AP Human Geography Test Takers Up and other Education GIS News

AP Human Geography test takers had the highest jump from 2010 to 2011 in the subjects listed in the blog post:

• "Human Geography" was up 30.3 percent, to 45,229

For context:

Of the 37 subjects tested, participation rates climbed in all but six for the class of 2011, compared with 2010 graduates.

- Ed Week Blog via @NCGE1915

Esri formally announced enhancements to its education site license:

Already added to the site license program this year are the mapping and charting solutions that improve cartographic production including Esri Nautical Solution, Esri Aeronautical Solution, Esri Defense Solution, and Esri Production Mapping. Also added are the ArcGIS Data Interoperability extension, which facilitates data sharing, and Esri Community Analyst, a web-based solution for domestic planning and policy analysis.

Future additions will include subscriptions to ArcGIS Online, a cloud-based system for creating and sharing geospatial content; new workflow-oriented Virtual Campus courses; Esri CityEngine, used for advanced 3D modeling and urban planning; and Esri demographic and Tapestry data for the United States.

- press release

- details and analysis on Ignite Education Blog

A new teaching resource (maps, cards, blocks, role play cards, etc.) for New Zealand high school students that looks at managing growth in the western Bay of Plenty.

'Managing Growth - SmartGrowth' has been jointly developed by the western Bay of Plenty's growth planning organisation SmartGrowth, Tauranga City Council and Bay of Plenty Regional Council with educational curriculum development company Indigo Pacific.

The free resource uses SmartGrowth and the western Bay of Plenty sub-region as a case study for managing growth, exploring global growth-related concepts and national growth-related trends.

Among the topics addressed: mapping and spatial analysis

- Voxy.co.nz

Sundosoft Brings GIS to Korea and other International GIS News

The Korea Times has a feature on Yoon Jay-joon (Jay Yoon), CEO of Sundosoft, a large GIS player in the country. One of the graphics is of a box of ArcGIS 9. I guess 10 is not yet out there.

- Korea Times

Panasonic's new GPS enabled cameras may not work quite right in China. How and exactly why is not clear, but apparently geotagging is illegal in that country.

- GPS Tracklog

Mackenzie District Council in New Zealand is fight against bad GIS data.

"During the last revaluation, it was discovered the information we sent to our valuers was incorrect. This was due to multiple users creating different copies of the data, manipulating the information and treating it as correct," Mr Morris said.

"If council chose to do nothing, the GIS information will get progressively worse.

But the local government does not want to put a dedicated outside person in charge of cleaning up the data. Instead, it's looking into a shared position.

- Stuff.co.nz

The Doolin Coast Guard team in Co Clare Ireland will be the only such unit in the country with a GIS. It'll be run on tablets to increase efficiency in response and planning.

The system also contains up to date information on the locations of caves, popular surfing spots and other areas where the team might be requested to respond to an incident.

It will also aid in incident planning as it contains information such as radio reception blackspots, access routes and helicopter landing sites.

- Clare Herald

Another Woman Uses GIS to Explore Marine World and other Education GIS News

In the Gulf of Thailand, where [SFSU] Associate Professor of Geography Ellen Hines conducts her field work, fishermen, scientists and policymakers know very little about the vulnerable marine life that lives locally.

But she does in part because of the use of GPS and GIS.

- SFSU News

The New Zealand Geospatial Office in collaboration with Eagle Technology has produced a prototype application, currently known as the Educational GIS web portal which aims to introduce the value of GIS to students in New Zealand High Schools.

- FutureGov which seems to source, but does not cite the NZGO blog (please cite, it's the right thing to do!)

H Ramachandran, Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi argues for geography in a piced titled "How to Save the World." In it, he cites some skills those pursuing GIS will/should learn.

Basic skills required are the ability to isolate similarities and diversities, observational skills, the ability to create mental maps and abstraction, and the ability to unravel the relationship between physical and human attributes. It is important to have an ability to analyse, correlate and synthesise as well as to write clearly and cogently. 

Austintown [OH] Fitch [high school] senior Alex While, 17, created a commemorative sign for Ed Wilhelm, a cross country runner for Fitch in the late 1970s who died while trying to save a girl from drowning in 1979. The sign, which also shows a map of Austintown Township Park and the current cross country course route, was installed at the finish line inside the park.

International GIS Tidbits - 5/13/11

New Zealand

Christchurch is using mobile LiDAR to map the current state of the city and will compare it to imagery from before this year's earthquakes as it begins the rebuilding process.

- 3News

China

From an article that focuses on domestic development of GIS technology over imports, comes this statistic:

In domestic market, the total market share of ArcGIS, MapGIS and SupGIS is less than 5 percent.

I'm not clear on what constitutes the other 95% of the market.

- China Economic Net

Cambodia

How do protect  animals by keeping their habitat intact in Cambodia? Use GIS. Suwanna Gauntlett explains.

But mostly, how we stop economic land concessions that are legal is personal interaction, between me and government officials. For all the economic land concessions that have valid permits or are going to have valid permits, I personally interact with the government. I act a little bit like a lawyer. I go on the ground to document GIS [Geographic Information System] points, do GIS mapping, take aerial photographs, and then build the case as to why that economic land concession should not be implemented in that specific location. I then correspond directly with the ministerial level, the Council of Ministers, and sometimes the Prime Minister himself, and follow up with meetings and [additional] correspondence. Sometimes, if it is really necessary, I call upon an inter-ministerial steering committee, that was formed upon our request—I bring them to the site, I brief them and they then go back to central government and represent the case.

- MongoBay

Ireland

Esri Ireland has 27 job openings expected to be filled in the next 18 months. The Irish Times profiled the company.

- Inside Ireland