Day: June 22, 2009

Jeremy Morley Appointed Deputy Director, Centre for Geospatial Science, University of Nottingham

/ Matt Artz

cgsJeremy Morley from University College, London (UCL), has been appointed as Deputy Director of the Centre for Geospatial Science (CGS) at The University of Nottingham. He takes-up the post in September. Jeremy was programme director of UCL’s MSc in GIS from 1998-2004 and of its BEng/MEng in Geoinformatics from 2005-20099. Over the last 15 years his research has focussed on the mapping of Mars in support of geological analysis; terrain mapping from LiDAR and InSAR; GIS interoperability and mashup WebGIS systems. He has been UCL’s technical representative to the Open Geospatial Consortium since 2004. Jeremy is currently the academic organiser for the AGI’s “GeoCommunity” 2009 Annual Conference and Conference Chair for GISRUK 2010.

CGS is a major multi-disciplinary post-graduate research centre, established in 2005 by The University of Nottingham’s Institute of Engineering Surveying and Space Geodesy (IESSG) and School of Geography. Its research focus is on spatial data infrastructures (SDI), geospatial intelligence, spatial interoperability and location-based services. Its current multi-million pound research portfolio includes contracts for the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the Ordnance Survey of Great Britain, The Technology Strategy Board and the EU. It is part of a recently awarded £5.7m Doctoral Training Centre at Nottingham in Location Aware Pervasive Computing and a £12m award for a Digital Economy Research Hub in the same subject area. It also shares with IESSG and Computer Science in a £700,000 award for positioning and sensor infrastructure. CGS is currently based within the School of Geography and moves, with IESSG, into a new purpose built building in October 2009.

Professor Mike Jackson, Director of CGS, said: “We are delighted to welcome Jeremy to CGS and The University of Nottingham. His strong research background will further enhance the status that the Centre has achieved in the last few years and enable the Centre to continue to grow its reputation for multi-disciplinary research in the geospatial sciences.”

Jeremy Morley said: “I am very pleased to be joining Professor Jackson at the Centre for Geospatial Science. The Centre has established a strong international presence in the field of GIS, interoperability and services and I look forward to contributing to the further growth of the group and its research.”

Applying Geographically Weighted Regression

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

re_grw_1…from ArcUser…

“Underpinning geographic thinking is the assumption that spatial phenomena will vary across a landscape. Regression-based models largely ignore this assumption, much to the detriment of spatially varying relationships.

“However, ArcGIS 9.3 provides an exciting tool that generates spatially calibrated regression models. Known as Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR), this tool generates a separate regression equation for every feature analyzed in a sample dataset as a means to address spatial variation. (The GWR tool requires an ArcInfo, ArcGIS Spatial Analyst, or ArcGIS Geostatistical Analyst license.)”

Quote of the Day

/ Matt Artz

“If you want a database that has everything, you’ve got it. It’s out there. It’s called reality.”

–Scott Morehouse, Director of Software Development, ESRI

GIS Helps Measure Carbon Footprints in U.S. Forests

/ Matt Artz

logo_NBCD…from V1 Magazine…

“How do we retrace our ecological footprints? Where will the footprints lead? Scientists at the Woods Hole Research Center (WHRC) are tracking carbon footprints across the globe starting with U.S. forests. One ongoing study, using geographic information system (GIS) technology, is measuring the carbon-rich biomass in heavily wooded areas to indicate the effect that deforestation and land use have on rising carbon levels in our atmosphere.

“The National Biomass and Carbon Dataset for the year 2000 (NBCD2000) will serve as a baseline for quantifying carbon stock in U.S. forests. The information can then be used to improve current methods of assessing carbon flux between forests and the atmosphere. To establish the baseline, researchers fed many layers of data into the GIS including NASA satellite imagery, topographic survey data, land use/land cover information, and extensive forest inventory data collected by the USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program.”

Science Offers Insight on Wind Energy Feasibility

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

th_315497…from Electric Light & Power magazine…

“Our development teams include meteorologists, engineers, environmental-permitting staff and land agents,” said Tyler Hoffbuhr, a geographic information system (GIS) analyst with Iberdrola Renewables, the largest developer of wind power in the world.

“GIS enables developers of wind-power facilities to reach their goal of finding the best wind areas while causing as little impact as possible to wildlife and the environment,” said Bill Meehan, director of utility solutions at ESRI. “Locating the right site can be done quickly and accurately with publicly available data and GIS technology. This fact alone speaks well for the future of wind power and green energy.”

Once a wind farm is running, operators continue to use GIS to help gather inspection and operational data. Because wind energy is variable, utility companies must figure out what to do when the wind does not blow. With GIS technology, operators can model and predict how well the wind will perform in the next few hours or days and accurately match energy production with demand.

Using Geostatistics and Hydraulic Modelling to Assess Anthropogenically Driven Change in River Morphology: Research Position in the UK

/ Matt Artz

cranfieldFunded by the Environment Agency and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), a bursary of up to £15,435 p.a. for three years plus fees available. Conditions apply*

Principle objectives of the project are

  • To identify the main monitoring strategies, methods and networks that have been used in practice at national and international level when assessing changes in river morphology.
  • To develop a statistically robust monitoring framework to assess changes in river morphology.
  • To quantify the reduction in accuracy from using the strategies currently in practice and the statistically robust monitoring framework developed.
  • To critically assess the benefits of using morphological sampling to complement biological assessment in large rivers.

The successful candidate will spend a minimum of three months at the Environment Agency developing the project. Travel and accommodation will be funded during that period.

Entry Requirements
Applicants should have an MSc as well as a first or upper second class UK honours degree, or equivalent, in a relevant discipline such as environmental science, statistics or geography.

How to Apply
If you are eligible to apply for this research studentship, please complete the application form at: http://www.cranfield.ac.uk/students/Applications/Postgraduate%20A4s.pdf

Alternatively, for more information and an application form please contact:

Enquiries, Cranfield University, School of Applied Sciences
Tel: +44 (0)1234 754086
Fax: +44 (0)1234 754109
Email: appliedsciences@cranfield.ac.uk

Other research studentships are also available, for details please visit www.cranfield.ac.uk/sas/studentships?id=fap31

Funding Notes
*Supported by an EPSRC I-Case bursary, this studentship will cover tuition fees and provide a bursary of up to £14,000 p.a. for the first year, and rising up to £15,435 p.a. for the final year. The studentship is ONLY open to UK and EU candidates. Refer to http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/PostgraduateTraining for details of student eligibility.