Thursday, March 13th, 2014
Traditionally maps were produced using a long and detailed process, which would start at the initial data collection stage and run through to the final creation and printing of a map. However, different map series would often have their own data collection processes. This would mean that small scale maps could be partly derived from
Wednesday, March 5th, 2014
Young people get it. They know where we are heading, and they are excited about what’s on the horizon. I’m not talking about the future in general. I’m actually talking about geospatial technology specifically. Kids intuitively understand the potential for geospatial technology as well as any expert in our industry with 20 or 30
Monday, February 24th, 2014
Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have recently become ubiquitous in the mass media and in trade publications, due to a variety of factors that include : international controversy over their military use by the United States against targets in Pakistan; domestic concerns about potential privacy violations; the development of ever cheaper and more capable systems; congressional
Monday, January 13th, 2014
Recent world events that started as technological glitches or dysfunctions have become major objects of debate in politics, geopolitics and the economy. It is useful to consider geotechnology as a tool which enables key players’ strategic decisions based on geospatial knowledge. However, in the unpredictable game of world situations, geotechnology appears as an independent
Monday, December 23rd, 2013
Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) are advanced robots that will empower many citizens and professionals. In a report published by the McKinsey Global Institute, it is estimated that a potential economic impact of $14 – $33 trillion a year by 2025 from the 12 technologies discussed. One of those technologies is advanced robotics: robots with enhanced
Tuesday, December 3rd, 2013
“Is my property being taxed fairly?” “Are zoning variances being granted in a consistent manner?” “Is my flood insurance rate justified?” These are the types of questions concerned citizens may ask, both in their own interest, and in the interest of maintaining a responsive and equitable democracy. Our democratic system of government is supposed
Tuesday, November 26th, 2013
Currently, about a dozen government and commercial Earth-imaging satellites circle the Earth daily. They take thousands of pictures that governments, private companies, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) use for purposes as varied as monitoring wheat production, looking for point sources of pollution, and displaying images on Google Earth.
Tuesday, November 19th, 2013
Throughout two contentious California lawsuits to uphold Public Records Act (PRA) access to county GIS parcel basemaps, many GIS professionals got involved with this issue. They informed themselves, they spoke out, they monitored online discussion groups and contributed opinions. Some GIS professionals used their expertise to analyze the content and structure of contested basemaps;
Tuesday, November 12th, 2013
In recent years there has been acceleration in the collection and publishing of digital data about people, places, and phenomena of all kinds. Much of this big data explosion is due to the advancing diffusion of public data offered by government agencies at all levels. This increased availability of data presents great opportunities for answering
Tuesday, November 5th, 2013
The wireless sensor network is fundamentally a distributed network of constrained devices. There are a host of considerations that must be taken into account when planning and implementing a wireless sensor network – considerations that are often overlooked in the lavish space in which traditional IT operates with nearly extravagant disk space, CPU and
