Day: December 2, 2009

GIS and Cancer Research: A Bibliography

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

Bagli, S. 2001.  EHHRA-GIS: A DSS for Health Risk Assessment.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2001.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc01/professional/abstracts/a542.html

Balagopalan, M.  1999.  Communication of Health Risk Assessment by Integrating Geographic Information System (GIS) with Computer Dispersion Models.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 1999.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc99/proceed/PAPERS/PAP599/P599.HTM

Battioui, C.  2005.  Calculation of Health Disparity Indices.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2005.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc05/papers/pap2395.pdf

Bellander, T., Berglind, N., Gustavsson, P., Jonson, T., Nyberg, F., Pershagen, G., and Järup, L.  2001.  Using Geographic Information Systems To Assess Individual Historical Exposure to Air Pollution from Traffic and House Heating in Stockholm.  Environmental Health Perspectives Volume 109, Number 6, June 2001.

http://www.ehponline.org/realfiles/members/2001/109p633-639bellander/bellander-full.html

Blewett, M.  2007.  Comparative Cluster Analysis for Establishing the Etiology of Multiple Sclerosis.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2007.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc07/papers/abstracts/a1568.html

Borchers, R.  2006.  From Cases to Cartography: Geocoding and Mapping Wisconsin Cancer Incidence Using Nuanced-Match Criteria.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2006.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc06/papers/abstracts/a1320.html

Brunton, H.  2005.  Extending ArcObjects for Statistical Cancer Analysis.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2005.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc05/abstracts/a1543.html

Carlin, S.  2001.  Community Breast Cancer Mapping–Huntington, Long Island.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2001.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc01/professional/papers/pap496/p496.htm

Carlin, S.  2001.  Community Breast Cancer Mapping–Huntington, Long Island.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2001.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health01/papers/hc01_p05c/hc01_p05c.html

Colak, E.  2005.  Creating GIS-Based Cancer Density Maps for Trabzon Province of Turkey.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2005.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health05/docs/pap1014.pdf

Colak, H., and Yomralioglu, T.  2008.  GIS Based Cancer Density Maps.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2008.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health08/docs/monday/gis_cancer_maps.pdf

Cowper, D.  2000.  Using GIS to Examine Physician Practice Patterns in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Health Care System: Examples of Two Cancer Procedures.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2000.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc00/professional/papers/PAP219/p219.htm

ESRI.  2006.  Mapping Papilloma Virus Disease Data Contributes to Cancer Risk Assessments: Using GIS Technology to Track Virus Prevalence.  ArcNews Fall 2006.

http://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/fall06articles/mapping-papilloma.html

Files, J., and Balamurugan, A.  2007.  Using ArcGIS/SaTScan to Detect Higher than Expected Cancer Incidence.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2007.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc07/papers/abstracts/a1269.html

Foster, S., Stewart,  S., and Trivers, K.  2008.  Geographic Distribution of Prostate Cancer Incidence in the United States .  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2008.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health08/docs/monday/geo_dist.pdf

Francois, T.  2009.  Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Mortality in Chicago.  2009 ESRI Health GIS Conference Proceedings.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health09/docs/tuesday/racial_disparities_in_breast_cancer_mortality_in_chicago.pdf

Gardner, J.  2000.  Breast Cancer Research Using GIS, Phase 2.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2000.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc00/professional/abstracts/a145.htm

Garland, C.  2004.  Analyzing Head and Neck Cancer Incidence and Mortality Using GIS.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2004.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc04/docs/pap1691.pdf

Gorham, E., Mohr, S., Garland, F., Garland, C., Grant, W., and Highfill-McRoy, R.  2005.  World Atlas of Ultraviolet A and B Radiation.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2005.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc05/papers/pap1778.pdf

Graham, P.2009.  Using ArcGIS Server 9.3 to Power the Maine BioGeoBank.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2009.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc09/uc/abstracts/a1576.html

Hansen, K.  2007.  Rural-Urban Differences in Stage at Diagnosis and Treatment of Colorectal Cancer in Nebraska .  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2007.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health07/docs/rural-urban.pdf

Horner, M., Stinchcomb, D., Zao, J., and Cuccinelli, J.  2008.  Geography of Cervical Cancer: Baseline for HPV Vaccine Effectiveness .  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2008.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health08/docs/tuesday/geography_cervical_cancer.pdf

Kennedy, T.  2003.  Modeling Historical Environmental Exposures Using GIS: Implications for Disease Surveillance.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2003.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health03/papers/pap3020/p3020.htm

Krenz, E., Krenz, V., Pinzon-Perez, H., Perez, M., and Hougan, P.  2003.  Barriers to Pap Smears Among Latina MediCal Enrollees Using GIS.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2003.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc03/abstracts/a1044.pdf

Lai, S., Shen, Z., and Banks, D. 2006.  Inclusion of Non-Street Addresses in Cancer Cluster Analysis.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2006.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health06/docs/cancer_cluster.pdf

Lang, L.  2000.  Finding the link.  In:  GIS for Health Organizations .

http://esripress.esri.com/display/index.cfm?fuseaction=display&websiteID=39&moduleID=0

Ma, M. 2007.  Using GIS in Cancer Cluster Investigation.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2007.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health07/docs/using_gis_in_cancer.pdf

MacKinnon, J. 2007.  Detecting an Association between Socioeconomic Status and Late Stage Breast Cancer Using Spatial Analysis and Area-Based Measures.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2007.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health07/docs/detecting_an_association.pdf

Massaro, M., and Lee, C.  1999.  The Landscape of Breast Cancer in Georgia.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 1999.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc99/proceed/abstracts/a626.htm

McCall Garb, J., Schueler, J., Flannery, C., Pasini, A., and Wait, R.  2001.  Using the American Community Survey and GIS in Breast Cancer Screening.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2001.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc01/professional/abstracts/a1045.html

McCormick, J.  2000.  Sampling Design Issues in Identifying Breast Cancer Sufferers.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2000.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc00/professional/papers/PAP949/p949.htm

Mohr, S., Gorham, E., Garland, F., Garland, C., Grant, W., and Highfill-McRoy, R.  2005.  Mapping Vitamin D Deficiency and Breast and Colon Cancers.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2005.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc05/papers/pap1468.pdf

Oliver, M.  2007.  GIS used to Analyze Race and Socioecomomic Status in Prostate Cancer Incidence in the Southeastern United States .  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2007.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health07/docs/gis_used_to_analyze.pdf

Qui, F.  2003.  Spatial Pattern and Causation Analysis of Childhood Cancer in Texas.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2003.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc03/abstracts/a0842.pdf

Ramroop, S.  2008.  GIS for Community Food Access and its Relationship to Cancer.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2008.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc08/papers/papers/pap_1411.pdf

Shepard, J., and Shepard, W.  2002.  The Role of Geostatistical Tools in the Analysis and Visualization of Epidemiological Data.  ESRI International User Conference Proceedings 2002.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc02/abstracts/a0938.html

Stinchcomb, D. 2007.  Extensions useful for examining geographic patterns of health data.  ESRI Federal User Conference Proceedings 2007.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/feduc07/presentations/1073_nci_geographic_health_data_january_2007.pdf

Thorpe, N.  2003.  Childhood Cancer in Maryland: A Geographic Information Systems Approach.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2003.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health03/papers/pap3006/p3006.htm

Wells, K. 2009.  Residential Segregation and Prostate Cancer Post- Diagnosis Treatment Decisions.  2009 ESRI Health GIS Conference Proceedings.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health09/docs/tuesday/residential_segregation_and_prostate_cancer_postdiagnosis_treatment_decisions.pdf

Williams Pickle, L., Heineman, E., Ward, M., Nuckols, J., Gumpertz, M., and Bell, B.  2001.  Applications of GIS to cancer research at the National Cancer Institute.  ESRI Health Conference Proceedings 2001.

http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/health01/papers/hc01_p01a/hc01_p01a.html

Geospatial Analysis of Rural Motor Vehicle Traffic Fatalities

/ Matt Artz

…a new report from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration…

“In recent years, on average about 44 percent of traffic fatalities occurred in urban areas. NHTSA’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) codes the functional classification of land use by a binary indicator, i.e., if the location is a rural or urban area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau. However, this information is not enough to determine the spatial spread of the fatali-ties in the rural areas, i.e., are the fatalities occurring in suburban, exurban, or the outlying rural areas. The focus of this report is to determine the extent of fatalities that occur in rural areas that are close to urban areas. Some of these communities in rural areas that are close to urban areas have significant commuting ties with these urban areas. It would be of interest to law enforcement and highway safety planners involved in rural highway safety initiatives to quantify how many traffic fatalities occur in rural areas that are close to urban areas.

“FARS has begun reporting latitude and longitude information recently that facilitates the type of geospatial analysis required to quantify fatalities that occur near urban areas as a function of distance from the urban boundaries. The distances (buffer distances) used in this spatial analysis are 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, and 10.0 miles.

“While 44 percent of all traffic fatalities occur in urban areas, the percentage increases to 63 percent in an area that also includes the rural area within 2.5 miles of the urban boundary. The percentage increases to 73 percent 5.0 miles out, 81 percent 7.5 miles out, and 86 percent 10 miles out. In summary, about three-quarters of all traffic fatalities in the Nation occurred in an area that includes all the urban areas along with the rural areas that are within 5 miles of the urban boundaries.”

Science at Sea: Meeting Future Oceanographic Goals with a Robust Academic Research Fleet

/ Matt Artz

…a new book from the Committee on Evolution of the National Oceanographic Research Fleet, National Research Council…

“The U.S. academic research fleet is an essential national resource, and it is likely that scientific demands on the fleet will increase. Oceanographers are embracing a host of remote technologies that can facilitate the collection of data, but will continue to require capable, adaptable research vessels for access to the sea for the foreseeable future. Maintaining U.S. leadership in ocean research will require investing in larger and more capable general purpose Global and Regional class ships; involving the scientific community in all phases of ship design and acquisition; and improving coordination between agencies that operate research fleets.”

Missouri University of Science and Technology Receives Tree Resource Improvement and Maintenance Grant

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

The custodial and landscape services department at Missouri University of Science and Technology has received a $10,000 Tree Resource Improvement and Maintenance (TRIM) grant from the Missouri Department of Conservation. The grant will help fund an updated inventory and evaluation of campus trees.

To complete the inventory, Missouri S&T has contracted with Davey Resource Group, an experienced urban forestry consulting firm. Davey’s trained arborists and horticulturists will then complete a geographic information system (GIS) to locate each tree on Missouri S&T’s 236 acres, identify its species, evaluate its condition and project its lifespan. All information will be installed on an asset management computer program provided by the company. The completed program will allow campus landscapers to plan for maintenance and future replacement.

During the 2006 ice storm, many campus trees were damaged or destroyed. This project will allow the university landscaping staff to identify those damaged trees, prioritize maintenance needed on the existing trees and correct storm damaged trees.

“Missouri S&T takes great pride in its urban forest, open spaces and other natural resources,” says Randy Davis, assistant director of custodial and landscape services at Missouri S&T. “We also have a commitment to the urban forest of the Rolla community. Part of the beauty of Rolla is tied to the trees on campus.”

Once the project is complete, Davis says, the department will apply for additional funding for tree replacement. The campus may also be eligible for “Tree Campus USA” certification in 2010. Tree Campus certification recognizes of the university’s commitment to conservation and community beautification.

Working on the project with Davis is Jim Duncan, manager of custodial and landscape services, and Ed Dunn, campus landscape designer and arborist. For more information about the project, contact Missouri S&T physical facilities at 573-341-4247.

[Source: Missouri University of Science and Technology news release]

A Method for Investigating Population Declines of Migratory Birds Using Stable Isotopes: Origins of Harvested Lesser Scaup in North America

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

…from PLOSone…

Keith A. Hobson, Michael B. Wunder, Steven L. Van Wilgenburg, Robert G. Clark, Leonard I. Wassenaar

“Elucidating geographic locations from where migratory birds are recruited into adult breeding populations is a fundamental but largely elusive goal in conservation biology. This is especially true for species that breed in remote northern areas where field-based demographic assessments are logistically challenging.

“Here we used hydrogen isotopes (δD) to determine natal origins of migrating hatch-year lesser scaup (Aythya affinis) harvested by hunters in the United States from all North American flyways during the hunting seasons of 1999–2000 (n = 412) and 2000–2001 (n = 455). We combined geospatial, observational, and analytical data sources, including known scaup breeding range, δD values of feathers from juveniles at natal sites, models of δD for growing-season precipitation, and scaup band-recovery data to generate probabilistic natal origin landscapes for individual scaup. We then used Monte Carlo integration to model assignment uncertainty from among individual δD variance estimates from birds of known molt origin and also from band-return data summarized at the flyway level. We compared the distribution of scaup natal origin with the distribution of breeding population counts obtained from systematic long-term surveys.

“Our analysis revealed that the proportion of young scaup produced in the northern (above 60°N) versus the southern boreal and Prairie-Parkland region was inversely related to the proportions of breeding adults using these regions, suggesting that despite having a higher relative abundance of breeding adults, the northern boreal region was less productive for scaup recruitment into the harvest than more southern biomes. Our approach for evaluating population declines of migratory birds (particularly game birds) synthesizes all available distributional data and exploits the advantages of intrinsic isotopic markers that link individuals to geography.”

Geospatial Information Scholar Honored by Regional Science Association International

/ Matt Artz

Dr. Daniel Griffith, Ashbel Smith Professor of Geospatial Information Sciences in UT Dallas’ School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences, has been elected a fellow of the Regional Science Association International. He is one of only two Texas researchers to receive the honor.

Griffith has spent his career studying the Earth and how locations affect how we live. Because his research is global in scope, it’s appropriate that he was honored by an organization whose members work in countries throughout the world.

To have his life’s work recognized and applauded by his colleagues in regional science was a great tribute, Griffith said.

“I was very flattered,” he said. “This was one of my career goals.”

Griffith was one of 11 scientists honored this year. He and Dr. James LeSage of Texas State University are the first Texas-based academics to be named fellows. The group has elected about 50 fellows since the program’s inception in 2001.

Griffith is a past president of the North American branch. He came to UT Dallas from the University of Miami in 2005.

His research focuses primarily on spatial statistics, quantitative urban and economic geography, and applied statistics. He looks at economic and cultural data collected by governments and analyzes the influence of location and geographic features. Griffith teaches courses at UT Dallas about spatial statistics, geographic information sciences research design, mathematical statistics and spatial organization.

Griffith is the author of 15 books and has received many honors. He was selected as a Fulbright research fellow, a Guggenheim fellow and was elected a fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences. He is editor of Geographical Analysis and is a steering committee member of the International Geographical Union’s Commission of Modeling Geographical Systems.

Griffith received his plaque in November during the North American Regional Science Association annual meeting in San Francisco. The international organization has about 4,000 members worldwide.

The group’s scholars are interested in the regional effects of economic and social change. They take a multidisciplinary approach and use the latest quantitative methods and technologies to develop new models for impact assessment.

[Source: UT Dallas news release]

Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secures GIS for Entire Organization

/ Matt Artz

Enterprise License Agreement Improves Application Development and Productivity

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) now has an enterprise license agreement (ELA) with geographic information system (GIS) leader ESRI. The agreement provides unlimited amounts of ArcGIS software to meet the GIS needs of Florida DEP’s 3,500 employees around the state.

“The ELA gives us more flexibility,” said Jonathan Watson, GIS coordinator, Florida DEP Office of Technology & Information Services. “We can install ArcGIS software on as many servers as we need to develop more advanced applications and services. It also allows employees to access the GIS software they need anytime, day or night, so they can do their jobs effectively.”

Among its many geospatial initiatives, the department has encouraged its users to use its own authoritative imagery with supporting metadata. With its newly acquired GIS resources, that will be easier to achieve, as caching maps in 2D and 3D with ArcGIS Server makes the high-resolution, dynamic imagery faster while providing important information such as when the imagery was collected. With ArcGIS Server, Florida DEP will also update the Web application MapDirect (www.dep.state.fl.us/gis) with improved capabilities for better spatial analysis and decision making.

“Florida DEP has been a GIS leader in the state for the past 15 years,” said Christopher Thomas, ESRI government industry solutions manager. “The software and support the department has with this ELA give it the tools it needs to continue developing a GIS that supports operational and mission-critical applications.”

[Source:  ESRI news release]

Using GIS in Biodiversity Conservation across South Africa

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

…from PositionIT…

“The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) promotes easy and open access to biodiversity information. Through its Biodiversity GIS website it provides free access to biodiversity plans, maps and tools to support research, planning and decision-making.

“SANBI believes that biodiversity information must be made readily accessible if informed land-use decisions are to be made.  SANBI is the governmental organisation mandated to manage the country’s biodiversity. Along with managing the biodiversity is the challenge of managing all the information generated by SANBI and many of its partner organisations. Whilst managing the information is important, it is equally important to share this information with all stakeholders.

“The Biodiversity GIS (BGIS) unit has as its primary objective the provision of easy access to this spatial biodiversity planning information thereby facilitating its use in biodiversity planning and decision-making across the landscape.”

Map of the Day: Local Tree Plan, Chapinero, Bogotá

/ Matt Artz

…from the ESRI Map Book, Volume 24…

environment3_sm

“This map analyzes biological corridors (linear strips of vegetation that provide a continuous or near-continuous pathway between habitats) and tree crowns (the area above the trunk) in the locality of Chapinero, Bogotá. It shows the trees modeled with an equatorial diameter buffer and integrated with a dissolve for biological research. The trees with their crowns close together serve as a biological corridor for local birds and insects. They also provide shade for people living in the city.

“Courtesy of Jardín Botánico José Celestino Mutis.”