map projections

Resource Description

Maps are powerful visual tools, both for communicating ideas and for facilitating data exploration. In GEOG 486: Cartography and Visualization, you will learn design principles and techniques for creating maps with contemporary mapping tools, including ArcGIS Pro. In this lab-focused course, you’ll apply cartographic theory to practical problems, with a focus on design decisions such as selecting visual variables, classifying and generalizing data, applying principles of color and contrast, and choosing projections for maps. You will also be introduced to future-focused application topics such as augmented and virtual reality, mapping with multivariate glyphs, the visual depiction of uncertainty, interactive geovisualizations and (geo)visual analytics, and decision-making with maps and mapping products. Successful completion of this course will signify mastery in map production for communication and research; you will be practiced in making, analyzing, critiquing, and sharing high-quality maps.

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Resource Description

Whether you realize it or not, everyday activities—using a smartphone, relying on car navigation, or searching online for the nearest coffee shop—depend on geographic information. Geographic data and technologies are embedded throughout modern life. GEOG 160: Mapping Our Changing World explores what geographic information is, what makes it unique, how it is created, and how it is used. The material examines how geographic information systems (GIS), satellite remote sensing, and global positioning systems (GPS) work together to produce information we rely on, helping students become informed consumers of geographic content. It was last substantively reviewed in 2016 and is no longer actively maintained. Learn more

Resource Description

The Nature of Geographic Information is an orientation to the properties of geographic data and the practice of distance learning. The purpose of this course is to promote an understanding of the Geographic Information Science and Technology (GIS&T) enterprise. GIS&T is the intersection of professions, institutions, and technologies that produce geographic data and render information from it. It is a rapidly growing and evolving field. Learning is a way of life for all GIS&T professionals. With this in mind, I hope that this text may contribute to your lifelong exploration of how geospatial technologies can be used to improve the quality of life—yours and your neighbors', locally and globally, now and in the future.

This course is no longer being offered for credit and has not been updated since 2017.

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