Description
The constantly changing landscape of Geospatial Research makes it challenging for experts and practitioners to stay informed of the field’s most up-to-date research. That is why Information Science Reference is pleased to offer this three-volume reference collection that will empower students, researchers, and academicians with a strong understanding of critical issues within Geospatial Research by providing both broad and detailed perspectives on cutting-edge theories and developments. This reference is designed to act as a single reference source on conceptual, methodological, technical, and managerial issues, as well as provide insight into emerging trends and future opportunities within the discipline. Geospatial Research: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools and Applications is organized into six distinct sections that provide comprehensive coverage of important topics. The sections are:
1. Fundamental Concepts and Theories;
2. Development and Design Methodologies;
3. Tools and Technologies;
4. Utilization and Application;
5. Organizational and Social Implications;
6. Emerging Trends.
The following paragraphs provide a summary of what to expect from this invaluable reference tool.
Section 1, “Fundamental Concepts and Theories,” serves as a foundation for this extensive reference tool by addressing crucial theories essential to the understanding of Geospatial Research. Introducing the book is Introduction: On the “Birth” of Uberveillance by M. G. Michael; a great foundation laying the groundwork for the basic concepts and theories that will be discussed throughout the rest of the book. Another chapter of note in Section 1 is titled A Sub-Chain Ranking and Recommendation Mechanism for Facilitating Geospatial Web Service Composition by ZhangBing Zhou, Zehui Cheng, Ke Ning, Wenwen Li, and Liang-Jie Zhang. Section 1 concludes, and leads into the following portion of the book with a nice segue chapter, Decision-Making Processes Based on Knowledge Gained from Spatial Data by Elzbieta Malinowski.
Section 2, “Development and Design Methodologies,” presents in-depth coverage of the conceptual design and architecture of Geospatial Research. Opening the section is A Multiple Natural Hazards Assessment Model Based on Geomorphic Terrain Units by Michael W. Hernandez. Through case studies, this section lays excellent groundwork for later sections that will get into present and future applications for Geospatial Research, including, of note: Semantic Spatial Representation, an Experimental Proposal in the Framework of eParticipation by Angioletta Voghera and Rossella Crivello. The section concludes with an excellent work by Erdem Kaya, Mustafa Tolga Eren, Candemir Doger, and Selim Saffet Balcisoy, titled Building a Visual Analytics Tool for Location-Based Services.
Section 3, “Tools and Technologies,” presents extensive coverage of the various tools and technologies used in the implementation of Geospatial Research. Section 3 begins where Section 2 left off, though this section describes more concrete tools at place in the modeling, planning, and applications of Geospatial Research. The first chapter, Parallel kNN Queries for Big Data Based on Voronoi Diagram Using MapReduce by Wei Yan, lays a framework for the types of works that can be found in this section. Section 3 is full of excellent chapters like this one, including such titles as GISS and GISP Facilitate Higher Education and Cooperative Learning Design by Gilbert Ahamer; and Physical Health Promotion through Modern Technologies: Challenges to Concerns by Sandul Yasobant. Where Section 3 described specific tools and technologies at the disposal of practitioners, the concluding chapter Expressing Data, Space, and Time with Tableau Public™: Harnessing Open Data to Enhance Visual Learning through Interactive Maps and Dashboards written by Shalin Hai-Jew, leads us to Section 4, which describes the use and applications of the tools and frameworks discussed in previous sections.
Section 4, “Utilization and Application,” describes how the broad range of Geospatial Research efforts has been utilized and offers insight on and important lessons for their applications and impact. The first chapter in the section is titled Web-Based Information Exploration of Sensor Web Using the HTML5/X3D Integration Model written by Byounghyun Yoo. This section includes the widest range of topics because it describes case studies, research, methodologies, frameworks, architectures, theory, analysis, and guides for implementation. The breadth of topics covered in this section is also reflected in the diversity of its authors, from countries all over the globe. Another chapter to note is Examining User Switch between Mobile Stores: A Push-Pull-Mooring Perspective by Tao Zhou. The section concludes with Using the Retrospective Approach to Commemorate AutoCarto Six by Barry Wellar, a great transition chapter into the next section.
Section 5, “Organizational and Social Implications,” includes chapters discussing the organizational and social impact of Geospatial Research. The section opens with Scalability and Sustainability of M-Government Projects Implementation in Developing Countries by Olalekan Samuel Ogunleye and Jean-Paul Van Belle. Where Section 4 focused on the broad, many applications of Geospatial Research technology and will look into theoretical approaches and offer alternatives to crucial questions. This section focuses exclusively on how these technologies affect human lives, either through the way they interact with each other, or through how they affect behavioral/workplace situations. Other interesting chapters of note include Community-Engaged GIS for Urban Food Justice Research by Margaret W. Pettygrove and Rina Ghose; and A Clinical Decision Support System: Ontology-Driven Approach for Effective Emergency Management by Jalel Akaichi and Linda Mhadhbi. The section concludes with an interesting research paper by Glen Farrelly entitled Which Way is Up?: How Locative Media May Enhance Sense of Place.
Section 6, “Emerging Trends,” highlights areas for future research within the field of Geospatial Research, opening with A New Spatial Transformation Scheme for Preventing Location Data Disclosure in Cloud Computing by Min Yoon, Hyeong-il Kim, Miyoung Jang, and Jae-Woo Chang. This section contains chapters that look at what might happen in the coming years that can extend the already staggering amount of applications for Geospatial Research. The final chapter of the book looks at an emerging field within Geospatial Research, in the excellent contribution, New Developments in Geographical Information Technology for Urban and Spatial Planning by José António Tenedório et al.