A practical taxonomy of methods and literature for managing uncertain spatial data in geographic information systems

Perfect information is seldom available to man or machines due to uncertainties inherent in real world problems. Uncertainties in geographic information systems (GIS) stem from either vague/ambiguous or imprecise/inaccurate/incomplete information and it is necessary for GIS to develop tools and techniques to manage these uncertainties. There is a widespread agreement in the GIS community that although GIS has the potential to support a wide range of spatial data analysis problems, this potential is often hindered by the lack of consistency and uniformity. Uncertainties come in many shapes and forms, and processing uncertain spatial data requires a practical taxonomy to aid decision makers in choosing the most suitable data modeling and analysis method. In this paper, we: (1) review important developments in handling uncertainties when working with spatial data and GIS applications; (2) propose a taxonomy of models for dealing with uncertainties in GIS; and (3) identify current challenges and future research directions in spatial data analysis and GIS for managing uncertainties.

Analysing spatio-temporal change by use of national historical Geographical Information Systems: Population change during and after the Great Irish Famine

Several countries have made large investments in building historical Geographical Information Systems (GIS) databases containing census and other quantitative statistics over long periods of time. Making good use of these databases requires approaches that explore spatial and temporal change.

Reducing the future threat from (liver) fluke: realistic prospect or quixotic fantasy?

The liver fluke remains an economically significant parasite of livestock and is emerging as an important zoonotic infection of humans. The incidence of the disease has increased in the last few years, as a possible consequence of changes to the World's climate. Future predictions suggest that this trend is likely to continue. Allied to the changing pattern of disease, reports of resistance to triclabendazole (TCBZ) have appeared in the literature, although they do not all represent genuine cases of resistance. Nevertheless, any reports of resistance are a concern, because triclabendazole is the only drug that has high activity against the migratory and damaging juvenile stages of infection. How to deal with the twin problems (of increasing incidence and drug resistance) is the overall theme of the session on “Trematodes: Fasciola hepatica epidemiology and control” and of this review to introduce the session.

Greater knowledge of fluke epidemiology and population genetics will highlight those regions where surveillance is most required and indicate how quickly resistant populations of fluke may arise. Models of disease risk are becoming increasingly sophisticated and precise, with more refined data analysis programmes and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data. Recent improvements have been made in our understanding of the action of triclabendazole and the ways in which flukes have become resistant to it. While microtubules are the most likely target for drug action, tubulin mutations do not seem to be involved in the resistance mechanism. Rather, upregulation of drug uptake and metabolism processes appear to be more important and the data relating to them will be discussed. The information may help in the design of new treatment strategies or pinpoint potential molecular markers for monitoring fluke populations. Advances in the identification of novel targets for drugs and vaccines will be made by the various “-omics” technologies that are now being applied to Fasciola. A major area of concern in the current control of fasciolosis is the lack of reliable tests for the diagnosis of drug (TCBZ) resistance. This has led to inaccurate reports of resistance, which is hindering successful disease management, as farmers may be encouraged to switch to less effective drugs. Progress with the development of a number of new diagnostic tests will be reviewed.

Remote Sensing and GIScience in Geomorphological Mapping

The rapid proliferation of remote sensing and geographic information systems (GIS) into geomorphologic mapping has increased the objectivity and efficiency of landform segmentation, measurement, and classification. The near ubiquitous presence of Earth-observing satellites provides an array of perspectives to visualize the biophysical characteristics of landscapes, access inhospitable terrain on a predictable schedule, and study landscape processes when conditions are hazardous. GIS technology has altered the analysis, visualization, and dissemination of landform data due to the shared theoretical concepts that are fundamental to geomorphology and GIScience. The authors review geospatial technology applications in landform mapping (including emerging issues) within glacial, volcanic, landslide, and fluvial research.

Knowledge Exchange, Spatial Analysis & Healthy Urban Environments (KESUE): Project Report

The Knowledge Exchange, Spatial Analysis and Healthy Urban Environments (KESUE) project has extended work previously undertaken by a QUB team of inter-disciplinary researchers engaged with the Physical Activity in the Regeneration of Connswater (PARC) project (Tully et al, 2013). The PARC project focussed on parts of East Belfast to assess the health impact of the Connswater Community Greenway. The KESUE project has aimed to extend some of the tools used initially in East Belfast so that they have data coverage of all of Belfast and Derry-Londonderry. The purpose of this has been to enable the development of evidence and policy tools that link features of the built environment with physical activity in these two cities. The project has used this data to help shape policy decisions in areas such as physical activity, park management, public transport and planning.

Working with a range of local partners who part-funded the project (City Councils in Belfast and Derry-Londonderry, Public Health Agency, Belfast Healthy Cities and Department of Regional Development), this project has mapped all the footpaths in the two cities (covering 37% of the NI population) and employed this to develop evidence used in strategies related to healthy urban planning. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), the footpath network has been used as a basis for a wide range of policy-relevant analyses including pedestrian accessibility to public facilities, site options for new infrastructure and assessing how vulnerable groups can access services such as pharmacies. Key outputs have been Accessibility Atlases and maps showing how walkability of the built environment varies across the two cities.

In addition to generating this useful data, the project included intense engagement with potential users of the research, which has led to its continued uptake in a number of policies and strategies, creating a virtuous circle of research, implementation and feedback. The project has proved so valuable to Belfast City Council that they have now taken on one of the researchers to continue the work in-house.

Spatial Allocation of Material Flow Analysis: A Geographic Information System Application of Material Flow Analysis in Ireland

This study concerns the spatial allocation of material flows, with emphasis on construction material in the Irish housing sector. It addresses some of the key issues concerning anthropogenic impact on the environment through spatial temporal visualisation of the flow of materials, wastes and emissions at different spatial levels. This is presented in the form of a spatial model, Spatial Allocation of Material Flow Analysis (SAMFA), which enables the simulation of construction material flows and associated energy use. SAMFA parallels the Island Limits project (EPA funded under 2004-SD-MS-22-M2), which aimed to create a material flow analysis of the Irish economy classified by industrial sector. SAMFA further develops this by attempting to establish the material flows at the subnational geographical scale that could be used in the development of local authority (LA) sustainability strategies and spatial planning frameworks by highlighting the cumulative environmental impacts of the development of the built environment. By drawing on the idea of planning support systems, SAMFA also aims to provide a cross-disciplinary, integrative medium for involving stakeholders in strategies for a sustainable built environment and, as such, would help illustrate the sustainability consequences of alternative The pilot run of the model in Kildare has shown that the model can be successfully calibrated and applied to develop alternative material flows and energy-use scenarios at the ED level. This has been demonstrated through the development of an integrated and a business-as-usual scenario, with the former integrating a range of potential material efficiency and energysaving policy options and the latter replicating conditions that best describe the current trend. Their comparison shows that the former is better than the latter in terms of both material and energy use. This report also identifies a number of potential areas of future research and areas of broader application. This includes improving the accuracy of the SAMFA model (e.g. by establishing actual life expectancy of buildings in the Irish context through field surveys) and the extension of the model to other Irish counties. This would establish SAMFA as a valuable predicting and monitoring tool that is capable of integrating national and local spatial planning objectives with actual environmental impacts. Furthermore, should the model prove successful at this level, it then has the potential to transfer the modelling approach to other areas of the built environment, such as commercial development and other key contributors of greenhouse emissions. The ultimate aim is to develop a meta-model for predicting the consequences of consumption patterns at the local scale. This therefore offers the possibility of creating critical links between socio technical systems with the most important challenge of all the limitations of the biophysical environment.