National Geodetic Survey plans to release future Geodetic Datums in 2022

National Geodetic Survey (NGS) developed videos to give you a better understanding of NGS' plans to release new datums in 2022. If you use mapping products or other geo-spatial tools, these videos should also help you find out how you can prepare for the new datums. . It’s a number of years off - but the links explain the changes and provide some initial knowledge that may help you prepare for their advent…

This series of short videos, produced in collaboration between NOAA's National Geodetic Survey and The COMET Program, a part of UCAR's Community Programs, provides an introduction to geodetic datums for anyone who uses mapping products or other geo-spatial tools.

 In the first video, "What are Geodetic Datums?" (4:36), explains the basic concepts behind geodetic datums, where they are used, and why it is important to know about and use the correct datums.

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We will miss the "father of GIS"

Dr. Roger Tomlinson has passed away. Tomlinson is generally recognized as the "father of GIS.” He is the visionary geographer who conceived and developed the first GIS for use by the Canada Land Inventory in the early 1960s.  This and continuing contributions led the Canadian government to give him its highest civilian award, the Order of Canada, in 2001.  Text for that award reads, “he pioneered its uses worldwide to collect, manage, and manipulate geographical data, changing the face of geography as a discipline.”

Tomlinson tells the story of how this came to be.  In the early 1960s he was working as a photo interpreter for Spartan Air Services in Canada.  They had a contract to identify the best location for a tree plantation in Kenya.  They turned to their young geographer Tomlinson and asked him to develop a methodology.  He tried various manual methods for overlaying various environmental, cultural, and economic variables, but all were too costly.  He turned to computers and found the solution.  Subsequently he sold this approach to the Canada Land Inventory that had the responsibility of using data to assist the government in its land use planning activities.  His GIS approach reduced the task from three years and eight million Canadian dollars to several weeks and two million dollars.
 

He went on to serve the community in many ways.  He chaired the International Geographical Union’s GIS Commission for 12 years, where he pioneered the concepts of worldwide geographical data availability. He is a past president of the Canadian Association of Geographers a recipient of its rare Canadian Award for Service to the Profession.
 
Other awards followed including the James R. Anderson Medal of Honor for Applied Geography (1995) and the Robert T. Aangeenbrug Distinguished Career Award (2005) from the American Association of Geographers.  He was the first recipient of the Aangeenbrug award and also the first recipient of ESRI’s Lifetime Achievement Award (1997). National Geographic gave him its rare Alexander Graham Bell Award for exceptional contributions to geographic research (2010). He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and the recipient of multiple honorary doctorates – in addition to his own PhD from University College London.  

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Free Old Geography Books Available for Kindle and Nook

Free Geography eBooks from 18th and 19th Century- Available in Kindle and Nook formats.  Click and follow the link to download the ebooks.

Commercial Geography

A Book for High Schools, Commercial Courses, and Business Colleges

Jacques W. Redway, Published:1903

Geography and Plays
Gertrude Stein, Published:1922

A Historical Geography of the British Colonies
Vol. V, Canada—Part I, Historical
Charles Prestwood Lucas, Published:1901

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Geography of Pizza : Trying to Explore VGI and Crowd Sourcing

 Mark Turgeon, a graduate student studying GIS at California State University is studying and analyzing regional pizza preferences, styles and identity as his MS thesis. To collect anonymous data about the regional pizza preferences he built up a nice survey website, geographyofpizza.com.


He classified pizzas by:

1. Style
2. Crust
3. Cheese
4. Sauce   
5. Toppings
6. Sold by
7. Slices Cut
8. Oven

Check it out and help him in collecting data or know about pizza more.

http://www.geographyofpizza.com/

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44th South Dakota State University Geography Convention: March 14-14, 2013 Brookings, SD

The South Dakota State Geography Convention is the longest running student organized and sponsored annual meeting in the United States. Approximately ten eminent academic and applied geographers from around the region, the country, and Canada are invited to make presentations at the conference each spring. The convention also features social activities, a Gamma Theta Upsilon initiation, and an awards banquet. Field trips are provided on occasion.

Call for Abstracts

*Interested in presenting at the South Dakota State Geography Convention on March 14th, 2013?

*Email an abstract to Josh Bucher, Geography Club Secretary at joshua.bucher@sdstate.edu

*Presentations can be scientific in nature or informational, posters or slide show presentations are accepted

*Poster size should be 36”x48”

*Presentations should be 15 min with 5 min after for questions

*Please submit name, school, title, and abstract by March 1^st 2013 44^th Annual South Dakota State 

Geography Convention:Thursday March 14th and Friday March 15, 2013

Student Presentations – Thursday, 12:00-4:00pm

J.R. Smith Memorial Geography Bowl - Thursday

Social at the Ram Pub - Thursday night, 6:00-10:00pm

Guest and Faculty Speaker Schedule - Friday

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Nostalgic vibe at SDSU

Faculty listing, Department of Geography, SDSU

As a quixotic geographer exploring and trying new things in everyday in life really matters to me.  However, I would not forget our great people who spent their lifes in geography and inspire me to be a good geographer. I got a chance to know about the history of old geographers and their geography practice then in "Geographic Evolution of Thought". I used to get boared in my history class, but I very much enjoyed the class geographic evolution of thought by Dr. George White at South Dakota Sate University.  To memorize all great people who contributed in the geography department so far, I made a visual list of them.

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