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February 2008 Welcome to The Sensor -- the newsletter of the Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions (EIGS) bringing you the latest developments from Mississippi’s geospatial industry cluster. Please feel free to share this with friends and colleagues. To subscribe, visit www.eigs.olemiss.edu For further information, or to submit story ideas, please contact Lisa Stone - lstone@olemiss.edu |
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February 2008 Geospatial Technology Playing Bigger Role in Election Process
With the 2008 Presidential Election rapidly approaching,
voters are being inundated with more and more information on a daily
basis. With the inundation of all this information, we are starting to
see an increased use of geospatial technology as a useful resource in
charting and mapping the election process. For example, the mayoral
election in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was monitored by Avencia
Incorporated, a GIS and software development company, to help
geographically record, map, and analyze election day incidents in
real-time. |
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IMAGE OF THE MONTH
New coral reef maps released by NOAA reveal that of the main Hawaiian islands, the Big Island of Hawaii has the highest percentage of live coral. The finding supports studies indicating that geologically young islands such as the Big Island generally have more live coral cover than older islands.
"More people are beginning to think about, manage, and solve problems spatially. Technology trends have moved toward the integration of geospatial data into core business systems. Web applications continue to quickly multiply, and more governments, organizations, and industries are adopting GIS enterprise-wide." Jack Dangermond, ESRI President (On a recent visit to China, Dangermond told university students and professors in Beijing that they're helping turn GIS into one of the most important technologies of our time.)
Congratulations to Tim Brogdon of EIGS member company GB Tech for his recent induction as a member of the Stennis Rotary Club. Tim is the Executive Vice President for Market Development for GB Tech which is based in Houston, TX and at Stennis Space Center in South Mississippi. “Now that I’m in Mississippi close to 100% of the time, I can give time to important activities such as those supported by the Rotary Club,” Tim said.
Employment
hits all-time high
AROUND
MISSISSIPPI — Mississippi has again reached an all-time high level of
employment, according to statistics released by the U.S. Department of
Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The
non-farm, seasonally-adjusted employment level rose to 1,171,200 in
December 2007, topping the previous high set in November 2007 at
1,168,700. "Re-tooling the state's approach to economic development, ending lawsuit abuse, vastly improving workforce development training and making education a top priority have resulted in the largest number of people working in our state's history," says Gov. Haley Barbour. "Our challenge is to continue to attract more higher-skilled and higher-paying jobs to the state, even at a time of uncertainty in the national economy."
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March
9-12, 2008
April
8-10, 2008
Did
you know a radical new lab has been created to fight disease using
satellites? A
group of atmospheric research scientists at NASA's National Space Science
and Technology Center have teamed with the University of Alabama at
Birmingham's School of Public Health.
The purpose of their partnership has sparked idea after idea
about ways to combat public health problems with satellite data.
One
of their best ideas was to teach public health students, the researchers
and medical personnel of the future, to harness the power of satellite
imagery to study and fight modern-day disease.
Studies sponsored by the lab have already led to critical research
in fighting malaria. Infrared imagery from satellites is helping
scientists locate warm standing water -- fertile breeding ground for
mosquitoes. Problem areas can be treated effectively and precisely,
stopping the spread of malaria. Other researchers at the lab are using satellite imagery to correlate cases of West Nile virus with proximity to tire dumps -- another favorite breeding ground for the virus-carrying mosquito. Another study is seeking links between the environment and cardiovascular diseases, including stroke. GIS How-to Book for Businesses James Pick, a professor of business in the University of Redlands School of Business, has written a book chronicling how companies can successfully use geographic information systems (GIS) to improve performance. Pick’s new book, “Geo-Business: GIS in the Digital Organization,” published by John Wiley and Sons, is one of the few business-oriented GIS books to be written in the last several years, according to Pick. 2007-2008 World Heritage Map Available The 2007-2008 World Heritage map, the third to be produced in collaboration with National Geographic and Hewlett Packard, is now available. The map features the 851 World Heritage properties, brief explanations of the World Heritage Convention and World Heritage conservation programs, and superb photos of World Heritage sites with explanatory captions. The 2008 Regular Session of the Mississippi Legislature convened on January 8, 2008. Days after, Gov. Haley Barbour recommended a strict and lean state budget totaling $5.6 billion. "This is a tight budget because this is a tight revenue situation," Barbour said during the press conference in which he unveiled his executive budget recommendation. "For these departments and agencies to operate at level funding should not be that difficult because they've had significant increases in the past." The state 2009 budget year begins on July 1. Of the State agencies seeking substantial budget increases, only K-12 public education and Medicaid would get an increase in Barbour's proposed budget. The deadline for introduction of general bills and constitutional amendments is set for February 4th. Legislators are slated to adjourn on April 19th. |
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GPS-enabled
handset shipments will reach 560 million units in 2012
According to a new research report by Berg Insight, global shipments of GPS-enabled handsets is expected to grow from 175 million units in 2007 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.2% to reach 560 million units… ESRI
Joins European Organization to Facilitate Use of Geographic Information
Technology
Geographic information system (GIS) industry leader ESRI has joined the European Umbrella Organization for Geographic Information (EUROGI), an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to maximizing the availability and effective use of geographic information (GI) throughout Europe.
Queensland leads world in weed
mapping technology
Queensland scientists are using satellite technology to help manage one of Australia's most damaging weeds. |
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How to
Stop Terrorism? Begin in School Homeland security is one of the hottest issues in this year's presidential election. Candidates spar daily over who is best qualified to protect the nation against terrorist threats. Meanwhile, Leah Beaulieu is busy educating the next generation of security experts. Beaulieu teaches the nation's first homeland security high school program at Joppatowne High School in Joppa, MD. "The kids are learning what professionals know," said Beaulieu, who wants students to know how to read satellite images for signs of security threats. "We purchased a software program used professionally all over the country from SPACE STARS. It's the actual satellite program NASA uses." Eddie Hanebuth, from the Department of Labor's National Standard Geospatial Apprenticeship Program, helped develop the curriculum. "Students learn that location matters in several areas," he said. "When faced with limited resources, how do we respond, and from which direction? [Students] will cover risk assessment, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. In each area they learn from a demonstration project, then they apply their skills and knowledge to their own community."
DigitalGlobe's
satellite ready to sell photos It began taking test pictures Oct. 15 and started supplying images to the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency on Nov. 26. With those tasks complete, WorldView-1 is being made available for commercial assignments. WorldView-1 is DigitalGlobe's second picture-taking orbiter. WorldView-1 and Quickbird, DigitalGlobe's original satellite, can photograph up to 900,000 square kilometers of the Earth daily, the company said.
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To
sign up to receive The Sensor, visit www.eigs.olemiss.edu Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions - 100 Barr Hall - University, MS 38677 |
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