UCT GIS Labs
- 1. What is Geospatial Data? Everything Happens Somewhere http://geography.oii.ox.ac.uk/?page=geographic-knowledge-freebase
- 2. Everything Happens Somewhere As a result, practically all data has a spatial attribute (US Office of Management and Budget, 2002) - Explicit (coordinates, addresses) - Implicit (landmarks, directions) - Inferred (creators, researchers, referees) http://geography.oii.ox.ac.uk/?page=mapping-edits-to-wikipedia-from-africa
- 3. Inferred Spatial Context Even if the subject at hand is not directly spatial, odds are good that it has spatial context - Where is this subject being created/studied? - Any important places with references to this subject? - Any important researchers/centres of excellence? - Who is looking for information on this subject? http://geography.oii.ox.ac.uk/?page=the-location-of-academic- knowledge
- 4. Sourcing Spatial Data Existing spatial data sets can be found locally (in libraries and data repositories) or via the Web Ready to Use: • Satellite imagery • Climatic Data • Census Data • Elevation models Reference: • Topographic Map Series • Gazetteers • Google Earth Local names for “cheap” beer sourced via Twitter http://www.floatingsheep.org/2014/04/new-book- chapter-on-geographies-of-beer.html
- 5. Sourcing Spatial Data: The Web Google search for mosquito densities leading to MosquitoMap.org
- 6. Ready to use data Underlying dataset of land cover classifications can immediately be used in overlay analysis
- 7. Reference Data The image of Pyongyang in 1950 provides context and meaning to a human observer but cannot be directly queried or used in a GIS analysis. Features would need to be traced off (digitized) into separate layers.
- 8. Creating Spatial Data:Geocoding By using explicit coordinates, or looking up addresses or landmark locations referred to in reports and papers it is possible to create spatial attributes for data in practically any discipline. Wireless Access Points, Jagger Library, 4th Floor via ICTS Website
- 9. Creating Spatial Data: Geo-tagging Audiovisual Data It is also possible to geocode audio and video records: • Through coordinates captured and stored by recording devices (such as modern smartphones and GPS data loggers) • Retroactively by matching landmarks in the background of photographs, postmarks on postcards, references to locations in interviews or songs.
- 10. Map Visual orientation is the most common operation • “make a map of the study area” • “make a context map showing the study area relative to landmarks/roads/provincia l boundaries” Sandy Shell, Oromo Slave First Passage Journal Analysis Study Area
- 11. Analyse Mapping data is the first action, but by analysing it using spatial functions you are able to: • append information from the surrounding spatial environment (overlay) • analyse the spatial distribution pattern (geo-statistics) • model or predict occurences (envelopes) Sandy Shell, Oromo Slave First Passage Journeys
- 12. Share Once you have gone to the effort of spatially locating data, creating maps or derivative data SHARE IT! The more spatial data available, and the easier it is to reach, the better it is for future research. ArcGIS.com Map Gallery & MapTube.org
- 13. Reference your data Spatial data is just like any other sort of data • It needs to be referenced/acknowledged • It needs metadata in order to be assessed against future mapping or analytical needs (scale, date, original source, pre-processing)
- 14. How? Desktop Use a GIS package on your PC/Mac/Tablet/Phone • Free Desktop Quantum GIS, Google Earth, uDig, MapWindow • Expensive Desktop ArcGIS, Autodesk, Illustrator Plugins, Ortelius, MapDraw Quantum GIS & ArcGIS Interfaces
- 15. How? Web Based Free Web Google Fusion Tables, Map Engine OpenStreetMap GNSS (Geographic Name Servers) Expensive Web ArcGIS Online, WeoGeo, MangoMap OpenStreetMap.org & MangoMap.com
- 16. UCT GIS Lab Nicholas Lindenberg Thomas Slingsby Tel: 021 650 3917 Room 5.25 G.H Menzies Building