Time schedule: Mondays and Wednesdays 10:00 - 11:20 am (Wilkeson 145/145H (GIAL)); (3 credit hours)

Office Hours (Wilkeson 116): Mondays 11:30 am -1 pm & Fridays 12:30 - 1 pm

Audience: Graduate Students in Geography, Geology, Civil Engineering, Chemistry, Biology, Planning or Environmental Studies, Business Administration and Management Science, or permission by instructor.

Objectives: The lectures and computer lab exercises introduce concepts, theories and applications of geo-spatial analysis and modeling tools in GIScience. The new techniques enable students to analyze and assess geo-spatial physical and non-physical processes in landscapes. However, the lectures also present and discuss methods to analyze spatial problems in Geology, Environmental Science, Engineering, Ecology, Business and Human Geography, e.g. surface/terrain analysis of spatial-temporal dynamics of fluxes due to concentrations or costs gradients in space and time).

The course includes the following topics:

• Geo-spatial data analysis and mathematic modeling in GIS
• Digital Elevation Models and terrain analysis
• Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) for environmental modeling with GIS
• Dynamic modeling approaches in GIS

Required Textbook: There is no textbook.

Required Materials: A USB memory stick or external hard drive for data backup (at least 10 GB free space must be available for this class!).

Schedule: Please note, that the schedule is not updated during the semester. It is intended to give students not enrolled in this course a course overview. Enrolled students must check the official UBlearns course homepage for latest updates.

Week	M/W	Lectures	Labs and Case Studies   (Wilks. 145 or 145H)
1	Jan 17/19	Martin Luther King Day Observed	Intro Lecture 0:  Geospatial Project Management  - A Brief Introduction
2	Jan24/26	Lecture 1: The Future of GIScience  and GIEngineering	GeoProMT Hands-on
3	Jan 31/ Feb 2	Lecture 2: Data Preprocessing	UB was closed
4	Feb 7/9	Lecture 3:  Digital Elevation Models and  Digital Terrain Analysis	Lab 1 – Collaborative Damage Assessment for Haiti
5	Feb 14/16	Lecture 4:  Filter, Flowpath and  Catchment Analysis	CS 1 - A CyberInfrastructure to Assess Geohazards
6	Feb 21/23	Lecture 5:  Geospatial Analysis in GIS	Students Project Idea Presentation (2 min; oral only) + discussion (1 min)
7	Feb 28/ Mar 2	Lecture 6:  Graphical User Interfaces:  Linking GIS and Models	Project Proposal & Design Study* Is due Mar 2
8	Mar 7/9	CS 2 - An Earthquake In Buffalo	Lab 2-5 Selected parts only Design Study Feedback
	Mar 14/16	Spring Break	Spring Break
9	Mar 21/23	Lecture 7:  Raster-based Geospatial  Modeling in GIS	Project Preparations (cont.)
10	Mar 28/30	Project Preparations (cont.)	Project Preparations (cont.)
11	Apr 4/6	Project Preparations (cont.)	Project Presentations**  starting at 9:00 am
12	Apr 11/13	Project Preparations (cont.)	Project Preparations (cont.) All Project Reports*** are due as digital copy through UBlearnsAND GeoProMT on Apr 13 2pm   (a single word document only!)
13	Apr 18/20	Review Assignments in class	No class - Review (cont.)
14	Apr 25/27	Project Report (Review Session) 2 groups with 4 or 5 students	Project Report (Review Session)  2 groups with 4 or 5 students
15	May 2	Project Report Q & A, Final Discussion, Conclusions, and Course Evaluation	No class -  All Revised Project Reports  are due May 5

Activities: Students are evaluated [% of total grade] based on their performance in

• [20%] 5 assignments on lab case studies (incl. 4% for project idea presentation on Feb 23 (2 minutes oral presentation + 1 minutes discussion; no power point/no handouts needed),
• [10%] *design study due Mar 2 (abstract minimum of 250 words; additional details minimum of 750 words; incl. data flowchart) and project proposal presentation on Mar 9 (2 minutes oral presentation + 2 minutes discussion; no power point/no handouts needed),
• [20%] **project presentation (5 minutes presentation + 2 minutes discussion),
• [30%] ***project report (minimum of 2500 words; due by hard copy (Wilkeson 105) and electronically (UBlearns); send instructor an email by Apr 8 2:00 pm that you uploaded/submitted your report),
• [5% for written; 5% for oral review] project review comments (pickup for review packages starts on Apr 18 in class; filled out review sheets and marked up reports are due in class Apr 25; the review itself works as follow: 1.) students are separated randomly into smaller groups of 4-6 students 2.) the students will meet the instructor and exchange their review and comment within that small group rather than in front of the entire class),
• [max. 5%] attendance in classes and lab sessions is required (each time one misses a class without an excuse1% will be deducted), and
• [up to 5% or even higher] active participation in classes and lab sessions (approach instructor at the end of each class or lab to claim 1% for your positive or constructive Q & A).

The project proposal and design study, the project presentation, and the project report are evaluated based on the following key (you have to address all five aspects):

1. Introduction and Problem Definition [includes abstract or executive summary] (20%),
2. [Proposed or Used] Approach and Methods (20%),
3. [Expected or Actual] Results and Discussion (20%),
4. [Expected] Conclusions, Recommendations, and Summary (20%)
5. Graphic Support/References (20%) [here is a suggested Format for Citations; however, this is only a style recommendation, you may chose any style as long it is consistent to a specific format, e.g. according to a professional journal or as suggested by the software EndNote. Only if there are inconsistencies, I will point those out and deduct points accordingly]. Please note that the instructor may use the on-line software Turn-It-In to check submitted material for correct referencing of sources.

The topic for the project proposal and design study, the project presentation, and the project report is subject of the participant's own choice. The topic should be related to the course objectives dealing with some type of a landscape-based GIS and/or terrain modeling issue as presented in the course (that means that your project does not necessarily have to be related to natural resource or hazard management; this could be a landscape-based analysis of transportation, business, archeology, etc.; suggestions of topics by participants are encouraged and should be discussed with instructor in advance).

Most of the reading material for additional information and potential projects are provided for you during the instructor's office hours or two hours and overnight loan through the Undergraduate Library in Capen Hall:

• Burrough & McDonnell "Principles of Geographic Information Systems"
• Goodchild, Parks & Steyaert "Environmental Modeling with GIS"
• Goodchild, Steyaert & Parks "GIS and Environmental Modeling: Progress and Research Issues"
• Clarke, Parks & Crane "Geographic Information Systems and Environmental Modeling"
• Wilson and Gallant "Terrain Analysis - Principles and Applications"
• Brooks et al. "Hydrology and the Management of Watersheds"
• Turner, Gardner & O'Neill "Landscape Ecology in theory and practice: pattern and process"

Note that the selection of individual project topics should be discussed with the instructor at least two weeks before their due date. Students registered at the 400 level will require less reading materials and will not be evaluated at an advanced graduate level.