'Zero Emission City'

As you may already know, sustainability has become a primary concern within the planning industry. While researching current planning strategies for my technical report, I came across Masdar city, a new 'zero emission' city currently being built in the United Arab Emirates. The goal is to build a city which requires little energy. The energy that is required, however will be derived from renewable resources.

For more information about the city as well as the company that initiated this process, navigate to the following link: http://www.masdaruae.com/en/home/index.aspx.

Maps on Ideas

Ideas on CBC radio this evening is entitled "Unfolding Visions." Tune in to hear ideas on how maps play an important role in our culture and how they reveal things about the world around us. If you miss the broadcast, search the CBC podcasts to listen in.

Using Google Earth to View GIS data / ArcMap

I was surfing through YouTube and found a really cool video on ArcGIS. The video shows how to export ArcMAP data directly into Google Earth. Click on either photo to view this video. I have also included another good site, I found, for tutorials with ArcGIS. You have to pay to have full access, but there is some good free tutorials there as well. To view just click the button below.

Map of the Human Heart

I’m reunited with one of my favorite movies in the whole world, the tale of which I’ll relate because it’s about maps.
Well that’s just partly true. “Map of the Human Heart” is an epic love story. It happens to feature many maps, even a female store-dummy with robotic abilities which is dressed in maps. More conventional maps are a backdrop of this magnificent film. But it’s the love story which made me cry watching it two decades ago. Not just at the end, but through almost the whole thing.
You cannot rent, borrow or buy this movie anywhere. I tried for 20 years, although not full-time. I did other things too. Last week I typed it into a bit torrent search box, as I’d done many times. Boy was I surprised to get a hit. Someone actually had this!
If you enjoyed “Atanarjua - Fast Runner” then you’ll love “Map of the Human Heart.” Themes like the individual struggle of Inuit survival are the same. But “Human Heart” unfolds on a bigger map than Canada's North, and contrasts are stark. The movie manages to link the unforgiving Arctic environment to the Second World War bombing of Dresden Germany. And of course there’s the love story in between.
“Human Heart” is a Miramax film starring Jason Scott Lee, Patrick Bergin and John Cusack. Few have heard of the movie, because it was made before these actors were famous. Bergin plays a cartographer who lands in Canada’s Arctic in the 1930’s, to map the area. Scott-Lee is the adult version of a charismatic Inuit boy whose amazing, heroic life is tragically dismissed as a drunkard’s ramblings. The ending can be interpreted as either very happy or very sad, depending on your perspective and mood.

Oh one more thing, visit my photos.

Exercise Improves Brain Function

Has your brain been a little sluggish lately? It could be because we have been spending most of our time sitting in front of our computers. It's time to get our blood flowing and sharpen our minds. Exercise improves brain function. It's a known fact. Check out this article for more information; http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Exercise-Improves-Brain-Function&id=2295720

The fitness facilities on campus are the cheapest and easiest to utilize since we are often pressed for time. If you looking for a little more, a quick drive or bus trip will get you to 14 Wing Greenwood's Fitness and Sports Centre. They have a pool, indoor running track, weight/cardio room, squash courts and more. After a little exploration mission I was able to acquire a price list. It's $156.00 for an entire year or $26.00 a month and you purchase passes at the community center just before the gate. You can also pay for a single use of some things such as the pool (with waterslide); http://www.airforce.forces.gc.ca/14w-14e/page-eng.asp?id=284

If the time and resources are not available to you or you just want to keep it simple, walking is one of the easiest ways to get moving.

So... I couldn't pick a favorite...

One of the most interesting things about realizing your blog is due in short order is the gratifying amount of cool geographically related information you can find. Within a few minutes of my initial search, I was sifting through innumerable firefox tabs and their related windows. After several minutes of rigorous elimination, I choose links to Berkley University in California, to what must be the coolest travel blog in existence, and to a Youtube video.

I have to admit that the Youtube video is by far the least relevant, but still really cool.

Now, these are sites that make being a budding geographer so fun. They are a reminder that on the other side of these two years, we will have something. And it's also pretty cool to be doing the same work as cartographers from across the world and hundreds or thousands of years ago. And to know where Finland is and some pertinent side details about it's climate, geographic features, lifestyle etc. And to look at something cool like the 24 flight patterns and to know exactly where in the world all those little planes are going.

What’s better they all led me to more fun sites. Especially the (way more relevant) Youtube videos about Google Earth.

Google's Street View Feature

Last Wednesday, Google released their Street View feature in Canada (released worldwide in 2007). Have a look around by zooming in and activating the street view layer in Google Earth, or simply zoom in all the way to navigate with this feature on the website: http://maps.google.ca/

While navigating around downtown Halifax in Street View, I found the studio where I used to work. The windows of the building are decorated with giant printouts of some of the former employees, myself included. Although the studio shut down a year ago, the photos still colour the streets. When they are eventually taken down, I know my giant face will live on in Street View, at least until the next Google update.

The Rewilding – A Metaphor

In this fifteen minute video, science fiction author and strategic foresight analyst Karl Schreoder discusses his idea of “rewilding”. In brief the idea is that by placing lots of wirelessly networked sensors in a habitat and connecting them to the internet, we can monitor them in real time and have hard data of exactly what benefits they provide. In a more speculative vein, this means ecosystems can be turned into autonomous economic and political actors, because they have a stake in human affairs.

I also had the opportunity to speak with Karl Schreoder in August at the World Science Fiction Convention in Montreal, about the connections between his idea and what GIS can do. After further discussion, it does seem that the basic components of the idea are within the realm of the technically feasible. It would make a neat project!

The website Sentient City explores a similar application of this technology in an urban setting, where digital information manifests itself with physical characteristics.

Georeferenced PDFs

In July 2008, the folks at ESRI released a small patch for ArcGIS Desktop. This "Map Export Patch" allows you to take a Shape file and cram most of the functionality into a PDF.
This isn't just a static map; the user can easily look at all the attribute data that is usually hidden behind the identify tool in ArcGIS, all with the basic Adobe Reader program.



There are many more helpful videos over at ESRI's Youtube channel: esritv

ArcGIS Tutorials

Did you know that you can get tutorials on ArcGIS related topics online and from help? If you're curious to learn a bit more about the extensions in ArcGIS, these videos may get you started. YouTube also has lots of GIS resources.

Hungry anyone!

The image below represents the average distance to the closest McDonald's restaurant (over 13,000 franchises and counting). This kind of image can help in a marketing campaign.

I wonder if there is a similar map for Tim's in Canada (hmmm!).

source: media.wheatersealed.com\maps

geography from a different perspective

Take a look at this German cartographer's perspective of the world circa 1488-1552. Looking at this map should help you understand the importance of map projections. Some regions on the map are exaggerated and its orientation is upside down.

This map was provided to the Strange Maps blog courtesy of Martayan Lan.

See more strange maps at Strange Maps blog.