Python Scripting for ArcGIS

Python Scripting for ArcGIS is a new text from Esri Press by Paul A. Zandbergen (2013). It isn’t the first Python book for the geospatial community or even focused on ArcGIS, but it is the first that has the Esri logo on it. Much like other recent books on Geo/Python we have seen, it focuses on integrating an introduction to Python with the industry specific materials. As Frank mentioned when he highlighted the book in a previous podcast, this allows users to gain exposure to Python, but it doesn’t fall back on the (in my opinion) bad habit of most programming texts of spending half of the book on the language and concepts before even getting to the application in the specific area. There is a time and place for that approach in Python specific books. When you add another software library to a book, then use it from the get go.

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Federal Government GIS and Geospatial Conference 2013

OpenGeo is going to sponsor FedGeo Day 2013 at Washington DC on Feb 28, 2013. The theme of the conference is about Modern Tools for GIS, Geo Data & Cartography, which will introduce you to GIS, cartography, web mapping, and map publishing tools, show you what you can do with them, and walk through how and why government agencies are using them to dramatically improve their mapping, cartography, and GIS projects.

The conference announcement from their newsletter...

OpenGeo is proud to support FedGeo Day, the exciting new conference in Washington DC. The event offers a platform for those who work in or with federal agencies to share their experiences with modern open source geospatial technologies.

We’re looking forward to seeing case studies of how these tools are being used in government, what benefits they bring, and why so many agencies are shifting to open source technology. There will also be interactive demos that explore specific open source tools and applications. The schedule is packed with programming that should be particularly attractive for those for those who make technology decisions within the federal government.

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Call for Student Volunteers : COM.Geo 2013

COM.Geo 2013 is calling for student volunteers for the 4^th international Conference on Computing for Geospatial research and Application at San Jose, CA from July 22-24, 2013. 

 

Desired Qualifications
Volunteers must be full-time undergraduate or graduate students. Students from all disciplines and backgrounds are encouraged to apply. We are looking for enthusiastic, intelligent, and reliable students. No special skills or experience are necessary for most volunteer positions; however, some familiarity with computing platforms, audio/visual equipment, or office equipment can be helpful.

Benefits and Duties
As a student volunteer for COM.Geo conference, you will receive:

FULL conference registration
COM.Geo logo T-shirt
Conference reception ticket(s)
Additional exclusive student-volunteer-only mentoring and professional development events

In return, student volunteers will be asked to work around 15 hours over the course of the conference. Typical student volunteer duties consist of working the registration desk, session support, and anything else that helps the conference runs smoothly. Note that each student volunteer will be responsible for all his/her own travel expenses.

Further information to apply click below:

http://www.com-geo.org/conferences/2013/org_student_volunteers.htm

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Watch Online NASA Launching New Satellite: LDCM/Landsat 8

Today, February 11, the next Landsat (LDCM/Landsat 8 http://ldcm.nasa.gov) will be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base at 1802-1850 GMT .

The launch of LDCM is scheduled for just over 90 minutes.Click the following link to watch NASA HD stream of LDCM launch.

Click it here: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/ustream.html

If you are interested in watching it will be streamed on NASA Internet TV (see http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/schedule.html).   Also see at http://www.spaceflightnow.com/tracking/ for space flights information.

 “The data from Landsat spacecraft constitute the longest record of the Earth's continental surfaces as seen from space.  With the launch of the LDCM on Monday, February 11, the record will be continued and enhanced, providing data intrinsic to our geographic and Earth system science research.  Since 1972,

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Interactive Map of Freshwater Species

"Freshwater Ecoregions of the World, (FEOW) provides a new global bio-geographic regionalization of the Earth's freshwater biodiversity.  Covering virtually all freshwater habitats on Earth, this first-ever ecoregion map, together with associated species data, is a useful tool for underpinning global and regional conservation planning efforts, particularly to identify outstanding and imperiled freshwater systems; for serving as a logical framework for large-scale conservation strategies; and for providing a global-scale knowledge base for increasing freshwater biogeographic literacy."

"Over a decade of work and contributions by more than 200 leading conservation scientists have produced a first-ever comprehensive map and database of the diversity of life in the world’s freshwater ecosystems. The map and associated fish data – a collaborative project between World Wildlife Fund and The Nature Conservancy." 

For the fish lovers, the map is so cool.  Since you all like fish....you might find it just as cool too!!!  It is interactive, click on an ecoregion, it shows threats, species etc.  User is able to change transparency on the image to show terrain behind the ecoregion.  

http://www.feow.org/

Oh yeah, there is a complete article that went along with it... 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080512153631.htm

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How to extract distinct values from the C++ Array?

#include<iostream>
#include<set>
using namespace std;
// function setting the set values
template<size_t size>
void findDistinctValues(std::set<int> & p_values,int (&p_array)[size])
{
    // Code modified after Jacob's excellent comment
    p_values.clear() ;
    p_values.insert(p_array, p_array + size) ;

}

void findDistinctValues2( int arr[],int size)
{
  std::set<int> values_1 ;
  std::set<int>::iterator it_1;
  values_1.clear();
  values_1.insert(arr,arr+size);
  for (it_1=values_1.begin(); it_1!=values_1.end(); ++it_1)
    std::cout << ' ' << *it_1<<endl;
   
}

int main()
{
  int arr[] = {1,6100,4,94,93,-6,2,4,4,5,5,2500,5,4,5,34,99,6100,2500};
  std::set<int> values ;
  std::set<int>::iterator it;
 
  int arr_size = sizeof(arr)/sizeof(int);
  printf("Total no of array variables: %d\n",arr_size);
  printf("Output from findDistinctValues (function 1)\n ");
  findDistinctValues(values, arr) ;
  for (it=values.begin(); it!=values.end(); ++it)
    std::cout << ' ' << *it<<endl;
  std::cout<<endl;  
  std::cout<<values.size()<<endl; //find the size of distict values

  printf("Output from findDistinctValues (function 2) \n ");
  findDistinctValues2(arr,arr_size);

  getchar();
  return 0;
}

Modified from stackoverflow.com

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44th South Dakota State University Geography Convention: March 14-14, 2013 Brookings, SD

The South Dakota State Geography Convention is the longest running student organized and sponsored annual meeting in the United States. Approximately ten eminent academic and applied geographers from around the region, the country, and Canada are invited to make presentations at the conference each spring. The convention also features social activities, a Gamma Theta Upsilon initiation, and an awards banquet. Field trips are provided on occasion.

Call for Abstracts

*Interested in presenting at the South Dakota State Geography Convention on March 14th, 2013?

*Email an abstract to Josh Bucher, Geography Club Secretary at joshua.bucher@sdstate.edu

*Presentations can be scientific in nature or informational, posters or slide show presentations are accepted

*Poster size should be 36”x48”

*Presentations should be 15 min with 5 min after for questions

*Please submit name, school, title, and abstract by March 1^st 2013 44^th Annual South Dakota State 

Geography Convention:Thursday March 14th and Friday March 15, 2013

Student Presentations – Thursday, 12:00-4:00pm

J.R. Smith Memorial Geography Bowl - Thursday

Social at the Ram Pub - Thursday night, 6:00-10:00pm

Guest and Faculty Speaker Schedule - Friday

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Interactive Map: Looking Earth from Moon and Sun

Earth and Moon Viewer, an Impressive site which shows orthographic views of the Earth and the Moon using a mosaic of various satellite imagery including a full-color image of the Earth by day and night, a topographical map of the Earth, up-to-date weather satellite imagery, or a composite image of cloud cover superimposed on a map of the Earth, a color composite which shows clouds, land and sea temperatures, and ice, or the global distribution of water vapor. You can view either a map of the Earth showing the day and night regions at this moment, or view the Earth from the Sun, the Moon, the night side of the Earth, above any location on the planet specified by latitude, longitude and altitude, from a satellite in Earth orbit, or above various cities around the globe.

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Geospatial data Mashups with Google

Abstract
Analyzing space-time variation is common in Geography. Appropriate geo-spatial visualization enables us to understand data in a precise manner. There have been numerous researches, tools, and methods in pursuit of a better visualization method for geospatial data. Here we present the sets of examples developed by us to show the benefits of the web cartography using Google Earth/Google Maps mashups to display geospatial data. Moreover, we include the practical implication of applications that are useful for visualizing geospatial world.

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Automated Tools for Integrating Remote Sensing Data Into Spatial Epidemiology Research

Satellite remote sensing provides valuable information that can be used to map infectious diseases and forecast future health risks. However, amassing and managing the geographic information from diverse datasets is difficult and time-consuming. Therefore, there is a need for a geoinformatics system that integrates the acquisition, processing, management, and analysis of geospatial data sets from various sources.

Here, we present our software model for automated data capture and processing of satellite remote sensing data for public health applications.  The system incorporates land surface temperature and vegetation indices from MODIS precipitation data from TRMM, and a novel measurement of actual evapotranspiration.

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