Geographic Information Systems (GIS) hydrological modeling in archaeology: an example from the origins of irrigation in Southwest Arabia (Yemen)

From small bands of foragers, pastoralists, and village agriculturists, to states and civilizations water accessibility and management played a crucial role in sustenance and social life throughout the ancient world. Recent advances in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and related remote sensing technologies offer powerful means of analyzing water flow that are well-suited to clarify design and operational requirements of different irrigation and water management systems. Ancient Southwest Arabian irrigation technologies developed over thousands of years culminating in some the ancient world's most advanced flashflood water systems. This paper describes satellite imagery Digital Elevation Model (DEM) extraction and GIS hydrological modeling procedures conducted for the Wadi Sana watershed of Hadramawt Governate, Yemen. Results help illustrate one of the local contexts in which small-scale irrigation originated in Southwest Arabia and additionally serve as an example for those interested in applying similar methods in other regions.     

Potential Contributions of Spatial Analysis to Geographic Information Systems for Transportation (GIS-T)

Geographic information systems (GIS) are having tremendous impacts on many scientific and application domains. The traditional subfield of spatial analysis is witnessing a major resurgence and enhancement due to GIS and geographical information science (GISci), an interdisciplinary field focusing on the theory and methodology underlying GIS software. The interdisciplinary field of geographic information systems for transportation (GIS-T) has emerged to focus on the role of GIS in transportaton analysis and planning. This paper suggests the benefits of closer linkages between spatial analysis, GISci, and transportation through a focused review of spatial analytical issues and their potential contributions to GIS-T. Specifically, this paper reviews the following issues: (i) modifiable areal units; (ii) boundary problems and spatial sampling; (iii) spatial dependence and spatial heterogeneity; and (iv) alternative representations of geographic environments. The discussion highlights the general issues as well as identifies their specific relevance to GIS-T. In addition, this paper identifies some emerging tools from GISci that can address these spatial analytical issues in GIS-T.     

An Activity-Based Learning Approach for Key Geographical Information Systems (GIS) Concepts

This study presents the effect of active learning methods of concepts in geographical information systems where students participated in a series of interlocked learning experiences. These activities spanned several teaching weeks and involved the creation of a hand drawn map that was scanned and geo-referenced with locations' coordinates derived from virtual earth systems. These activities engaged students' attention, and the completion of the activities provided opportunities for formative feedback and summative assessments. The effect of the group of activities on students' learning was quantified through the collection of summative assessment data which was compared to performance in other assessment tasks.     

Cultural Heritage Documentation and Conservation: Three-Dimensional (3D) Laser Scanning and Geographical Information System (GIS) Techniques for Thematic Mapping of Facade Stonework of St. Nicholas Church (Pisa,Italy)

This article reports the mapping of the stones, including marbles and brick masonry, used for building the facade of the medieval Church of St. Nicholas (XI century ad), one of the most interesting churches in Pisa, due also to the nearby famous octagonal bell tower. Mapping of stone materials was performed using a computer-aided design (CAD)/geographical information system (GIS) software package for storing and processing spatial information of the ashlars, obtained using three-dimensional (3D) laser-scanning data, combined with high-resolution images, and stone-to-stone observations. Based on collected data, the facade of the Church of St. Nicholas appeared mostly composed of rocks belonging to the metamorphic Tuscan sequence, quartzites, and marbles from Mt. Pisano area. Other types of rocks were also observed, as black limestones quarried at some kilometers northwest from Pisa in the Monti d’Oltre Serchio area, white Apuan marbles and Macigno sandstones. Conversely, intarsia appeared mainly made up of serpentinite and, subordinately, red limestones laid in white Apuan and Mt. Pisano marbles.     

Geographic patterns of Zhuang (Tai) kinship terms in Guangxi and border areas: a GIS analysis of language and culture change

Historically-speaking, centuries of interactions between Han Chinese newcomers from the north of China and indigenous Tai-speaking ethnic minorities in the south have left deep, indelible traces in the language and culture of the latter and raise questions of identity and language policy in modern times. The language and culture in this study is Zhuang, one of many Tai languages and the largest minority language in China today. Using kinship terms as an example, we employ the analytical tools of Geographic Information System (GIS) to map and analyze the spatial pattern of sinification of kinship terms and attempt to explain the process of cultural and linguistic interaction that may have led to such distribution in the Zhuang domain. We use published data on Zhuang kinship terms from thiry-four representative locations in Guangxi and border areas (four in eastern Yunnan and one in western Guangdong) and semi-quantify them according to their pronunciations: three for Han-like pronunciations, one for more clearly Zhuang, and two for linguistic forms in between. The spatial pattern of kinship term sinification scores based on interpolation of the sampling locations shows that high degrees of sinification are located in areas close to the coast or international border with Vietnam, with gentle land slope and close proximity to major transportation hubs, reflecting the importance of both physical features and economic development in those areas in facilitating interactions between the two cultures in the sinification process. The degree of sinification of kinship terms also varies with their positions in a family kinship tree, perhaps reflecting Han social customs and male dominance in society more than traditional Tai kinship systems, which are generally more bilateral in nature.     

Thinking Through Networks and Their Spatiality: A Critique of the US (Public) War on Terrorism and its Geographic Discourse

Conventional thinking about war is encumbered by an inappropriate geographic paradigm that conceptualizes "targets" in terms of fixed latitudinal/longitudinal locations. This paper reconceptualizes terms such as "war" and "targets" to recognize intangible problems and develop appropriate counter‐terrorist strategies. This requires geographic inquiry focused on spatiality, not on location. We frame our discussion about terrorist networks (Al‐Qaeda in particular) in terms of understanding a network's sense of place and sense of space . The former "places" a network's meeting and recruiting grounds; the latter clarifies the operational dynamics of a network across space, at different scales, from the body to the neighborhood, to the region, and across nations. We argue that the roots of terrorism lie in conditions of disenfranchisement in particular types of places, understanding, however, that the socio‐cultural fabric of a terrorist network such as Al‐Qaeda evolves across space as well as time. Counter‐terrorist strategies should target neither people nor places but rather the conditions that give rise to terrorism; further, "intelligence" should focus on network dynamics, beyond particular people in particular places. We draw from network theories (specifically actor network theory and network approaches in economic sociology) to unravel network dynamics, and we draw from the literature on spatiality to interpret such dynamics in space, over time. We advocate a non‐military engagement with terrorism on both moral and strategic grounds; here we focus on the strategic dimension, the value of which has received scant attention.     

A space for feminist mentoring: the role of Geographic Perspectives on Women (GPOW) specialty group in higher education

Abstract

Higher education and organizations within academic disciplines are important spaces for mentoring and other forms of networking. These spaces, however, are often situated in environments that limit equitable and inclusive opportunities for early career and underrepresented scholars to effectively engage in mentoring. This paper contributes to critical feminist scholarship that examines how organizations in higher education can offer supportive mentoring spaces for women, early career faculty, and scholars from diverse backgrounds. The analysis focuses on the Geographic Perspectives on Women (GPOW) Specialty Group of the American Association of Geographers (AAG) as a space for faculty, students and other geographers to enhance their professional and personal success. Our analysis draws from the results of an international survey, a focus group discussion, and reflexive participation of feminist geographers aligned with this specialty group. We examine the ways in which this academic organization, and the informal and formal networks it cultivates, attempts to foster an anti-oppressive mentoring community of feminist geographers. We also analyze how these networks are shaped by and embedded in neoliberal institutions in the discipline of geography and higher education as a whole. This discussion offers important insights to growing research and initiatives that support mentoring for women, feminists, and others concerned with building more inclusive and socially just spaces in academia.     

Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems: A Compendium edited by WILLIAM J. RIPPLE, American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Bethesda, MD

Trans-boundary Air Quality Relations by John E. Carroll, Canadian-American Public Policy Borderlands Reflections: The United States and Canada by LAUREEN MCKINSEY and VICTOR KONRAD, Borderlands Monograph Series Canada as a Borderlands Society by ROGER GIBBINS, Borderlands Monograph Series, no. 2 North American Cultures: Values and Institutions in Canada and the United States by SEYMOUR MARTIN LIPSET, Borderlands Monograph Series The Border as Fiction by CLARK BLAISE Borderlines and Borderlands in English Canada: The Written Line by RUSSELL BROWN, Borderlands Monograph Series, Lost Harvests: Prairie Indian Reserve Farmers and Government Policy by SARAH CARTER, McGill-Queen's University Press The Land That Became Israel: Studies in Historical Geography edited by RUTH KARK, The Magnes Press, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, and Yale University Press Geographic Information Systems: An Introduction by JEFFREY STAR and JOHN ESTES, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs Geographic Information Systems for Urban and Regional Planning edited by HENK J. SCHOLTEN and JOHN C.H. STILLWELL, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht Geographic information Systems: Developments and Applications edited by LES WORRALL, Belhaven Press, London Geographic Information Systems and Cartographic Modeling by C. DANA TOMLIN, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs Analytical and Computer Cartography by KEITH C. CLARKE, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs ISPRS Commission II/VII international Workshop Proceeding: Advances in Spatial Information Extraction and Analysis for Remote Sensing edited by MANFRED EHLERS, American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Bethesda Protecting Natural Resources with Remote Sensing: Proceedings of the Third Forest Service Remote Sensing Applications Conference edited by JERRY D. GREER Global Natural Resource Monitoring and Assessments: Preparing for the 21st Century-Proceedings of the International Conference and Workshop Représentations et aménagement du territoire Par H. GAMUCHIAN, Paris, Economica Remaking Human Geography edited by AUDREY KOBAYASHI and S. MACKENZIE, Unwin Hyman, Boston The Retail Environment by Ken Jones and Jim Simmons, Routledge, London A Country So Interesting: The Hudson's Bay Company and Two Centuries of Mapping, 1670–1870 by RICHARD I. RUGGLES, McGill-Queen's University Press     

建立以需求为导向的农村公共产品供给机制(英文)

<正>The extraordinary location and strategic position of Tibet determines that the Tibet Autonomous Region is faced with different political and economic tasks from those of other provinces in China. To ensure that Tibet succeeds in these special political and     

晚清总理衙门的章京考试——兼论科举制度下外交官的选任

总理衙门建立后,其章京通过考试,从内阁和部院司员中进行选拔.总理衙门早期考试制度系模仿军机处而来,考题内容源自经史典籍,后来则改试经世性较强的策问.章京考试的报考人数在40年间经历了由少到多的变化,人们对章京考试的态度也经历了一个从轻视到逐步接受,到最后积极报考的过程.