Computation And Visualization For Understanding Dynamics In Geographic Domains

The world is ever changing, and a comprehensive understanding of the world will not be achieved without theoretical and methodological advances to decode complex dynamics in human and environmental systems. Computation and Visualization for the Understanding of Dynamics in Geographic Domains: A Research Agenda synthesizes key ideas and issu

Although the dynamic aspect of the world is widely recognized, information systems have lagged in their ability to represent these dynamics and provide support for users and analysts, especially those who work with dynamic geographic domains. A collection of peer-reviewed articles, Understanding Dynamics of Geographic Domains showcases new research and perspectives on theoretical aspects of geographic dynamics and including novel data modeling and visualization-related studies. Multidisciplinary Book Brings Together Respected Specialists Editors Kathleen Stewart Hornsby and May Yuan bring together prominent and respected specialists to create a multidisciplinary book that combines coverage of topics from the perspectives of GIS, computer science, image processing, and information and data processing. Containing an 8-page color insert, the book is divided into three sections that explore the conceptual and cognitive underpinnings of geographic dynamics and data modeling topics; the related analytical and computational approaches; and topics relating to the visualization and simulation of geographic dynamics. A Milestone for Research Developments A quick review of the contents and contributors reveals the breadth and depth of knowledge provided. Incorporating theoretical, cognitive, methodological, and applied articles, the coverage is closely related to the national research agenda on Geographic Information Science proposed by the University Consortium of Geographic Information Science (UCGIS). Indeed, the foundations for this book began with a workshop co-sponsored by the UCGIS on the topic of geographic dynamics. This makes the book not only a top-notch reference but also a milestone for research developments in the field.

Although the dynamic aspect of the world is widely recognized, information systems have lagged in their ability to represent these dynamics and provide support for users and analysts, especially those who work with dynamic geographic domains. A collection of peer-reviewed articles, Understanding Dynamics of Geographic Domains showcases new research

Harold Innis was one of the most profound thinkers that Canada ever produced. Such was his influence on the field of communication that Marshall McLuhan once declared his own work was a mere footnote to Innis. But over the past sixty years scholars have had a hard time explaining his brilliance, in large measure because Innis's dense, elliptical writing style has hindered easy explication and interpretation. But behind the dense verbiage lies a profound philosophy of history. In Emergence and Empire, John Bonnett offers a fresh take on Innis's work by demonstrating that his purpose was to understand the impact of self-organizing, emergent change on economies and societies. Innis's interest in emergent change induced him to craft an original and bold philosophy of history informed by concepts as diverse as information, Kantian idealism, and business cycle theory. Bonnett provides a close reading of Innis's oeuvre that connects works of communication and economic history to present a fuller understanding of Innis's influences and influence. Emergence and Empire presents a portrait of an original and prescient thinker who anticipated the importance of developments such as information visualization and whose understanding of change is remarkably similar to that which is promoted by the science of complexity today.

"Geospatial Information" is spatial data concerning a place or, in space, collected in real time. Geospatial techniques together with remote sensing, geographic information science, Global Positioning System (GPS), cartography, geovisualization, and spatial statistics are being used to capture, store, manipulate and analyze to understand complex situations to solve mysteries of the universe. These techniques have been applied in various fields such as meteorology, forestry, environmental management, agriculture, health, homeland security etc. around the globe. This volume presents case studies and examples from various parts of the world and provides a broad overview of various approaches; data sets; data acquiring, monitoring and dissemination methods; satellites and sensors; tools and techniques used; integrating tools, techniques and application to various fields for the sustainable management of environmental resources in the context of global environmental change and natural hazards. The objective of this book is to provide state-of-the-art information to academics, researchers and industry practitioners who are involved or interested in the study, use, design and development of advanced and emerging geospatial technologies around the world with ultimate aim to empower individuals and organizations in building competencies for exploiting the opportunities of the knowledge society. All the chapters are peer-reviewes and evaluated and are an inter- and multi-disciplinary source of information, making an effort to link various geospatial techniques to make the earth an habitable place. The contributors have tried to focus their respective views on the current problems that need urgent attention. Consequently, we see this book as a comprehensive information base, which includes work of expertise in their specific fields of research.

This book explores new methods and techniques for research about merchant networks and maritime routes of trade during the First Global Age through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as a tool to visualize the formation of trading systems, database management, cartography and spatio-temporal analysis in Historical GIS. In doing so, the book focuses on key issues in understanding the birth of the so-called First Global Age (16th to 18th centuries): the integration of spatial economies; the regionalization of markets; the organization of maritime trade routes; and the evolution of self-organizing networks of merchants, producers, communities, and other social agents during the age of expansion. The essays collected here deal with relevant information about historical problems including maritime connections, the organization of oceanic trade and the use of digital cartography and metric analysis of old maps, and social network analysis – commercial networks involved a high level of cooperation and served to move goods and people within a highly open system over an expanding geographic space.

The 21st century has seen a number of advancements in technology, including the use of high performance computing. Computing resources are being used by the science and economy fields for data processing, simulation, and modeling. These innovations aid in the support of production, logistics, and mobility processes. Integrated Information and Computing Systems for Natural, Spatial, and Social Sciences covers a carefully selected spectrum of the most up to date issues, revealing the benefits, dynamism, potential, and challenges of information and computing system application scenarios and components from a wide spectrum of prominent disciplines. This comprehensive collection offers important guidance on the development stage of the universal solution to information and computing systems for researchers as well as industry decision makers and developers.

Integrating Scale in Remote Sensing and GIS serves as the most comprehensive documentation of the scientific and methodological advances that have taken place in integrating scale and remote sensing data. This work addresses the invariants of scale, the ability to change scale, measures of the impact of scale, scale as a parameter in process models, and the implementation of multiscale approaches as methods and techniques for integrating multiple kinds of remote sensing data collected at varying spatial, temporal, and radiometric scales. Researchers, instructors, and students alike will benefit from a guide that has been pragmatically divided into four thematic groups: scale issues and multiple scaling; physical scale as applied to natural resources; urban scale; and human health/social scale. Teeming with insights that elucidate the significance of scale as a foundation for geographic analysis, this book is a vital resource to those seriously involved in the field of GIScience.

Although GIS provides powerful functionality for spatial analysis, data overlay and storage, these spatially oriented systems lack the ability to represent temporal dynamics, which is a major impediment to its use in surface modeling. However, rapid development of computing technology in recent years has made real-time spatial analysis and real-time data visualization become realizable. Based on newly developed methods, Surface Modeling: High Accuracy and High Speed Methods explores solutions to big-error and slow-efficiency problems, two critical challenges that have long plagued those working in with geographical information system (GIS) and computer-aided design (CAD). By developing high accuracy and high speed methods for surface modeling, the book builds a bridge between the mathematical-oriented theory of surface modeling and the user-oriented application where the user is actually able to retrieve information on the method itself. The author examines a novel method of high accuracy surface modeling (HASM) in terms of the fundamental theorem of surfaces. He then analyzes the coefficient matrix and develops an adaptive method of HASM (HASM-AM), a multi-grade method of HASM (HASM-MG), and an adjustment method of HASM (HASM-AD). He uses numerical tests and real world studies to demonstrate that HASM-AM, HASM-MG, and HASM-AD have highly accelerated computational speed, especially for simulations with huge computational work. Building on this, the book discusses a HASM-based method for dynamic simulation (HASM-FDS), and then applies HASM methods to simulate terrains, climate change, ecosystem change, land cover, and soil properties. It demonstrates HASM's potential for simulating population distribution, human carrying capacity, ecosystem services, ecological diversity, change detection, and wind velocity. The book concludes with a discussion of the problems that exist in surface modeling on a global level and evaluates possible solutions to these problems.