Using small area estimation and geographic information systems technology to target health services for the uninsured

The three articles that comprise this dissertation describe how small area estimation and geographic information systems (GIS) technologies can be integrated to provide useful information about the number of uninsured and where they are located. Comprehensive data about the numbers and characteristics of the uninsured are typically only available from surveys. Utilization and administrative data are poor proxies from which to develop this information. Those who cannot access services are unlikely to be fully captured, either by health care provider utilization data or by state and local administrative data. In the absence of direct measures, a well-developed estimation of the local uninsured count or rate can prove valuable when assessing the unmet health service needs of this population. However, the fact that these are “estimates” increases the chances that results will be rejected or, at best, treated with suspicion. The visual impact and spatial analysis capabilities afforded by geographic information systems (GIS) technology can strengthen the likelihood of acceptance of area estimates by those most likely to benefit from the information, including health planners and policy makers. ^ The first article describes how uninsured estimates are currently being performed in the Houston metropolitan region. It details the synthetic model used to calculate numbers and percentages of uninsured, and how the resulting estimates are integrated into a GIS. The second article compares the estimation method of the first article with one currently used by the Texas State Data Center to estimate numbers of uninsured for all Texas counties. Estimates are developed for census tracts in Harris County, using both models with the same data sets. The results are statistically compared. The third article describes a new, revised synthetic method that is being tested to provide uninsured estimates at sub-county levels for eight counties in the Houston metropolitan area. It is being designed to replicate the same categorical results provided by a current U.S. Census Bureau estimation method. The estimates calculated by this revised model are compared to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates, using the same areas and population categories. ^

Incorporating level set methods in Geographical Information Systems (GIS) for land-surface process modelling

Land-surface processes include a broad class of models that operate at a landscape scale. Current modelling approaches tend to be specialised towards one type of process, yet it is the interaction of processes that is increasing seen as important to obtain a more integrated approach to land management. This paper presents a technique and a tool that may be applied generically to landscape processes. The technique tracks moving interfaces across landscapes for processes such as water flow, biochemical diffusion, and plant dispersal. Its theoretical development applies a Lagrangian approach to motion over a Eulerian grid space by tracking quantities across a landscape as an evolving front. An algorithm for this technique, called level set method, is implemented in a geographical information system (GIS). It fits with a field data model in GIS and is implemented as operators in map algebra. The paper describes an implementation of the level set methods in a map algebra programming language, called MapScript, and gives example program scripts for applications in ecology and hydrology.

Social construction of Geographic Information Systems. (Volumes I and II)

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is an emerging information technology (IT) which promises to have large scale influences in how spatially distributed resources are managed. It has had applications in the management of issues as diverse as recovering from the disaster of Hurricane Andrew to aiding military operations in Desert Storm. Implementation of GIS systems is an important issue because there are high cost and time involvement in setting them up. An important component of the implementation problem is the "meaning" different groups of people who are influencing the implementation give to the technology. The research was based on the theory of (theoretical stance to the problem was based on the) "Social Construction of Knowledge" systems which assumes knowledge systems are subject to sociological analysis both in usage and in content. An interpretive research approach was adopted to inductively derive a model which explains how the "meanings" of a GIS are socially constructed. The research design entailed a comparative case analysis over two county sites which were using the same GIS for a variety of purposes. A total of 75 in-depth interviews were conducted to elicit interpretations of GIS. Results indicate that differences in how geographers and data-processors view the technology lead to different implementation patterns in the two sites.

A Geographic Perspective of Cuban Landscapes

Beginning in the era of the Spanish conquest and taking the reader right up to the present day, this book focuses on how the landscape of Cuba has changed and evolved into the environment we see today. It illustrates the range of factors – economic, political and cultural – that have determined Cuba’s physical geography, and explores the shifting conservation measures which have been instituted in response to new methods in agriculture and land management. The text uses historical documents, fieldwork, Geographic Information System (GIS) data and remotely-sensed satellite imagery to detail Cuba’s extensive land-use history as well as its potential future. The author goes further to analyze the manner, speed and methods of landscape change, and examines the historical context and governing agendas that have had an impact on the relationship between Cuba’s inhabitants and their island. Gebelein also assesses the key role played by agricultural production in the framework of international trade required to sustain Cuba’s people and its economy. The book concludes with a review of current efforts by Cuban and other research scientists, as well as private investors, conservation managers and university professors who are involved in shaping Cuba’s evolving landscape and managing it during the country’s possible transition to a more politically diverse, enfranchised and open polity.

Analysis of fractured terrain using remote sensing and geographic information systems : establishing a correlation between fracture network properties and vegetation

This research analyzed the spatial relationship between a mega-scale fracture network and the occurrence of vegetation in an arid region. High-resolution aerial photographs of Arches National Park, Utah were used for digital image processing. Four sets of large-scale joints were digitized from the rectified color photograph in order to characterize the geospatial properties of the fracture network with the aid of a Geographic Information System. An unsupervised landcover classification was carried out to identify the spatial distribution of vegetation on the fractured outcrop. Results of this study confirm that the WNW-ESE alignment of vegetation is dominantly controlled by the spatial distribution of the systematic joint set, which in turn parallels the regional fold axis. This research provides insight into the spatial heterogeneity inherent to fracture networks, as well as the effects of jointing on the distribution of surface vegetation in desert environments.

GIS technologies and spatial organization patterns among hunter-gatherers: an archaeological case study from Southern Patagonia (southern South America)

This paper discusses some aspects of hunter-gatherer spatial organization in southern South Patagonia, in later times to 10,000 cal yr BP. Various methods of spatial analysis, elaborated with a Geographic Information System (GIS) were applied to the distributional pattern of archaeological sites with radiocarbon dates. The shift in the distributional pattern of chronological information was assessed in conjunction with other lines of evidence within a biogeographic framework. Accordingly, the varying degrees of occupation and integration of coastal and interior spaces in human spatial organization are explained in association with the adaptive strategies hunter-gatherers have used over time. Both are part of the same human response to changes in risk and uncertainty variability in the region in terms of resource availability and environmental dynamics.

Capacity analysis in CDMA systems using GIS based planning tools

We show a simulation model for capacity analysis in mobile systems using a geographic information system (GIS) based tool, used for coverage calculations and frequency assignment, and MATLAB. The model was developed initially for “narrowband” CDMA and TDMA, but was modified for WCDMA. We show also some results for a specific case in “narrowband” CDMA

Application of GIS in potential beekeeping assessment: Case study of Montesinho Natural Park (Portugal)

Planners require solutions that address routine work needs and seems essential to improving efficiency and productivity. There are a great number of different factors related to beekeeper activity as well the quality and productivity of different bee products. The spatial analysis is a powerful tool for overlap and relates various levels of information on a map, and consequently a very useful for beekeeping activity planning. This work proposes and applies a methodology to potential beekeeping assessment in Montesinho Natural Park, a region in the northwest of Portugal. The beekeeping potential maps were developed with the following data sources: legal standards, vegetation, land use, topography, water resources, roads, electromagnetic fields, and some honey physico-chemical analysis. The design and implementation of spatial analysis model based on Geographic Information System (GIS) to beekeeping planning activities has already been described by Anjos et al (2014). Spatial analysis techniques allows to define the potential beekeeper map supporting the beekeeper management in this region. Anjos O, Silva G, Roque N, Fernandez P, 2014. GIS based analysis to support the beekeeping planning. Book of abstracts of the International Symposium on Bee Products 3rd edition – Annual meeting of the International Honey Commission (IHC), Faculty of medicine, University of Rijeka, p:61

Geography, History and Natural Sciences: an interdisciplinary teaching approach with GIS

Geographic Information System (GIS) is a technology that deals with location to support better representations and decision making. It has a long tradition in several planning areas, such as urbanism, environment, riskiness, transportation, archeology or tourism. In academics context higher education has followed that evolution. Despite of their potentialities in education, GIS technologies at the elementary and secondary have been underused. Empowering graduates to learn with GIS and to manipulate spatial data can effectively facilitate the teaching of critical thinking. Likewise it has been recognized that GIS tools can be incorporated as an interdisciplinary pedagogical tool. Nevertheless more practical examples on how GIS tools can enhance teaching and learning process, namely to promote interdisciplinary approaches. The proposed paper presents some results obtained from the project “Each thing in its place: the science in time and space”. This project results from the effort of three professors of Geography, History and Natural Sciences in the context of Didactics of World Knowledge curricular unit to enhance interdisciplinarity through Geographic Information Technologies (GIT). Implemented during the last three years this action-research project developed the research practice using GIS to create an interdisciplinary attitude in the future primary education teachers. More than teaching GIS the authors were focused on teaching with GIS to create an integrated vision where spatial data representation linked the space, the time and natural sciences. Accumulated experience reveals that those technologies can motivate students to learn and facilitating teacher’s interdisciplinary work.

Small rivers in the southwestern Amazon and their role in CO(2) outgassing

A recent estimate of CO(2) outgassing from Amazonian wetlands suggests that an order of magnitude more CO(2) leaves rivers through gas exchange with the atmosphere than is exported to the ocean as organic plus inorganic carbon. However, the contribution of smaller rivers is still poorly understood, mainly because of limitations in mapping their spatial extent. Considering that the largest extension of the Amazon River network is composed of small rivers, the authors` objective was to elucidate their role in air-water CO(2) exchange by developing a geographic information system ( GIS)- based model to calculate the surface area covered by rivers with channels less than 100 m wide, combined with estimated CO(2) outgassing rates at the Ji-Parana River basin, in the western Amazon. Estimated CO(2) outgassing was the main carbon export pathway for this river basin, totaling 289 Gg C yr(-1), about 2.4 times the amount of carbon exported as dissolved inorganic carbon ( 121 Gg C yr(-1)) and 1.6 times the dissolved organic carbon export ( 185 Gg C yr(-1)). The relationships established here between drainage area and channel width provide a new model for determining small river surface area, allowing regional extrapolations of air - water gas exchange. Applying this model to the entire Amazon River network of channels less than 100 m wide ( third to fifth order), the authors calculate that the surface area of small rivers is 0.3 +/- 0.05 million km(2), and it is potentially evading to the atmosphere 170 +/- 42 Tg C yr(-1) as CO(2). Therefore, these ecosystems play an important role in the regional carbon balance.

Appropriate surveying methods in the Philippines: Can modern GPS units help?

An investigation was undertaken to test the effectiveness of two procedures for recording boundaries and plot positions for scientific studies on farms on Leyte Island, the Philippines. The accuracy of a Garmin 76 Global Positioning System (GPS) unit and a compass and chain was checked under the same conditions. Tree canopies interfered with the ability of the satellite signal to reach the GPS and therefore the GPS survey was less accurate than the compass and chain survey. Where a high degree of accuracy is required, a compass and chain survey remains the most effective method of surveying land underneath tree canopies, providing operator error is minimised. For a large number of surveys and thus large amounts of data, a GPS is more appropriate than a compass and chain survey because data are easily up-loaded into a Geographic Information System (GIS). However, under dense canopies where satellite signals cannot reach the GPS, it may be necessary to revert to a compass survey or a combination of both methods.

Análise espacial do padrão de introdução e disseminação da dengue nos municípios do Espírito Santo

O número de municípios infestados pelo Aedes aegypti no Estado do Espírito Santo vem aumentando gradativamente, levando a altas taxas de incidência de dengue ao longo dos anos. Apesar das tentativas de combate à doença, esta se tornou uma das maiores preocupações na saúde pública do Estado. Este estudo se propõe a descrever a dinâmica da expansão da doença no Estado a partir da associação entre variáveis ambientais e populacionais, utilizando dados operacionalizados por meio de técnicas de geoprocessamento. O estudo utilizou como fonte de dados a infestação pelo mosquito vetor e o coeficiente de incidência da doença, as distâncias rodoviárias intermunicipais do Estado, a altitude dos municípios e as variáveis geoclimáticas (temperatura e suficiência de água), incorporadas a uma ferramenta operacional, as Unidades Naturais do Espírito Santo (UNES), representadas em um único mapa operacionalizado em Sistema de Informação Geográfica (SIG), obtido a partir do Sistema Integrado de Bases Georreferenciadas do Estado do Espírito Santo. Para análise dos dados, foi realizada a Regressão de Poisson para os dados de incidência de dengue e Regressão Logística para os de infestação pelo vetor. Em seguida, os dados de infestação pelo mosquito e incidência de dengue foram georreferenciados, utilizando como ferramenta operacional o SIG ArcGIS versão 9.2. Observou-se que a pluviosidade é um fator que contribui para o surgimento de mosquito em áreas não infestadas. Altas temperaturas contribuem para um alto coeficiente de incidência de dengue nos municípios capixabas. A variável distância em relação a municípios populosos é um fator de proteção para a incidência da doença. A grande variabilidade encontrada nos dados, que não é explicada pelas variáveis utilizadas no modelo para incidência da doença, reforça a premissa de que a dengue é condicionada pela interação dinâmica entre muitas variáveis que o estudo não abordou. A espacialização dos dados de infestação pelo mosquito e incidência de dengue e as Zonas Naturais do ES permitiu a visualização da influência das variáveis estatisticamente significantes nos modelos utilizados no padrão da introdução e disseminação da doença no Estado.

Planeamento espacial marinho das áreas marinhas protegidas: o caso de estudo da ára protegida de gestão de recursos: Caloura - ilhéu de Vila Franca do Campo

Tese de Doutoramento, Ciências do Mar (Ecologia Marinha), 26 de Novembro de 2013, Universidade dos Açores.

Prospecção de recursos hidrominerais e geotérmicos na Orla Ocidental Portuguesa: os casos das Termas dos Cucos e de Monte Real

A cobertura sedimentar da região Oeste portuguesa é constituída por uma série possante de sedimentos com uma variedade de fácies com idades compreendidas entre o Triásico Superior e o actual. Estes sedimentos foram depositados numa bacia alongada com direcção NNE‐SSW. A tectónica desta cobertura sedimentar é condicionada pelas falhas tardi‐Variscas que afectaram o substrato e pelo complexo evaporítico depositado na base das séries sedimentares. Séries evaporíticas espessas de idade Hetangiana formaram numerosas estruturas diapíricas. Na região Oeste de Portugal existem diversas nascentes minerais e termais usadas para hidroterapia. Esta tese tem por objectivo estudar as concessões hidrominerais das Termas dos Cucos e das Termas de Monte Real (Portugal Central), bem como as suas áreas envolventes. Estas actividades hidroterapêuticas são muito relevantes em termos sócio‐económicos para os concelhos de Torres Vedras e Leiria. Os estudos contemplados nesta tese (que incluíram trabalho de campo no domínio da geotectónica, geomorfologia e hidrogeologia) permitiram delinear modelos hidrogeológicos conceptuais, apoiados, ainda, pela re‐interpretação de estudos geofísicos e hidrogeológicos prévios. A caracterização destas áreas foi suportada por inventários hidrogeológicos, tendo sido determinante para o projecto dos furos de captação, incluindo localização e profundidade. Todos os dados compilados foram representados cartograficamente numa base de Sistemas de Informação Geográfica (SIG).

Geotecnia urbana da zona ribeirinha de Vila Nova de Gaia: criação de uma base de dados SIG geotécnica

O presente trabalho apresenta os resultados dos estudos geotécnicos e de uma base de dados da zona ribeirinha de Vila Nova de Gaia, com o objectivo de compreender melhor os aspectos geotécnicos em ambiente urbano numa área sensível com um registo histórico de instabilidade de taludes rochosos. Além disso, os escassos estudos científicos recentes de natureza geológica e geotécnica em Vila Nova de Gaia justificam o estudo exploratório da geotecnia urbana da zona ribeirinha de Vila Nova de Gaia. A importância de Vila Nova de Gaia como a terceira maior cidade portuguesa e como centro de intensa actividade económica e cultural despoleta uma constante necessidade de expansão. O aumento da densidade populacional acarreta a realização de projectos complexos de engenharia, utilizando o subsolo para a construção e, com frequência, em terrenos com características geotécnicas desfavoráveis. As cidades de Vila Nova de Gaia e do Porto foram sendo edificadas ao longo de encostas numa plataforma litoral caracterizada por uma vasta área aplanada, inclinando ligeiramente para Oeste. Esta plataforma foi cortada pelo Rio Douro num vale encaixado de vertentes abruptas, nas quais se localizam as zonas ribeirinhas das duas cidades. Este trabalho envolveu, inicialmente, uma caracterização topográfica, morfoestrutural, geotectónica e geomecânica da área de estudo e, numa fase posterior, o desenvolvimento duma base de dados geotécnica. Todos os dados geológicos e geotécnicos locais e os estudos geotécnicos levados a cabo in situ pelas diversas empresas e instituições foram representados cartograficamente numa base apoiada pelos Sistemas de Informação Geográfica (SIG). Esta metodologia inter‐disciplinar foi de grande valor para um melhor conhecimento dos riscos geológico‐geotécnicos ao longo das margens do Rio Douro. De facto, a cartografia geotécnica da zona ribeirinha de Vila Nova de Gaia deve constituir uma ferramenta importante para uma previsão mais rigorosa de futuras instabilidades de taludes e um bom instrumento para a gestão do espaço urbano.