This dissertation uses a new methodological approach for an in-depth analysis of three cartographic works. Studies within the discipline of the history of cartography have followed various methodologies throughout the past century. This dissertation argues that in order to come to a more complete understanding of how maps were produced...
Ecoregions are regions of relative homogeneity with respect to specific
ecosystem variables (Bailey 1976; Omernik 1995). There has been an increasing
awareness that effective management of environmental resources must be undertaken
with an ecosystem perspective (Omernik, 1995). Ecoregions serve as a spatial
framework for assessing, managing, and monitoring ecosystems that...
This dissertation primarily uses observations made during the 2005 Kashmir earthquake relief effort and available disaster literature to address problems that impede effective and efficient disaster preparedness and response. Three manuscripts form the body of the dissertation. The manuscripts are thematically linked through the Emergency Management Cycle. Each manuscript examines...
The study examines the effect of forest clearance on fire occurrences in major islands of Indonesia, namely: Borneo, Sumatra, Sulawesi and Irian Jaya. The working hypothesis of the study is that forest clearing is a necessary predecessor for extensive fires to occur. The study is designed to test the idea...
A per-segment classification system was developed to map aspen (Populus tremuloides) stands on Winter Ridge in central Oregon from remote sensing imagery. A 1-meter color infrared (CIR) image was segmented based on its hue and saturation values to generate aspen "candidates", which were then classified to show aspen coverage according...
The Willamette River and its floodplain in northwest Oregon have changed dramatically since European settlement. At one time, the river was a vast complex system of braided channels with a broad floodplain forest; it has now been simplified by channelization and dams, and the forest has been removed to support...
The main theme of this research is the application of geographic techniques in a study involving environmental monitoring and analysis of the associations between landscape and in-stream characteristics in the Pacific Northwest. The geographic techniques used in this study include (1) geographic information systems (GIS) coupled with statistical analysis and...
The effect of scale is an important concern in mapping of biodiversity. Scale issues include the grid cell size used for analysis and the effect of the extent and internal boundaries. Because biodiversity analysis involves combinatorial processes, determining the proper scale is data dependent and cannot be predicted from the...
The relationships between spectral reflectance in the Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) bands and grass canopy variables were evaluated using in situ remote sensing techniques. Reflectance data were collected from experimental plots of annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) and tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) using a Barnes Modular Multiband Radiometer (MMR). The canopy...
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's (ODFW) Ecological Analysis
Center (EAC) is in the process of creating, from Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM)
imagery, a vegetation map of Oregon that will meet the latest standards set by the
National Gap Analysis Program. Since field verification is often expensive and by...
A method for delineating watersheds by computer using digital
elevation model (OEM) data is presented. The five steps in this
process are detailed and examples are shown. The algorithm was tested
using a manually created OEM for a small area in Northern
California. Three basins were delineated using the delineation...
Models that assess the risk to biodiversity from landscape change can help
communities prioritize planning decisions. Accurate representation of the ecology and
life history traits of species is necessary. This study introduces the use of habitat
quality in a biodiversity risk model to determine the significance of habitat quality when...
The Corvallis area study is made to help evaluate the local need
for additional system capacity ten years in the future. The product of
the study is an areally detailed projection of electrical demand.
The demand is derived in two steps: the location, nature, and
intensity of specific land uses...
The American Proposed Standard for Digital
Cartographic Data presents the new national exchange format
which allows the transfer of spatial data among parties
that may use different computer hardware and different
operating system software.
A translator program for the conversion of the AutoCAD
DXf data structure to the Standard's output...
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a burgeoning
field with its roots in geography. It is increasingly
being used by a large variety of disciplines, including
land use planning, as a decision support tool to help solve
complex spatial problems. At Oregon State University,
researchers have developed an analog model which...
The major considerations for acquiring and using a
geographic information system (G..I.S.) for regional or national
geographical research and analysis are examined in this paper.
After defining what a G.I.S. is, some of the more practical and
useful functions of a G.I.S. in day-to--day geographical work are
outlined. Finally, the...
Cartographic generalization results In locational Inaccuracies of the
generalized feature. The cartographer expresses the amount of generalization
and the locational inaccuracy of the feature through map design and choice of
map scale. This information is often lost when the map is digitized. In the environment
of geographic Information systems, the...
The H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest in the Cascades of
central Oregon provides a unique opportunity to study spatial
climate patterns on a relatively small scale. Historical
records at the 64 square-kilometer site provide a spatiallydense
30-year dataset. Thermal regimes at the H. J. Andrews
are generally known but the...
This thesis considered current approaches to describing landscape pattern,
identified scale issues associated with defining objects, and explored techniques to
reliably group elements based on land cover as represented by satellite imagery. It
was recognized that there is an important need to develop tools that can be applied
using remotely...
Remote sensing is an attractive method for the
detection and monitoring of crop stress. The feasibility of
using remote sensing for the detection and monitoring of
fungal diseases, insects, weeds, and non-infectious
diseases affecting the cultivated cranberry (Vaccinium
macrocarpon Ait.) is evaluated. A study on the fungal
disease twig blight...
Modern environmental monitoring and modeling requires a good global
grid system for survey sampling and accurate, spatially complete data
collection of relevant environmental phenomena. A prime requirement for the
global grid system is that the global sampling grids be regular and equal in area
and have minimal shape distortion. None...
Many diverse applications have begun to study processes and patterns at a global
scale. To aid in this research, discrete global grid systems (DGGSs) are data models
which enable environmental modeling, monitoring and sampling across the earth at a
variety of spatial scales. A DGGS can be evaluated on a...
Aerial photographs and field sampling were used to compare aspen (Populus tremuloides) age structure and stand conditions on elk winter range in the northern Yellowstone ecosystem. The elk winter ranges studied were the northern range in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) and the Gallatin National Forest and the Sunlight/Crandall elk winter...
This dissertation details an experiment designed to identify gender differences in learning using three experimental treatments: animation, static graphics, and verbal instruction alone. Three learning presentations were used in testing of 332 university students. Statistical analysis was performed using ANOVA, binomial tests for differences of proportion, and descriptive statistics. Results...
Details the development of the OSU 360 virtual tour system (www.oregonstate.edu/osu360) from May 2008 to May 2009. OSU 360 is a collaboration between the Department of Geosciences, University Housing and Dining Services, Central Web Services, Web Communications, and Admissions/Enrollment. This article details the project development from determining goals, distinguishing locations,...
When the Spatial Data Transfer Standard is adopted as a Federal
Information Processing Standard, a Quality Report containing sections on lineage,
accuracy, logical consistency, and completeness will be required of agencies
producing digital cartographic data. This Quality Report diverges significantly from
the "U.S. National Map Accuracy Standards", in place for...
ArcView 3D Analyst is a powerful geospatial tool, and has proven very useful in
3D visualization and analysis. In most cases, 3D data models are temporally static,
representing only one instance in time. For many applications, the 'missing' time
dimension is of great significance, and there is a need to...
This study provides some guidelines using and comparing the
RGB (red, green, blue), HSV (hue, saturation, value), and HLS (hue,
lightness, saturation) color specification systems to help designers
of computer produced layer tinted maps to select appropriate and
effective colors from the immense palette provided by modern color
monitors. Map...
Mitchell Marsh, a tidal salt marsh in the Salmon River Estuary, was diked in the
early 1960s. Restoration of the marsh, which began in late 1978, consisted of partial dike
removal. Several studies have been conducted in the marsh, addressing the status of the
developing salt marsh plant communities. Species...
In this work software is developed to take an ecosystem management tool used by the US Forest Service, the Ecosystem Management Decision Support (EMDS) system, and enhance its utility by capturing the results of an ecosystem assessment and saving them in a format that facilitates importation into other management tools,...
A Digital Earth is a visualization tool that uses the latest technologies to embed vast
quantities of geographic data into easily understood information. By creating three-dimensional
landscape visualizations that look as photorealistic as current technology
allows, it becomes possible to see, explore, and spatially understand parts of the Earth as...
Attempts to map the distribution of acidic
deposition have been inadequate, particularly in areas of
seasonal or limited rainfall. Ambient air concentrations
of acid precursors may be used to monitor and map the
distribution of potential acidic deposition. A network of
stations in California currently monitor these ambient air
concentrations....
In 1979, the Geographic Applications Laboratory
of the Department of Geography, Oregon State University,
was retained by the Portland General Electric Company to
form and supervise a program to monitor the bioenvironment
in the vicinity of the Boardman Coal-Fired Power plant. This
partially fulfills requirements of the Department of Energy...
This paper examines the influence of species, method, and area on automated
species-area curve created from a systematically sampled data set. Because this is a new
approach to species-area curves, three tests were run to evaluate the performance of the
data sets and accumulation technique. The tests involved 1) range...
GIS technology has reached a point where it can be utilized by nonprofessionals in a desktop environment. This paper reviews the implementation of a pilot project for developing a localized-natural resource GIS. The resulting GIS was custom designed to answer questions posed by fish and wildlife biologists who need to...
Satellite imagery has become an efficient and time effective tool that
may aid in the development of regional terrestrial and aquatic resource management
schemes. A methodology utilizing National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR)
imagery, 1.1 kilometer spatial resolution at nadir, was developed for delineating...
Moire patterns have been identified by printers as
undesirable screen patterns caused by incorrect angling of
overprinted halftones. These patterns are being examined by
cartographers as a possible alternative to traditional methods
of producing patterned areas on maps. Map design guidelines
are needed before the use of moires can become...
High resolution land use/land cover information from
stream riparian areas is useful in understanding instream
biotic assemblages, and is often not available for
geographical research. A classification system was developed
which provides the types of information about the riparian
buffer thought to be important in providing good habitat for,
or...
This paper explores the use of hypermedia m geographical and environmental analysis, focusing on the use of sound. After providing essential definitions the paper presents a brief history of multimedia and hypertext (the combination of which lead to the term hypermedia) and object oriented programming. The concept of the hypermap...
The purpose of this study was to develop, implement, and test methods for
quantifying the relative proportion of hardwood and conifer cover from Thematic Mapper
(TM) imagery. The research was focused on closed canopy forests in the Oregon Coast
Range, where hardwood, conifer, and mixed stand conditions are prevalent. Based...
A site suitability analysis for reforestation of the endemic Hawaiian forest tree koa (Acacia koa var. hawaiiensis) was performed. The study will assist the Hawai'i Resource Conservation and Development's (RCD) Forestry Committee in their effort to develop a master land use plan for koa regeneration on the Island of Hawai'i....
A program, Color Choropleth Mapping System (CCMS), has
been developed to provide high quality color choropleth maps at
the Geography Department at Oregon State University. The program
operates interactively and is menu-driven. When developing the
software for mapping programs, programmers need to be aware of
cartographic theory, as well as...
This paper explores the confusion that exists between general definitions of what constitutes a GIS or CAD system. Then a comparison and contrast is made of microcomputer versions of GIS and CAD programs using as examples two of the most popular, pcARC/INFO and Aut0CAD. The differences and similarities are discussed...
The density at which urban areas are developed has become a contentious issue, with
advocates for compact cities in conflict with advocates for larger lots and suburban
development. This research paper examines the associated impact of population density
(grouped by residential zones) as measured by vegetation (Normalized Difference Vegetation
Index)...
Vegetation along the banks of mountain streams in the western Oregon
Cascades comprises an integral part of the transition zone between land and
water based ecosystems, and as such, is a vitally important and unique natural
resource. Forestry is a major land use in this region, and harvesting riparian
vegetation...
Nearest-neighbor resampling is a common procedure used by cartographers to
reproject raster data sets. This type of resampling is useful because it retains the data
from the original raster data set. However, during nearest-neighbor resampling some of
the original data will be lost as it is reprojected, while other data...
The World Wide Web is a promising new media for cartography. It allows the creation of interactive maps that can be accessed by the general public. There is a wide variety both in methods used and in the overall quality of current Web sites. This report reviews the state of...
National and international organizations are developing spatial databases to assess the
distribution of Biodiversity using geographic information systems (GIS). Currently, there
are no guidelines or standards for building GIS databases for biodiversity assessment
because database design is discipline-dependent and most biodiversity disciplines lack
spatial traditions. The present research analyzes the...
This paper discusses the methods used to create a maintainable
tracking system for used by the City of Corvallis' Plaiming Division for the
purpose of historic preservation. The system includes a Microsoft Access2000
database and an ArcView GIS component. In addition to this, there is a web site
component of...
The prevailing image of the Northwest at the
beginning of the nineteenth century, as portrayed on maps
published at the time, was based more on myth and wishful
thinking than on geographic fact. During the next fifty years
these myths were exploded as exploration of this previously
unknown territory progressed,...