<p>In this thesis work, we compare the results obtained from two kinds of teams forming a hierarchical organization participating in a fire fighting simulation environment called as C3Fire. First kind of teams used paper-based maps for spatial reasoning of the command tool while the other kind of teams has GIS based maps with full access to positioning data of the fire fighting units as well as sensor information about fire break.</p><p>The collected data was from 11 teams of each kind having 6 members in each team making a total of 132 participants belonging to different parts of the world.</p><p>We made a statistical analysis on the data with help of T-Test statistical medhod and a tool is designed by using Java as programming language and PostgreSQL database for importing data from log files and then applying statistical T-Test method on the fetching data from log files.The results are stored in database as well as excel files. Then a comparison is done to analyze the unit performance, communication and efficiency of both kinds of teams.</p>

This thesis presents an assessment of the variation in solifluction occurrence, morphometry and movement rates in the Abisko region, northern Sweden. Variations in movement rates are analyzed both on a regional and local scale. The main methodological contributions of this thesis have been to provide new techniques of analyzing spatial and temporal variations of solifluction in order to detect long term temporal trends and to regionalize the variations in movement rates. The spatial analysis is achieved by using a combination of field measurements, GIS and remote sensing techniques and statistical analysis. The results are presented in six papers, focusing on the morphometry of solifluction landforms (paper I), the occurrence of permafrost (paper II), the spatial and temporal variations of lobe front movement rates using aerial photographs (paper III), the temporal, regional and local spatial variations in movement rates (paper IV – VI) and statistical modelling of the occurrence of solifluction landforms and calculation of geomorphic work (paper V and VI). The results show that, on a regional scale, vegetation patterns are a major control on the occurrence of turf-banked solifluction landforms, with high NDVI-values (vegetation) associated with the presence of forms. Elevation is also a major control on a regional scale with a decrease in lobe dimensions and movement rates with increased elevation. High soil moisture values are associated with larger landforms and increased movement rates. Movement rates are generally higher in the western part of the region and appear to increase with higher MAAT. Equally, geomorphic work is greatest in the western part of the region. The important controls on a local scale vary from site to site, but include vegetation, slope angle and soil moisture. The photo analysis indicates that annual movement rates of lobe fronts in Kärkevagge and Låktatjåkka valley over the period 1959-2000 ranges from not-detectable to 63mm/yr. The permafrost model shows probabilities &gt;0.8 for permafrost at elevations above 1300 m a.s.l. in the western part of the region, decreasing to altitudes over 850 m a.s.l. in the eastern part of the region. Calculated geomorphic work suggests that solifluction is a significant denudational agent in the sub-Arctic mountains of northern Sweden, but less so than previously estimated.

This study aims to develop a method to investigate the relationship between settlement locations and the morphological landforms using geographical information systems (GIS). The method is applied to &Ccedil / ankiri province, a mountainous terrain, which is covered in seventy-seven sheets of topographic maps at 1:25.000 scale. Three databases are created and used in this study: 1) Settlement database comprising various topographic and landform attributes of 891 settlements, 2) Morphological landform database composed of 4042 landform polygon elements digitized from 1:25.000 topographic maps, and 3) Topographic database containing the digital elevation model of the area and its derivatives. The first step in the algorithm is to classify the area into four main landform classes, namely, valley, slope, flood and top. Unsuitable landforms are then clipped out based on the thresholds derived from three topographic properties (elevation, slope and aspect). Accordingly, about 2 % of the settlements and 12 % of the area are removed. The relationship is investigated using the percentages of remaining settlements and landform classes. Further analyses such as position of the settlement within the landform polygon and type of the nearest landforms are carried out for final interpretation. Following conclusions are reached on the relationship between settlement location and morphological landforms: - Percentages of settlements for flood, valley, slope and top are 8.37, 27.52, 58.60 and 5.50, respectively. Considering the percentages of the landforms provided in the area, however, valley is the most preferred landform followed by flood type. Slope and top landforms are less preferred. About 86 % of the settlements are concentrated along valley-slope boundary. - Morphological boundaries of flood and top landforms are consistent with the settlement zones. The valley-slope boundary, on the other hand, which is the most populated area, cross-cut the settlements zones.

Tornadoes are one of Mother Nature’s deadliest phenomena. They affect a large region of the United States. The risk of tornadoes is contingent on dynamic atmospheric conditions that are most likely during spring but which can occur anytime of the year, making the storms challenging to forecast. Using geographical information systems (GIS), a web-based spatial decision support system (SDSS) was created to help understand the spatial dimension of tornado risk assessment. The risk values are calculated using Tornado Days rather than taking a crude density measurement. The SDSS hosts GIS web services that are displayed on an Adobe Flex application. The web application allows users to view, research, query and extract information from the attributes of the GIS files. There is also a dynamic risk tool which gives users the ability to click anywhere inside the study area and get the percentage of risk that a tornado will occur within 25 miles of that very point. The web application eliminates users and viewers from conducting their own research and GIS work. In addition, automated updating models and macros were created to update the tornado database on an annual basis.

Shallow lake wetlands, for which aquatic plants (macrophytes) and water clarity are the key indicators of ecological status, provide valuable services to wildlife and humanity. Conservation of these ecosystems requires development of rapid and large scale monitoring strategies, where remote sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can be advantageous. In this study, high spatial resolution Quickbird and IKONOS and medium spatial resolution Landsat and Aster images were used for monitoring the aquatic plants and water clarity in Lakes Mogan and Eymir. Classification of emergent plants with high spatial resolution data yielded overall accuracies greater than 90% for both lakes, while overall accuracies obtained from the medium spatial resolution data ranged between 80% and 93% for Lake Mogan and between 70% and 78% for Lake Eymir. It was found that there was 23ha reed bed loss in Lake Mogan between 2002 and 2005 and an additional 14ha was lost between 2005 and 2006. In Lake Eymir, no significant change in reed bed area was detected from high spatial resolution images / however medium spatial resolution images revealed 8ha of change which was attributed to the presence of mixed pixels due to low resolution. The overall accuracies for submerged plant coverage classification from Quickbird images in Lake Mogan were 83% (2005) and 79% (2006) and for classification of submerged plants species were 72% (2005) and 69% (2006). Moreover, it was found that blue band together with the ratio of red band to blue band, were the best predictors of Secchi disc depth.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate and to compare the results of bivariate statistical analysis conducted with three different data sets in Geographical Information Systems (GIS) based landslide susceptibility mapping applied to the Devrek region. The data sets are created from the seed cells of crowns and flanks, only crowns, and only flanks of the landslides by using 10 different parameters of the study area. To increase the data dependency of the analysis, all parameter maps are classified into equal frequency classes based directly on the percentile divisions of each seed cells data set. The resultant maps of the landslide susceptibility analysis indicate that all data sets produce acceptable results. In each seed cell data set analysis, elevation, lithology, slope, aspect and drainage density parameters are found to be the most contributing factors in landslide occurrences. The results of the three data sets are compared by Seed Cell Area Index (SCAI). This comparison shows that the crowns data set produces the most accurate and successful landslide susceptibility map of the study area.

There are 34 state-supported historic sites that are managed by the Texas Historical Commission (THC) and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). These sites have been acquired over the years with various justifications and acquisition histories and are not a planned system of historic sites. With the rapidly changing demographics in Texas, it is clear that new strategies need to be developed so that these sites better represent the history of all Texans. The thesis investigation begins with a history of diversity initiatives within the preservation movement. Next, I present an innovative method for identifying potential areas of focus for diversity initiatives at state historic sites using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). I developed a spatial analysis methodology to quantify the level of diversity of the web content of each of the 34 state historic sites. Each historic site’s web site was then ranked according to its relevance to four ethnic groups: African Americans, Hispanics, Asians and Native Americans. Additionally, I generated population maps, descriptive maps, and analytical maps in order to understand how historic sites interact with the surrounding population. Finally, I present a set of strategies for existing state historic sites that will provide greater diversity in interpretative techniques and promotion. The goal of the GIS-based spatial analysis and the subsequent development of strategies aimed at targeted sites is to broaden the appeal of historic sites to a more diverse audience. / text

Στο πρώτο κεφάλαιο αναπτύσσονται οι έννοιες Γεωδαισία, Γεωδαιτικό ή τοπογραφικό δίκτυο, τα είδη των δικτύων, τα προβολικά συστήματα, τα διεθνή και τα ελληνικά γεωδαιτικά συστήματα αναφοράς καθώς και η μεταξύ τους μαθηματική σχέση. Στο δεύτερο κεφάλαιο αναφέρονται ο ορισμός και τα είδη του Γεωγραφικού Συστήματος Πληροφοριών, τα δομικά του στοιχεία, η οργάνωσή του, οι εφαρμογές και δυνατότητές του. Επίσης ιδιαίτερη έμφαση δίνεται στη διασύνδεση του Γ.Σ.Π με την ευρυζωνικότητα, γεγονός το οποίο αναδεικνύει την σημαντικότητα ύπαρξης των GIS(Γ.Σ.Π). Στο τρίτο κεφάλαιο αναλύεται το πρόγραμμα που χρησιμοποιήθηκε στην υλοποίηση, δηλαδή το Quantum GIS, ενώ ακολουθούν οι ψηφιακοί χάρτες καθώς και οι αναλυτικές αναφορές σχεδιασμού τους, οι οποίοι κατασκευάστηκαν με χρήση του QGIS. Η παραπάνω ανάλυση αναφέρεται στους δήμους Πύργου, Αμαλιάδος, Πάτρας, Ρίου, Αιγίου, Αγρινίου, Ναυπλίου και Μεσολογγίου. Στο τέταρτο κεφάλαιο αναπτύσσονται δύο αλγόριθμοι εφαρμογής: ένας για την ανίχνευση του περικλειόμενου τριγώνου(με κορυφές ασύρματα κέντρα) δοθέντος συγκεκριμένου σημείου και ένας για την εύρεση της διαδρομής από δοθέν σημείο έως τον πλησιέστερο κόμβο ενός δικτύου οπτικών ινών. Στο πέμπτο κεφάλαιο παρουσιάζονται τα συμπεράσματα της διπλωματικής εργασίας και ακολουθεί η βιβλιογραφία που χρησιμοποιήθηκε. / -

New district heating systems in Toronto have the potential for significant financial and environmental gains. Through the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and the data required to estimate heating loads, heat maps were generated on a building-by-building basis for over 4400 buildings at nine different intersections in Toronto. School locations and planned construction maps were used to enhance the data and demonstrate the benefit of considering factors beyond finance and the environment. Out of the intersections studied, Yonge and Eglinton; Yonge and Sheppard; and Yonge and Empress held the largest heating loads. Individual building data allowed for plant locations to be suggested based on their proportional distance to the highest loads. GIS allowed for the visualization of the vast quantity of data. The opportunities for improvement include increasing the availability of location-based data and the application of the methodology to other areas of infrastructure planning and decision making.

New district heating systems in Toronto have the potential for significant financial and environmental gains. Through the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and the data required to estimate heating loads, heat maps were generated on a building-by-building basis for over 4400 buildings at nine different intersections in Toronto. School locations and planned construction maps were used to enhance the data and demonstrate the benefit of considering factors beyond finance and the environment. Out of the intersections studied, Yonge and Eglinton; Yonge and Sheppard; and Yonge and Empress held the largest heating loads. Individual building data allowed for plant locations to be suggested based on their proportional distance to the highest loads. GIS allowed for the visualization of the vast quantity of data. The opportunities for improvement include increasing the availability of location-based data and the application of the methodology to other areas of infrastructure planning and decision making.