And the answer is… The February Mystery Map challenged you to match four different maps of the world with the quantitative variables they showed, and prompted all interested spatial thinkers and pattern detectives to question things like: “Which areas are more heavily represented in the Winter Olympics, and which areas are more represented in the Summer […]
Author Archive: jcaris
February Mystery Map
The 2014 Winter Olympics kicked off on Friday and will be continuing for the next two weeks. Though the sporting events and competitions over in Russia are exciting and challenging, here in Northampton we have our own thrilling contest on our hands… the February Mystery Map! It’s may not be as athletic but only time […]
News Update: End of Fall 2013 Semester
Somehow, the Fall 2013 semester is already drawing to a close. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of student projects and preparations for some exciting things coming in 2014. Several classes this semester had major final projects that involved spatial data and GIS analysis. First, of course, the final projects for the Introductory […]
Useful Links for Spatial Stats Workshop
These are the sites we will use today during the workshop! T-Test Calculator Moran’s I Web Applet Other useful sites: ESRI Explanation of Global Moran’s I (has some useful illustrations) ESRI Explanation of Local Moran’s I (which also has some useful illustrations) Link to download GeoDa: GeoDa is a free, open-source software package for spatial statistics. You […]
Visualizing Historical Space
Great opportunity to learn about Historical GIS (HGIS) from one of the leading thinkers in the field. Anne Knowles from Middlebury College will be on campus this Friday, November 8th to discuss her work on visualizing the Battle of Gettysburg. Explore the online map for a little preview: A Cutting Edge Second Look at the Battle […]
ENV 201/202, Fall 2013
Food Desert Interactive Maps: USDA Food Environment Atlas: http://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-environment-atlas/go-to-the-atlas.aspx#.UmrR3fmKLAk USDA Food Access Research AtlasL http://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-access-research-atlas/go-to-the-atlas.aspx#.UmrAWfmKLAl ESRI Food Desert Finder: http://megacity.esri.com/fooddeserts/#-10570450.2925;4722931.8985;10 Another version of the same map: http://www.arcgis.com/explorer/?open=153c17de00914039bb28f6f6efe6d322 Social Explorer: http://www.socialexplorer.com/89AACD3A4F1E4E1/explore Things to think about while exploring the maps: How are the creators of this map defining a “food desert”? What spatial data are they including in their criteria? Is the […]
News Update 10/17: Fall Semester So Far
Well, looks like it’s time for another news update! My excellent intentions to write a short blog-style post about Spatial Analysis Lab activities are always undermined by my less-than-excellent ability to keep track of the weeks as they fly by at a breakneck pace. Fall Break just ended and as we prepare to support some […]
Fall 2013 Spatial Analysis Lab Workshop Series
This fall, the Smith Spatial Analysis Lab will be offering a series of GIS and GPS workshops to Smith and Five College students, faculty, and staff. Whether you are taking or teaching a class that involves spatial data, interested in using geospatial technologies in research, or just want to know what all the fuss is […]
Summer Science: Useful Links
Comparing aerial photos: Google Imagery Bing Imagery If it doesn’t automatically load the Sattelite/Aerial imagery, find the option in the menu bar to switch to this view. Questions to talk about with your partner: What happens as you zoom in and out? Do the Bing and Google imagery adjust at the same zoom levels? What […]
An Interesting Map For Your Friday Afternoon!
Food for thought over the weekend: a state-by-state map of the highest-paid public employees. (via Deadspin – click map to enlarge) This map is a great example of why maps are an efficient way to communicate data. Could this data be visualized using a bar graph, or a pie chat? Yes. Absolutely. But putting it […]