Using GIS in the Science classroom

Spatial Worlds website
Brisbane, Australia: S: 27º 29' E: 153º 08'
Left image: Science teachers at the GIS and Science workshop at Brisbane Boys College on May 23rd, 2008.
Right image: The Patawolonga outlet at Glenelg, Adelaide.

Putting the 'S' into Science!
This weekend I had the pleasure of conducting a workshop for Brisbane Science teachers at Brisbane Boys College on behalf of the Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Water. Mary Rowland, the President of Queensland Science Teacher's Association and Enterprise Education Education Officer was the workshop organiser and is keen to have GIS used in science classrooms in Queensland. The teachers at the workshop went through the GIS skill development process with a special focus on the application of GIS to Science topics. We heavily relied on the Arc Australia GeoScience data and the CityGreen program to explore topics such as earthquakes, geology, carbon seqestration, water quality, aquifers, microclimates, mineral resources, revegetation and much more. Mary in particular was interested in how GIS could be employed in schools for the Department of Natural Resources and Water's Waterwise Program.
As the workshop progressed it beacame evident that GIS is a wonderful tool to use in the Science classroom and is also the tool of the scientist in the 21st Century.
Here is some of the information from the days and some great websites to use when exploring the area of GIS in Science teaching.
1.Oresome Resources: Some excellent geological resources are to be found at http://www.oresomeresources.com/
2. The Department of Natural Resources and Water have developed a GIS application relating to ecosystem monitoring. Go to http://www.esriaustralia.com.au/esri/Training/Ecosystem_Monitoring_Task.pdf to view the resource.
3. Geoscience data: In the workshop the fantastic Geoscience Australia data of rock types, aquifers, mineral resources, earthquakes, bathymetry etc was profiled and used extensively. To find out about the data and how to get a copy go to :http://www.ga.gov.au/ and schools@esriaustralia.com.au for the information on the resource.
4. The IrfanView resource is a very useful free image edit program. The program can be used in particular to batch convert image files and crop exported images for GIS. Go to http://www.download.com/IrfanView/3000-2192_4-10021962.html?part=dl-IrfanView&subj=dl&tag=button&cdlPid=10755180 to download this free software.
4. A great resource for free data from the Internet is found at http://www.rsl.ox.ac.uk/guides/maps/mi_data.htm
5. The need for file format translation (such as MapInfo to Shapefiles as for the data above) is always an issue when accessing data from the Internet. The following links provide some options for the translation of one GIS format into the one required. They are: http://www.codeproject.com/KB/applications/MapinfoTab2Shp.aspx and
http://www.directionsmag.com/files/index.php/browse/1:4
6. The skills developed during the workshop related to the GIS skills development process I have developed to get teachers started using GIS in their classroom. Go to http://gtasa.asn.au/professional_development-free_pd_articles if you want to read about this process.
7. The American Forests CityGreen program was profiled as a way to go for Science teachers. Go to http://gtasa.asn.au/professional_development-free_pd_articles to read about this amazing program which promotes fieldwork and high level environmental analysis of vegetation and energy use when using GIS.
8. I feel that much work should and could be done to use GIS in Science teaching. Just like the case with the use of GIS by geographers in the workforce, GIS is increasingly being used by scientist as an aid to their work. To this end I have produced the GIS in Science resource which is being used in schools around Australia. Go to http://www.ausgeography.com/Techgeog/pdf%20files/articles/2Physical%20Geography%20article.pdf (called Physical GIS under the TECHGEOG label) to view an article on the resource. Several other useful GIS in Science orientated sites/resources are:
* Wisconsin Department of Natural Science at
http://natsci.edgewood.edu/wingra/watershed/watershed_gisresources.htm#Key%20GIS%20Resources
* Pathfinder Science site by Dr Tom Baker at http://kangis.org/learning/
* Australian Science orientated GIS projects for:
# Water quality mapping
http://www.xyz.au.com/public/general_info/details.cfm?info_id=1294&sub_cat=114&category_id=15
# Revegetation project
http://www.xyz.au.com/public/general_info/details.cfm?info_id=1302&sub_cat=114&category_id=15
# Pest plant diffusion
http://www.xyz.au.com/public/general_info/details.cfm?info_id=1290&sub_cat=114&category_id=15
9 .Go to ESRI lessons at http://gis.esri.com/industries/education/arclessons/arclessons.cfm to view science based GIS lessons.
10. The blog at http://gisinscience.blogspot.com/ is a useful resource for science teachers to explore the use of GIS technology in their classroom.

The days were a great opportunity to meet Science teachers in Queensland and to discuss the use of GIS in Science. Thanks to Mary Rowland and Peta Jackson from Education Queensland for organising the workshops and enabling me to travel to Brisbane for the activity.

AGTA 100 meeting in Melbourne

Spatial Worlds website
Melbourne, Australia: S: 37º 47' E: 144º 58'
Left image: The AGTA Board hard at work in Melbourne.
Right image: Nick Hutchinson, AGTA President cuts the AGTA 100th Birthday cake.

The Australian Geography Teachers Association (AGTA) conducted its 100th meeting of the Board in Melbourne on the weekend of May 3rd and 4th. The meeting involved GTA delegates from all the states and as always was a truly representative meeting of Geographers from around Australia.

For those not aware, AGTA is a body which seeks to:
• foster the teaching and learning of geography in Australian schools and enhance awareness of its applications in society
• promote and circulate the results of research into geography education
• maintain a professional network through which teachers of geography in Australia may express opinions on educational matters
• represent the interests of its member affiliates on national education decision making bodies.

In 2008 AGTA has a combined membership of 1721, which encompasses teachers and professionals who are members of affiliate Geography Teachers' Associations (GTA's) in New South Wales(476), Victoria(595), Queensland(228), Western Australia(250), South Australia(160) and Tasmania(12).
In this day of national curriculum discussions it is imperative that a body such as AGTA is in existence and most importantly healthy and active. As usual the meeting in Melbourne was full of information and pro-active plans to promote geography in Australia. Here are just some of the meetings discussions and actions:

1. An Australian Geography careers website has been developed by AGTA. Rob Berry, the web manager of the AGTA website has done a great job in putting together the Geocareers website at http://www.geocareers.net.au/index.htm. The site is a very ‘user friendly’ and useful site for learning about geographical careers. The Geocareers website contains resources links and case studies of young people who have done geography at school and see a link between what they learnt in geography and what they do in their job. A great site to pass on to the career counsellor/s and subject/career selection personnel in your school

2. AGTA Board members have represented Australian geography teachers on a range of national bodies since the last meeting of the Board (meets twice a year). AGTA is a member of the Australian Federation of Societies for the Studies of Society and Environment (AFSSSE at http://www.afssse.asn.au/ ), the Institute of Australian Geographers (IAG at http://www.iag.org.au/ ) the National Education Forum (NEF at http://www.nef.edu.au/home.html) and the Spatial Science Institute’s Spatial Education Advisory Committee (SEAC at http://www.spatialsciences.org.au/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1)

3. In September 2008 AGTA is conducting its bi-annual conference in Queensland on the Sunshine Coast. The conference planning by the co-convenors, Rebecca Nicholas and David Lergessner is well underway and an exciting program has been developed for the week commencing September 29th. For information on the conference go to http://www.agta.asn.au/conf08/index.htm

4. A new publication titled ‘Keys to Fieldwork’ is presently being produced by AGTA. The book is being edited and written by members of the AGTA Board and is to be published by MacMillan. The book looks to be a great enabler of the fieldwork component in the teaching of geography in Australia and is due for release in October.

5. AGTA is working towards developing a strategic plan for the promotion of geography in Australian schools (and hopefully the community). AGTA is working with marketing professionals to develop a strategic plan to increase the profile and community awareness of what geography in the 21st Century involves. Hopefully such marketing of the ‘geography brand’ will aid the penetration of geography as a dynamic and critical subject area in the new national curriculum.

6. The National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition (http://www.rgsq.gil.com.au/agc.htm) was again conducted by the Queensland Royal Geography Association with the collaborative support of AGTA. The competition continues to grow and gain status in the Australian education scene. In 2008, 89,645 students from 819 schools participated in the competition. The winners for the 2008 competition will receive their awards in Sydney on June 16th.

7. Beijing Olympics materials: AGTA is presently producing resources in conjunction with the UK Geography Association to support the teaching of the geographical perspectives of the Beijing Olympics. These materials build on the successful AGTA Olympics kit which was developed for the Athens Olympics in 2004.

8. Each of the States reported on their happenings and initiatives. A lot seems to be going on in geography teaching in Australia. If interested go to http://www.agta.asn.au/htm_files/agta_news/AGTA_Geographia_Dec07.pdf to read the delegates reports in AGTA’s ‘Geographia’ publication.

9. AGTA’s annual journal titled ‘Geographic Education’ has recently be distributed nationally and internationally. The publication continues to receive good academic and school based feedback. A theme is presently being discussed for the 2008 publication. Go to http://www.agta.asn.au/htm_files/journal/index.htm if you are interested in subscribing – all AGTA affiliates receive a copy of the publication.

10. AGTA is involved as a partner in the Australian Research Council Linkages grant program to develop standards for geography teaching. The project involves video recording classroom teachers at work across Australia and for panels to view the videos and develop standards for teaching school geography. Volunteer teachers are presently being taped and panels established to carry out the process. AGTA considers such research will provide a rich resource and delineated standards for the advancement of geography teaching in schools in Australia. Contact Jeana Kriewaldt at http://www.findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/researcher/person1729.html if you require more information on this project.

11. Significant discussions were conducted at the meeting in regards to the national curriculum and the place of geography. Most importantly there was discussion on what geography should look like when established as a subject in the national curriculum. Several delegates considered there is a need for members of the AGTA Board (and thus the states) to have considered discussions on what skills, knowledge and approaches should be advocated by AGTA as a united voice. Although the recent Erebus report (go to http://www.gtasa.asn.au/professional_development-information_to_forward to read the report) delineates many of these points, there is a need to distil what the report found in a considered manner to reach some form of consensus on AGTA as to the preferred geography model for schools.

As usual a very important meeting for geography teaching in Australian schools to ensure that the states are united in progressing the need for the teaching of geography in classrooms across Australia.

Everything can be mapped

Spatial Worlds website
Left image: The old amongst the new in the streets of Valencia, Spain.
Right image: Tributaries seen flying over the Ganges delta, India.

Everything can be mapped is the catchcry of the spatially literate. It is very difficult to find anything which cannot be mapped. Such visualisation of data is at the centre of the use of spatial technology. The following websites provides resources, applications and ideas towards the production of data specific maps.

Maps of the world:
A site which shows maps of various features around the world i.e. volcanoes, mountains as well as political, social and historical maps. A great resource for enhancing spatial literacy across the curriculum.
http://www.mapsofworld.com/thematic-maps/nature-maps/index.html

Map anything
Google has launched a new service called My Maps that allows users to
mark map locations using icons, draw lines and shapes, add text, photos,
YouTube and Google videos. Maps can be marked for private use and sent
via email or made publicly accessible. Imagine spatially mapping
YouTube
http://www.maps.google.com.au

The earths crust is constantly moving
This is an excellent website for tracking of earthquakes around the world in real time.
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/

Mapping world statistics
These maps show OECD regions at a glance. There are some interesting maps comparing Australia with Japan, Europe and North America. Distribution of elderly, GDP, regional disparity, crime, vehicle ownership and accessibilty to an urban centre, to name a few.
http://lysander.sourceoecd.org/vl=4123388/cl=21/nw=1/rpsv/regions_glance/

Country topic mapping according to size
http://www.mappingworlds.com/

Mapping cancer
A site to show the spatial variation of cancer and cancer types.
http://www3.cancer.gov/atlas/

Humanity relief mapping
An excellent site providing up-to-date maps on relief operations around the world
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/dbc.nsf/doc100?OpenForm

World Atlas
A site that provides hundreds of maps of the areas of the world and their features.
http://www.worldatlas.com/aatlas/world.htm

National Atlas: World wide maps and imagery
http://edcsns17.cr.usgs.gov/EarthExplorer

Geography network
Maps galore on this map search site
http://www.geographynetwork.com/

Mapping trails
A typical community application of Google maps with the mapping of trails by individuals and groups
http://www.activetrails.com/

Local area mapping example
A British website, which, given a postcode, and maps information on house prices, crime rates, schools, tradesmen, public transport and government services. http://www.upmystreet.com/

National Atlas of the US
Although just for the US this site is a great example of dynamic mapping
http://nationalatlas.gov/mld/condivl.html

Interactive mapping site
This site allows the user to interact with the site by choosing any city in the world, and look at photos taken at the site. Your own photos can be hotlinked to a point.
http://www.woophy.com/map/index.php

Up My Street
A British website, which when given a postcode maps information on house prices, crime rates, schools, tradesmen, public transport and government services. http://www.upmystreet.com/

A lots happening in Oz re: Spatial Education

Spatial Worlds website
Pictures showing the reclamation of Hong Kong harbour.

There is plenty of activity happening around Australia in relation to spatial education in schools. Just go to any of the Australian and New Zealand sites below to get an idea of how individuals and organisations are pushing the GIS in schools push forward. Please send any other links to me to add to this blog entry.

Australian based Spatial Education in schools linkages

Tasmania Spatial education site from David Llewellyn, a Geography teacher of GIS in Tasmania
http://www.spatialeducation.com/

GTAQ links on spatial technology
http://www.gtaq.com.au/cms/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=20&Itemid=35

Spatial Technology in Schools from Education Queensland
http://www.learningplace.com.au/defaulteqa2.asp?orgid=35&suborgid=679
http://www.learningplace.com.au/deliver/content.asp?pid=37109

GIS resources from Brett Dascombe
http://www.gised.com.au/

GIS in New Zealand from Ann Ollsen
http://www.gismaped.co.nz/

Ausgeography from Malcolm McInerney
http://www.ausgeography.com/

GIS resources from ESRI Australia
http://www.esriaustralia.com.au/esri/962.html

Measuring space is worth billions to Australia

Spatial Worlds website
Canberra, Australia: S: 35º 15' E: 149º 08'
Picture descriptions:
Left image: The Canberra Carillon, a gift from the British in 1970.
Right image: A calm day in Canberra, looking up to Parliament House.

Much is written and spoken of the Spatial Industry. As an industry it is very hard to delineate and much discussion is had regarding whom should we include in the industry. In short, due to the all-pervasive and ubiquitous nature of spatial technology today almost everyone has exposure to the industry. One group which is working on this clarification of the industry in terms of education is the Spatial Science Institutes (SSI) Spatial Education Advisory Committee (SEAC). Since 2004 I have been AGTA's delegate to SEAC and have attended meetings in Canberra to push forward the spatial education agenda, in particular in schools. SEAC is comprised of representatives from the Australian New Zealand Land Information Commission (ANZLIC), Commonwealth Government Departments such as GeoScience Australia, employer organisations such as ASIBA, the Cooperative Research Centre for Spatial Information (CRC SI), RCSI, GITA and the PSMA to name just a few. On April 10th, SEAC conducted a National Summit in Canberra of the key spatial education stakeholders in Australia to review and work on the recently released Workforce Development Plan for the advancement of employment access and opportunities in the Spatial Industry.
The workforce plan (can be downloaded from http://www.osdm.gov.au/News/177.aspx ) has been developed based on the knowledge that there is high demand for spatially trained personnel and surprisingly significant shortages in filling vacancies. It is forecast that there will be 700+ unfilled vacancies in the Spatial Industry over the next 5 years. Such a skills and supply gap is of enormous concern to this rapidly expanding industry. However such shortages in human resources for the industry is not isolated to Australia, with the US and European Spatial Industry being forced over recent years to be pro-active to meet the demand for workers. Naturally the industry turns to schools as the area to work in to increase the awareness of the industry and to develop industry relevant courses in the future. Hence the industries interest in the teaching of spatial technology in schools and particularly in geography and science.
If you need to be convinced on the strength of the industry the following quotes from the March ‘Position’ magazine should convince you. A report from the economic consultants, ACIL Tasman considers that:
** A lack of skilled manpower is the biggest threat to the future health of the Spatial Industry.
* The Spatial Information and technology Industry has increased Australia's GDP by somewhere between $6 and $12 Billion.
* The importance of the Spatial Information and technology Industry will grow as the mining boom expands and the importance of providing infrastructure in the resources sector increases.
* The movement of goods and services, transport systems management (safe and efficient air and sea travel) urban planning and community infrastructure all depends on the health of the Spatial Information and Technology Industry.
* The worth of the Industry in 2006-7 is between $6.43 billion and $12.57 billion.
* The impact of spatial information on trade has increased exports by $1.26 billion and imports by $1.18 billion.
The report concluded that "Australia's progress towards being a modern spatially enabled economy has been hampered by a coherent national focus and a lack of a process for developing and executing whole of government solutions" and that the success of the Spatial Information and technology Industry is likely to be critical to maintaining international competitiveness in most sectors."
The Position magazine is an excellent source of Industry applications and information. Go to http://www.positionmag.com.au/POS/pos_frame.html for more information on the magazine. Article summaries are available to be downloaded from the site. For example the article above at http://www.positionmag.com.au/POS/content/2008/POS33/pos33_frame.html

As part of the work of SEAC a report on The Spatial Information Industry in Australia: profile, education and training and skill demand was commissioned in 2006. You can view the report at http://www.gtasa.asn.au/gtasa_news-careers_in_geography. It certainly gives an insight into the industry, its nature and potential and has provided the basis of the workforce plan discussed at this week’s summit in Canberra.
The following websites are also of use when looking at the global dimensions of the Spatial Industry and the jobs available:
http://www.aag.org/giwis
http://www.gita.org/membership/gita_research.asp
http://www.ngeo.com/foundation/pdf/GeospatialHighGrowthProfile.pdf
http://www.doleta.gov/BRG/IndProf/geospatial_profile.cfm
http://www.careervoyages.gov/pdf/geospatial-profile-10.05.pdf

The summit discussed the workforce report and developed some action plans to move forward the agenda. In particular those present considered that schools were critical to the future of the industry and time, funds and effort are required to raise the awareness of the industry amongst teachers and students. The Cooperative Research Centre for Information (CRC SI) website at http://www.crcsi.com.au/ will be used to enhance community and school awareness of the industry and job opportunities. More on the outcomes of the meeting later in the year.

Whilst on the matter of SEAC I was pleased that the concerns of SEAC were highlighted on page 42 of the Erebus International ’Teaching of Geography from Years 3-10’ report. The report can be downloaded from http://www.gtasa.asn.au/professional_development-information_to_forward
In short, SEAC in the report stated that “the use of spatial technologies in geography teaching is underutilised in schools and does not reflect the pervasive and extensive use of technology in the community”. After reading the workforce demand report of SEAC and attending the summit it seems the challenge is ahead of us all to spread the word to the education community about the potential of the industry for young people in our schools.

Hazard sites to consider

Spatial Worlds website
Picture descriptions:
Left image: Coastline around Dingle Bay, Southern Ireland.
Right image: Suburban Athens from the Acropolis.

Hurricane Katrina
This link is worth a look to see how digital media is being used to do virtual tours:
Microsoft Research's Interactive Visual Media Group have devised a 360-degree video camera that helped MSNBC provide unique Web coverage in the wake of last year's devastating Hurricane Katrina.
http://risingfromruin.msnbc.com/tour.html

Bushfire monitoring
CSIRO Sentinel Bushfire mapper is a site geared to emergency service personnel and provides up-to-the-minute hot-spot information for Australia. The satellite information is regularly updated and hotspots can be viewed from the last 12 hours up to 72 hours ago. However data can also be viewed for specific dates in the past, for instance the Canberra bushfires in January 2003.
http://www.sentinel.csiro.au/

New Zealand disaster sites and links
This website from New Zealand Civil Defence and Emergency Management is full of great natural hazards links and information as well as some simple mapping of disaster sites in New Zealand. Certainly student friendly and a good example of using spatial technology to inform.
http://www.whatstheplanstan.govt.nz/mcdem/index.html

The Geography of Terrorism'
This article in the 'Directions' Magazine looks at the importance of geography and the Spatial Sciences (GIS etc) when managing terrorist events.... An interesting read and a good way to promote Geography!
http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=328&trv=1.

Global change
This website provides links to a wide range of data sets related to global change. For example data on ice and snow, hydrology, ecology, atmospheres, agriculture etc.
http://www.globalchange.gov/

World health
This site gives maps and data on topics related to environmental health i.e. atmosphere contaminants, disease, water pollution etc
http://health.usgs.gov/

Floods Maps
This site is an interesting site to simulate sea level rise around the world. Select the part of the world you wish to see the impact of sea level change and then select the sea level rise in metres. Check out the satellite image of Adelaide with a 14 metre rise in sea level!
http://flood.firetree.net/

Asian Tsunami
The University of Singapore CRISP has produced a website of remotely sensed images. While not an online GIS, this site is worthy of mention. It contains many before and after satellite images and aerial photographs covering the extent of the Boxing Day Tsunami. An excellent resource that students will enjoy using.
http://www.crisp.nus.edu.sg/tsunami/tsunami.html

Geoscience Australia’s Community Risk
This link goes to the interactive online mapping system for Geoscience Australia's Community Risk in Cairns project. The mapping system on the site allows you to zoom in and out, pan around the map, and also access risk information for individual suburbs.
http://www.ga.gov.au/map/cairns/

Population clock
The population of the world and Australia grows by the second. This page of the Australian Bureau of Staistics site provides quite an insight into change over time.
http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/0/1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63?OpenDocument

WALIS Forum in Perth: A spatial experience

Spatial Worlds website
Perth, Australia: S: 31º 57 E: 115º 52
Picture descriptions:
Left image: Coastal groynes off the coast near Rome, Italy.
Right image: Transport by scooter in Athens, Greece.

Last week I was fortunate to attend the West Australian Land and Information Systems (WALIS) Conference at the Perth Conference Centre. The WALIS conference for the first time had a teacher stream, coordinated by Phil Houweling from the John Calvin College in Perth. Phil did an amazing job creating, coordinating and conducting the teacher conference for over 70 teachers on spatial education. The keynote speakers were an amazing mix of Spatial Industry personnel speaking on topics as diverse as GPS on football players, defence force use of GIS, data servers, free on-line software and global warming. The conference really showed how ubiquitous and all pervasive spatial technology is now in our society. To get details of the program and speakers go to http://forum.walis.wa.gov.au/teachers_stream
As always one comes away from such a conference inspired and full of new ideas and resources. In this blog I will list some of the things which really made an impression on me. The great thing about spatial and schools is that you never know what will be next and what is available. As long as one does not get ‘technology anxiety’ it is really a great area to work in. After each of the points I have given credit to the source/speaker)

1. GIS is increasingly being seen as a great enabler to deal with world problems such as population growth, global warming, loss of biodiversity, resource shortages, security and social conflicts. To solve these problems we need information! GIS is an information system with an ever increasing ability to store data and analyse data. Hence its importance in producing dynamic maps (as opposed to static or dumb maps) with a deep link of information to space continues to increase every year. (Derek Milton: ESRI Australia)

2. Free GIS viewers/applications available on the net:
* National Geographic Map Machine at http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/
* WA Atlas at https://www2.landgate.wa.gov.au/waatlas/waatlas/index.jsp
* Geoview WA at http://www.doir.wa.gov.au/aboutus/geoview_launch.asp
* Cottlesloe Coast Care Association at http://www.cottesloecoastcare.org/projects.html
* Landgate map viewer at http://www.landgate.wa.gov.au/corporate.nsf/web/Landgate+Map+Viewer
* Transperth at http://www.transperth.wa.gov.au/ * Bike Perth at http://www.bikely.com/listpaths
What is interesting with many of the sites above is the growth of community participation in the map environment on the internet. (Derek Milton: ESRI Australia)

3. Many of the references on the WA Sustainable Energy Association site (http://wasea.fasthit.net/) have links to spatial applications. One of great interest at the present is http://www-nsidc.colorado.edu/ which shows satellite images of the melting icesheets. (Ray Wills: CEO WA Sustainability Energy Association)

4. Some spatial quotes:
“Almost everything that happens, happens somewhere. Knowing where something happens is critically important” Longley 2001.
“The term spatialisation relates to being spatially aware and thinking spatially.” Bert Veenendaal, Curtin University.
“Kids have a different understanding of space and their world view is different to that of their teachers and parents due to the impact of blogs and access to other in space. What is the implication of this? Bert Veenendaal, Curtin University.

5. Some websites to get students thinking spatially:
* Newsmapping at http://marumushi.com/apps/newsmap/
* Buztracker: world news mapped: http://buzztracker.org
* Mapping sex offenders: Megans Law: http://thnt.gns.gannettonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/B3/20060305/SPECIAL07/101120007
* Spatial Information Centre for education at http://spatialinfocrc.org/pages/Education.aspx?MenuID=43
* Virus maps at http://westnilemaps.usgs.gov/2002/
* Geoscience Australia, Tsunami risk at http://www.ga.gov.au/ausgeonews/ausgeonews200609/modelling.jsp
* Toxic maps at http://toxmap.nlm.nih.gov/toxmap/main/index.jsp
* Google maps mania, blogs showing the use of google maps by web users: http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/
* To put together maps at http://www.mapbuilder.net/
* Google gloves to navigate google earth: http://www.atlasgloves.org/
* Spatial mashups galore at http://www.programmableweb.com/ Websites from Ed Parsons, Google: sponsored by PSMA Australia

6. A useful resource at http://www.xyz.au.com/public/ for bringing together all things related to spatial education is the newly developed 'National Education Spatial Portal for Spatial Information'.


7. Check out Microsoft’s answer to Google Earth at http://www.microsoft.com/virtualearth/ and http://virtualearth.spaces.live.com/
The Virtual Earth platform is an integrated set of services that combine ‘bird’s eye’, aerial and 3D imagery with mapping, location and search functionality. Of interest is that Virtual Earth platform is designed to be easily integrated with other components of Microsoft technology.
Many happy hours of spatial surfing on this list!!

8. An article of interest! The latest 'Position' magazine(page 38) has a very interesting article on the Spatial Industry titled "The Industry is worth billions". The article gives a real insight into the magnitude and potential of the industry and is well worth the read. If interested in this article and other articles on GIS applications in society, the magazine is worth subscibing to for your school. To subscribe email: info@positionmag.com.au

9. Teaching materials for using Google Earth at http://www.google.co.uk/schools/index.html
* for primary activities at: http://www.google.co.uk/schools/primary.html
* for local area studies at
http://www.google.co.uk/schools/primary.html#exploring

Well done to Phil for a conference so rich in ideas, resources and good geography networking.

Just some practical fun spatial sites to use

Spatial Worlds website
Picture descriptions:
Left image: Night scene in the flooded (and increasingly flooded) city of Venice, Italy.
Right image: Train tracks and electrics between Milan and Venice, Italy.

How high is my reservoir?
The following water site is a great way to show reservoir levels around Australia and change over time: http://wron.net.au/DemosII/DamData/DamMap.aspx
When you open the site go to the tag 'Teaser' and each reservoir in Australia is thematasised in accordance with water levels. If you click on the reservoir it shows change in levels over time. Also check out the other great components of this water management website from the 'Water resources Observation Network' site at http://wron.net.au


Digging through the earth.
If you have always wondered what would happen if you dug a hole through the centre of the earth.......
http://www.ubasics.com/dighole/

Disaster game
An interactive site for students to simulate disasters. Stop disaster game from the UN.
http://www.stopdisastersgame.org/

A different way to look at the world
This cartogram site enables students to view the world in a different way.
http://tools.google.com/gapminder/ and
www.gapminder.org

Juicy geography
This is an excellent internet site developed in the UK. It is really interesting to look at and provides some great step by step activities to incorporate the basic GIS applications of Google Earth in the classroom. The site has quite a bit of info - click on Teaching and Learning and there are a number of other activities that also use this the basic google earth GIS applications. The site is
http://www.juicygeography.co.uk/sealevel

Sea level simulations
http://www.juicygeography.co.uk/sealevel

Air quality site
Some interesting spatial websites on air quality in London and Sydney
http://www.londonair.org.uk/london/asp/default.asp?la_id=&showbulletins=&width=1024
http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/air/sydney3.htm

Webmapping: GIS on the internet

Spatial Worlds website
Picture descriptions:
Left image: Train travel, German style. The German inter-city Ice-sprinter extra fast trains.
Right image: English countryside around Cumbria.

Webmapping: free GIS interfaces on the internet
There are thousands of GIS interfaces available free on the internet. These interfaces often referred to as interactive maps or webmapping are a great way to start using GIS in the classroom without buying any GIS software. The site below lists a wide range of webmapping sites using ESRI based GIS software. They give an excellent idea of the application of GIS in government and industry whilst providing some potential learning activities for the geography classroom.

http://www.geocomm.com/channel/webmap/links/esri.html

Other webmapping sites are:

National Soil Resource Institute
This website is a great resource to use when studying soils. The interactive map of UK soils and associated topographic maps provide plenty of practical examples of the relationship between soils and location.

http://www.landis.org.uk/soilscapes/

From the USGS and Smithsonian
This dynamic planet resource provides an interactive map of the earth showing plate boundaries with a GIS interface (called the interactive map) to add and change the layers displayed. This is a great resource for natural hazards topics. Also have a look at the interactive map for the Arctic and Antarctic via the home page.

The home page at:
http://mineralsciences.si.edu/tdpmap/

The dynamic viewer at:
http://baird.si.edu/minsci/tdpmap/viewer.htm

uDIG GIS
This sites provides a desktop Internet GIS for Apple and PC. A free user friendly Internet GIS is available to be downloaded from teh site at http://udig.refractions.net/

US Census Bureau
The US Census is also a great source of webmapping facilities and resources. If you are interested in doing any geography related to the US, then this site is incredibly rich in data. Go to the following links to access free data and mapping applications

Cartographic boundaries: http://www.census.gov/geo/www/cob/index.html
On-line mapping: http://www.census.gov/geo/www/maps/CP_OnLineMapping.htm
Landview: A Viewer for the Environmental Protection Agency: http://www.census.gov/geo/landview/

Free GIS sites

Open license GIS software
http://grass.itc.it/
Genesis 2: GIS software
http://geomantics.org/
Map Filter: An image processing program to use with Genesis 2
http://geomantics.com/
Geomatica FreeView
http://www.pcigeomatics.com/
Flowmap: A spatial analyst tool to display and analysis linear data.
http://flowmap.geog.uu.nl/
GPS utility: For uploading and manipulating GPS data: http://www.gpsu.co.uk/
GPS tracker
http://www.gpstm.com/
Spatial data site: The Office of Spatial Data Management (OSDM)at http://www.osdm.gov.au/is charged with implementing the Australian Government Policy on Spatial Data Access and Pricing.
AvisMap GIS Viewer - Free AvisMap GIS Technologies is a leading GIS company in Asia, specializing in the development of GIS software. http://www.avismap.com/
3map is a Free Software project being built with the support of the Telstra Broadband Fund that provides the client and server capabilities to deliver the Web Augmented Virtual Earth.
http://www.ping.com.au/staticpages/index.php?page=20041005102908338
AGIS for Windows includes a tutorial to help you with making your own map displays has also been prepared. This is contained in an installation file called http://www.agismap.com/download.html
Chameleon is a distributed, highly configurable, environment for developing Web Mapping applications. Chameleon is OpenSource, this means that you can use it freely for your own applications, and that you also have access to the source code. http://chameleon.maptools.org/index.phtml
GIS ObjectLand is a universal Geographic Information System for Windows. Free non-commercial license.
http://www.gis-objectland.com/
MapEdit, a low cost solution (free to educational and non-profit organizations) for making image maps come alive. Simple image maps and html still outshine many mapservers. http://www.boutell.com/mapedit/
MapServer is an open source development environment for building spatially-enabled web mapping applications and services. It is fast, flexible, reliable and can be integratated into just about any GIS environment. http://mapserver.gis.umn.edu/
MapWindow - Uses most standard GIS data formats including shapefiles (.shp) and ASCII grid files (.asc). Data in these formats can be downloaded from many Internet sites including GIS Data Depot, USEPA, USGS and many others. MapWindow can also handle georeferenced GIF, and BMP image files. http://www.mapwindow.org/
OpenLayers makes it easy to put a dynamic map in any web page. It can display map tiles and markers loaded from any source. MetaCarta developed the initial version of OpenLayers and gave it to the public to further the use of geographic information of all kinds. OpenLayers is completely free, Open Source JavaScript, released under a BSD-style License. http://www.openlayers.org/
Orbit Spatial Technologies has two free products -- a GIS viewer, Orbit Explorer, and a GIS server system, EOS Lite.
http://www.orbitgis.com/
Spatial Console 1.2.1 imports shapefiles to Oracle Spatial and Locator and exports to several different formats. It also enables viewing and validation of Oracle Spatial and Locator data.
http://www.geometryit.com/download/
SPRING is a state-of-the-art GIS and remote sensing image processing system with an object-oriented data model which provides for the integration of raster and vector data representations in a single environment. http://www.dpi.inpe.br/spring/english/

Spatial sites and images for the classroom

Spatial Worlds website
Picture descriptions:
Left image: Toronto skyline from the CN Tower
Right image: The snow on the Italian Alps, flying from Rome to Prague on December 27th, 2007.

Whereis Map search
This site should be familiar to everyone. Its main purpose is as an online street directory but more information is being added to the site regularly (e.g. parking, wireless internet connections). Maps can be saved and easily pasted into word files or emails. This is a very useful site for introducing basic GIS concepts to younger students.
http://www.whereis.com

European Space Agency
Here is another website to have a look at. This website provides some excellent resources, particularly remote sensing imagery, of major cities around the world. You can register your school and access free software to create images etc using basic GIS principles. What is impressive is that any layers you create, can be transfered over to either ArcView or MapInfo
http.www.esa.int/education/eduspace

Several links from the National Geographic's My Wonderful World gateway. Some great activities for students to get involved in.
My Wonderful World
http://www.mywonderfulworld.org

The GIS games
http://www.mywonderfulworld.org/toolsforadventure/games/gis.html

Running Ahead
On this site you can register (free) and use Google Earth to track out your running/biking track and determine how far you have gone (or are intending to go!).
http://www.runningahead.com/