Showing papers in "Journal of Map and Geography Libraries in 2015"

Terra Populus: Workflows for Integrating and Harmonizing Geospatial Population and Environmental Data

Abstract: The Terra Populus project (TerraPop) addresses a variety of data management, curation, and preservation challenges with respect to spatiotemporal population and environmental data. In this article, we describe our approaches to these challenges, with a particular focus on geospatial data workflows and associated provenance metadata. The goal of TerraPop is to enable research, learning, and policy analysis by providing integrated spatiotemporal data describing people and their environment. To do so, TerraPop is assembling a globe-spanning and temporally extensive collection of high-quality population and environmental data, ensuring good documentation, and developing a Web-based data access system that enables users to assemble customized integrated data sets drawing on a variety of data sources and formats. We describe TerraPop's collection strategies, detail the geospatial workflows involved in preparing data for ingest into the project database and those used to transform data across formats for dissemi...

Discovery, Management, and Preservation of Geospatial Data Using Hydra

Abstract: As a growing number of disciplines adopt geospatial technologies in their research, the need for access to geospatial data, in a variety of formats, has grown dramatically. For librarians to meet this demand, we also need to provide preservation, curation, metadata, and discovery services. GeoHydra, our open source toolkit and set of practices, provides these services for Stanford's libraries. We incorporate a variety of geospatial content types from raster imagery to scientific vector data to georeferenced scanned maps, and provide a data model for repositories. We demonstrate the potential of a new architecture and practice for librarianship for geospatial data using the Hydra framework. The digitization and georeferencing of historic map collections, streamlining the acquisition and cataloging of vendor-supplied data, shared cataloging of geographic resources, and citation of geospatial research data are all examples of use cases that GeoHydra serves. Our metadata creation and management strategies imp...

Exploring Best Management Practices for Geospatial Data in Academic Libraries

Abstract: Due to the exponential growth of spatial information, effective management and curation of geospatial data has become a central concern for GIS libraries. Although geospatial data are often generated based on a set of well-established standards and protocols, best management practices in geospatial data services are still limited. In this paper, the authors review the common challenges of geospatial data management and curation, which include the application of big data, the emergence of Web GIS, and the advancement of cyberinfrastructures. A spatial education project is used as an example to discuss potential best management practices to address these challenges. It is demonstrated that librarians need to be involved at the early stage of a research project and work closely with researchers at all stages of the data life cycle for effective data management. With early involvement of a GIS librarian in the full project development process, all three challenges can be addressed by using best management pra...

Spatial Data Infrastructures and Spanish Cultural Heritage: The INSPIRE Framework Applied to the Monastery of El Escorial

Abstract: The INSPIRE Directive established an Infrastructure for Spatial Information in Europe (INSPIRE), aiming to enable the interoperability and harmonization of spatial data sets and services across Europe. There are two main data specifications inside INSPIRE that might concern cultural heritage data: the Data Specification on Protected Sites, and the Data Specification on Area Management/Restriction/Regulation Zones and Reporting Units. These data specifications include the technical documentation of the application schema that defines the content and structure of the data required by one or more applications. Cultural heritage also overlaps the Data Specification on Buildings, for architectural heritage is to be taken as constructed buildings under that data specification. Nonetheless, many heritage features do not fit within the definition of a building. The Cultural Heritage Application Schema developed by IDEE (Infraestructuras de Datos Espaciales) [Spatial Data Infrastructures] Working Group suggests th...

An Adaptable Approach for Generating Vector Features from Scanned Historical Thematic Maps Using Image Enhancement and Remote Sensing Techniques in a Geographic Information System

Abstract: Historical maps possess a wealth of information that is, unfortunately, often unreachable by modern mapping applications. While the digitization of historical maps allows the information to be utilized in these applications, it is really, in many cases, the conversion of features (from a raster data type to a vector data type) contained on those maps that enables the information to be used more extensively and easily. This paper highlights the ways the University of Idaho Library enriched a thematic map to become more usable in modern mapping applications. We accomplished this by detailing a work flow within Esri ArcGIS for Desktop that takes advantage of image enhancement, geoprocessing tools, and remote sensing techniques to generate a vector data set from a raster image of a historical map. To a large degree, the general work flow developed can be adapted and utilized on similar thematic maps.

The Benefits and Risks of Volunteered Geographic Information

Abstract: Volunteered geographic information (VGI) is a term coined by Michael Goodchild in 2007 when he referred to the popular practice of observing, collecting, and producing geographic information by tho...

The Open Geoportal Federation

Abstract: In this article, we provide an overview of both the social and technical composition of the Open Geoportal (OGP) Federation: an open source, collaborative framework designed to support the various components of spatial data infrastructure and geospatial data repositories. The social components include best-practices, governance models, and working groups, as wells as the OGP wiki, blogs, elists, summits, and virtual meetings. The technical components include the Open Geoportal, Open Geoportal Harvester, and Open Geoportal Metadata Toolkit. We also include benefits and business drivers to adopting this new interoperable, collaborative model.

Functional Requirements Specification for Archival Asset Management: Identification and Integration of Essential Properties of Services-Oriented Architecture Products

Abstract: The complexity and size of geospatial data can constrain the capabilities of service providers and create risks to the long-term preservation and archiving of valuable information assets. While services-oriented architectures such as the Earth Data Analysis Center's Geographic Storage, Transformation and Retrieval Engine (GSToRE1) facilitate increased use and impact of geospatial data by mitigating these complexities by development of dynamic applications and interfaces, such services can often be primarily focused on the maintenance and delivery of only the most current versions of geospatial data that may nonetheless possess significant historical, cultural, or scientific value. Actions and documentation required to assure long-term preservation may not be supported by existing business models or may be otherwise compromised. However, general purpose archives offer a preservation capability that is complementary to the value created by dynamic service providers. We present an overview of the features of...

A Strategy for the Management, Preservation, and Reutilization of Geographical Information Based on the Lifecycle of Geospatial Data: An Assessment and a Proposal Based on Experiences from Spain and Europe

Abstract: In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of the fact that the proper management of information has to include concern for its preservation and future re-use. This ambition is particularly significant for geospatial data. The primary aim of this article is to define the European and Spanish frameworks for the preservation and reutilization of geographical information, with the ultimate goal of proposing an articulated, lifecycle-based data management model. With this, the intent is to shed some light on a complex, difficult and ever-evolving subject.The article is divided into two main parts. The first part begins with a conceptual justification for geospatial data management and continues by synthesizing the current normative and technological framework for the preservation and reutilization of geographical information. Within this context, the implementation of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI) in Spain is evaluated. The second part begins with a case study from Spain that aims to identify ...

Collaborative Approaches to the Management of Geospatial Data Collections in Canadian Academic Libraries: A Historical Case Study

Abstract: The Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL) is a consortium of the twenty-one university libraries in Ontario, Canada. Since 1967, OCUL member institutions have worked together to share costs and workload through collective purchasing and licensing of information resources and more recently through the establishment of a shared digital infrastructure known as Scholars Portal. Under the auspices of OCUL, Ontario's university map librarians formed the OCUL Map Group in 1973 to seek opportunities to communicate and collaborate to improve the collections and services they offer their users. The opportunities provided by collaboration have ensured a greater capacity to manage evolving collections of geospatial data. The group has served as a community of practice, which has provided educational opportunities and facilitated collaborative problem solving through a listserv, conference calls, and face-to-face meetings. This collegial environment has also led to the completion of a number of projects, whic...

Our Place on the Map

Abstract: In November 2014, University of New Orleans (UNO) president Peter Fos presented a three-phase restructuring plan designed to sustain UNO’s budget to the University of Louisiana Board of Supervisors, which passed Fos’s plan in December. Phase 1 will start in 2015 with the “immediate discontinuance” of several degree programs. Phase 2 will address further programs to restructure, and Phase 3 will focus on strategies for improving the “most viable degree programs” as identified by UNO’s Faculty Governance Committee. Among Fos’s recommendations is the jettisoning of four positions in the Earl K. Long Library (Hamburger 2014a, 2014b). What really hit home with me, however, is that Fos’s plan eliminates UNO’s Department of Geography (Hamburger 2014b). UNO suffered setbacks from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and from the Great Recession and so had discontinued its geography degree in 2011. At that time, UNO incorporated geography courses into its Planning and Urban Studies programs but kept the department. What will happen to the geography faculty in the aftermath is not yet clear (Thompson 2014). The disappearance of geography departments and degree programs is not really new. It dates back to 1948 when Harvard closed its program (Smith 1987). Today, the discontinuation of geography programs in higher education is generally masked by a larger trend of departments’ rebranding of geography with titles like sustainability, environment and society, and urban and regional studies (Winkler 2014). The UNO story and the reality of the drift toward rebranding geography worries me because it has everything to do with my profession and deep passion—a passion that I hope all of us share.

Forging Partnerships: Foundations of Geospatial Data Stewardship

Abstract: Geospatial data stewardship fosters user-driven collection, management, access, reuse, and preservation of location-based data. Academic and research libraries are poised to be at the center of geospatial data stewardship, working with partners to develop a sustainable, geospatial data stewardship hub. This article argues for the essential role of libraries in leading collaborative partnerships to develop a user-driven, spatial data infrastructure that includes people, policies, standards, community perspectives, and operational workflows. The emerging model of partnership-based spatial data infrastructure described at the Washington University Libraries demonstrates working methods in practice.

Identifying Local Hidden Data Sets: The First Step to Begin a Geospatial Data Collection

Abstract: Data management is an emerging role for libraries that has been increasing in importance in the past ten years. Since many federal funding agencies require a data management plan, libraries have been natural partners in managing that data. Data, particularly geospatial data, have been gathered as part of library services for several decades. While it is easy to see a connection and role for the libraries to provide access and discovery or referral services to these known items, it is far more difficult to help researchers discover data that are unknown. Individual researchers may be aware of the data they have accumulated but it is difficult to determine what other researchers are gathering and utilizing. This article provides details about how one institution with many remote field research stations and limited library resources is attempting to shine a light on hidden data through faculty collaborations. Finding hidden data is a critical and lengthy first step in making the data findable and useable to ...

Identifying User Needs: A Case Study on Geospatial Data Requests at McGill University

Abstract: Geospatial data service units in higher education are facing challenges from collection budgets, staff shortages, rapidly evolving data manipulation technologies, and increasing research and learning interests Many units have adopted a user-centered approach to address these issues The core of this approach is to understand what their users need This study aims to answer this question by analyzing 455 geospatial data requests that were received and fulfilled at McGill University Library during the past two academic years Results include which departments primarily need geospatial data, which data sets are requested most frequently, which geographic areas receive the most GIS research interest, and a distribution of request numbers over the study period Recommendations are made about data discovery instruction and consultations, data organization and access, and data collection management based on this study’s results Findings and recommendations may also be of use for other geospatial data units in

Progress on the Management, Curation, and Preservation of Geospatial Data

Abstract: The theme of “geospatial data management, curation, and preservation” is broad, significant, and timely enough, and is actively a part of the concerns of many organizations—as evidenced by the larg...

The Modern Utility of Ford's Colonial Map of Barbados, 1674

Abstract: Richard Ford's 1674 map of colonial Barbados was one of the first economic maps of the British Empire, and, as such, plays a strong role in cartographic history. Ford's map contributes insights into further layers of colonial history, especially when combined in a geographic information system (GIS) with data from the Barbados Census of 1679 and modern elevation data. Settlement patterns were examined using the data of sugar mills from Ford's map with elevation and aspect information to determine whether there was a preference for building location. Further issues of artistic and realistic constraints on mapping accuracy were also examined. The accuracy of Ford's map comes into question when it is compared with the census of 1679. Ford's map claims to show every plantation on the island, but this is not verified by the census, which lists five times the number of planters. This deeper examination of the underutilized data from a printed map not only assesses the legitimacy of the map, both in terms of acc...

Management, Curation, and Preservation of Geospatial Data: Introductory Perspectives

Abstract: The need for management, curation, and preservation of geospatial data has become more apparent as geospatial technologies and their supporting infrastructures have matured. Furthermore, as the use...

A Needs-Assessment Process for Designing Geospatial Data Management Systems within Federal Agencies

Abstract: Many federal agencies face challenges with designing geospatial data management systems. This paper presents and documents a needs-assessment process that can be employed to prioritize agencies’ geospatial information needs; identify agencies’ capacity to manage a centralized geodatabase; determine agencies’ capacity to deliver Web-mapping services to the public; and identify barriers, such as data security and limited financial resources, that constrain agencies’ ability to design and manage a geospatial data management system. The paper details the needs-assessment process and documents its application to the National Park Service (NPS) Conservation and Outdoor Recreation (COR) Branch programs. The NPS COR Branch is comprised of nine disparate programs, such as the National Trails System and the Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance program, each of which has specific geospatial data management and delivery needs. The needs-assessment process, tested through its application to the NPS COR Branch p...

Life Cycle Management Considerations of Remotely Sensed Geospatial Data and Documentation for Long Term Preservation

Abstract: As geospatial missions age, one of the challenges for the usability of data is the availability of relevant and updated metadata with sufficient documentation that can be used by future generations of users to gain knowledge from the original data. Given that remote sensing data undergo many intermediate processing steps, for example, an understanding of the exact algorithms employed and the quality of that data produced could be key considerations for these users. As interest in global climate data is increasing, documentation about older data, their origins, and their provenance are valuable to first-time users attempting to perform historical climate research or comparative analysis of global change. Incomplete or missing documentation could be what stands in the way of a new researcher attempting to use the data. Therefore, preservation of documentation and related metadata is sometimes just as critical as the preservation of the original observational data. The Goddard Earth Sciences–Data and Informa...

Mapping Decadence: From a Hunch to a Web Site

Abstract: This article explores the creation of a digital mapping project, Mapping Decadence (mappingdecadence.org). The project explores the role that spatial location played in shaping the collaborations of four late-nineteenth-century French writers with their publishers. Closely affiliated with the Decadent movement, the writers include Joris-Karl Huysmans, Jean Lorrain, Rachilde, and Marcel Schwob. Beginning with the questions that led me to the project in the first place and concluding with my plans for expanding the project in the future, the article offers a roadmap of the trials and triumphs that come with digital humanities mapping projects. It also demonstrates the crucial role played by library resources—human, physical, and digital—in making this project a reality. And it discusses the place of mapping decadence in the wider landscape of digital humanities mapping projects. The article should be of use to scholars, archivists, librarians, and many others currently contemplating a digital project of the...