Geography 292: Geospatial Analysis with Web GIS

Introduction

Hello, my name is Sam Frary. I’m a senior taking this class in my last semester before graduation. I’m a general zoology major that found out about this class from friends. It sounded interesting, as I’ve never quite interacted with anything like it. I have a lot to learn because I have not taken the first module. On campus, you may see me playing women’s lacrosse or working at the Testing Center!

Beginning Tasks

For this first week, I completed the required activities. This included viewing the syllabus and familiarizing myself with the website for this course. This was followed by the syllabus/course quiz. Continuing to follow the directions, the next step was to schedule some future meetings with Prof. Krygier. From my understanding, these meetings can be in person or on zoom- but I will have to confirm that with Krygier.

Getting Familiar with ArcGIS

Before spring break, I made sure both WordPress and ArcGIS accounts were set up and ready to go for the remaining part of the semester. Now it came time to put the accounts to use. Logging into ArcGIS, I made sure my profile was correct and proceeded to explore the site and its different tabs. I was completely unfamiliar with Esri- or really anything involving geographic information systems. I learned that they are the global market leader in GIS software and mapping. On the “Community and Forums” tab, which displayed a combination of posts, questions, and ideas from the GIS community.

Get Started: What Is ArcGIS Online

It seems like you can do a whole lot with ArcGIS Online, including making maps, web apps, and even notebooks. The introduction tabs split up the learning into working with maps, scenes, apps, notebooks, and data.

ESRI Free Course: ArcGIS Online Basics & More

This was a lot of information to take in, but it also wasn’t super complicated to complete because of the step-by-step instructions. I’m excited to continue using this software to make more maps/explore.

If I were to complete more courses in the training section, “Telling Stories with GIS Maps” seems interesting and up my alley!

GIS Application

Eagles and Wind Turbines: Using Maps to Protect Animals and Increase Renewable Energy Use. This uses GIS application in a way that supports conservation of both living things and energy consumption. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19338341.2022.2117725

Using GIS and Web GIS to Visualize the Canadian Arctic Food System. This article uses Web GIS to show food systems/information of the Canadian Arctic, such as seafood exportation pathways (shown below). https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2323/SKI-Canada-2019-7-1-2.pdf

Hello, my name is Kathleen, and I am from Dallas, Texas. I am a junior majoring in astrophysics with a minor in environmental science. I plan to work in meteorology or compact object research.

I took the quiz, and I did the ArcGIS online account setup in GEOG 291.

When exploring my account, I found that the help section has a multitude of resources, such as blogs, tutorials, and setup help. Also, the online community is active and has a surprising amount of community types, such as Python and roads and highways.

While reading through the get started pages, I noticed that there are a lot of keyboard shortcuts for Mac when editing map layers. I also learned about floor-aware maps, which can show floor plans and are helpful when looking at optimizing large spaces.

I am glad the training course went so in-depth on the types of sharing. I really enjoyed the activities they provided; they helped me solidify the content from the readings.

The two courses I found most interesting are the field-led data collection and management using ArcGIS course and the ArcGIS field maps migration guide course.

Application 1: Spatial analysis using ArcGIS of the Valles Marineris region of Mars during the 2018 global dust storm
Description: They used ArcGIS to superimpose their data onto a geological map. This shows the distribution of dust with the Valles Marineris terrain.
Link: http://www.jsussenbach.nl/Mars%20en%20ArcGIS_JBAA.pdf

Application 2: Conservation Improvement Program in Minnesota: Addressing an Organization Challenge with ArcGIS Online
Description: This study focuses on creating a story map in ArcGIS online “to benefit Commerce staff by presenting easy-to-understand CIP quantitative and qualitative information for a legislative or general public audience”.
Link: https://conservancy.umn.edu/bitstreams/7ac2d94a-20a3-4255-ab24-c8f978f54e48/download

I am Henry Isaacs I am from northern Ohio and am a sophomore at Ohio Wesleyan University. I am on the Baseball team here and am a Quantitative Economics and Data Analytics major. 

I completed the quiz. I have access to the ARCGIS account from 291.

Through exploring around in the Esri pages and training I found that there a lot of different trainings you can do and some of them take a significant amount of time like one took 6 weeks. I also found that some of the pages like the ARCGIS Pro page wasn’t available at the time. 

On the Get started page I found out that you can collaborate on projects with other people from out organization which would be cool. I also learned about the scene viewer tool and how you can visualize things in 3D.

I have completed the Web Course: ArcGIS Online Basics training and thought it was a good refresher of what it ARCGIS is and its many applications. I thought it was useful and even taught me new stuff like when creating and editing web maps. 

The first GIS application I looked into is fisheries management. This application is useful for providing information specifically to where fishing activity takes place in the world. The website showed how you can create maps to show density on fishing activity and other interesting visuals. 

The next application I looked into is the application to stream and river fisheries. Using GIS you can map and model habitats with different aquatic life. The website mentioned how this use of GIS is inter

esting because rivers and streams are always changing. 

I am Claire Evans, a second year Environmental Science major and Art History minor. I took GEOG 291 last quarter.

I created my account for accessing the Community page and found that the link to ArcGIS Blog leads to a 404. The Help page seems like it will be helpful if I forget something basic from the first course and want to re-learn it.

The Notebooks creation seems interesting, though I don’t know any Python so I doubt I’ll use it. I’ve learned that a floor-aware map is a map that shows different levels of a building, such as the polygon of the general building shape and the floor plan inside. I’m interested in architecture, so this seems like a fun tool to play with.

It’s interesting that you must turn off searching only within the organization; it’s useful if you are working with organization specific data but less helpful when learning the program. When I accidentally clicked out of the course, it made me start from the beginning again, so that’s something I’ll have to keep in mind.

Integrating CAD data with ArcGIS seems neat to me because I remember thinking that the CAD integration in GEOG 291 was cool. The Systems Approach to ArcGIS: Architecture Pillars sounds cool too because I like architecture. Python 101 for AcrGIS could be a useful course, since I don’t have any coding experience and it could make me a more competitive job applicant.

Applications of ArcGIS:

Using GIS and Open Web Resources the Reconstruct Great Tang Records of the Western Regions

This paper uses ArcGIS and the biography of Buddhist pilgrim XuanZang to map the locations of many city states and monasteries and uses topographical information to see what routes he likely took between them based on what would require the least amount of climbing mountains or particularly rough terrain.

Generation of a Multi-Scale Historic BIM-GIS with Digital Recording Tools and Geospatial Information

This project used ArcGIS and BIM to 3D model a historic Romanesque town in Italy for UNESCO information and further analysis, since it was difficult to properly model the town using more basic tools due to the large size of the land area and the unusual features of the buildings.

Hi, my name is Rio and I am a sophomore majoring in Sociology and Environmental Studies.  This is my second GIS course. I took the Desktop class earlier this semester.

I completed the quiz, and took Geog 291, so I did not schedule an appointment for weeks 2 and 3. I also already have access to my OWU ArcGIS online account from earlier this semester.

I had trouble finding the areas we were supposed to look at on the ArcGIS Online website and while I was looking I found past student projects which were really cool to see. 

The Introduction to ArcGIS Online was helpful for understanding what is possible with the software and how to access it. 

The ESRI training was very informational and very easy to use. Directions were clear and concise and it was easy to navigate. 

Using ArcGIS Online for wildlife monitoring and conflict mitigation allows conservationists to track species, map habitats, and manage human-wildlife conflicts through real-time data collection, analysis, and visualization

https://doc.arcgis.com/en/arcgis-solutions/11.1/reference/use-conservation-outreach.htm#:~:text=a%20protected%20area.-,In%20a%20browser%2C%20sign%20in%20to%20your%20ArcGIS%20organization%2C%20and,Review%20the%20incident%20details. 

ArcGIS Online enables habitat  conservation and land use analysis by providing cloud-based tools to map, monitor, and model environmental data. It is used to identify biodiversity hotspots, track habitat changes over time, create suitability models for restoration, and visualize environmental impacts using Global Forest Watch or ArcGIS Living Atlas data.

https://wildvirginia.org/how-environmentalists-use-gis/#:~:text=GIS%20models%20are%20used%20to,decision%2Dmaking%20for%20sustainable%20planning.  

My name is Andrew Deem and I am a first year student at Ohio Wesleyan. I am majoring in botany with a minor in environmental studies because I enjoy being outside and find plants particularly interesting. I am from Marion, Ohio and took GEOG 291 earlier this semester. I have completed the quiz.

Esri account:

Comment 1 – The first thing I noticed about this website is that all of the links around the profile area took a lot longer to load than other links for some reason.

Comment 2 – I noticed that the links for “My Esri” and “Profile and Settings” led to the same place.

Getting Started:

Comment 1 – This portion reminded me of some of the basics I learned in the geography 291 course and refreshed my memory on this topic.

Comment 2 – I noticed that our accounts have access to a number of apps related to ArcGIS, so I wonder if those will come up later in the course.

Esri Training:

Comment 1 – I found that this training helped me to remember some of the details about the class I took earlier this semester as well as teaching me a few things about how ArcGIS operates.

Comment 2 – I can see how ArcGIS and other Esri applications could be useful in corporate or other group oriented careers. I learned a lot more about the group functionality of these services in the web course.

I was able to find some GIS applications related to my interests, such as this one which shows the return amount from corn and soybeans that was expected in 2015. The map shows a large portion of the midwest and east coast and demonstrates how some areas performed better than others in terms of profit that year.

This map shows worldwide deforestation from several causes. Maps like this are useful for getting a point across quickly, such as in this case showing how South America and parts of Africa have been greatly affected by deforestation.

My name is Gustav. This is my week one post. Most everything required I have done in GEOG 291.

Hi! I’m Lily Ogrodowski, and I’m a first-year Environmental Science major and Chemistry minor. I took GEOG 291 earlier this semester, so I have already created and am familiar with my ArcGIS account, and I took the introductory quiz.

ArcGIS Online Website Exploration

From poking around the ArcGIS Online website, I was excited to learn about the ESRI Community website, which allows you to discuss and ask questions about topics with other people in the GIS community. It seems like a really efficient way to collaborate and solve problems!

Additionally, on the Scene tab, you can create your own scene or explore one of the preloaded ones. I was intrigued by the 3D model of Boston, and it was incredibly detailed! Like Google Earth but better. One of the preset views was color-coded, so it must be possible to add layers and features to a 3D scene, which seems like a really interesting concept.

Get Started: What is ArcGIS Online?

It seems like ArcGIS Online is more geared towards project sharing and collaboration than desktop ArcGIS was. Because it is web-based, it is probably more widely accessible (even on mobile!), and files get uploaded or shared to the cloud instead of just being saved onto your computer. 

I also really like how the site enumerates real-world problems and then links to a tutorial for mapping the associated data. For example, the site piques your interest in reducing an invasive weed, then provides you with a tutorial on how to map campgrounds that are particularly affected so that action can be taken. How cool!

One more thing: while reading about using the Scene feature, I thought it was really interesting how you can adjust the sun’s position. Watching a day, month, or year in the intended area to see how much sunlight it gets is pretty fascinating to me. Especially in regions near the poles where levels of sunlight are highly variable throughout the year, this seems like a really interesting study.

Web Course: ArcGIS Online Basics

Figure 1: My certificate from completing the ArcGIS Online Basics Course.

Real-World GIS Applications

I was thinking about ice cream while doing this work, and I decided to look up GIS applications on ice cream…which were unfortunately lacking. However, it led me to an article discussing an apparent prevalence of fast-food restaurants near high schools in Santa Clara County, California. The study concluded with the help of geographic analysis that high schools with more fast food restaurants clustered around them actually have higher obesity rates.

Figure 2: Map of Santa Clara County Fast Food Restaurants (pink dots) within a certain distance of High Schools (black flags).

Some of my favorite hobbies include fiber arts, whether they be knitting, crocheting, embroidery, or the like. I found a super cool article where a person hand-embroidered GIS-generated maps depicting a bike route along the Mississippi River.

Figure 3: Hand-embroidered, physical renditions of a GIS map of the Mississippi River. How cool!

Sources:

Nixon, Hilary, and Lauren Doud. “Do fast food restaurants cluster around high schools? A geospatial analysis of proximity of fast food restaurants to high schools and the connection to childhood obesity rates.” Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 2.1 (2011): 181-194.

Biggs, Heidi. “Stitching Together Body, Land, and Data through Embroidered Geographies.” Proceedings of the Twentieth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction. 2026.

My name is Jenny Koob, I am a freshman at OWU and an Environmental Science major with a minor in Geography, and I am hoping to add another minor in Economics as well. I took GEOG 291 in the first half of this semester, and I learned a lot about the basics of ArcGIS, how to operate its functions, and more about geospatial data in general! The information I gained from the course helped me feel more confident in my geography minor. As I completed GEOG 291, I read the text Getting to Know Web GIS 2022, 5th edition. I have also completed the quiz and all the preparation requirements needed for this week.

I spent a bit looking around the ArcGIS website and found a lot of previous posts from past years: OWU campus maps for both “outside wifi” maps and “teaching spaces”, as well as maps from Geography 353 with data for trees, water, census, etc. To my account, I added more to my Profile, such as my nickname, a profile picture, and a short description of who I am. Under “Training,” I found it really cool that there’s a place to go for an opportuties toward individuals and groups in GIS that can help better understanding and attain goals. Another thing I found was under the ESRI community, you have access to tons of people’s ideas, where individuals have posted ideas on skills or developments, and you can even add your own post idea to the community! Overall, it was pretty easy to navigate the website, not only because I have used it before, but all the mechanics are all easy to follow and to the point.

I also read the “Get Started: ArcGIS Online”. The reading explains everything ArcGIS Online includes, such as creating web maps, web scenes for 3D data, making web apps, notebooks, and more. I like the option of sharing and collaborating, allowing individuals to share content and work as groups if they want to, while also leaving room for those who want to keep their work private. WebGIS also allows the user to create map areas for taking maps offline, and allows editors to get the latest updates on maps. I lastly just really like how accessible ArcGIS Online is, being able to pull it up quickly on a web browser and mobile devices is really convenient.

I also completed the GIS training course in ESRI, and it took me longer than I anticipated! I learned a lot about what makes parts of the GIS mapping important, and the tests really made sure I was paying attention. I took a screenshot of my completion as well. 

I also found two articles in Google Scholar that I think are really interesting!

The first is an article called “Participatory GIS to inform coral reef ecosystem management: Mapping human coastal and ocean uses in Hawaii,” and basically discusses coastal ecosystem management as well as how GIS, or PGIS, is used to track human-caused effects on the corals! I found this article by searching “ArcGIS coral reefs,” and it was credible as a highly cited work. 

Here is the link to the article:https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0143622814002884

The second article I found was on honeysuckle, a known invasive species in Ohio and many parts of the US. This article was based on research done in Cincinnati, OH. It discusses the importance of early detection in invasive species, as well as how remote sensing methods can be a valuable tool for increasing knowledge about spatial patterns and predictors of invasion!

here is the link to the article:”Detecting Invasive Amur Honeysuckle in Urban Green Spaces of Cincinnati, Ohio Using Landsat-8 NDVI Difference Images”  https://doi.org/10.3368/er.38.3.139

My name is Alida Askill and I am a junior majoring in Environmental Science and Zoology.  I have taken the first module of this course, but it’s been a few semesters. I have completed the quiz. Since I took GEOG 291, I am already familiar with my account. 

 Get Started: What Is ArcGIS Online

Comment 1: What really stuck out to me is that you can view time maps, and the website gives instructions on how to do that. It’s important to be able to see maps over a certain period of time to draw the correct conclusions for the experiment. I also kept scrolling down and the create map section is going to be very helpful because it lists the five steps on how to create a map. The basement is the first step, followed by layers, styles, pop-ups, then saving the map. 

Comment 2: 

I looked into what an Arcgis notebook is, and I think that might be helpful to compile data if there are multiple maps and charts to use and look at. You can also easily share notebooks. 

Web Course: ArcGIS Online Basics

Comment 1: Layers, maps, scenes are all important to use in creating a map image. You need to know what layer to use when and for what specific type of map and project. 

Comment 2: The activities were helpful because it’s been a while since I have used GIS and have forgotten where some of the tools are. This is a beginner level course so it’s perfect for a walk through. 

The first source I found is about sea turtle nests on a coast and where they can nest. The source is called Site Suitability Analysis for Sea Turtle Nesting Area by using AHP and GIS. Temperature of the sand, vegetation cover, beach slope, and sand particle size are all important factors in where sea turtles can make their nests on the Malaysia beaches. GIS can determine all of these factors. 10.1088/1755-1315/1217/1/01203

The second source I found is about the artificial reefs and beach restoration happening in Martin County, Florida. GIS is used heavily in ideas like this because it’s really easy to go back in time to see old maps and compare the habitat destruction to see how humans have the ability to now try and rebuild that habitat. Sea turtle populations are diminishing across the world and one of the factors to talk about is the fact that their nests are being disturbed by dogs and beaches are being destroyed. This makes hatching nests hard and reproduction even more so. https://www.fsbpa.com/2014TechPresentations/Carvalho.pdf