Maps, Satellites and the Geospatial Revolution - Carleton University

Maps, Satellites and the Geospatial Revolution (GEOM 1004)Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Carleton University, Fall 2013Professors:Derek Smith, PhDOffice: Room B449, Loeb BuildingOffice hours: Wednesdays 12:30 to 2:30 pm, or by appointmentContact: (613) 520-2600 extension 8131; dereka_smith@carleton.caMurray Richardson, PhDOffice: Room A329, Loeb BuildingOffice hours: Thursdays 10:00 am to 12:00 pm, or by appointmentContact: (613) 520-2600 extension 2574; murray_richardson@carleton.caLectures:Mondays, 8:35 to 10:25 am, Room C264, Loeb Building(with optional Video on Demand service: see page 2 for information)Laboratory sections:Teaching Assistants:Section A2: Thursdays 2:35 to 4:25 pm, Loeb A200Section A3: Fridays 9:35 to 11:25 am, Loeb A200Section A4: Fridays 11:35 am to 1:25 pm, Loeb A200Claire Elliott, Rob Oikle, Laura Salisbury, and Neil Thompson. See cuLearn forTA contact information and office hours.Calendar Description:Introduction to the creation and use of maps using a variety of geospatial tools to better understandand resolve physical, social and environmental problems. Overview of geomatics (cartography and mapdesign, geographic information systems, GPS, remote sensing).Precludes additional credit for GEOM 2004 (no longer offered).1

Course Objectives: To become familiar with the core sub-disciplines in the broad field of geomatics, includingcartography, global positioning system applications, geographic information systems, and remotesensing. To develop an appreciation for how geospatial tools are used, and how they are shaping the waywe make decisions. To develop practical, hands-on skills in cartography, GPS mapping, GIS analysis, and using satelliteimagery and to learn how they can be used to help solve social and environmental problems.Required Textbook:Jensen, John R., and Ryan R. Jensen (2012). Introductory Geographic Information Systems. Prentice HallSeries in Geographic Information Systems. Toronto: Pearson Education Canada.The textbook is available at the university bookstore and at Haven Books (43 Seneca St., 613-730-9888). You can also “rent” an e-book for 180 days for about $50. For this option, go to CourseSmart at“www.coursesmart.com” and follow the directions. The ISBN for the eBook is 9780321675736. Youwill need to use a credit card (please note that you will be charged in US dollars). A copy of thetextbook will also be on reserve at the library for loans of up to two hours.Note: A detailed explanation of the required readings (including both textbook and some additionalreading material) on a week-by-week basis will be posted on cuLearn during the first week of class.Course Evaluation:Students will be evaluated on the basis of three components:Laboratory assignments, worth 50% of the final grade combined. There will be eight assignmentsin total. Only the best seven best assignment marks will be used to calculate this component ofthe final grade.An in-class mid-term exam, worth 15% of the final grade.A final exam, worth 35% of the final grade. The final exam will cover material from the entireclass.Course Schedule and Required Readings – See page 6 of this course outline for details.Video on Demand Option:Arrangements have been made to have the Monday lectures recorded and made available as anoptional Video-on-Demand (VOD) service. VOD lectures are usually available within 24 hours of theirrecording. To subscribe to the VOD service, add section “AOD” (CRN 35123) to your course registration.The VOD service fee is $50 and will be added to your student account. After the close of registrationVOD service can be added here https://vod.cuol.ca/registration/sign-me-up.2

Once subscribed, the VOD service can be accessed from https://vod.cuol.ca/vod. Access to individuallectures on a Pay-Per-View basis can also be obtained from this site.Please note: the purpose of offering VOD service for lectures is to allow students to view lectures thatare missed due to illness or other reasons beyond their control, and to allow students to review lecturematerial in preparation for the mid-term and final exam. It is not intended as a replacement forattending lecture.Purpose of Lectures, Readings and Assignments:The lectures, readings, and laboratory sessions and assignments are designed to complement andreinforce each other in meeting the course’s learning objectives. Class lectures provide thefundamental structure for the course, including the presentation of key concepts and issues, casestudies, audiovisual material, and additional content not found in the textbook. The required readingsin the textbook provide an overview of course topics, further examples, and additional material notaddressed in class lectures. The laboratory assignments provide the opportunity to apply key methodsand concepts introduced in the lectures and readings. An understanding of both class lecture materialand required readings are needed to complete each assignment successfully.The mid-term exam and the final exam will include material from the required readings and classlectures, including audio-visual materials. Course content that is exclusive to the laboratory sessionswill not be included in the exams. A cuLearn web site for this course has been made for students. Hereyou can access the course outline, lecture slides, assignment grades, occasional announcements, andcontact information and office hours for the instructors and teaching assistants (TAs). To log in, go tocuLearn at https://cuLearn.carleton.ca/. Lecture slides will be posted on cuLearn for your reference.Please note that lecture slides provide only a partial summary of the lecture material presented inclass. Past experience indicates that class attendance has a significant impact on scores on the midtermand final exams.Learning Support Services Incentive ProgramThis course has been registered in the study skills Incentive Program offered through Learning SupportServices (LSS), which gives you an opportunity to earn bonus marks for your final grade. For each StudySkills workshop you attend throughout the term, you will earn a 1 percent bonus mark, up to amaximum of 5 percent. If a student has not completed 5 workshops by end of term, LSS will notprovide a 1-on-1 session as a substitution. (Please note that it is the student’s responsibility to sign infor workshops, if you do not sign the attendance record, you will forfeit the bonus mark for yourworkshop participation.) The goal of attending study skills workshops in LSS is to expand and refineyour academic skill set. There are 15 different workshops to choose from. Topics include: AcademicReading, Balancing Work and School, Critical Thinking, Note-Taking in Lectures, Preparing for Exams,and Writing Reports, among others. Workshops will become available starting September 16 and mustbe completed by November 29 to receive credit for the Incentive Program. You will need to bring yourCarleton ID card with you to each workshop.3

All workshops are held in room 402 in the MacOdrum Library. To see the complete workshop scheduleand to preregister (although not mandatory) please login to Carleton Central, and click on the SASCLearning Support Services – workshops link under the mySuccess tab. Also note that if you attend 5 ormore workshops you will earn your Skills for Academic Success Certificate which can be added to yourco-circular record (but for this course a maximum of 5 bonus points can be earned).Laboratory Sessions and Assignments:Laboratory assignments provide an opportunity to apply course concepts and get hands-on experienceusing geomatics tools. Assignments will be introduced during laboratory sessions by your teachingassistant, which usually includes a brief review of relevant course material and tips on how tosuccessfully complete the assignment. While the assignments have been designed by the instructors,the TAs are responsible for organizing and running the laboratory sessions, for providing assistanceduring their office hours, and for grading assignments. Please seek assistance as needed, but keep inmind that their role is to facilitate learning and not to provide answers.Assignment Scheduling and Due DatesThere are eight laboratory assignments required for this course, which are all of equal weight. Allassignments must represent individual work that is completed independently. Any form of plagiarismwill be treated as a serious instructional offence in accordance with university policy (see below).Students should come to laboratory sessions having done the required reading and ready to participatein discussions. Please bring your textbook and class notes to laboratory sessions.The introduction, explanation and submission of laboratory assignments will adhere to the schedule atthe end of this outline. Please note that there will be no laboratory session the first week of class - yourfirst laboratory session will be on September 18, 19 or 20, depending on which laboratory section youare in. Please review the class schedule on page 8 carefully, and check the due dates specified on theassignment handouts. The topic affiliated with a laboratory assignment will be introduced in the classlecture and required readings. Next, the assignment will be explained in the laboratory session. Finally,students will be expected to submit their completed assignments in accordance with the assigned duedates. Please be sure to carefully note the due date that is specified in the assignment handout.Please refer to details regarding laboratory assignments and other laboratory activities provided in thecourse schedule on page 8.Submission and Grading of AssignmentsLaboratory assignments must be handed directly to your TA at the beginning of your laboratorysessions. Assignments submitted on the correct day but after the laboratory session will be consideredone day late. The penalty for late assignments is a 10 percent per day past the assigned due date(including weekends), unless accompanied by appropriate documentation such as an official medicalnote. Medical notes must specify the period of illness. To avoid penalty, the circumstances of a late4

assignment must be discussed in person or by email with your TA within three days of your return tocampus. There are no exceptions to this late policy. In accordance with the Undergraduate Calendar,December 9, 2013, is the final day to submit assignments.Submit the original copy of your assignment to your TA, but please always keep your own copy ofsubmitted assignments until after final grades have been posted for the course. For written answers toquestions in the assignments, use complete sentences that demonstrate your ability to convey ideas ina clear and grammatically correct manner. Each assignment must be typed and should have a headerwith a title, your name, your student number, the course number, your teaching assistant’s name, andthe date of submission. TAs will mark the assignments and post grades on the course’s CuLearn site.Students are responsible for checking their assignment grades on CuLearn. Any questions regardingassigned grades must take place in written form (i.e., email) within 10 days after the day that theassignments are returned in the laboratory. Students who fail to meet the above-outlined courserequirements may be assigned an FND grade. Final grades are subject to the Dean’s approval.Late assignments are strongly discouraged, but can be submitted through the drop-box slot located atRoom B342 of the Loeb Building. The name of the professors and your TA must be on the cover of yourassignment. In addition, you must also follow the drop-box policy:• Send an email to your TA, with a copy of your assignment attached, immediately after you dropthe original paper copy of your assignment in the drop box.• It is your responsibility to follow-up with your TA if needed to ensure that your email/assignmenthas been received.• The paper copy of your assignment in the drop box will be the version used for marking purposes;the emailed copy will be used for verification purposes. The date when materials submittedthrough the drop-box is not recorded, so sending the assignment as an email attachment is veryimportant to ensure that the correct late penalty is applied.• Always put the name of your professors and your TA on assignments submitted through the dropbox.• If the drop-box policy is not followed, the assignment will be marked as being received the day itis picked up from the drop-box, which could be one or more days after the assignment is droppedoff.Mid-term Examination Policy:The mid-term examination will be carried out in our regular lecture classroom and timeslot. If astudent misses the mid-term exam for a legitimate and unforeseen reason (e.g., illness) andappropriate documentation is provided (with contact information that allows for verification), this willresult in the re-weighting of the final exam to include the mid-term exam marks (i.e., the final examwould then be worth 15% + 35% = 50% of the student’s final grade). This will only occur if the properofficial medical or other applicable documentation is provided, and which indicates the specific date ortime period when a student is not able to participate in academic activities. Accommodations will beconsidered for students who are incapacitated or otherwise unable to take part in academic activitieson the day of the mid-term and/or the day before. In all other cases, students are expected to write5

the mid-term exam. If inadequate documentation is provided, the resulting grade for a missed midtermwill be zero. The final exam will be scheduled during the formal examination period byExamination Services. For any questions concerning the scheduling or procedures for the final exam,please consult their web page (http://www2.carleton.ca/ses/exams/).Instructional and Conduct OffencesCarleton University has clear and firm policies regarding instructional and conduct offences.Instructional offences include among other activities cheating, contravening examination regulations,plagiarism, submitting similar work in two or more courses without prior permission, and disruptingclasses. Conduct offences apply in areas of discrimination and sexual harassment. Further informationabout the University’s Academic Integrity Policy can be found at:http://www2.carleton.ca/studentaffairs/academic-integrity.Plagiarism is one kind of instructional offence. Examples of plagiarism include:• Reproducing or paraphrasing portions of someone else’s published or unpublished material, andpresenting these as one’s own without proper citation or reference to the original source;• Submitting an assignment written, in whole or in part, by someone else;• Using ideas or direct, verbatim quotations, or paraphrased material, concepts, or ideas withoutappropriate acknowledgment in any academic assignment;• Failing to acknowledge sources through the use of proper citations when using another’s worksand/or failing to use quotation marks;• Handing in “substantially the same piece of work for academic credit more than once without priorwritten permission of the course instructor in which the submission occurs.”For more information on how to cite sources, refer to the library web page “Citing Your Sources”available at http://www.library.carleton.ca/help/citing-your-sources. Plagiarism is a serious offencewhich cannot be resolved directly with the course instructor. The Associate Deans of the Facultyconduct a rigorous investigation, including an interview with the student, when an instructor suspectsa piece of work has been plagiarized. Penalties are not trivial. They include sanctions ranges from agrade of zero for the assignment to suspension from your program of study.Academic Accommodation:You may need special arrangements to meet your academic obligations during the term. For anaccommodation request the processes are as follows:Pregnancy obligation: write to us with any requests for academic accommodation during the first twoweeks of class, or as soon as possible after the need for accommodation is known to exist. For moredetails visit the Equity Services website: http://www2.carleton.ca/equity/.Religious obligation: write to us with any requests for academic accommodation during the first twoweeks of class, or as soon as possible after the need for accommodation is known to exist. For moredetails visit the Equity Services website: http://www2.carleton.ca/equity/.6

Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities: The Paul Menton Centre for Students withDisabilities (PMC) provides services to students with Learning Disabilities (LD), psychiatric/mentalhealth disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD),chronic medical conditions, and impairments in mobility, hearing, and vision. If you have a disabilityrequiring academic accommodations in this course, please contact PMC at 613-520-6608 orpmc@carleton.ca for a formal evaluation. If you are already registered with the PMC, contact yourPMC coordinator to send us your Letter of Accommodation at the beginning of the term, and no laterthan two weeks before the mid-term exam or any assignment requiring accommodation (ifapplicable). After requesting accommodation from PMC, meet with your instructor to ensureaccommodation arrangements are made. Please consult the PMC website for the deadline to requestaccommodations for the formally-scheduled final exam at http://www2.carleton.ca/pmc/new-andcurrent-students/dates-and-deadlines/.Please note – if you do not meet with your instructor to discuss your letter of accommodation wecannot guarantee your required accommodation. It is your responsibility to approach one of us aboutthis. Accommodations for the final examination, however, will be managed by examination services.You can visit the Equity Services website to view the policies and to obtain more detailed informationon academic accommodation at http://www2.carleton.ca/equity/.Campus Resources for StudentsStudent Experience Office http://www2.carleton.ca/seo/Health and Counselling Services http://www.carleton.ca/healthInternational Student Services Office http://www.carleton.ca/issoStudent Academic Success Centre http://www.carleton.ca/sasc7

COURSE SCHEDULE, GEOM 1004, Fall 2013 (details of the required readings will be posted on cuLearn). Note that each class weekbegins with the lecture, followed by a laboratory meeting later in the week, depending on when your own section is held.Week Date Lecture topic Laboratory session1 September 9Introduction: Maps, satellites and the geospatialrevolutionNo laboratory meeting2 September 16 Thinking spatially – key concepts Introduction - Using Google Earth and GPS3 September 23Earth models, georeferencing and the global positioningsystem (GPS)1. Mapping locations with GPS4 September 30 An introduction to cartography 2. Using topographic maps5 October 7 An introduction to geographic information systems (GIS) 3. Spatial and attribute queriesOctober 14 Statutory holiday – no lecture No laboratory meeting6 October 21 Mapping spatial patterns 4. Mapping spatial patternsOctober 287 November 4 Midterm ExamFall Break – No Classes5. Geoprocessing 1: Site selection using vectorbuffering and overlays8 November 11 Spatial analysis using GIS 6. Geoprocessing 2: Change detection9 November 18An introduction to aerial photography and remotesensing7. Introduction to remote sensing image analysis10 November 25 Landcover mapping with remote sensing 8. Geographic analysis and problem solving11 December 2The social, cultural and political dimensions ofgeomaticsExam review12 December 9 Conclusion and review No laboratory meetingPlease note that lecture topics and assignment details are subject to change at the discretion of the instructors.8

Maps, Satellites and the Geospatial Revolution - Carleton University

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?