SMUA4600 Geographical Information Systems Emneplan

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a system of hardware, software, and procedures designed to support the capture, management, manipulation, analysis, modeling and display of spatially referenced data for solving complex planning and management problems. GIS applications use both spatial information (maps) and databases to perform analytical studies.

This course, including both lectures and practices, will cover the fundamental theories and methods of GIS. A series of seminars will enable the students to make practical use of GIS with hands-on experience.

In this course, the students will learn to edit, organize and manipulate spatial data in meaningful ways to solve spatial problems, using ESRI ArcGIS software and different open-source alternatives (QGIS and R).

GIS technology has broad applications in natural and social sciences, humanities, environmental studies, engineering, and management. Examples include: Urban and Regional Planning, Community and Economic Planning and Development, Housing Studies, Transit and Transportation Issues, Land Use, Historic and Archeological Studies, Agriculture and Forestry, Wildlife Habitat Study, Crime Analysis and Policing, Emergency Management and Public Works Utilities, Census and Demographic Studies, Public Health, Contagious Disease Monitoring, and Business uses including Marketing and Advertising. This course will introduce a few selected cases of GIS application in different disciplines.

Grade scale A-F

Upon completing the course, the student should have the following outcomes, defined in terms of knowledge, skills, and general competence.

Knowledge:

Upon successfully completion of the course, the student has gained sufficient knowledge to:

• describe the components of a Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• explain GIS data structures and models, including vector and raster data
• quantify and analyze the spatial distribution of phenomena and provide meaningful analysis of spatial attributes.

Skills:

Upon successfully completion of the course, the student can:

• conduct GIS analysis by combining different spatial data operations such as distance calculation, overlay and buffer analysis, to address geospatial problems and/or research questions
• demonstrate proficiency in the use of GIS tools to create maps that are fit-for-purpose and effectively convey the information they are intended to.
• implement advanced GIS functions or analyses

General competence:

Upon successfully completion of the course, the student is able to:

• critically evaluate available sources for data in a GIS
• reflect on the spatial impact of decision-making and on the potential for using large spatial datasets for in-depth multi-faceted analytics
• demonstrate confidence in undertaking new (unfamiliar) analysis using GIS, troubleshoot problems in GIS, and seek help from software/website help menus and the GIS community to solve problems
• communicate results in a powerful and effective way.

The course is delivered through seminars and hands-on computer workshops.

Teaching will be organized in topic-blocks with practical and theoretical parts in each block.

According to the United Nations (UN) another 2.5 billion people will live in urban areas by 2050. Many cities will face challenges including to provide adequate transportation, energy systems and housing. Overcoming these challenges will require to develop new and to upgrade existing infrastructure. MABY5450 concerns the mechanical behaviour of soils and geotechnical structures when constructing urban infrastructure. The students will obtain in-depth knowledge about how to calculate lateral earth pressures and to dimension earth supporting structures. The course will also cover embedded structures with focus on tunnelling in soft ground, the observational method in geotechnical engineering and geotechnical instrumentation and monitoring. Theoretical background will be complemented by practical exercises including parametric 3D modelling of geotechnical structures. Finally, the student will become familiar with methods to assess the potential impact of ground works on the built environment. This course will extensively use examples from both practice and latest research, such as the BegrensSkade II / REMEDY project.

After completing this course, the student has the following learning outcomes, defined as knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

Students have in-depth knowledge of:

• earth pressure theory
• types of retaining walls and design (serviceability and ultimate limit state)
• excavation support systems including tunnels in soft ground and soil stabilisation
• ground movements due to excavation works and effects on the built environment
• basics of parametric 3D modelling
• the observational method in geotechnical engineering and associated instrumentation and monitoring

Skills

Students can:

• calculate the lateral earth pressure
• select and design retaining walls and excavation support systems
• analyse the behaviour of tunnels in soft ground
• quantify the effect of ground movements on structures
• formulate a geotechnical report and a small research publication

General competence

Students:

• can understand the principles of soil strength, stress history and critical state soil mechanics
• can apply plasticity and limit equilibrium methods to analyse earth support systems
• are familiar with excavation-induced ground movements and their impacts on close by structures
• can understand the principles of the observational method in geotechnical engineering
• have an overview of geotechnical instrumentation and monitoring solutions
• have the writing skills to formulate a geotechnical report or a small research publication

Lectures, exercises and projects

If lectures are delivered online, they may be recorded, and the recordings will be made available to students on Canvas.

The following work requirements are mandatory and must be approved to sit for the exam:

Present solutions to handed out example problems. The student will be given 3 example papers with around 6 problems related to course content. Students need to present it and get approved.

3 written reports on the practical application of the course content.

The exam consists of two parts:

1) Individual 2-hour written exam under supervision, weighted 60%

2) Written reports and individual oral presentation (max. 10 minute presentation followed by 10 min Q&A), weighted 40%

All assessment parts must be awarded a pass grade (E or better) in order for the student to pass the course. The project reports must be done before the exam.

Assessment part 1) can be appealed. Assessment part 2) can not be appealed.

For (1): A print summarising the lecture content (will be provided to the students) and a calculator that cannot be used to communicate with others.

For (2): All types of materials and equipment are allowed.