CRN: 15201/15202
Lecture: W 17:30-21:10 in 413 Cramer Hall
Labs: (choose 1)
F
12:45-15:05 CH 469
T 18:40-20:30 NH 437
W 14:00-16:20
NH 437
M 18:40-20:30
NH 437
Instructor:
Email: jduh@pdx.edu
Webpage: http://web.pdx.edu/~jduh (Select
“Courses-> GEOG 4/588” from the pull-down menu.)
Office: 424J Cramer Hall
Office Hours: M T R 1-2
Teaching assistant:
Email: dsg@pdx.edu
GEOG 488/588 is an introductory course covering the theory and application of geographic information systems (GIS). The course includes an overview of the general principles of GIS and practical experience in its use. The practical component involves the use of desktop GIS software packages including ArcGIS and Spatial Analyst . Both the theoretical and practical components of the course are important. Without a theoretical understanding of GIS methods you will make bad geographic modeling decisions and when necessary you will not be able to migrate to a new or different GIS software package. Without a practical understanding of GIS software your theoretical knowledge cannot be put to use. We will have an active learning environment, which means that students should be ready to participate and contribute to the class. Graduate students must also complete a final project in which they investigate a GIS application in depth.
The text for this course is "Geographic Information Systems and Science," which was written by Longley, Goodchild, Maguire, and Rhind: Prentice Hall, 2001. The book that will be used for the practical component is "Getting to Know ArcGIS Desktop 2nd Edition (ArcGIS 9)" by Environmental Systems Research Inc. (ESRI), 2004 . The books are available at the Portland State Bookstore and from Amazon.com . Both books are required.
The lecture component of this course consists of discussions of the readings and therefore you should have read the material before class. Students are expected to come to class ready to be active participants in the discussion. To facilitate an interactive discussion each student will be a discussion leader once during the semester for which they will receive a grade. This person is responsible for leading the classroom discussion along with the instructor and should have answered all of the discussion questions linked to the schedule below. The discussion leader should give the instructor typed answers to all of the questions at the beginning of class. It is important that everyone in the class take part in these discussions. Therefore, class attendance and participation are mandatory. See the grading section below for penalties for those who do not attend class.
During the lab sessions you will do practical GIS exercises on the computers. If you do not finish the labs during the assigned time periods the lab also has open hours. The practical exercises provide a way to acquire skills using ArcGIS and other software packages and to apply the course concepts to real data. NH 437/439/448 and CH 1/322/ all have ArcGIS on the computers. The labs are open when classes are not scheduled in these rooms and the NH labs are open on weekends. CH 475 is also open to students in this class and the computers have ArcGIS.
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Undergrads |
Grads |
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Lab Assignments |
40% |
25% |
|
Midterm |
20% |
15% |
|
Discussion Lead |
10% |
10% |
|
Participation |
10% |
10% |
|
Final |
20% |
15% |
|
Project |
NA |
25% |
Attendance to this course is mandatory. You are given two free absences. If you miss more than two class periods then you will be penalized five percent of your final grade per absence. PLEASE DO NOT MISS CLASS. You are expected to take part in the discussions and if you are not in class then you cannot. If you are repeatedly late you will be given an absence. The labs are due by 4:30pm Wednesday the week after they are assigned in the TA's mailbox in Cramer Hall room 424. You can also give them to the TA during the lab section.
Schedule of Lectures and
(Click
on the Lead Schedule to get the links to discussion questions)
|
Date |
Wednesday |
Lab |
|
Sep 29 |
· Course Overview · Discussion Lead Schedule · Systems, Science, and Study: A Conceptual Framework for GIS (Pages 1-26) Slides |
No lab |
|
Oct 6 |
· A Gallery of Applications (Pages 27-58) · Representing Geography (Pages 59-78) |
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Oct 13 |
· Georeferencing (Pages 79-96) · The Nature of Geographic Data (Pages 97-122) |
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Oct 20 |
· Uncertainty (Pages 123-142) · Generaliztion, Abstraction, and Metadata (Pages 143-162) |
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Oct 27 |
· GIS Software (Pages 163-182) ·
Geographic Data Modelling (Pages 183-203) ·
Project Outline Due (Instructions) |
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Nov 3 |
· GIS Data Collection (Pages 205-224) · Creating and Maintaining Geographic Databases (Pages 225-246) ·
Guest
Speaker: Mr. Mark Bosworth.
History and Development of Metro RLIS. 2. Metro RLIS Metadata Viewer and Map Layers ·
Midterm Due |
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Nov 10 |
· Visualization and User Interaction (Pages 247-276) · Geographic Query and Analysis (Pages 277-302) |
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Nov 17 |
· Advanced Spatial Analysis (Pages 303-324) · Introduction to ArcGIS 9 ModelBuilder Slides (Reference: ArcGIS 9: Geoprocessing in ArcGIS) |
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Nov 24 |
· Uncertainty, Error, and Sensitivity (Pages 325-344) · Operational Aspects of GIS (Pages 397-412) |
Thanksgiving (No labs) |
|
Dec 1 |
· GIS Partnerships at Local, National, and Global Level (Pages 413-427) ·
Graduate Student
Presentations (Schedule) |
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|
Dec 8 |
·
Graduate Student Presentations During
Scheduled Exam Time (Schedule) ·
Project Due (Instructions)
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