EFB 519
Introduction to Geographic Modeling
3 credit hours: 2
instructional hours of lecture/discussion and 3 hours of laboratory per week.
Tuesday, 12:30 –
2:20, 111
Instructor: Myrna
Hall, mhhall@esf.edu, 112
Office Hours: Wednesday 10:00 – 12:00, or by appt.
Scope: This course is
designed for seniors and graduate students desiring further development in
ecosystem modeling. Geographical
modeling, in contrast to GIS, landscape ecology and other sub-disciplines,
involves the simulation of natural earth phenomena with special consideration
given to spatial position, adjacency, clustering or distribution of system
variables. It requires an interface between the new tools of GIS and the
traditional tools of ecological process modeling. The focus is on rigorous empirical science
applied to landscape units at varying scales.
This includes on the one hand geographic data‑intensive
simulation, and, on the other, simulation‑intensive mapping.
Objectives: To teach
students how to integrate ecological process modeling with GIS. Specifically students will be able to do the
following upon completion of the course:
1) understand the
basic vocabulary that links maps, computers and simulation models;
2) build a “cartographic
model,” i.e. a map flow diagram, showing how the student will use GIS modules to
create the necessary map inputs required by the student’s simulation model;
3) locate digital map data from a variety of public
INTERNET sources, and know how to import and export various formats using GIS
import/export modules, and the student’s own FORTRAN programs (other languages
can be used such as C, C++, Visual Basic, Math Lab, Pascal, etc. can be used as
long as code is well commented);
4) manipulate digital data using
a raster-based GIS such as IDRISI. Students
will learn to prepare model inputs, e.g. distance from pollution sources,
distributed maps of interpolated point and line sample data, overlays of land cover soil maps to derive estimates of
hydrological infiltration for surface water modeling, reclassification of NRCS
soil maps to derive soil curve numbers (infiltration coefficient) for runoff
modeling or the K factor for erosion modeling,etc.;
5) create and use digital elevation models to derive hourly
insolation, hydrological flow path, potential soil
saturation, wind patterns, temperature, rainfall, stream and lake depth
profiles, etc,
6) write FORTRAN code to
generate matrices (row, column raster maps) of environmental variables within a
time loop. Typical maps produced would
represent predictions of photosynthesis, soil moisture, species composition and
distribution, biomass production, land use change, population movement, energy
expenditure, etc. in the mapped region of interest over time;
7) dynamically display model
results – using ECOPLOT, IDRISI time series visualization or ARCVIEW 3D or
ARCGIS 3D Scene images in Power Point.
Methods and
Materials
Methods: The
class meets twice weekly, and is comprised of two instructional hours of
lecture/discussion and three hours of lab per week. Lecture sessions combine lectures with
discussion of assigned readings. Lab
exercises are designed to develop students’ spatial modeling skills. Each student will develop a computer model of
his/her own area of research. At the end
of the semester each student will have a well-developed conceptual model and a
simulation model with graphic output to illustrate system dynamics over time.
Materials required
of students:
1.
The course reader available for purchase from the ESF
Business Office the first week of classes
2.
FORTRAN 90 for Engineers and Scientists, L. R. Nyhoff and S. C. Leestma, 1997,
Prentice Hall. (Used from $51.95 at http://www.amazon.com/). Also available at Barnes and Noble, and maybe
at SU or Orange Bookstore.
3.
A set of readings selected by the student related to
his/her own modeling project
4.
A project notebook (9.5 X 6 inches)
5.
Maps (digital and/or paper) of the student’s study area
6.
Storage media (flash or portable hard drive)
Optional but
available to students at great pricing:
1) IDRISI Kilimanjaro at student
pricing ($250), check http://www.clarklabs.org/
2) A FORTRAN compiler ($79.00 for Lahey
Essential FORTRAN 90), check http://www.lahy.com/elfpage.htm
FREE: One-year copy of ARCGIS 9.2 provided by the instructor
Relation to Other Courses
Course
Prerequisites: EFB 518 -- Systems Ecology, or course in computer
programming and
any one course in GIS, from among the
following ESF courses:
ESF 300 Introduction
to Geographic Information Technology
FOR
557 Spatial Modeling with Vector GIS
FOR
556 Raster-based Spatial Modeling
Grading
Weekly homework
assignments = 75%
Final
Presentation = 25%
Attendance /
Participation are expected and can affect final grade!
The final presentation will
consist of an oral presentation describing the project objectives, hypothesis,
methods, results, discussion, and conclusions, a