ENVS100B, GIS Methods and Skills, Spring 2020
Lecture: Tuesday/Friday 11:00-12:20, Farber 101A
Recitation: Tuesday 5:00-6:30, Farber 101A
Instructor: Prof. Xinde “James” Ji
Email: xji@brandeis.edu
Office: Sachar Building 1A
Office Hours: Thursday 1:00-3:00pm, or by appointment
Course materials will be posted on LATTE. Additional materials will be available on the class-shared google drive at: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1_FqJyQmYZ89oJ_TOVpHXyGY-pEKTSAK8
Why is corn cultivated in the Midwest, but cotton in the Deep South? Where are the strip mining sites in this country, and how badly will they affect nearby water quality? Why does a single-family home worth over 10 million dollars in Manhattan, but less than a thousand dollars in Detroit? Spatial problems appear in every aspect of our lives, whether you think of it that way or not. From your daily commute to school to the timing of foliage changes, from the spread of contagious diseases to the choice of establishing tech start-ups, geographical location is a key defining feature of many ecological, social, and economic problems.
And that is exactly where Geographic Information Systems (GIS) slips in. GIS facilitates our understanding of spatial relationships by providing a powerful set of tools. These tools help us manipulate spatial data, critically analyze the underlying connections and mechanisms of features connected by space, and visualize these connections in a concise, scientific, and aesthetically beautiful way.
This course will expose you to GIS, and will use that as a tool to understand the ecology, economics, history, and conservation of landscapes. You will learn how to make the technology work for you, and to apply these concepts to analyze real-world problems with a spatially-oriented mindset.
There are no prerequisites for this class.
This course is cross-listed between the Economics major and the Environmental Studies major. Economics students will have the option to count this course for credit towards the Economics major, as long as they complete the group project with a topic related to economics (see below for detail). If you have any question regarding major requirements, feel free to reach out to me.
How to lie with maps (3rd edition), by Mark Monmonier, the University of Chicago Press(2018)
The textbook is available for purchase at the Brandeis Bookstore.
GIS Fundamentals: A First Text on Geographic Information Systems (6th Edition), by Paul Bolstad, XanEdu(2019)
ArcGIS Tutorials for ArcMap 10.7, by ESRI, available online at https://desktop.arcgis.com/en/arcmap/latest/get-started/introduction/arcgis-tutorials.htm
Additional readings will be posted on LATTE as the class goes along.
We will be using the software ArcGIS for this course. The student evaluation version ArcMap 10.7 is available free of charge. I will distribute the software and the corresponding authorization codes before class starts.
ArcGIS can be installed seamlessly on Windows PCs. It is not directly supported by Macintosh OS. As an alternative, you could install VMWare Fusion, which provides a Windows-system on your Mac. ArcGIS can then be installed and run through VMWare. If you need help installing ArcGIS, feel free to reach out to me or to the Brandeis tech help desk.
Alternatively, you could work on the public computers provided by the university. All computers located in Goldfarb 201, Farber 100, as well as public computers in the library have ArcGIS installed through VMware.
There will be many hurdles when working with technology, and ArcGIS is not the friendliest software out there. I totally understand your frustration when something goes wrong, or it does not turn out the way you want. That said, once you are out in the real world, no one will spoon-feed you every time you encounter a glitch. This is why it is important to know what to do when that happens, not only in this class, but also in general when you work with technology. Here’s a ranked list of best friends to consult with when encountering a technical problem:
Nine out of ten times, you will not be the first to face the issue plaguing you. There are other folks who are trying to complete the same task, have already encountered a similar issue, and likely have discovered a solution/workaround to it. All you need to do is know where and how to identify those solutions. In that regard, use Google search wisely will greatly reduce your frustration with machines.
Climate change presents an existential threat to our shared future, and it is part of our intellectual and civic duty to address this threat with scientific integrity and humanistic touch. During the first two weeks of April, there will be a series of events right on campus that directly address the challenge of climate change and raise critical awareness for the Brandeis community. This class will be part of that experience.
On the week of March 29th to Apr 5th, the Brandeis International Business School will organize a week-long exploration of how business and society can respond to global warming and climate change. As part of the initiative, this class will explore innovative ways to map, visualize, and analyze climate change from the perspective of location and space.
We will dedicate the class of 3/31 specifically to address the problem of climate change. Details will be posted as the semester goes along.
On April 7, 2020, Brandeis University is proud to host the Power Dialog for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, a nationwide dialog focusing on climate solutions by 2030 through energy transitions. The event will feature three feasible state-wide solutions to the climate crisis by 2030, followed by a community-wide discussion on these solutions. The event will take place between 7-9 PM on 4/7.
We will dedicate the lab session in the week of 4/7 as a continued conversation to search for solutions to the climate crisis. Details will be posted as the semester goes along.
Attendance will not be tracked and you are not required to inform the instructor when you will miss a class. However, there will be in-lab assignments that you will need to turn in for most of the weeks, and it will take you much longer outside the classroom to remediate for the assignments.
I accept late assignments, though it reduces your grade by 20% each day.
Every member of the University community is expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. A student shall not submit work that is falsified or is not the result of the student’s own effort. Infringement of academic honesty by a student subjects that student to serious penalties, which may include failure on the assignment, failure in the course, suspension from the University or other sanctions (see section 20 of Brandeis University Rights and Responsibilities). Please consult Brandeis University Rights and Responsibilities (see https://www.brandeis.edu/studentlife/srcs/rightsresponsibilities/index.html) for all policies and procedures related to academic integrity. Students may be required to submit work to TurnItIn.com software to verify originality. A student who is in course or assignment should consult the faculty member responsible for that course or assignment before submitting the work. Allegations of alleged academic dishonestry will be forwarded to the Department of Student Rights and Community Standards. Citation and research assistance can be found at Brandeis Library Guides - Citing Sources (https://guides.library.brandeis.edu/c.php?g=301723).
Brandeis seeks to welcome and include all students. If you are a student who needs accommodations as outlined in an accommodations letter, please talk with me and present your letter of accommodation as soon as you can. I want to support you.
In order to provide test accommodations, I need the letter more than 48 hours in advance. I want to provide your accommodations, but cannot do so retroactively. If you have questions about documenting a disability or requesting accommodations, please contact Student Accessibility Support (SAS) at 781.736.3470 or access@brandeis.edu.
Success in this four-credit course is based on the expectation that you will spend a minimum of 9 hours of study time per week in preparation for class.
| Dates | |
|---|---|
| 1/27 | Last day to add classes |
| 2/18, 2/21 | Midterm Recess, no class |
| 3/2 | Last day to drop classes |
| 4/7 | Brandeis Thursday, no class |
| 4/14 | Spring recess, no class |
| 4/24, 4/28 | Group project presentation |
| 4/29 | Group project due |
Note: the course outline is alive and breathing, so it may evolve spontaneously as the course goes along.