactions and feedbacks, and external forcings operating within catchments often defy simple definition and explanation, especially catchments encompassing transition zones, degraded landscapes, rapid development, and where climate forcings exhibit large variations across time and space. However, it is precisely those areas for which understanding and knowledge are most needed to innovate sustainable management strategies and counter past management blunders and failed restoration efforts. The cut plain of central Texas is one such area. Complex geographic and climatic factors lead to spatially and temporally variable precipitation having frequent dry periods interrupted by intense high-volume precipitation. Fort Hood, an army post located in the southeast cut plain contains landscapes ranging from highly degraded to nearly pristine with a topography mainly comprised of flat-topped mesas separated by broad u-shaped valleys. To understand the hydrology of the area and responses to wet-dry cycles we analyzed 4-years of streamflow and rainfall from 8 catchments, sized between 1819 and 16,000 ha. Since aquifer recharge/discharge and surface stream-groundwater interactions are unimportant, we hypothesized a simple conceptual model driven by precipitation and radiative forcings and having stormflow, baseflow, ET, and two hypothetical storage components. The key storage component was conceptualized as a buffer that was highly integrated with the ET component and exerted controls on baseflow. Radiative energy controlled flux from the buffer to ET. We used the conceptual model in making a bimonthly hydrologic budget, which included buffer volumes and a deficit-surplus indicator. Through the analysis, we were led to speculate that buffer capacity plays key roles in these landscapes and even relatively minor changes in capacity, due to soil compaction for example, might lead to ecological shifts. The

  9. Fungi identify the geographic origin of dust samples.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Neal S Grantham

    Full Text Available There is a long history of archaeologists and forensic scientists using pollen found in a dust sample to identify its geographic origin or history. Such palynological approaches have important limitations as they require time-consuming identification of pollen grains, a priori knowledge of plant species distributions, and a sufficient diversity of pollen types to permit spatial or temporal identification. We demonstrate an alternative approach based on DNA sequencing analyses of the fungal diversity found in dust samples. Using nearly 1,000 dust samples collected from across the continental U.S., our analyses identify up to 40,000 fungal taxa from these samples, many of which exhibit a high degree of geographic endemism. We develop a statistical learning algorithm via discriminant analysis that exploits this geographic endemicity in the fungal diversity to correctly identify samples to within a few hundred kilometers of their geographic origin with high probability. In addition, our statistical approach provides a measure of certainty for each prediction, in contrast with current palynology methods that are almost always based on expert opinion and devoid of statistical inference. Fungal taxa found in dust samples can therefore be used to identify the origin of that dust and, more importantly, we can quantify our degree of certainty that a sample originated in a particular place. This work opens up a new approach to forensic biology that could be used by scientists to identify the origin of dust or soil samples found on objects, clothing, or archaeological artifacts.

  10. Geographic distribution of wild potato species

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hijmans, R.J.; Spooner, D.M.

    2001-01-01

    The geographic distribution of wild potatoes (Solanaceae sect. Petota) was analyzed using a database of 6073 georeferenced observations. Wild potatoes occur in 16 countries, but 88% of the observations are from Argentina, Bolivia, Mexico, and Peru. Most species are rare and narrowly endemic: for 77

  11. Ontology-based geographic data set integration

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Uitermark, H.T.J.A.; Uitermark, Harry T.; Oosterom, Peter J.M.; Mars, Nicolaas; Molenaar, Martien; Molenaar, M.

    1999-01-01

    In order to develop a system to propagate updates we investigate the semantic and spatial relationships between independently produced geographic data sets of the same region (data set integration). The goal of this system is to reduce operator intervention in update operations between corresponding

  12. The Data Reliability of Volunteered Geographic Information with Using Traffic Accident Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sevinç, H. K.; Karaş, I. R.

    2017-11-01

    The development of mobile technologies is important in the lives of humans. Mobile devices constitute a great part of the daily lives of people. It has come to such a point that when people first wake up, they check their smart phones for the first thing. Users may share their positions with the GNSS sensors in mobile devices or they can add information about their positions in mobile applications. Users contribute to Geographical Information System with this sharing. These users consist of native (citizens) living in that geographical position not of the CBS specialists. Creating, collecting, sharing and disseminating the geographical data provided by voluntary individuals constitute the Volunteered Geographic Information System. The data in the Volunteered Geographic Information System are received from amateur users. "How reliable will the data received from amateur users instead of specialists of the field be in scientific terms?" In this study, the reliability between the data received from the voluntary users through Volunteered Geographic Information System and real data is investigated. The real data consist of the traffic accident coordinates. The data that will be received from users will be received through the speed values in the relevant coordinates and the marking of the users for possible accident points on the map.

  13. Geographic Medical History: Advances in Geospatial Technology Present New Potentials in Medical Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Faruque, F. S.; Finley, R. W.

    2016-06-01

    Genes, behaviour, and the environment are known to be the major risk factors for common diseases. When the patient visits a physician, typical questions include family history (genes) and lifestyle of the patient (behaviour), but questions concerning environmental risk factors often remain unasked. It is ironic that 25 centuries ago Hippocrates, known as the father of medicine, noted the importance of environmental exposure in medical investigation as documented in his classic work, "Airs, Waters, Places", yet the practice of routinely incorporating environmental risk factors is still not in place. Modern epigenetic studies have found that unhealthy lifestyle and environmental factors can cause changes to our genes that can increase disease risk factors. Therefore, attempting to solve the puzzle of diseases using heredity and lifestyle alone will be incomplete without accounting for the environmental exposures. The primary reason why environmental exposure has not yet been a routine part of the patient's medical history is mostly due to our inability to provide clinicians useful measures of environmental exposures suitable for their clinical practices. This presentation will discuss advances in geospatial technology that show the potential to catalyse a paradigm shift in medical practice and health research by allowing environmental risk factors to be documented as the patient's "Geographic Medical History". In order to accomplish this we need information on: a) relevant spatiotemporal environmental variables, and b) location of the individual in that person's dynamic environment. Common environmental agents that are known to interact with genetic make-up include air pollutants, mold spores, pesticides, etc. Until recently, the other component, location of an individual was limited to a static representation such as residential or workplace location. Now, with the development of mobile technology, changes in an individual's location can be tracked in real time if

  14. GEOGRAPHIC MEDICAL HISTORY: ADVANCES IN GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY PRESENT NEW POTENTIALS IN MEDICAL PRACTICE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    F. S. Faruque

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Genes, behaviour, and the environment are known to be the major risk factors for common diseases. When the patient visits a physician, typical questions include family history (genes and lifestyle of the patient (behaviour, but questions concerning environmental risk factors often remain unasked. It is ironic that 25 centuries ago Hippocrates, known as the father of medicine, noted the importance of environmental exposure in medical investigation as documented in his classic work, “Airs, Waters, Places”, yet the practice of routinely incorporating environmental risk factors is still not in place. Modern epigenetic studies have found that unhealthy lifestyle and environmental factors can cause changes to our genes that can increase disease risk factors. Therefore, attempting to solve the puzzle of diseases using heredity and lifestyle alone will be incomplete without accounting for the environmental exposures. The primary reason why environmental exposure has not yet been a routine part of the patient’s medical history is mostly due to our inability to provide clinicians useful measures of environmental exposures suitable for their clinical practices. This presentation will discuss advances in geospatial technology that show the potential to catalyse a paradigm shift in medical practice and health research by allowing environmental risk factors to be documented as the patient’s “Geographic Medical History”. In order to accomplish this we need information on: a relevant spatiotemporal environmental variables, and b location of the individual in that person’s dynamic environment. Common environmental agents that are known to interact with genetic make-up include air pollutants, mold spores, pesticides, etc. Until recently, the other component, location of an individual was limited to a static representation such as residential or workplace location. Now, with the development of mobile technology, changes in an individual’s location

  15. Modeling the geographical studies with GeoGebra-software

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ionica Soare

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available The problem of mathematical modeling in geography is one of the most important strategies in order to establish the evolution and the prevision of geographical phenomena. Models must have a simplified structure, to reflect essential components and must be selective, structured, and suggestive and approximate the reality. Models could be static or dynamic, developed in a theoretical, symbolic, conceptual or mental way, mathematically modeled. The present paper is focused on the virtual model which uses GeoGebra software, free and available at www.geogebra.org, in order to establish new methods of geographical analysis in a dynamic, didactic way.

  16. The impact of Ignalina NPP and Visaginas town on the social territorial processes in the region: the peculiarities of geographical investigation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baubinas, R.

    1998-01-01

    The present work is a discussion of some aspects of organization and methodological substantiation of the state research programme T he Atomic Energetic and Environment . It contains the material of complex social geographical investigations in the Ignalina NPP region carried out in 1995 -1997. The discussed theme is of topical importance because the NPP infrastructure effects all spheres of environment, i. e. not only the nature but the society, way of thinking and integrated formations, occurring as a result of their interaction, as well. The main aim of investigation is to determine the impact of the functioning Ignalina NPP and its infrastructure (including the Visaginas town) on the social environment emphasizing the effect on the social territorial processes. The main tasks are - to reveal the impact of NPP on the regional economic, social, demographic, political and cultural processes in the context of ecological and psychological impact. The Ignalina NPP and Visaginas region is in the state of formation. This process is going on in a very controversial environment, under the conditions of social and cultural isolation. For the geographical situation, functional peculiarities and history this region cannot be attributed to any usual types of region. The social relations of Visaginas with the environment are poor as a result of the ex centric situation of the town, lack communication and mentioned cultural self isolation. Notwithstanding the large social potential of Visaginas it is unable to carry out the functions of regional center. In the international relation of the region the social psychological constituent prevails. For lack of ecological, cultural and, particularly, social relations the political problems of this trans national region are likely to become more acute in the future. Therefore, conditions for rational development of the region will be more difficult. Taking into account the character and development of social territorial processes it

  17. Inorganic chemical quality of European tap-water: 2. Geographical distribution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Flem, B.; Reimann, C.; Birke, M.; Banks, D.; Filzmoser, P.; Frengstad, B.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • European scale comparison of tap water. • 579 tap water samples have been analyses for more than 60 parameters. • Chemical geographical distribution. • Water treatment processes. • Importance of geology on tap water quality. - Abstract: 579 tap water samples were collected at the European scale and analysed at a single laboratory for more than 60 parameters. This dataset is analysed here in terms of the spatial and national distribution of the analysed inorganic chemical parameters. The distribution of most parameters is controlled by various artificial and natural factors (land use, distribution network, water source and treatment, geographical location and geology). The distribution of nitrate can be interpreted in terms of land use and climate. Water treatment affects the distribution of phosphorus in tap water; especially the policy of adding phosphate to potable water in the UK to suppress plumbosolvency. The distribution of alkalinity, Ca, Mg, Sr and Li appears to reflect both water source (low in surface waters) and the geological contrast between base-poor crystalline rock terrains and carbonate rich sedimentary rock. The Scandinavian nations’ tap water shows the highest concentrations of most of the rare earth elements, probably reflecting their geological availability and mobility in low pH raw water sources. The distribution of fluoride, uranium and arsenic also appear to exhibit geological and source (groundwater versus surface water) controls. Hungary returns several high As results, which may reflect As-rich reducing groundwaters of the Pannonian basin. Much Estonian tap water reflects a very specific hydrochemical environment, namely Palaeozoic near-coastal aquifers, which yield deep, reducing or saline groundwater (possibly influenced by marine intrusion), enriched in Ba, B, Br − , Cl − , Eu, F − , I, Li, K, Mn and Na

  18. Gene-environment Interactions in Human Health: Case Studies and Strategies for developing new paradigms and research methodologies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fatimah L.C. Jackson

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The synergistic effects of genes and the environment on health are explored in three case studies: adult lactase persistence, autism spectrum disorders, and the metabolic syndrome, providing examples of the interactive complexities underlying these phenotypes. Since the phenotypes are the initial targets of evolutionary processes, understanding the specific environmental contexts of the genetic, epigenetic, and proteomic changes associated with these phenotypes is essential in predicting their health implications. Robust databases must be developed on the local scale to deconstruct both the population substructure and the unique components of the environment that stimulate geographically-specific changes in gene expression patterns. To produce these databases and make valid predictions, new, locally-focused and information-dense models are needed that incorporate data on evolutionary ecology, environmental complexity, local geographic patterns of gene expression, and population substructure.

  19. GNIS: Geographic Names Information Systems - All features

    Data.gov (United States)

    Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) actively seeks data from and partnerships with Government agencies at all levels and other interested organizations....

  20. Geographical variation in dementia: systematic review with meta-analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Russ, Tom C; Batty, G David; Hearnshaw, Gena F; Fenton, Candida; Starr, John M

    2012-01-01

    Background Geographical variation in dementia prevalence and incidence may indicate important socio-environmental contributions to dementia aetiology. However, previous comparisons have been hampered by combining studies with different methodologies. This review systematically collates and synthesizes studies examining geographical variation in the prevalence and incidence of dementia based on comparisons of studies using identical methodologies. Methods Papers were identified by a comprehensive electronic search of relevant databases, scrutinising the reference sections of identified publications, contacting experts in the field and re-examining papers already known to us. Identified articles were independently reviewed against inclusion/exclusion criteria and considered according to geographical scale. Rural/urban comparisons were meta-analysed. Results Twelve thousand five hundred and eighty records were reviewed and 51 articles were included. Dementia prevalence and incidence varies at a number of scales from the national down to small areas, including some evidence of an effect of rural living [prevalence odds ratio (OR) = 1.11, 90% confidence interval (CI) 0.79–1.57; incidence OR = 1.20, 90% CI 0.84–1.71]. However, this association of rurality was stronger for Alzheimer disease, particularly when early life rural living was captured (prevalence OR = 2.22, 90% CI 1.19–4.16; incidence OR = 1.64, 90% CI 1.08–2.50). Conclusions There is evidence of geographical variation in rates of dementia in affluent countries at a variety of geographical scales. Rural living is associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer disease, and there is a suggestion that early life rural living further increases this risk. However, the fact that few studies have been conducted in resource-poor countries limits conclusions. PMID:22798662

  1. Natural Scales in Geographical Patterns

    Science.gov (United States)

    Menezes, Telmo; Roth, Camille

    2017-04-01

    Human mobility is known to be distributed across several orders of magnitude of physical distances, which makes it generally difficult to endogenously find or define typical and meaningful scales. Relevant analyses, from movements to geographical partitions, seem to be relative to some ad-hoc scale, or no scale at all. Relying on geotagged data collected from photo-sharing social media, we apply community detection to movement networks constrained by increasing percentiles of the distance distribution. Using a simple parameter-free discontinuity detection algorithm, we discover clear phase transitions in the community partition space. The detection of these phases constitutes the first objective method of characterising endogenous, natural scales of human movement. Our study covers nine regions, ranging from cities to countries of various sizes and a transnational area. For all regions, the number of natural scales is remarkably low (2 or 3). Further, our results hint at scale-related behaviours rather than scale-related users. The partitions of the natural scales allow us to draw discrete multi-scale geographical boundaries, potentially capable of providing key insights in fields such as epidemiology or cultural contagion where the introduction of spatial boundaries is pivotal.

  2. Veterans Affairs Geographic Distribution of Expenditures FY07 by State and County

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Veterans Affairs — The Geographic Distribution of VA Expenditures (GDX) is an annual report that shows estimated VA expenditures for major programmatic areas by geographic area (state,...

  3. Veterans Affairs Geographic Distribution of Expenditures FY08 by State and County

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Veterans Affairs — The Geographic Distribution of VA Expenditures (GDX) is an annual report that shows estimated VA expenditures for major programmatic areas by geographic area (state,...

  4. A distributed execution environment for large data visualization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang Jian; Liu Huadong; Beck, Micah; Gao Jinzhu; Moore, Terry

    2006-01-01

    Over the years, homogeneous computer cluster have been the most popular, and, in some sense, the only viable, platform for use in parallel visualization. In this work, we designed an execution environment for data-intensive visualization that is suitable to handle SciDAC scale datasets. This environment is solely based on computers distributed across the Internet that are owned and operated by independent institutions, while being openly shared for free. Those Internet computers are inherently of heterogeneous hardware configuration and running a variety of operating systems. Using 100 processors of such kind, we have been able to obtain the same level of performance offered by a 64-node cluster of 2.2 GHz P4 processors, while processing a 75GBs subset of TSI simulation data. Due to its inherently shared nature, this execution environment for data-intensive visualization could provide a viable means of collaboration among geographically separated SciDAC scientists

  5. Exploring the potentials of volunteered geographic Information as a source for spatial data acquisition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ariffin, Izyana; Solemon, Badariah; Anwar, Rina Md; Din, Marina Md; Azmi, Nor Nashrah

    2014-01-01

    The advancement of technologies nowadays enables participation by nonprofessionals, known as volunteers to participate in producing, sharing and consuming geographic information. Such information, termed as volunteered geographic Information (VGI) has created a new approach of gathering geographic information. This paper discusses the traditional way of acquiring geographic information and potentials of VGI as an information source in GIS applications. We also review four commonly cited applications which rely on volunteers for their geographic information based on five criteria; the geometry type available in the applications, availability of user profile, average number of attributes used in the applications, data type of the information (raster or vector) and the domain the application belongs to. This review serves as a preliminarv study in designing a GIS application used for asset management which aims at exploiting volunteers to produce geographic information related to assets

  6. Overcoming scepticism: Interacting influences of geographical location on perceived climate change adaptation measures to water resources in Spain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iglesias, Ana; Garrote, Luis; Bardaji, Isabel; Iglesias, Pedro; Granados, Alfredo

    2016-04-01

    Though many climate adaptation efforts attempt to be defined with the participation of local communities, these strategies may be ineffective because among citizens affected equally, a local risk perception rather than scientific understanding largely drives adaptation choices. Further, the geographical location may polarize climate risk perceptions, making some adaptation efforts ineffective among sceptics. This study examines how the local degradation of the environment and water resources relates to adaption choices and in turn, climate change risk perception among a range of citizens in the Tagus basin, Spain (n = 300). We find respondents of less degraded areas have individualistic responses, and are significantly less likely to accept adaptation strategies than respondents in water stressed communities. The interaction between climate knowledge and adaptation choices is positively related to acceptance of adaptation choices in both groups, and had a stronger positive relationship among individualists. There is no statistical difference in acceptance of adaptation between individualists and communitarians at high levels of knowledge (top decile). Thus, education efforts specific to climate change may counteract divisions based geographical location and environmental stress.

  7. Teaching Geographic Field Methods Using Paleoecology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, Megan K.

    2014-01-01

    Field-based undergraduate geography courses provide numerous pedagogical benefits including an opportunity for students to acquire employable skills in an applied context. This article presents one unique approach to teaching geographic field methods using paleoecological research. The goals of this course are to teach students key geographic…

  8. Effects of geographical extent on the determinants of woody plant diversity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wang, Zhiheng; Rahbek, Carsten; Fang, Jingyun

    2012-01-01

    the quantitative effects of geographical extent are rarely tested. Here, using distribution maps of 11,405 woody species found in China and associated environmental data to the domain, we investigated the influence of geographical extent on the determinants of species richness patterns. Our results revealed...

  9. Influence of the geographical curriculum on competences of geography teachers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tatjana Resnik Planinc

    2007-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper analyses the influence of geographical curriculum on competences of geography teacher. It is focused on complex and symbiotic relation between curriculum and achieved and recommended competences of geography teacher and their importance for geographical education. The competences should therefore be derived from the theories, concerning values, knowledge, curriculum and whole educational process, which underpin good pedagogical practice.

  10. Geographical conceptualization of quality of life

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Murgaš František

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The conceptualization of quality of life in terms of geography is based on two assumptions. The first assumption is that the quality of life consists of two dimensions: subjective and objective. The subjective is known as ‘well-being’, while the objective is the proposed term ‘quality of place’. The second assumption is based on the recognition that quality of life is always a spatial dimension. The concept of quality of life is closely linked with the concept of a good life; geographers enriched this concept by using the term ‘good place’ as a place in which the conditions are created for a good life. The quality of life for individuals in terms of a good place overlaps with the quality of life in society, namely the societal quality of life. The geographical conceptualisation of quality of life is applied to settlements within the city of Liberec.

  11. Geographical imbalances and divides in the scientific production of climate change knowledge

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pasgaard, Maya; Dalsgaard, Bo; Maruyama, Pietro K.

    2015-01-01

    Studies on scientific production of climate change knowledge show a geographical bias against the developing and more vulnerable regions of the world. If there is limited knowledge exchange between regions, this may deepen global knowledge divides and, thus, potentially hamper adaptive capacities....... Consequently, there is a need to further understand this bias, and, particularly, link it with the exchange of knowledge across borders. We use a world-wide geographical distribution of author affiliations in > 15,000 scientific climate change publications to show that (1) research production mainly takes...... are determined mainly by geographical proximity, common climates, and similar political and economic characteristics. This indicates that political-economic, social and educational-scientific initiatives targeted to enhance local research production and collaborations across geographical-climate module borders...

  12. Investigating Hydrocarbon Seep Environments with High-Resolution, Three-Dimensional Geographic Visualizations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doolittle, D. F.; Gharib, J. J.; Mitchell, G. A.

    2015-12-01

    Detailed photographic imagery and bathymetric maps of the seafloor acquired by deep submergence vehicles such as Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV) are expanding how scientists and the public view and ultimately understand the seafloor and the processes that modify it. Several recently acquired optical and acoustic datasets, collected during ECOGIG (Ecosystem Impacts of Oil and Gas Inputs to the Gulf) and other Gulf of Mexico expeditions using the National Institute for Undersea Science Technology (NIUST) Eagle Ray, and Mola Mola AUVs, have been fused with lower resolution data to create unique three-dimensional geovisualizations. Included in these data are multi-scale and multi-resolution visualizations over hydrocarbon seeps and seep related features. Resolution of the data range from 10s of mm to 10s of m. When multi-resolution data is integrated into a single three-dimensional visual environment, new insights into seafloor and seep processes can be obtained from the intuitive nature of three-dimensional data exploration. We provide examples and demonstrate how integration of multibeam bathymetry, seafloor backscatter data, sub-bottom profiler data, textured photomosaics, and hull-mounted multibeam acoustic midwater imagery are made into a series a three-dimensional geovisualizations of actively seeping sites and associated chemosynthetic communities. From these combined and merged datasets, insights on seep community structure, morphology, ecology, fluid migration dynamics, and process geomorphology can be investigated from new spatial perspectives. Such datasets also promote valuable inter-comparisons of sensor resolution and performance.

  13. A Geographical Heuristic Routing Protocol for VANETs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urquiza-Aguiar, Luis; Tripp-Barba, Carolina; Aguilar Igartua, Mónica

    2016-01-01

    Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) leverage the communication system of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). Recently, Delay-Tolerant Network (DTN) routing protocols have increased their popularity among the research community for being used in non-safety VANET applications and services like traffic reporting. Vehicular DTN protocols use geographical and local information to make forwarding decisions. However, current proposals only consider the selection of the best candidate based on a local-search. In this paper, we propose a generic Geographical Heuristic Routing (GHR) protocol that can be applied to any DTN geographical routing protocol that makes forwarding decisions hop by hop. GHR includes in its operation adaptations simulated annealing and Tabu-search meta-heuristics, which have largely been used to improve local-search results in discrete optimization. We include a complete performance evaluation of GHR in a multi-hop VANET simulation scenario for a reporting service. Our study analyzes all of the meaningful configurations of GHR and offers a statistical analysis of our findings by means of MANOVA tests. Our results indicate that the use of a Tabu list contributes to improving the packet delivery ratio by around 5% to 10%. Moreover, if Tabu is used, then the simulated annealing routing strategy gets a better performance than the selection of the best node used with carry and forwarding (default operation). PMID:27669254

  14. Primary assembly of soil communities: disentangling the effect of dispersal and local environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ingimarsdóttir, María; Caruso, Tancredi; Ripa, Jörgen; Magnúsdóttir, Olöf Birna; Migliorini, Massimo; Hedlund, Katarina

    2012-11-01

    It has long been recognised that dispersal abilities and environmental factors are important in shaping invertebrate communities, but their relative importance for primary soil community assembly has not yet been disentangled. By studying soil communities along chronosequences on four recently emerged nunataks (ice-free land in glacial areas) in Iceland, we replicated environmental conditions spatially at various geographical distances. This allowed us to determine the underlying factors of primary community assembly with the help of metacommunity theories that predict different levels of dispersal constraints and effects of the local environment. Comparing community assembly of the nunataks with that of non-isolated deglaciated areas indicated that isolation of a few kilometres did not affect the colonisation of the soil invertebrates. When accounting for effects of geographical distances, soil age and plant richness explained a significant part of the variance observed in the distribution of the oribatid mites and collembola communities, respectively. Furthermore, null model analyses revealed less co-occurrence than expected by chance and also convergence in the body size ratio of co-occurring oribatids, which is consistent with species sorting. Geographical distances influenced species composition, indicating that the community is also assembled by dispersal, e.g. mass effect. When all the results are linked together, they demonstrate that local environmental factors are important in structuring the soil community assembly, but are accompanied with effects of dispersal that may "override" the visible effect of the local environment.

  15. Integrating economic and environmental indicators in the assessment of desertification risk: A case study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Salvati, L. [Piazza F. Morosini 12, Rome (Italy); Zitti, M.; Ceccarelli, T. [Ufficio Centrale di Ecologia Agraria, Rome (Italy)

    2008-09-30

    Desertification is a complex phenomenon which reduces the soil fertility involving ecological and economic processes that characterize the environment at different geographic scales. The most widely accepted definition of desertification is the one given by the United Nations Convention. It defines desertification as 'land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human actities'.Desertification involves many countries featuring different ecological, economic, and social conditions. In Mediterranean Europe, high human pressure, economic development, and climatic changes combine to produce land consumption, soil erosion, salinization, and fire risk, all considered as key factors to start desertification processes. For many years the term desertification has been strictly associated to geo-physical conditions, but in very complex ecosystems the study of the interaction of physical patterns with population and social characteristics is necessary to better delineate areas at risk. The aims of this paper are therefore (i) to review recent findings in term of desertification processes and risk assessment in the Mediterranean basin, (ii) to illustrate a simplified model in which social and economic variables may significantly accelerate land degradation leading to desertification, (iii) to suggest a set of demographic, economic, and institutional indicators suitable to contribute to the assessment of desertification risk in the Mediterranean basin, (iv) to built a synthetic index based on a multivariate approach and, finally, (v) to compare such index with a standard index of desertification risk only referring to geo-physical conditions. As a conclusion, new findings to be achieved in the context of human impact on environment as an original contribution to the study of desertification were delineated.

  16. A molecular study of microbe transfer between distant environments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hooper, Sean D; Raes, Jeroen; Foerstner, Konrad U; Harrington, Eoghan D; Dalevi, Daniel; Bork, Peer

    2008-07-09

    Environments and their organic content are generally not static and isolated, but in a constant state of exchange and interaction with each other. Through physical or biological processes, organisms, especially microbes, may be transferred between environments whose characteristics may be quite different. The transferred microbes may not survive in their new environment, but their DNA will be deposited. In this study, we compare two environmental sequencing projects to find molecular evidence of transfer of microbes over vast geographical distances. By studying synonymous nucleotide composition, oligomer frequency and orthology between predicted genes in metagenomics data from two environments, terrestrial and aquatic, and by correlating with phylogenetic mappings, we find that both environments are likely to contain trace amounts of microbes which have been far removed from their original habitat. We also suggest a bias in direction from soil to sea, which is consistent with the cycles of planetary wind and water. Our findings support the Baas-Becking hypothesis formulated in 1934, which states that due to dispersion and population sizes, microbes are likely to be found in widely disparate environments. Furthermore, the availability of genetic material from distant environments is a possible font of novel gene functions for lateral gene transfer.

  17. A molecular study of microbe transfer between distant environments.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sean D Hooper

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Environments and their organic content are generally not static and isolated, but in a constant state of exchange and interaction with each other. Through physical or biological processes, organisms, especially microbes, may be transferred between environments whose characteristics may be quite different. The transferred microbes may not survive in their new environment, but their DNA will be deposited. In this study, we compare two environmental sequencing projects to find molecular evidence of transfer of microbes over vast geographical distances. METHODOLOGY: By studying synonymous nucleotide composition, oligomer frequency and orthology between predicted genes in metagenomics data from two environments, terrestrial and aquatic, and by correlating with phylogenetic mappings, we find that both environments are likely to contain trace amounts of microbes which have been far removed from their original habitat. We also suggest a bias in direction from soil to sea, which is consistent with the cycles of planetary wind and water. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings support the Baas-Becking hypothesis formulated in 1934, which states that due to dispersion and population sizes, microbes are likely to be found in widely disparate environments. Furthermore, the availability of genetic material from distant environments is a possible font of novel gene functions for lateral gene transfer.

  18. The importance of the food and physical activity environments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oppert, Jean-Michel; Charreire, Hélène

    2012-01-01

    There is increasing interest in identifying characteristics of neighborhood environments (physical, social, economical) that might favor unhealthy dietary and physical activity patterns leading to excess weight at population level. Measurement of characteristics of the physical environment in relation to food and physical activity has greatly improved in recent years. Methods based on assessment of perceptions by residents of their neighborhood or on objective assessment of the actual built environment (such as provided by Geographic Information Systems tools) would benefit to be combined. A number of recent systematic reviews have updated our knowledge on relationships of food and physical activity environments with relevant behaviors and obesity. Available evidence appears to show more consistent evidence of association between built environment characteristics related to physical activity ('walkability' indices, land use mix, variety of transports. . .) with physical activity behavior than with weight status. In contrast, built environment characteristics related to food habits (accessibility to different types of food outlets, availability of healthy foods. . .) would be more consistently associated with weight status than with eating behavior. The need for data from different countries and cultures is emphasized, as much as the importance of transdisciplinary research efforts for translation of these findings into our living environment. Copyright © 2012 Nestec Ltd., Vevey/S. Karger AG, Basel.

  19. Geographical cost-supply analysis forest biomass for distributed generation in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Möller, Bernd

    2004-01-01

    The article presents a study which uses geographical information system (GIS) to perform cost-supply analysis of wood chips resources for energy production.......The article presents a study which uses geographical information system (GIS) to perform cost-supply analysis of wood chips resources for energy production....

  20. 48 CFR 1852.244-70 - Geographic participation in the aerospace program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... the aerospace program. 1852.244-70 Section 1852.244-70 Federal Acquisition Regulations System NATIONAL... Provisions and Clauses 1852.244-70 Geographic participation in the aerospace program. As prescribed in 1844.204-70, insert the following clause: Geographic Participation in the Aerospace Program (APR 1985) (a...

  1. Using a 'value-added' approach for contextual design of geographic information.

    Science.gov (United States)

    May, Andrew J

    2013-11-01

    The aim of this article is to demonstrate how a 'value-added' approach can be used for user-centred design of geographic information. An information science perspective was used, with value being the difference in outcomes arising from alternative information sets. Sixteen drivers navigated a complex, unfamiliar urban route, using visual and verbal instructions representing the distance-to-turn and junction layout information presented by typical satellite navigation systems. Data measuring driving errors, navigation errors and driver confidence were collected throughout the trial. The results show how driver performance varied considerably according to the geographic context at specific locations, and that there are specific opportunities to add value with enhanced geographical information. The conclusions are that a value-added approach facilitates a more explicit focus on 'desired' (and feasible) levels of end user performance with different information sets, and is a potentially effective approach to user-centred design of geographic information. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

  2. Geometric algorithms for delineating geographic regions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Reinbacher, I.

    2006-01-01

    Everyone of us is used to geographical regions like the south of Utrecht, the dutch Randstad, or the mountainous areas of Austria. Some of these regions have crisp, fixed boundaries like Utrecht or Austria. Others, like the dutch Randstad and the Austrian mountains, have no such boundaries and are

  3. PEDIATRIC FITNESS: SECULAR TRENDS AND GEOGRAPHIC VARIABILITY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Grant R. Tomkinson

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available DESCRIPTION This book describes and discusses children's physical capacity in terms of aerobic and anaerobic power generation according to secular trends and geographic variability. PURPOSE To discuss the controversial issue of whether present day's children and adolescents are fitter than their equals of the past and whether they are fitter if they live in the more prosperous countries. AUDIENCE Pediatricians, medical practitioners, physical educators, exercise and/or sport scientists, exercise physiologists, personal trainers and graduate students in relevant fields will find this book helpful when dealing with contemporary trends and geographic variability in pediatric fitness. FEATURES The volume starts by examining the general picture on children fitness by the editors. The individual chapter's authors discuses the data gathered since the late 1950s on secular trends and geographic changeability in aerobic and anaerobic pediatric fitness performances of children and adolescents from 23 countries in Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, the Middle East and North America. There are chapters proposing that there is proof that there has been a world-wide decline in pediatric aerobic performance in recent decades, relative stability in anaerobic performance, and that the best performing children come from northern and central Europe. In final chapters possible causes to that end are considered, including whether weakening in aerobic performance are the result of distributional or widespread declines, and whether increases in obesity alone can explain the failure in aerobic performance. ASSESSMENT The editors have assembled a volume of Medicine and Sports Science that is necessary and essential reading for all who are interested in understanding and improving the fitness of children. The readers will find useful information in this book on secular trends and geographic variability in pediatric fitness. I believe, the book will serve as a first

  4. A synthetic computational environment: To control the spread of respiratory infections in a virtual university

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ge, Yuanzheng; Chen, Bin; liu, Liang; Qiu, Xiaogang; Song, Hongbin; Wang, Yong

    2018-02-01

    Individual-based computational environment provides an effective solution to study complex social events by reconstructing scenarios. Challenges remain in reconstructing the virtual scenarios and reproducing the complex evolution. In this paper, we propose a framework to reconstruct a synthetic computational environment, reproduce the epidemic outbreak, and evaluate management interventions in a virtual university. The reconstructed computational environment includes 4 fundamental components: the synthetic population, behavior algorithms, multiple social networks, and geographic campus environment. In the virtual university, influenza H1N1 transmission experiments are conducted, and gradually enhanced interventions are evaluated and compared quantitatively. The experiment results indicate that the reconstructed virtual environment provides a solution to reproduce complex emergencies and evaluate policies to be executed in the real world.

  5. The GeoGraph 3D Computational Laboratory

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Dibble, Catherine; Feldman, Philip G

    2003-01-01

    .... Even recent progress in social network modeling has not yet offered us any capability to model dynamic processes among mobile agents who interact at all scales on small-world and scale-free geographic networks...

  6. Urethroplasty: a geographic disparity in care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burks, Frank N; Salmon, Scott A; Smith, Aaron C; Santucci, Richard A

    2012-06-01

    Urethroplasty is the gold standard for urethral strictures but its geographic prevalence throughout the United States is unknown. We analyzed where and how often urethroplasty was being performed in the United States compared to other treatment modalities for urethral stricture. De-identified case logs from the American Board of Urology were collected from certifying/recertifying urologists from 2004 to 2009. Results were categorized by ZIP codes to determine the geographic distribution. Case logs from 3,877 urologists (2,533 recertifying and 1,344 certifying) were reviewed including 1,836 urethroplasties, 13,080 urethrotomies and 19,564 urethral dilations. The proportion of urethroplasty varied widely among states (range 0% to 17%). The ratio of urethroplasty-to-urethrotomy/dilation also varied widely from state to state, but overall 1 urethroplasty was performed for every 17 urethrotomies or dilations performed. Certifying urologists were 3 times as likely to perform urethroplasty as recertifying urologists (12% vs 4%, respectively, pUrethroplasties were performed more commonly in states with residency programs (mean 5% vs 3%). Some states reported no urethroplasties during the observation period (Vermont, North Dakota, South Dakota, Maine and West Virginia). To our knowledge this is the first report on the geographic distribution of urethroplasty for urethral stricture disease. There are large variations in the rates of urethroplasty performed throughout the United States, indicating a disparity of care, especially for those regions in which few or no urethroplasties were reported. This disparity may decrease with time as younger certifying urologists are performing 3 times as many urethroplasties as older recertifying urologists. Copyright © 2012 American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Socially just publishing: implications for geographers and their journals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Simon Batterbury

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available There have been a range of protests against the high journal subscription costs, and author processing charges (APCs levied for publishing in the more prestigious and commercially run journals that are favoured by geographers. But open protests across the sector like the ‘Academic Spring’ of 2012, and challenges to commercial copyright agreements, have been fragmented and less than successful. I renew the argument for ‘socially just’ publishing in geography. For geographers this is not limited to choosing alternative publication venues. It also involves a considerable effort by senior faculty members that are assessing hiring and promotion cases, to read and assess scholarship independently of its place of publication, and to reward the efforts of colleagues that offer their work as a public good. Criteria other than the citation index and prestige of a journal need to be foregrounded. Geographers can also be publishers, and I offer my experience editing the free online Journal of Political Ecology.

  8. Geographic analysis of road accident severity index in Nigeria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iyanda, Ayodeji E

    2018-05-28

    Before 2030, deaths from road traffic accidents (RTAs) will surpass cerebrovascular disease, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS. Yet, there is little knowledge on the geographic distribution of RTA severity in Nigeria. Accident Severity Index is the proportion of deaths that result from a road accident. This study analysed the geographic pattern of RTA severity based on the data retrieved from Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC). The study predicted a two-year data from a historic road accident data using exponential smoothing technique. To determine spatial autocorrelation, global and local indicators of spatial association were implemented in a geographic information system. Results show significant clusters of high RTA severity among states in the northeast and the northwest of Nigeria. Hence, the findings are discussed from two perspectives: Road traffic law compliance and poor emergency response. Conclusion, the severity of RTA is high in the northern states of Nigeria, hence, RTA remains a public health concern.

  9. Improving Geography Learning in the Schools: Efforts by the National Geographic Society.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dulli, Robert E.

    1994-01-01

    Contends that the National Geographic Society's Geography Education Program continues to work on improving geography instruction and learning. Outlines future activities of the National Geographic Society including urban outreach and technology training. (CFR)

  10. Similarity of trajectories taking into account geographic context

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maike Buchin

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The movements of animals, people, and vehicles are embedded in a geographic context. This context influences the movement and may cause the formation of certain behavioral responses. Thus, it is essential to include context parameters in the study of movement and the development of movement pattern analytics. Advances in sensor technologies and positioning devices provide valuable data not only of moving agents but also of the circumstances embedding the movement in space and time. Developing knowledge discovery methods to investigate the relation between movement and its surrounding context is a major challenge in movement analysis today. In this paper we show how to integrate geographic context into the similarity analysis of movement data. For this, we discuss models for geographic context of movement data. Based on this we develop simple but efficient context-aware similarity measures for movement trajectories, which combine a spatial and a contextual distance. These are based on well-known similarity measures for trajectories, such as the Hausdorff, Fréchet, or equal time distance. We validate our approach by applying these measures to movement data of hurricanes and albatross.

  11. Sirenomelia in Argentina: Prevalence, geographic clusters and temporal trends analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Groisman, Boris; Liascovich, Rosa; Gili, Juan Antonio; Barbero, Pablo; Bidondo, María Paz

    2016-07-01

    Sirenomelia is a severe malformation of the lower body characterized by a single medial lower limb and a variable combination of visceral abnormalities. Given that Sirenomelia is a very rare birth defect, epidemiological studies are scarce. The aim of this study is to evaluate prevalence, geographic clusters and time trends of sirenomelia in Argentina, using data from the National Network of Congenital Anomalies of Argentina (RENAC) from November 2009 until December 2014. This is a descriptive study using data from the RENAC, a hospital-based surveillance system for newborns affected with major morphological congenital anomalies. We calculated sirenomelia prevalence throughout the period, searched for geographical clusters, and evaluated time trends. The prevalence of confirmed cases of sirenomelia throughout the period was 2.35 per 100,000 births. Cluster analysis showed no statistically significant geographical aggregates. Time-trends analysis showed that the prevalence was higher in years 2009 to 2010. The observed prevalence was higher than the observed in previous epidemiological studies in other geographic regions. We observed a likely real increase in the initial period of our study. We used strict diagnostic criteria, excluding cases that only had clinical diagnosis of sirenomelia. Therefore, real prevalence could be even higher. This study did not show any geographic clusters. Because etiology of sirenomelia has not yet been established, studies of epidemiological features of this defect may contribute to define its causes. Birth Defects Research (Part A) 106:604-611, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  12. SOLID WASTE: PRESENCE AND THREATIN GEOGRAPHICAL SPACE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clesley Maria Tavares do Nascimento

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available This article deals with the trajectory of the solid waste in different historical periods, configuring them as a constructive element of geographical space. The intention to bring the theme from the timeline perspective, is marked out in the conviction of the inseparability of the categories of space and time and its importance in understanding a geographical phenomenon. The methodological support of this research relied on the documentary type of research involving literature, consultation of secondary sources such as books, academic journals, dissertations and theses on the subject. The results presented and discussed in this paper indicated that the production of waste is adjacent to historical time, reflects societies and techniques that generated them, and is a permanent part of the dialectical process of spatial formation.

  13. U.S.-Mexico Border Geographic Information System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parcher, Jean W.

    2008-01-01

    Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the development of extensive geodatabases have become invaluable tools for addressing a variety of contemporary societal issues and for making predictions about the future. The United States-Mexico Geographic Information System (USMX-GIS) is based on fundamental datasets that are produced and/or approved by the national geography agencies of each country, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Instituto Nacional de Estadistica Y Geografia (INEGI) of Mexico, and the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC). The data are available at various scales to allow both regional and local analysis. The USGS and the INEGI have an extensive history of collaboration for transboundary mapping including exchanging digital technology and developing methods for harmonizing seamless national level geospatial datasets for binational environmental monitoring, urban growth analysis, and other scientific applications.

  14. Land-use planning of Volyn region (Ukraine) using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strielko, Irina; Pereira, Paulo

    2014-05-01

    Land-use development planning is carried out in order to create a favourable environment for human life, sustainable socioeconomic and spatial development. Landscape planning is an important part of land-use development that aims to meet the fundamental principles of sustainable development. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a fundamental tool to make a better landscape planning at different territorial levels, providing data and maps to support decision making. The objective of this work is to create spatio-temporal, territorial and ecological model of development of Volyn region (Ukraine). It is based on existing spatial raster and vector data and includes the analysis of territory dynamics as the aspects responsible for it. A spatial analyst tool was used to zone the areas according to their environmental components and economic activity. This analysis is fundamental to define the basic parameters of sustainability of Volyn region. To carry out this analysis, we determined the demographic capacity of districts and the analysis of spatial parameters of land use. On the basis of the existing natural resources, we observed that there is a need of landscape protection and integration of more are natural areas in the Pan-European Ecological Network. Using GIS technologies to landscape planning in Volyn region, allowed us to identify, natural areas of interest, contribute to a better resource management and conflict resolution. Geographic Information Systems will help to formulate and implement landscape policies, reform the existing administrative system of Volyn region and contribute to a better sustainable development.

  15. Mithra and the Arrangement of Geographical Lists in the Achaemenid and Sasanid Inscriptions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    nazanin tamari

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The division of the world is one of the issues that began with the social life of human in all over the world and still continues. The oldest division has mythical and legendary aspects that shows the geographical knowledge or religious and ethnic beliefs of their predecessors. Various geographical divisions can be seen in the ancient Iranians tradition. Each of these divisions follow the specific arrangement of listing the geographical areas, which discussed in this paper. The arrangement of geographical areas in Achaemenid and Sasanin inscriptions and in the Mihr Ya&scaront, the oldest of Avesta, are the same. Because of this similarity can’t be accidental, in this paper the cause of the similarities has been investigated. The arrangement of geographical areas in two lists ( inscriptions and Mihr Ya&scaront shows clockwise (sunwise fashion, that investigated in religious view in this study. Due to the Mithra’s influence on cultural and religious context of the ancient Iranians, for the first time in present paper investigated the role of this god and his influence on the writing the geographical lists in the Achaemenid and Sasanin inscriptions.

  16. A primer of GIS fundamental geographic and cartographic concepts

    CERN Document Server

    Harvey, Francis

    2015-01-01

    This accessible text prepares students to understand and work with geographic information systems (GIS), offering a detailed introduction to essential theories, concepts, and skills. The book is organized in four modular parts that can be used in any sequence in entry-level and more specialized courses. Basic cartographic principles are integrated with up-to-date discussions of GIS technologies and applications. Coverage includes everything from what geographic information is to its many uses and societal implications. Practical examples and exercises invite readers to explore the choices invo

  17. Geographic segmentation of users and its use in advertising

    OpenAIRE

    Dolenc, Blaž

    2015-01-01

    In modern web advertising the goal is not only deliver an ad to a broad number of customers, but to target particular customers who are more likely to be interested in content. If the user location is known, we can estimate click on ad based on previous visitors. The company Zemanta recognized the need for geographic audience segmentation, and they have invited students to solve their challenge. The goal was geographic segmentation of web pages visitors based on the ZIP code they come from a...

  18. The Geographic Information Grid System Based on Mobile Agent

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    2006-01-01

    We analyze the deficiencies of current application systems, and discuss the key requirements of distributed Geographic Information service (GIS). We construct the distributed GIS on grid platform. Considering the flexibility and efficiency, we integrate the mobile agent technology into the system. We propose a new prototype system, the Geographic Information Grid System (GIGS) based on mobile agent. This system has flexible services and high performance, and improves the sharing of distributed resources. The service strategy of the system and the examples are also presented.

  19. Cultural and economic determinants of geographical mortality patterns in The Netherlands

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mackenbach, J. P.; Kunst, A. E.; Looman, C. W.

    1991-01-01

    STUDY OBJECTIVE--The geographical pattern of mortality in The Netherlands is dominated by an area of relatively high mortality in the southern part of the country. The aim was to analyse the background of this geographical mortality pattern in the early 1980s, and its evolution over time since the

  20. Environment Changes Genetic Effects on Respiratory Conditions and Allergic Phenotypes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Song, Yong; Schwager, Michelle J; Backer, Vibeke

    2017-01-01

    The prevalence of asthma and allergic diseases is disproportionately distributed among different populations, with an increasing trend observed in Western countries. Here we investigated how the environment affected genotype-phenotype association in a genetically homogeneous, but geographically...... separated population. We evaluated 18 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) corresponding to 8 genes (ADAM33, ALOX5, LT-α, LTC4S, NOS1, ORMDL3, TBXA2R and TNF-α), the lung function and five respiratory/allergic conditions (ever asthma, bronchitis, rhinitis, dermatitis and atopy) in two populations of Inuit......-phenotype associations relating to bronchitis and allergy susceptibility are dependent on the environment and that environmental factors/lifestyles modify genetic predisposition and change the genetic effects on diseases....

  1. The research on data organization technology in the highway geographic information system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Zhihui; Wu, Fang; Zeng, Yuhuai

    2008-10-01

    Data are the basis of GIS. It has direct impact on the efficiency and function of a Highway Geographic Information System (HGIS), because of the characteristics of data model and data organization of the traffic geographic information system such as spatial property, multi-path network, linearity. This paper discussed the data property of HGIS, studied and presented the HGIS spatial data on multi-source and model. Also, it described and verified highway geographical feature of special subject data's linearity, dynamic and multiple-path network property in HGIS.

  2. Epidemiologic studies of radioactively contaminated environments and cancer clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boice, J.D. Jr.

    1991-01-01

    This paper reports on epidemiologic studies which address the distribution and determinants of disease in human populations. Investigations of the possible adverse effects of living in radioactively contaminated environments are difficult to conduct, however, because human populations tend to be fairly mobile, cumulative exposures to individuals from environmental conditions are difficult to estimate, and the risks associated with such exposures tend to be small relative to background levels of disease. Such studies can be arbitrarily classified as geographic correlation surveys, analytic studies, and cluster evaluations. Geographic correlation studies (ecological surveys) relate disease in populations to area characteristics. Although exposure to individuals is unknown, these exploratory or hypothesis-generating studies can identify areas to target for further in-depth evaluation. Analytic investigations relate individual exposure information to disease occurrence. Unusual occurrences of disease in time and place (clusters) occasionally point to a common environmental factor; cluster evaluations have been most successful in identifying the source of infectious disease outbreaks

  3. Using Educational Tourism in Geographical Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prakapiene, Dalia; Olberkyte, Loreta

    2013-01-01

    The article analyses and defines the concept of educational tourism, presents the structure of the concept and looks into the opportunities for using educational tourism in geographical education. In order to reveal such opportunities a research was carried out in the Lithuanian national and regional parks using the qualitative method of content…

  4. Geographic Variations in Cardiovascular Disease Mortality Among Asian American Subgroups, 2003-2011.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pu, Jia; Hastings, Katherine G; Boothroyd, Derek; Jose, Powell O; Chung, Sukyung; Shah, Janki B; Cullen, Mark R; Palaniappan, Latha P; Rehkopf, David H

    2017-07-12

    There are well-documented geographical differences in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality for non-Hispanic whites. However, it remains unknown whether similar geographical variation in CVD mortality exists for Asian American subgroups. This study aims to examine geographical differences in CVD mortality among Asian American subgroups living in the United States and whether they are consistent with geographical differences observed among non-Hispanic whites. Using US death records from 2003 to 2011 (n=3 897 040 CVD deaths), age-adjusted CVD mortality rates per 100 000 population and age-adjusted mortality rate ratios were calculated for the 6 largest Asian American subgroups (Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese) and compared with non-Hispanic whites. There were consistently lower mortality rates for all Asian American subgroups compared with non-Hispanic whites across divisions for CVD mortality and ischemic heart disease mortality. However, cerebrovascular disease mortality demonstrated substantial geographical differences by Asian American subgroup. There were a number of regional divisions where certain Asian American subgroups (Filipino and Japanese men, Korean and Vietnamese men and women) possessed no mortality advantage compared with non-Hispanic whites. The most striking geographical variation was with Filipino men (age-adjusted mortality rate ratio=1.18; 95% CI, 1.14-1.24) and Japanese men (age-adjusted mortality rate ratio=1.05; 95% CI: 1.00-1.11) in the Pacific division who had significantly higher cerebrovascular mortality than non-Hispanic whites. There was substantial geographical variation in Asian American subgroup mortality for cerebrovascular disease when compared with non-Hispanic whites. It deserves increased attention to prioritize prevention and treatment in the Pacific division where approximately 80% of Filipinos CVD deaths and 90% of Japanese CVD deaths occur in the United States. © 2017 The Authors

  5. A coregionalization model can assist specification of Geographically Weighted Poisson Regression: Application to an ecological study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ribeiro, Manuel Castro; Sousa, António Jorge; Pereira, Maria João

    2016-05-01

    The geographical distribution of health outcomes is influenced by socio-economic and environmental factors operating on different spatial scales. Geographical variations in relationships can be revealed with semi-parametric Geographically Weighted Poisson Regression (sGWPR), a model that can combine both geographically varying and geographically constant parameters. To decide whether a parameter should vary geographically, two models are compared: one in which all parameters are allowed to vary geographically and one in which all except the parameter being evaluated are allowed to vary geographically. The model with the lower corrected Akaike Information Criterion (AICc) is selected. Delivering model selection exclusively according to the AICc might hide important details in spatial variations of associations. We propose assisting the decision by using a Linear Model of Coregionalization (LMC). Here we show how LMC can refine sGWPR on ecological associations between socio-economic and environmental variables and low birth weight outcomes in the west-north-central region of Portugal. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. OUTDOOR EDUCATION AND GEOGRAPHICAL EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    ANDREA GUARAN

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper focuses on the reflection on the relationship between values and methodological principles of Outdoor Education and spatial and geographical education perspectives, especially in pre-school and primary school, which relates to the age between 3 and 10 years. Outdoor Education is an educational practice that is already rooted in the philosophical thought of the 16th and the 17th centuries, from John Locke to Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and in the pedagogical thought, in particular Friedrich Fröbel, and it has now a quite stable tradition in Northern Europe countries. In Italy, however, there are still few experiences and they usually do not have a systematic and structural modality, but rather a temporarily and experimentally outdoor organization. In the first part, this paper focuses on the reasons that justify a particular attention to educational paths that favour outdoors activities, providing also a definition of outdoor education and highlighting its values. It is also essential to understand that educational programs in open spaces, such as a forest or simply the schoolyard, surely offers the possibility to learn geographical situations. Therefore, the question that arises is how to finalize the best stimulus that the spatial location guarantees for the acquisition of knowledge, skills and abilities about space and geography.

  7. IMPROVEMENT OF THE F-PERCEPTORY APPROACH THROUGH MANAGEMENT OF FUZZY COMPLEX GEOGRAPHIC OBJECTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B. Khalfi

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available In the real world, data is imperfect and in various ways such as imprecision, vagueness, uncertainty, ambiguity and inconsistency. For geographic data, the fuzzy aspect is mainly manifested in time, space and the function of objects and is due to a lack of precision. Therefore, the researchers in the domain emphasize the importance of modeling data structures in GIS but also their lack of adaptation to fuzzy data. The F-Perceptory approachh manages the modeling of imperfect geographic information with UML. This management is essential to maintain faithfulness to reality and to better guide the user in his decision-making. However, this approach does not manage fuzzy complex geographic objects. The latter presents a multiple object with similar or different geographic shapes. So, in this paper, we propose to improve the F-Perceptory approach by proposing to handle fuzzy complex geographic objects modeling. In a second step, we propose its transformation to the UML modeling.

  8. Comparison of the performance of net radiation calculation models

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjærsgaard, Jeppe Hvelplund; Cuenca, R.H.; Martinez-Cob, A.

    2009-01-01

    . The long-wave radiation models included a physically based model, an empirical model from the literature, and a new empirical model. Both empirical models used only solar radiation as required for meteorological input. The long-wave radiation models were used with model calibration coefficients from......Daily values of net radiation are used in many applications of crop-growth modeling and agricultural water management. Measurements of net radiation are not part of the routine measurement program at many weather stations and are commonly estimated based on other meteorological parameters. Daily...... values of net radiation were calculated using three net outgoing long-wave radiation models and compared to measured values. Four meteorological datasets representing two climate regimes, a sub-humid, high-latitude environment and a semi-arid mid-latitude environment, were used to test the models...

  9. Application of a geographical information system to the feasibility analysis of PV electricity supply in rural environments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chica, R.M.; Manzano, G.; Perez, M.; Pinero, J.

    2004-01-01

    The Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are a wide spread and very valuable tool able to manage and analyse spatial multivariate and interdisciplinary data sources. Their application to the feasibility assessment for the implementation of renewable energy sources is still recent but they have been proven as very adequate decision support elements according to the characteristic dependencies involved in this kind of studies, including site extrinsic (climate, solar and wind resources,...) and intrinsic (electrical feeding patterns, topography, grid proximity,...) variables. This work presents an example of the use of ArcView TM GIS software in the estimation of feasibility criteria for the adoption of solar photovoltaic electricity supply systems in a rural area located South Eastern Spain taking into account the eventual agronomic and/or dwelling land use and its corresponding energy demand. In this analysis, a set of data sources have been integrated ranging from remote sensed solar radiation to digital elevation models to evaluate correction factors for grid connection costs, apart of crops placement and water demands. The obtained graphical output allows to users and systems installers for an immediate functional and economical estimation of eventual projects related to rural development of the studied zone. (authors)

  10. Rule-guided human classification of Volunteered Geographic Information

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ali, Ahmed Loai; Falomir, Zoe; Schmid, Falko; Freksa, Christian

    2017-05-01

    During the last decade, web technologies and location sensing devices have evolved generating a form of crowdsourcing known as Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI). VGI acted as a platform of spatial data collection, in particular, when a group of public participants are involved in collaborative mapping activities: they work together to collect, share, and use information about geographic features. VGI exploits participants' local knowledge to produce rich data sources. However, the resulting data inherits problematic data classification. In VGI projects, the challenges of data classification are due to the following: (i) data is likely prone to subjective classification, (ii) remote contributions and flexible contribution mechanisms in most projects, and (iii) the uncertainty of spatial data and non-strict definitions of geographic features. These factors lead to various forms of problematic classification: inconsistent, incomplete, and imprecise data classification. This research addresses classification appropriateness. Whether the classification of an entity is appropriate or inappropriate is related to quantitative and/or qualitative observations. Small differences between observations may be not recognizable particularly for non-expert participants. Hence, in this paper, the problem is tackled by developing a rule-guided classification approach. This approach exploits data mining techniques of Association Classification (AC) to extract descriptive (qualitative) rules of specific geographic features. The rules are extracted based on the investigation of qualitative topological relations between target features and their context. Afterwards, the extracted rules are used to develop a recommendation system able to guide participants to the most appropriate classification. The approach proposes two scenarios to guide participants towards enhancing the quality of data classification. An empirical study is conducted to investigate the classification of grass

  11. The measure of success: geographic isolation promotes diversification in Pachydactylus geckos.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heinicke, Matthew P; Jackman, Todd R; Bauer, Aaron M

    2017-01-11

    Geckos of the genus Pachydactylus and their close relatives comprise the most species-rich clade of lizards in sub-Saharan Africa. Many explanations have been offered to explain species richness patterns of clades. In the Pachydactylus group, one possible explanation is a history of diversification via geographic isolation. If geographic isolation has played a key role in facilitating diversification, then we expect species in more species-rich subclades to have smaller ranges than species in less diverse subclades. We also expect traits promoting geographic isolation to be correlated with small geographic ranges. In order to test these expectations, we performed phylogenetic analyses and tested for correlations among body size, habitat choice, range sizes, and diversification rates in the Pachydactylus group. Both body size and habitat use are inferred to have shifted multiple times across the phylogeny of the Pachydactylus group, with large size and generalist habitat use being ancestral for the group. Geographic range size is correlated with both of these traits. Small-bodied species have more restricted ranges than large-bodied species, and rock-dwelling species have more restricted ranges than either terrestrial or generalist species. Rock-dwelling and small body size are also associated with higher rates of diversification, and subclades retaining ancestral conditions for these traits are less species rich than subclades in which shifts to small body size and rocky habitat use have occurred. The phylogeny also illustrates inadequacies of the current taxonomy of the group. The results are consistent with a model in which lineages more likely to become geographically isolated diversify to a greater extent, although some patterns also resemble those expected of an adaptive radiation in which ecological divergence acts as a driver of speciation. Therefore, the Pachydactylus group may represent an intermediate between clades in which radiation is adaptive versus

  12. Identification Of Geographical Origin Of Coffee Before And After Roasting By Electronic Noses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sberveglieri, V.; Concina, I.; Falasconi, M.; Ongo, E.; Pulvirenti, A.; Fava, P.

    2011-09-01

    Geographical origin traceability of food is a relevant issue for both producers' business protection and customers' rights safeguard. Differentiation of coffees on the basis of geographical origin is still a challenging issue, though possible by means of chemical techniques [1]. Between the most widely consumed beverage, coffee is a valuable one, with an aroma constituted by hundreds of volatiles [2]. Since the final global volatile composition is also determined by the cultivation climatic conditions, Electronic Noses (ENs) could be interesting candidates for distinguishing the geographical provenience by exploiting differences in chemical volatile profile. The present investigation is directed toward the characterization of green and roasted coffees samples according to their geographical origin.

  13. How Well Do Americans Know Geography? "National Geographic" Editor Discusses Meaning for Schools (Interview).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koerner, Thomas

    1987-01-01

    Gilbert Grosvenor, editor of "National Geographic," is interviewed about the importance of geography for Americans. He claims our lack of geographic knowledge impedes our ability to act and compete in the world market as a world power and points out that geographic ignorance extends to people employed at high levels of government. (MD)

  14. The geosystems of complex geographical atlases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jovanović Jasmina

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Complex geographical atlases represent geosystems of different hierarchical rank, complexity and diversity, scale and connection. They represent a set of large number of different pieces of information about geospace. Also, they contain systematized, correlative and in the apparent form represented pieces of information about space. The degree of information revealed in the atlas is precisely explained by its content structure and the form of presentation. The quality of atlas depends on the method of visualization of data and the quality of geodata. Cartographic visualization represents cognitive process. The analysis converts geospatial data into knowledge. A complex geographical atlas represents information complex of spatial - temporal coordinated database on geosystems of different complexity and territorial scope. Each geographical atlas defines a concrete geosystem. Systemic organization (structural and contextual determines its complexity and concreteness. In complex atlases, the attributes of geosystems are modeled and pieces of information are given in systematized, graphically unique form. The atlas can be considered as a database. In composing a database, semantic analysis of data is important. The result of semantic modeling is expressed in structuring of data information, in emphasizing logic connections between phenomena and processes and in defining their classes according to the degree of similarity. Accordingly, the efficiency of research of needed pieces of information in the process of the database use is enabled. An atlas map has a special power to integrate sets of geodata and present information contents in user - friendly and understandable visual and tactile way using its visual ability. Composing an atlas by systemic cartography requires the pieces of information on concrete - defined geosystems of different hierarchical level, the application of scientific methods and making of adequate number of analytical, synthetic

  15. Nearby outdoor environments and seniors physical activities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhe Wang

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available More than 60% of older Americans have sedentary lifestyles1 1 According to DHHS (1996. and are recommended more physical activities for health benefit. Nearby outdoor environments on residential sites may impact older inhabitants׳ physical activities there (defined as walking, gardening, yard work, and other outdoor physical activities on residential sites. This study surveyed 110 assisted-living residents in Houston, Texas, regarding their previous residential sites before moving to a retirement community and physical activities there. Twelve environmental features were studied under four categories (typology, motivators, function, and safety. Based on data availability, a subset of 57 sample sites was analyzed in Geographic Information Systems. Hierarchical linear modeling was applied to estimate physical activities as a function of the environments. Higher levels of physical activity were found to be positively related with four environmental features (transitional-areas, connecting-paths, walk-ability, and less paving.

  16. Geographic thougth in Latin America: A retrospective and general balance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Sergio Urquijo Torres

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we report results of a thorough contemporary historiographic revision of published geographic research and geography research departments and centers in Latin America. The main focus was on the recognition of transnational subjects and global processes and patterns. We argue that this type of retrospective analyses allows the understanding of the what and the what for of Latin America (LAG Geography. First we describe the current situation of LAG as a social science. Second, we explain the nature of LA social processes that, in the 90s, triggered geographic change and subsequent theoretical reflection on this change in LAG and in other related social sciences. To this end, we describe how the major traditions in geographic research have influenced LAG thinking. To conclude, we suggest the major achievements that we think characterize the current situation of LAG.

  17. AN ENCODING METHOD FOR COMPRESSING GEOGRAPHICAL COORDINATES IN 3D SPACE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. Qian

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper proposed an encoding method for compressing geographical coordinates in 3D space. By the way of reducing the length of geographical coordinates, it helps to lessen the storage size of geometry information. In addition, the encoding algorithm subdivides the whole space according to octree rules, which enables progressive transmission and loading. Three main steps are included in this method: (1 subdividing the whole 3D geographic space based on octree structure, (2 resampling all the vertices in 3D models, (3 encoding the coordinates of vertices with a combination of Cube Index Code (CIC and Geometry Code. A series of geographical 3D models were applied to evaluate the encoding method. The results showed that this method reduced the storage size of most test data by 90 % or even more under the condition of a speed of encoding and decoding. In conclusion, this method achieved a remarkable compression rate in vertex bit size with a steerable precision loss. It shall be of positive meaning to the web 3d map storing and transmission.

  18. Geographic information system planning and monitoring best ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Poor urbanization policies, inefficient planning and monitoring technologies are evident. The consequences include some of the worst types of environmental hazards. Best urbanization practices require integrated planning approaches that result in environmental conservation. Geographic Information systems (GIS) provide ...

  19. IL FENOMENO VOLUNTEERED GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Flavio Lupia

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The contribution addresses the phenomenon of Voluntereed Geographic Informationexplaining these new and burgeoning sources of information offers multidisciplinary scientists an unprecedented opportunity to conduct research on a variety of topics at multiple spatial and temporal scales. In particular the contribution refers to two COST Actions which have been recently activated on the subject which areparticularly relevant for the growing of the European scientific community.

  20. Atmospheric Environment Vulnerability Cause Analysis for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Metropolitan Region.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yang; Shen, Jing; Li, Yu

    2018-01-13

    Assessing and quantifying atmospheric vulnerability is a key issue in urban environmental protection and management. This paper integrated the Analytical hierarchy process (AHP), fuzzy synthesis evaluation and Geographic Information System (GIS) spatial analysis into an Exposure-Sensitivity-Adaptive capacity (ESA) framework to quantitatively assess atmospheric environment vulnerability in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region with spatial and temporal comparisons. The elaboration of the relationships between atmospheric environment vulnerability and indices of exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity supports enable analysis of the atmospheric environment vulnerability. Our findings indicate that the atmospheric environment vulnerability of 13 cities in the BTH region exhibits obvious spatial heterogeneity, which is caused by regional diversity in exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity indices. The results of atmospheric environment vulnerability assessment and the cause analysis can provide guidance to pick out key control regions and recognize vulnerable indicators for study sites. The framework developed in this paper can also be replicated at different spatial and temporal scales using context-specific datasets to support environmental management.

  1. Challenges in assessing food environments in northern and remote communities in Canada.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skinner, Kelly; Burnett, Kristin; Williams, Patricia; Martin, Debbie; Stothart, Christopher; LeBlanc, Joseph; Veeraraghavan, Gigi; Sheedy, Amanda

    2016-06-09

    Effective tools for retail food environments in northern and remote communities are lacking. This paper examines the challenges of conducting food environment assessments in northern and remote communities in Canada encountered during our experience with a food costing project. One of the goals of the Paying for Nutrition in the North project is to develop guidelines to improve current food costing tools for northern Canada. Paying for Nutrition illustrates the complex context of measuring food environments in northern and remote communities. Through the development of a food costing methodology guide to assess northern food environments, several contextual issues emerged, including retail store oligopolies in communities; the importance of assessing food quality; informal social food economies; and the challenge of costing the acquisition and consumption of land- and water-based foods. Food environment measures designed for northern and remote communities need to reflect the geographic context in which they are being employed and must include input from local residents.

  2. Usability of geographic information -- factors identified from qualitative analysis of task-focused user interviews.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harding, Jenny

    2013-11-01

    Understanding user needs for geographic information and the factors which influence the usability of such information in diverse user contexts is an essential part of user centred development of information products. There is relatively little existing research focused on the design and usability of information products in general. This paper presents a research approach based on semi structured interviews with people working with geographic information on a day to day basis, to establish a reference base of qualitative data on user needs for geographic information with respect to context of use. From this reference data nine key categories of geographic information usability are identified and discussed in the context of limited existing research concerned with geographic information usability. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

  3. The relationship of sport participation to provision of sports facilities and socioeconomic status: a geographical analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eime, Rochelle M; Harvey, Jack; Charity, Melanie J; Casey, Meghan; Westerbeek, Hans; Payne, Warren R

    2017-06-01

    Ecological models have been applied to investigate multiple domains influencing physical activity behaviour, including individual, social, organisational, community, environmental and policy factors. With regard to the built environment, research to date has been limited to small geographical areas and/or small samples of participants. This study examined the geographical association between provision of sport facilities and participation in sport across an entire Australian state, using objective total enumerations of both, for a group of sports, with adjustment for the effect of socioeconomic status (SES). De-identified membership registration data were obtained from state sport governing bodies of four popular team sports. Associations between participation rate, facility provision rate and SES were investigated using correlation and regression methods. Participation rate was positively associated with provision of facilities, although this was complicated by SES and region effects. The non-metropolitan region generally had higher participation rates and better provision of facilities than the metropolitan region. Better provision of sports facilities is generally associated with increased sport participation, but SES and region are also contributing factors. Implications for public health: Community-level analysis of the population, sport participation and provision of facilities should be used to inform decisions of investments in sports facilities. © 2017 The Authors.

  4. Historical Delineation of Landscape Units Using Physical Geographic Characteristics and Land Use/Cover Change

    Science.gov (United States)

    Campos-Campos, Oswaldo; Cruz-Cárdenas, Gustavo; Aquino, Roque Juan Carrasco; Moncayo-Estrada, Rodrigo; Machuca, Martha Alicia Velázquez; Meléndez, Luis Arturo Ávila

    2018-03-01

    Landscape units are conceived as a part of the territory that share similar physical and geographic characteristics. Their delineation can contribute to identify the physical and social dynamics that emerge in the spatial environment and to propose strategies of planning and management of the territory. The main objective was to make a historical delineation of landscape units in the Duero river basin that demonstrate the dynamics of changes in the territory, the description of the actors involved, and the affectations in the natural and social environment. We analyzed the vegetation change and urban growth from 1983 to 2014, incorporating climatic, edaphic, and topographic variables. A Principal Component Analysis was performed with the information and results were used in Maximum Likelihood procedure to define different clusters based on environmental characteristics. We defined five categories from the Landsat images. Results showed landscape units with homogeneous environmental characteristics and some differences in the units' delineation were mainly influenced by political and socioeconomic factors. Temporally there was an increased tendency of landscape units, three in 1983, nine in 1990, 1995, 2000 and 2011, and eight in 2014. This increase resulted from territory fragmentation because of berries and avocado cultivars expansion over wooded area.

  5. Historical Shoreline for Louisiana, Geographic NAD83, NOAA (2001) [shoreline_la_NOAA_1986

    Data.gov (United States)

    Louisiana Geographic Information Center — These data were automated to provide a suitable geographic information system (GIS) data layer depicting the historical shoreline for Louisiana. These data are...

  6. Execution Management Solutions for Geographically Distributed Simulations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berg, T.W. van den; Jansen, H.G.M.; Jansen, R.E.J.; Prins, L.M.

    2009-01-01

    Managing the initialization, execution control and monitoring of HLA federates is not always straightforward, especially for a geographically distributed time managed federation. Issues include pre and post run-time data distribution and run-time data collection; starting, stopping and monitoring

  7. Geographical information modelling for land resource survey

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bruin, de S.

    2000-01-01

    The increasing popularity of geographical information systems (GIS) has at least three major implications for land resources survey. Firstly, GIS allows alternative and richer representation of spatial phenomena than is possible with the traditional paper map. Secondly, digital technology has

  8. Re-Sonification of Objects, Events, and Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fink, Alex M.

    Digital sound synthesis allows the creation of a great variety of sounds. Focusing on interesting or ecologically valid sounds for music, simulation, aesthetics, or other purposes limits the otherwise vast digital audio palette. Tools for creating such sounds vary from arbitrary methods of altering recordings to precise simulations of vibrating objects. In this work, methods of sound synthesis by re-sonification are considered. Re-sonification, herein, refers to the general process of analyzing, possibly transforming, and resynthesizing or reusing recorded sounds in meaningful ways, to convey information. Applied to soundscapes, re-sonification is presented as a means of conveying activity within an environment. Applied to the sounds of objects, this work examines modeling the perception of objects as well as their physical properties and the ability to simulate interactive events with such objects. To create soundscapes to re-sonify geographic environments, a method of automated soundscape design is presented. Using recorded sounds that are classified based on acoustic, social, semantic, and geographic information, this method produces stochastically generated soundscapes to re-sonify selected geographic areas. Drawing on prior knowledge, local sounds and those deemed similar comprise a locale's soundscape. In the context of re-sonifying events, this work examines processes for modeling and estimating the excitations of sounding objects. These include plucking, striking, rubbing, and any interaction that imparts energy into a system, affecting the resultant sound. A method of estimating a linear system's input, constrained to a signal-subspace, is presented and applied toward improving the estimation of percussive excitations for re-sonification. To work toward robust recording-based modeling and re-sonification of objects, new implementations of banded waveguide (BWG) models are proposed for object modeling and sound synthesis. Previous implementations of BWGs

  9. Where there is no toilet: water and sanitation environments of domestic and facility births in Tanzania.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lenka Benova

    Full Text Available Inadequate water and sanitation during childbirth are likely to lead to poor maternal and newborn outcomes. This paper uses existing data sources to assess the water and sanitation (WATSAN environment surrounding births in Tanzania in order to interrogate whether such estimates could be useful for guiding research, policy and monitoring initiatives.We used the most recent Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey (DHS to characterise the delivery location of births occurring between 2005 and 2010. Births occurring in domestic environments were characterised as WATSAN-safe if the home fulfilled international definitions of improved water and improved sanitation access. We used the 2006 Service Provision Assessment survey to characterise the WATSAN environment of facilities that conduct deliveries. We combined estimates from both surveys to describe the proportion of all births occurring in WATSAN-safe environments and conducted an equity analysis based on DHS wealth quintiles and eight geographic zones.42.9% (95% confidence interval: 41.6%-44.2% of all births occurred in the woman's home. Among these, only 1.5% (95% confidence interval: 1.2%-2.0% were estimated to have taken place in WATSAN-safe conditions. 74% of all health facilities conducted deliveries. Among these, only 44% of facilities overall and 24% of facility delivery rooms were WATSAN-safe. Combining the estimates, we showed that 30.5% of all births in Tanzania took place in a WATSAN-safe environment (range of uncertainty 25%-42%. Large wealth-based inequalities existed in the proportion of births occurring in domestic environments based on wealth quintile and geographical zone.Existing data sources can be useful in national monitoring and prioritisation of interventions to improve poor WATSAN environments during childbirth. However, a better conceptual understanding of potentially harmful exposures and better data are needed in order to devise and apply more empirical definitions of

  10. Where there is no toilet: water and sanitation environments of domestic and facility births in Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benova, Lenka; Cumming, Oliver; Gordon, Bruce A; Magoma, Moke; Campbell, Oona M R

    2014-01-01

    Inadequate water and sanitation during childbirth are likely to lead to poor maternal and newborn outcomes. This paper uses existing data sources to assess the water and sanitation (WATSAN) environment surrounding births in Tanzania in order to interrogate whether such estimates could be useful for guiding research, policy and monitoring initiatives. We used the most recent Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) to characterise the delivery location of births occurring between 2005 and 2010. Births occurring in domestic environments were characterised as WATSAN-safe if the home fulfilled international definitions of improved water and improved sanitation access. We used the 2006 Service Provision Assessment survey to characterise the WATSAN environment of facilities that conduct deliveries. We combined estimates from both surveys to describe the proportion of all births occurring in WATSAN-safe environments and conducted an equity analysis based on DHS wealth quintiles and eight geographic zones. 42.9% (95% confidence interval: 41.6%-44.2%) of all births occurred in the woman's home. Among these, only 1.5% (95% confidence interval: 1.2%-2.0%) were estimated to have taken place in WATSAN-safe conditions. 74% of all health facilities conducted deliveries. Among these, only 44% of facilities overall and 24% of facility delivery rooms were WATSAN-safe. Combining the estimates, we showed that 30.5% of all births in Tanzania took place in a WATSAN-safe environment (range of uncertainty 25%-42%). Large wealth-based inequalities existed in the proportion of births occurring in domestic environments based on wealth quintile and geographical zone. Existing data sources can be useful in national monitoring and prioritisation of interventions to improve poor WATSAN environments during childbirth. However, a better conceptual understanding of potentially harmful exposures and better data are needed in order to devise and apply more empirical definitions of WATSAN

  11. The influence of the Bible geographic objects peculiarities on the concept of the spatiotemporal geoinformation system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linsebarth, A.; Moscicka, A.

    2010-01-01

    The article describes the infl uence of the Bible geographic object peculiarities on the spatiotemporal geoinformation system of the Bible events. In the proposed concept of this system the special attention was concentrated to the Bible geographic objects and interrelations between the names of these objects and their location in the geospace. In the Bible, both in the Old and New Testament, there are hundreds of geographical names, but the selection of these names from the Bible text is not so easy. The same names are applied for the persons and geographic objects. The next problem which arises is the classification of the geographical object, because in several cases the same name is used for the towns, mountains, hills, valleys etc. Also very serious problem is related to the time-changes of the names. The interrelation between the object name and its location is also complicated. The geographic object of this same name is located in various places which should be properly correlated with the Bible text. Above mentioned peculiarities of Bible geographic objects infl uenced the concept of the proposed system which consists of three databases: reference, geographic object, and subject/thematic. The crucial component of this system is proper architecture of the geographic object database. In the paper very detailed description of this database is presented. The interrelation between the databases allows to the Bible readers to connect the Bible text with the geography of the terrain on which the Bible events occurred and additionally to have access to the other geographical and historical information related to the geographic objects.

  12. Geographical variation in the prevalence of sensitization to common aeroallergens in adults

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Newson, R B; van Ree, R; Forsberg, B

    2014-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Geographical variation in the prevalence of sensitization to aeroallergens may reflect differences in exposure to risk factors such as having older siblings, being raised on a farm or other unidentified exposures. OBJECTIVE: We wanted to measure geographical variation in skin prick te...

  13. Geographically Modified PageRank Algorithms: Identifying the Spatial Concentration of Human Movement in a Geospatial Network.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chin, Wei-Chien-Benny; Wen, Tzai-Hung

    2015-01-01

    A network approach, which simplifies geographic settings as a form of nodes and links, emphasizes the connectivity and relationships of spatial features. Topological networks of spatial features are used to explore geographical connectivity and structures. The PageRank algorithm, a network metric, is often used to help identify important locations where people or automobiles concentrate in the geographical literature. However, geographic considerations, including proximity and location attractiveness, are ignored in most network metrics. The objective of the present study is to propose two geographically modified PageRank algorithms-Distance-Decay PageRank (DDPR) and Geographical PageRank (GPR)-that incorporate geographic considerations into PageRank algorithms to identify the spatial concentration of human movement in a geospatial network. Our findings indicate that in both intercity and within-city settings the proposed algorithms more effectively capture the spatial locations where people reside than traditional commonly-used network metrics. In comparing location attractiveness and distance decay, we conclude that the concentration of human movement is largely determined by the distance decay. This implies that geographic proximity remains a key factor in human mobility.

  14. Applications of geographic information systems (GIS) data and methods in obesity-related research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jia, P; Cheng, X; Xue, H; Wang, Y

    2017-04-01

    Geographic information systems (GIS) data/methods offer good promise for public health programs including obesity-related research. This study systematically examined their applications and identified gaps and limitations in current obesity-related research. A systematic search of PubMed for studies published before 20 May 2016, utilizing synonyms for GIS in combination with synonyms for obesity as search terms, identified 121 studies that met our inclusion criteria. We found primary applications of GIS data/methods in obesity-related research included (i) visualization of spatial distribution of obesity and obesity-related phenomena, and basic obesogenic environmental features, and (ii) construction of advanced obesogenic environmental indicators. We found high spatial heterogeneity in obesity prevalence/risk and obesogenic environmental factors. Also, study design and characteristics varied considerably across studies because of lack of established guidance and protocols in the field, which may also have contributed to the mixed findings about environmental impacts on obesity. Existing findings regarding built environment are more robust than those regarding food environment. Applications of GIS data/methods in obesity research are still limited, and related research faces many challenges. More and better GIS data and more friendly analysis methods are needed to expand future GIS applications in obesity-related research. © 2017 World Obesity Federation.

  15. Vulnerability assessment of atmospheric environment driven by human impacts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yang; Shen, Jing; Ding, Feng; Li, Yu; He, Li

    2016-11-15

    Atmospheric environment quality worsening is a substantial threat to public health worldwide, and in many places, air pollution due to the intensification of the human activity is increasing dramatically. However, no studies have been investigated the integration of vulnerability assessment and atmospheric environment driven by human impacts. The objective of this study was to identify and prioritize the undesirable environmental changes as an early warning system for environment managers and decision makers in term of human, atmospheric environment, and social economic elements. We conduct a vulnerability assessment method of atmospheric environment associated with human impact, this method integrates spatial context of Geographic Information System (GIS) tool, multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method, ordered weighted averaging (OWA) operators under the Exposure-Sensitivity- Adaptive Capacity (ESA) framework. Decision makers can find out relevant vulnerability assessment results with different vulnerable attitudes. In the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region, China, we further applied this developed method and proved it to be reliable and consistent with the China Environmental Status Bulletin. Results indicate that the vulnerability of atmospheric environment in the BTH region is not optimistic, and environment managers should do more about air pollution. Thus, the most appropriate strategic decision and development program of city or state can be picked out assisting by the vulnerable results. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. The Geographic Extent of Global Supply Chains

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Machikita, Tomohiro; Ueki, Yasushi

    2012-01-01

    We study the extent to which inter-firm relationships are locally concentrated and what determines firm differences in geographic proximity to domestic or foreign suppliers and customers. From micro-data on selfreported customer and supplier data of firms in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, ...

  17. Public Use Airports, Geographic WGS84, BTS (2006) [public_use_airports_BTS_2006

    Data.gov (United States)

    Louisiana Geographic Information Center — The Public Use Airports database is a geographic point database of aircraft landing facilities in the United States and U.S. Territories. Attribute data is provided...

  18. Authorities and organizations involved with geographic names - 1989: United States, Canada, Mexico

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orth, Donald J.

    1989-01-01

    There is a need for accurate and standard geographic names usage in all levels of government, industry, commerce, communications, education, and research. There is also a growing number of organizations in North America that are, fully or partly, involved in the scholarly study of geographic names. This report is a list of official national, State/Provincial, and regional provincial authorities concerned with name standardization, and of organizations involved with the study of geographic names, in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The appendixes are copies of documents that provide additional information about the organization, policies, procedures, and publications of some of these organizations.

  19. OGC Geographic Information Service Deductive Semantic Reasoning Based on Description Vocabularies Reduction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MIAO Lizhi

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available As geographic information interoperability and sharing developing, more and more interoperable OGC (open geospatial consortium Web services (OWS are generated and published through the internet. These services can facilitate the integration of different scientific applications by searching, finding, and utilizing the large number of scientific data and Web services. However, these services are widely dispersed and hard to be found and utilized with executive semantic retrieval. This is especially true when considering the weak semantic description of geographic information service data. Focusing on semantic retrieval and reasoning of the distributed OWS resources, a deductive and semantic reasoning method is proposed to describe and search relevant OWS resources. Specifically, ①description words are extracted from OWS metadata file to generate GISe ontology-database and instance-database based on geographic ontology according to basic geographic elements category, ②a description words reduction model is put forward to implement knowledge reduction on GISe instance-database based on rough set theory and generate optimized instances database, ③utilizing GISe ontology-database and optimized instance-database to implement semantic inference and reasoning of geographic searching objects is used as an example to demonstrate the efficiency, feasibility and recall ration of the proposed description-word-based reduction model.

  20. Extending the Intermediate Data Structure (IDS for longitudinal historical databases to include geographic data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Finn Hedefalk

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available The Intermediate Data Structure (IDS is a standardised database structure for longitudinal historical databases. Such a common structure facilitates data sharing and comparative research. In this study, we propose an extended version of IDS, named IDS-Geo, that also includes geographic data. The geographic data that will be stored in IDS-Geo are primarily buildings and/or property units, and the purpose of these geographic data is mainly to link individuals to places in space. When we want to assign such detailed spatial locations to individuals (in times before there were any detailed house addresses available, we often have to create tailored geographic datasets. In those cases, there are benefits of storing geographic data in the same structure as the demographic data. Moreover, we propose the export of data from IDS-Geo using an eXtensible Markup Language (XML Schema. IDS-Geo is implemented in a case study using historical property units, for the period 1804 to 1913, stored in a geographically extended version of the Scanian Economic Demographic Database (SEDD. To fit into the IDS-Geo data structure, we included an object lifeline representation of all of the property units (based on the snapshot time representation of single historical maps and poll-tax registers. The case study verifies that the IDS-Geo model is capable of handling geographic data that can be linked to demographic data.

  1. A geographical analysis of the Swedish wood fuel market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Roos, Anders; Bohlin, Folke; Hektor, Bo; Hillring, Bengt; Parikka, Matti

    2000-01-01

    The geographical variation in Swedish wood fuel market characteristics for the district heating sector has been studied using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and cross-sectional Tobit analysis. The results indicate that local availability and competition for wood fuels influence the wood fuel consumption at inland heating plants. The factors affecting the decision to use wood fuel at heating plants close to seaports, however, were not captured by the model, suggesting that coastal location reduces dependency on the local wood fuel market. The effects of changes in local wood fuel availability on wood fuel use by an inland heating plant are presented and discussed

  2. Key Techniques for Dynamic Updating of National Fundamental Geographic Information Database

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    WANG Donghua

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available One of the most important missions of fundamental surveying and mapping work is to keep the fundamental geographic information fresh. In this respect, National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation has launched the project of dynamic updating of national fundamental geographic information database since 2012, which aims to update 1:50 000, 1:250 000 and 1:1 000 000 national fundamental geographic information database continuously and quickly, by updating and publishing once a year. This paper introduces the general technical thinking of dynamic updating, states main technical methods, such as dynamic updating of fundamental database, linkage updating of derived databases, and multi-tense database management and service and so on, and finally introduces main technical characteristics and engineering applications.

  3. Epidemiology of hip fracture: Worldwide geographic variation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dinesh K Dhanwal

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Osteoporosis is a major health problem, especially in elderly populations, and is associated with fragility fractures at the hip, spine, and wrist. Hip fracture contributes to both morbidity and mortality in the elderly. The demographics of world populations are set to change, with more elderly living in developing countries, and it has been estimated that by 2050 half of hip fractures will occur in Asia. This review conducted using the PubMed database describes the incidence of hip fracture in different regions of the world and discusses the possible causes of this wide geographic variation. The analysis of data from different studies show a wide geographic variation across the world, with higher hip fracture incidence reported from industrialized countries as compared to developing countries. The highest hip fracture rates are seen in North Europe and the US and lowest in Latin America and Africa. Asian countries such as Kuwait, Iran, China, and Hong Kong show intermediate hip fracture rates. There is also a north-south gradient seen in European studies, and more fractures are seen in the north of the US than in the south. The factors responsible of this variation are population demographics (with more elderly living in countries with higher incidence rates and the influence of ethnicity, latitude, and environmental factors. The understanding of this changing geographic variation will help policy makers to develop strategies to reduce the burden of hip fractures in developing countries such as India, which will face the brunt of this problem over the coming decades.

  4. Combining geographic information system, multicriteria evaluation techniques and fuzzy logic in siting MSW landfills

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gemitzi, Alexandra; Tsihrintzis, Vassilios A.; Voudrias, Evangelos; Petalas, Christos; Stravodimos, George

    2007-01-01

    This study presents a methodology for siting municipal solid waste landfills, coupling geographic information systems (GIS), fuzzy logic, and multicriteria evaluation techniques. Both exclusionary and non-exclusionary criteria are used. Factors, i.e., non-exclusionary criteria, are divided in two distinct groups which do not have the same level of trade off. The first group comprises factors related to the physical environment, which cannot be expressed in terms of monetary cost and, therefore, they do not easily trade off. The second group includes those factors related to human activities, i.e., socioeconomic factors, which can be expressed as financial cost, thus showing a high level of trade off. GIS are used for geographic data acquisition and processing. The analytical hierarchy process (AHP) is the multicriteria evaluation technique used, enhanced with fuzzy factor standardization. Besides assigning weights to factors through the AHP, control over the level of risk and trade off in the siting process is achieved through a second set of weights, i.e., order weights, applied to factors in each factor group, on a pixel-by-pixel basis, thus taking into account the local site characteristics. The method has been applied to Evros prefecture (NE Greece), an area of approximately 4,000 km2. The siting methodology results in two intermediate suitability maps, one related to environmental and the other to socioeconomic criteria. Combination of the two intermediate maps results in the final composite suitability map for landfill siting.

  5. Correlation between genetic and geographic structure in Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lao, Oscar; Lu, Timothy T; Nothnagel, Michael

    2008-01-01

    geographic but narrow genomic coverage [1, 2], or vice versa [3-6]. We therefore investigated Affymetrix GeneChip 500K genotype data from 2,514 individuals belonging to 23 different subpopulations, widely spread over Europe. Although we found only a low level of genetic differentiation between subpopulations......, the existing differences were characterized by a strong continent-wide correlation between geographic and genetic distance. Furthermore, mean heterozygosity was larger, and mean linkage disequilibrium smaller, in southern as compared to northern Europe. Both parameters clearly showed a clinal distribution...... Europe. By including the widely used CEPH from Utah (CEU) samples into our analysis, we could show that these individuals represent northern and western Europeans reasonably well, thereby confirming their assumed regional ancestry....

  6. Mountain names in the geographical dictionary of Camagüey Province, environmental studies, and environmental education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alfonso, L. F.

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The research contributes to the project intended to provide the province of Camagüey with a geographical dictionary, a reference book for economic entities and academic institutions. The article is aimed at standardizing the use of geographical names in education and scientific research in Camagüey. Several methods of geographical research were used, cartographic methods, observing geographic objects in place and field research included. The findings were assessed by means of consulting experts on the topic and computer data processing. The methodology employed follows the guidelines of the national group of advisors for geographical names and the group of advisor of Camagüey province. The most widely used geographical names in the regions were listed in the dictionary.

  7. Wave energy level and geographic setting correlate with Florida beach water quality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Zhixuan; Reniers, Ad; Haus, Brian K; Solo-Gabriele, Helena M; Kelly, Elizabeth A

    2016-03-15

    Many recreational beaches suffer from elevated levels of microorganisms, resulting in beach advisories and closures due to lack of compliance with Environmental Protection Agency guidelines. We conducted the first statewide beach water quality assessment by analyzing decadal records of fecal indicator bacteria (enterococci and fecal coliform) levels at 262 Florida beaches. The objectives were to depict synoptic patterns of beach water quality exceedance along the entire Florida shoreline and to evaluate their relationships with wave condition and geographic location. Percent exceedances based on enterococci and fecal coliform were negatively correlated with both long-term mean wave energy and beach slope. Also, Gulf of Mexico beaches exceeded the thresholds significantly more than Atlantic Ocean ones, perhaps partially due to the lower wave energy. A possible linkage between wave energy level and water quality is beach sand, a pervasive nonpoint source that tends to harbor more bacteria in the low-wave-energy environment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Density-Based Clustering with Geographical Background Constraints Using a Semantic Expression Model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qingyun Du

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available A semantics-based method for density-based clustering with constraints imposed by geographical background knowledge is proposed. In this paper, we apply an ontological approach to the DBSCAN (Density-Based Geospatial Clustering of Applications with Noise algorithm in the form of knowledge representation for constraint clustering. When used in the process of clustering geographic information, semantic reasoning based on a defined ontology and its relationships is primarily intended to overcome the lack of knowledge of the relevant geospatial data. Better constraints on the geographical knowledge yield more reasonable clustering results. This article uses an ontology to describe the four types of semantic constraints for geographical backgrounds: “No Constraints”, “Constraints”, “Cannot-Link Constraints”, and “Must-Link Constraints”. This paper also reports the implementation of a prototype clustering program. Based on the proposed approach, DBSCAN can be applied with both obstacle and non-obstacle constraints as a semi-supervised clustering algorithm and the clustering results are displayed on a digital map.

  9. PlanetLab Europe as Geographically-Distributed Testbed for Software Development and Evaluation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dan Komosny

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we analyse the use of PlanetLab Europe for development and evaluation of geographically-oriented Internet services. PlanetLab is a global research network with the main purpose to support development of new Internet services and protocols. PlanetLab is divided into several branches; one of them is PlanetLab Europe. PlanetLab Europe consists of about 350 nodes at 150 geographically different sites. The nodes are accessible by remote login, and the users can run their software on the nodes. In the paper, we study the PlanetLab's properties that are significant for its use as a geographically distributed testbed. This includes node position accuracy, services availability and stability. We find a considerable number of location inaccuracies and a number of services that cannot be considered as reliable. Based on the results we propose a simple approach to nodes selection in testbeds for geographically-oriented Internet services development and evaluation.

  10. Universally Primed-PCR indicates geographical variation of Peronospora farinosa ex. Chenopodium quinoa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Danielsen, Solveig; Lübeck, Mette

    2010-02-01

    In the Andean region of South America downy mildew, caused by Peronospora farinosa, is the most important disease of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa). Peronospora farinosa, a highly polyphyletic species, occurs on quinoa and wild relatives on all continents. However, very little is known about the geographic diversity of the pathogen. As the interest in quinoa as a novel crop is increasing worldwide, geographical differences in the population structure of the downy mildew pathogen must be taken into consideration in order to design appropriate control strategies under a variety of circumstances. As a step towards understanding the geographic diversity of P. farinosa from quinoa, 40 downy mildew isolates from the Andean highlands and Denmark were characterized using universally primed PCR (UP-PCR). Eight UP-PCR primers were tested. A combined analysis of markers separated the Danish and Andean isolates in two distinct clusters. This study raises new questions about the origin and spread of P. farinosa on quinoa, its geographic diversity and host specificity.

  11. Geographic variation in health insurance benefits in Qianjiang District, China: a cross-sectional study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Yue; Zhang, Liang; Liu, Xuejiao; Ye, Ting; Wang, Yongfei

    2018-02-05

    Health insurance contributes to reducing the economic burden of disease and improving access to healthcare. In 2016, the Chinese government announced the integration of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) and Urban Resident Basic Medical Insurance (URBMI) to reduce system segmentation. Nevertheless, it was unclear whether there would be any geographic variation in health insurance benefits if the two types of insurance were integrated. The aim of this study was to identify the potential geographic variation in health insurance benefits and the related contributing factors. This cross-sectional study was carried out in Qianjiang District, where the NCMS and URBMI were integrated into Urban and Rural Resident Basic Medical Insurance Scheme (URRBMI) in 2010. All beneficiaries under the URRBMI were hospitalized at least once in 2013, totaling 445,254 persons and 65,877 person-times, were included in this study. Town-level data on health insurance benefits, healthcare utilization, and socioeconomic and geographical characteristics were collected through health insurance system, self-report questionnaires, and the 2014 Statistical Yearbook of Qianjiang District. A simplified Theil index at town level was calculated to measure geographic variation in health insurance benefits. Colored maps were created to visualize the variation in geographic distribution of benefits. The effects of healthcare utilization and socioeconomic and geographical characteristics on geographic variation in health insurance benefits were estimated with a multiple linear regression analysis. Different Theil index values were calculated for different towns, and the Theil index values for compensation by person-times and amount were 2.5028 and 1.8394 in primary healthcare institutions and 1.1466 and 0.9204 in secondary healthcare institutions. Healthcare-seeking behavior and economic factors were positively associated with health insurance benefits in compensation by person-times significantly

  12. Europeans among themselves: Geographical and linguistic stereotypes

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mamadouh, V.D.; Dąbrowska, A.; Pisarek, W.; Stickel, G.

    2017-01-01

    Stereotypes can be studied from the perspective of political geography and critical geopolitics as part of geographical imaginations, in other words those geopolitical representations that help us make sense of the world around us. They necessarily frame our perception of ongoing events, and inform

  13. Geography and Geographical Information Science: Interdisciplinary Integrators

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ellul, Claire

    2015-01-01

    To understand how Geography and Geographical Information Science (GIS) can contribute to Interdisciplinary Research (IDR), it is relevant to articulate the differences between the different types of such research. "Multidisciplinary" researchers work in a "parallel play" mode, completing work in their disciplinary work streams…

  14. Geographical Determinants of Kaprije and Kakan Islands and Adjacent Islets, Croatia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Damir Magaš

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available The islands of Kaprije (6.97 km2 and Kakan (3.12 km2 are part of Šibenik islands, situated in the South Croatian (Dalmatian archipelago. The paper deals with their natural-geographical basis in function of past development and potential one, within the framework of the project on small Croatian islands. Besides analysing their size and extent, the authors emphasize the importance of their geographical position, geologic composition and structure, geomorphologic, climatic, pedological, hydrogeographical and biogeographical characteristics. The importance of their carbonate structure, mediterranean climatic conditions, lack of water and importance of their autochthonous vegetation are analysed in the same function. Population, building of settlements and weekend houses, as well as land use on the islands mostly depend on their natural-geographic resources. The recent possibilities of development are also based on them. Depopulation and deagrarisation impact the landscape of the island, especially the settled island of Kaprije, which is being radically changed. Strong connection between the town of Šibenik and Kaprije Island, which essentially influenced historical-geographical development of the island, also effects the contemporary development, especially through a strong gravitational influence of Šibenik.

  15. Geographic variation in chin shape challenges the universal facial attractiveness hypothesis.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zaneta M Thayer

    Full Text Available The universal facial attractiveness (UFA hypothesis proposes that some facial features are universally preferred because they are reliable signals of mate quality. The primary evidence for this hypothesis comes from cross-cultural studies of perceived attractiveness. However, these studies do not directly address patterns of morphological variation at the population level. An unanswered question is therefore: Are universally preferred facial phenotypes geographically invariant, as the UFA hypothesis implies? The purpose of our study is to evaluate this often overlooked aspect of the UFA hypothesis by examining patterns of geographic variation in chin shape. We collected symphyseal outlines from 180 recent human mandibles (90 male, 90 female representing nine geographic regions. Elliptical Fourier functions analysis was used to quantify chin shape, and principle components analysis was used to compute shape descriptors. In contrast to the expectations of the UFA hypothesis, we found significant geographic differences in male and female chin shape. These findings are consistent with region-specific sexual selection and/or random genetic drift, but not universal sexual selection. We recommend that future studies of facial attractiveness take into consideration patterns of morphological variation within and between diverse human populations.

  16. Comparing alternative approaches to measuring the geographical accessibility of urban health services: Distance types and aggregation-error issues

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Riva Mylène

    2008-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Over the past two decades, geographical accessibility of urban resources for population living in residential areas has received an increased focus in urban health studies. Operationalising and computing geographical accessibility measures depend on a set of four parameters, namely definition of residential areas, a method of aggregation, a measure of accessibility, and a type of distance. Yet, the choice of these parameters may potentially generate different results leading to significant measurement errors. The aim of this paper is to compare discrepancies in results for geographical accessibility of selected health care services for residential areas (i.e. census tracts computed using different distance types and aggregation methods. Results First, the comparison of distance types demonstrates that Cartesian distances (Euclidean and Manhattan distances are strongly correlated with more accurate network distances (shortest network and shortest network time distances across the metropolitan area (Pearson correlation greater than 0.95. However, important local variations in correlation between Cartesian and network distances were observed notably in suburban areas where Cartesian distances were less precise. Second, the choice of the aggregation method is also important: in comparison to the most accurate aggregation method (population-weighted mean of the accessibility measure for census blocks within census tracts, accessibility measures computed from census tract centroids, though not inaccurate, yield important measurement errors for 5% to 10% of census tracts. Conclusion Although errors associated to the choice of distance types and aggregation method are only important for about 10% of census tracts located mainly in suburban areas, we should not avoid using the best estimation method possible for evaluating geographical accessibility. This is especially so if these measures are to be included as a dimension of the

  17. Geographically Modified PageRank Algorithms: Identifying the Spatial Concentration of Human Movement in a Geospatial Network.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei-Chien-Benny Chin

    Full Text Available A network approach, which simplifies geographic settings as a form of nodes and links, emphasizes the connectivity and relationships of spatial features. Topological networks of spatial features are used to explore geographical connectivity and structures. The PageRank algorithm, a network metric, is often used to help identify important locations where people or automobiles concentrate in the geographical literature. However, geographic considerations, including proximity and location attractiveness, are ignored in most network metrics. The objective of the present study is to propose two geographically modified PageRank algorithms-Distance-Decay PageRank (DDPR and Geographical PageRank (GPR-that incorporate geographic considerations into PageRank algorithms to identify the spatial concentration of human movement in a geospatial network. Our findings indicate that in both intercity and within-city settings the proposed algorithms more effectively capture the spatial locations where people reside than traditional commonly-used network metrics. In comparing location attractiveness and distance decay, we conclude that the concentration of human movement is largely determined by the distance decay. This implies that geographic proximity remains a key factor in human mobility.

  18. Structured prediction for urban scene semantic segmentation with geographic contex

    OpenAIRE

    Volpi Michele; Ferrari Vittorio

    2015-01-01

    In this work we address the problem of semantic segmentation of urban remote sensing images into land cover maps. We propose to tackle this task by learning the geographic context of classes and use it to favor or discourage certain spatial configuration of label assignments. For this reason, we learn from training data two spatial priors enforcing different key aspects of the geographical space: local co-occurrence and relative location of land cover classes. We propose to embed these geogra...

  19. Environment characterization as an aid to wheat improvement: interpreting genotype-environment interactions by modelling water-deficit patterns in North-Eastern Australia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chenu, K; Cooper, M; Hammer, G L; Mathews, K L; Dreccer, M F; Chapman, S C

    2011-03-01

    Genotype-environment interactions (GEI) limit genetic gain for complex traits such as tolerance to drought. Characterization of the crop environment is an important step in understanding GEI. A modelling approach is proposed here to characterize broadly (large geographic area, long-term period) and locally (field experiment) drought-related environmental stresses, which enables breeders to analyse their experimental trials with regard to the broad population of environments that they target. Water-deficit patterns experienced by wheat crops were determined for drought-prone north-eastern Australia, using the APSIM crop model to account for the interactions of crops with their environment (e.g. feedback of plant growth on water depletion). Simulations based on more than 100 years of historical climate data were conducted for representative locations, soils, and management systems, for a check cultivar, Hartog. The three main environment types identified differed in their patterns of simulated water stress around flowering and during grain-filling. Over the entire region, the terminal drought-stress pattern was most common (50% of production environments) followed by a flowering stress (24%), although the frequencies of occurrence of the three types varied greatly across regions, years, and management. This environment classification was applied to 16 trials relevant to late stages testing of a breeding programme. The incorporation of the independently-determined environment types in a statistical analysis assisted interpretation of the GEI for yield among the 18 representative genotypes by reducing the relative effect of GEI compared with genotypic variance, and helped to identify opportunities to improve breeding and germplasm-testing strategies for this region.

  20. From 32 ounces to zero: a medical geographic study of dispensing a cultivated batch of "plum" cannabis flowers to medical marijuana patients in Washington State.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aggarwal, Sunil K; Carter, Gregory T; Zumbrunnen, Craig; Morrill, Richard; Sullivan, Mark; Mayer, Jonathan D

    2013-01-01

    The medicinal use of cannabis is a growing phenomenon in the U.S. predicated on the success of overcoming specific spatial challenges and establishing particular human-environment relationships. This article takes a medical geographic "snapshot" of an urban site in Washington State where qualifying chronically ill and debilitated patients are delivered locally produced botanical cannabis for medical use. Using interview, survey, and observation, this medical geographic research project collected information on the social space of the particular delivery site and tracked the production cost, reach, and health value of a 32-ounce batch of strain-specific medical cannabis named "Plum" dispensed over a four-day period. A convenience sample of 37 qualifying patients delivered this batch of cannabis botanical medicine was recruited and prospectively studied with survey instruments. Results provide insight into patients' self-rated health, human-plant relationships, and travel-to-clinic distances. An overall systematic geographic understanding of the medical cannabis delivery system gives a grounded understanding of the lengths that patients and care providers go, despite multiple hurdles, to receive and deliver treatment with botanical cannabis that relieves diverse symptoms and improves health-related quality-of-life.