Mapping Environments (ENVS10006)

In this subject students will learn how information is produced and used to support decision making in urban and rural environments. This includes methods of data collection, mapping, information communication through visualisation, and decision-support systems. Students will gain spatial literacy: skills on reading, critically assessing and using spatial information. Students will also learn the impact of spatial information across a large number of disciplines, and on the economy and society. Specific topics covered include: methods of determining positions; map projections and the shape of the Earth; digital cartography; the use of GPS technology; data structures for managing information; methods of measuring built structures; and mapping from aerial photographs to high-resolution satellite imagery. The practical sessions will give hands-on experience with a range of measurement, geographic information, image analysis and virtual reality technologies in a problem-solving context.