Term 1: 3 credits Tue / Thu 11:00-12:30 Room 101

Instructor: B. Klinkenberg (Room 209) (Office hours: The hour after each class, or by appointment)

Lab: Room 115: Mon 14:00-16:00, Tue 13:30-15:30

The text for the course.

T.A.: Alejandro Cervantes (Office hours: Between 10 and 11 on Monday and Tuesday, in Rm 115)

A $20 course fee will be collected in the first lab to cover some of the costs of running the computer lab. You will also need to purchase some printing credits, as Jose Aparacio, the lab supervisor, will explain to you at the first lab.

You should make use of the materials available on the World Wide Web (WWW) to supplement the course text; the course notes contain links to information related to the lecture. The course home page can be found here:  http://www.geog.ubc.ca/courses/geob370/

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COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course is a continuation of the introductory course on Geographic Information Sciences (GIS), Geob 270; you should be familiar with the material covered in that course. Some of the topics that we will cover in this course include more advanced discussions on spatial interpolation, error and uncertainty, Global Positioning Systems (GPS), and multi-objective decision making. You will gain advanced knowledge of GIScience by taking this course.  If you wish to become proficient in a commercial GIS package you should check out the part-time and the full-time courses offered at BCIT. The technical skills presented in those courses will compliment the knowledge gained by taking Geob 270, Geob 370, Geob 372, Geob 373 and Geob 479.

Your success in this class and, should you pursue GIS as a career, in the field of GIS itself, will depend on keeping up-to-date with all of the material that is available on the web. Course material has been placed (and will continue to be updated) on the course pages for you to use. Therefore, follow the lectures by reading the associated notes as we discuss them in class but, at the same time, do not get too far ahead of the lectures as they may change as we progress through the term. The online notes for this course can also serve as valuable references once you are out in the workplace.

Questions to ask yourself when taking this course¹:

• What new knowledge, skills and attitudes do I hope to develop (e.g., advanced spatial analytical skills, html)?
• How do I ensure that I gain those skills and knowledge?
• What resources are available?
• How can this course help advance my career?
  

My hope is that the course format (that is, the lectures, labs and the project) will:

• encourage cooperation (e.g., team-based projects),
• encourage active learning (e.g., the labs),
• emphasise time on the task,
• respect the diverse talents and ways of learning brought to the course by each of you,
• display clarity in the course / lab aims and objectives.

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GRADING

Mark Distribution
The labs are worth 30%. You are required to complete a final project worth 30%, 5% will be related to class participation, and there will be a final exam (short answer and essay questions) worth 35%. Note that, in order to receive a passing grade in this course, all labs must be handed in and a project completed. Part of your project mark will be determined through peer-evaluation (If your project involves two or more participants). The final determination of marks for the course must, however, follow the official Faculty of Arts guidelines for the distribution of marks.

The Labs
The labs will be provided to you as soon as possible. If you can read over the handout and be prepared to work on the exercise before your lab, that would be helpful.

All labs must be handed in at the beginning of the lab period in which they are due. A penalty of 10% per day will be deducted for late labs. Late labs will only be accepted (for marks) up to one week after they are due. Note that plagiarism is to be avoided in preparing your labs and in your project (an alternative look at plagiarism). Proper citation of all materials is required. Useful guidelines on UBC policies with respect to academic integrity can be found here.

If you know that you will be unable to complete a lab in time, you should see Alejandro before the lab is due.

Finally, reading over the Project Description and starting to think of a potential topic area (and identifying potential project partners), sooner rather than later, will help you enjoy this course.

1 These points were derived from the NCGIA Core Curriculum in Geographic Information Science Unit 159 - Curriculum design for GIS