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ENV510 Landscape Ecology and GIS
Every 'Do this' activity has a 'Why' link that brings you to this page. Each activity title down this page links back to the page where the activity can be found. You do not have to complete these activties in the order they appear here, your own order will depend on the pathways you choose through the learning materials.
Although these explanation and tips are limited to the 'Do this' activities. You will also find a lot of value in thoroughly thinking through the 'Think' tasks, and even noting or diagraming the ideas you have as a result of them.
Identify
a landscape
Like a number of activities you will complete this
one helps you link words and pictures which gives your brain two ways to
recall a concept. In this instance, your initial ideas about landscape might
be challenged. You
will need to get the label in the middle of the picture for it to 'snap'
to its position.
Landscape
views
This activity gives you a chance to step into someone else's shoes and think
about how different perspectives value a landscape, apart from the one you
have been shown as an example. You might like to take the opportunity to
think about the landscapes around you from these perspectives. Conflict
over land use often arises from these different perspectives
Why
study landscapes
This reading might extend your own ideas about why
studying landscapes is valuable. Without being convinced of this, you will
find it difficult to make sense of much of this unit. Actively identifying
the key ideas from the reading, rather than just being told them, will help
you remember them better.
Landscape
drawing
'Seeing' pattern in the landscape is important, and
this activity helps you focus on different parts of the landscape that make
up that pattern. You will later be asked to identify these different parts.
A line drawing is more like a diagram than a sketch - it doesn't rely on
you being able to draw beautifully, and clever shading techniques are likely
to be distracting rather then helpful, so stick to simple lines and shapes.
Some people find it useful to imagine a grid over the image, and draw in
the details a small square at a time.
Label
patches
This is where you need the line drawing you did of
the Kellerberrin landscape. The patches will obviously be shapes rather
than lines. You could label them by writing directly on the drawing, creating
lines to labels outside the boundaries of the drawing, or colour coding
shapes inside and adding a key on the outside.
Classify
patches
In this activity you are expected to apply the knowledge
you have gained. You can use it as a check point. Do you 'know' the criteria
for deciding the types of patches in each location, or do you need to refer
to your notes? Can you 'work out' the classifications, rather than immediately
recognising them? If you can't recall information straight away it is comforting
to know that you have ways of working it out.
Classify
corridors
Did how you worked in the patches section affect
how you worked in the corridors section? Obviously, this is a similar activity
with a new area of content and the same strategies apply. You should also
be able to predict what the next activity might be.
Identifying
the matrix
This is another application task that also shows
that the distinctions we make are not always easy to apply in the field.
Adding labels to the diagram means that you should now have a clear image
of how these three elements work together to create the srtructure of the
landscape.
Applying
measures
This is the type of task you may be faced with in
the workplace: selecting the appropriate 'tools' to use, in this case landscape
measures. Use your own problem solving skills to work this out logically,
and discuss your ideas in the discussion forum if you would like confirmation
of your thoughts or assistance from someone with a different set of strategies.
Identify
appropriate measures
Now you get to extend your understanding by applying
the ideas and strategies of the previous activity to different locations.
This is another real life 'tool selection' task to help you see how what
you have learnt can be used.
Linking
changes in function to changes in structure
Use this as a checkpoint to check your recall of
the interrelationship between landscape functions, landscape structure and
the impact of change.
Comparing
patch changes
In this activity you look at the concept of structural
change in two locations and compare the degree and type of change. Ability
to identifychange trends are significant in land management.
Comparing
fragmentation
Now you are encouraged to think beyond the facts,
to make judgements about degree of fragmentation in different locations
and predict what might be the impact of severe fragmentation. This activity
reinforces the interralationship between elements of the environment and
the impact of change over time.
Contrasting
structural changes
This is an information gathering and thinking activity.
You can obtain information to list the structural changes by
reading and/or examining the illustrations. When you do the thinking part,
don't let yourself get away with a simple yes/no answer. Work out how
they might be quanitified, and what would be the benefits and difficulties
of doing it one way rather than another, how effective it would be to apply
the same techniques to each?
Comparing
causes of landcsape structure
The table provides 3 categories for you to break
down to identify the factors affecting both regions. When it is complete
you have a visual comparison of factors affecting the two sites. You can
benefit from this further by mentally listing the similarities and differences
you can observed in each category and the balance between categories.
Classifying
modifications
This is a straight forward application task asking
you to use the noted categories to describe human modification in each location.
It helps you make a connection between theory and its application.
Recall
disturbance types and results
Here is another checkpoint where you are asked to
recall some of the key information you have covered. Does the checkpoint
indicate that you have been paying close attention, reading too superficially,
or have not understood what has been covered? Consider what action you need
to take as a result of this.
Comparing
regional fragmentation
This is mainly a recall activity where you are asked
to bring together some of the information you have covered about fragmentation
in different places, and apply it to the study of two locations. In reading
the case studies to complete this task, you should note the different amounts
of information they provide, and the way fragementation is discussed, and
consider whatthis means for the relative oimpotance of the issue in each
location. You could extend this by thinking about how you would desribe
fragmentation in your own region.
Managment
rationale and decisions
At this point you are asked to bring a lot of ideas
together and make recommendations. This is a higher order thinking task
and you should give yourself more than just a few minutes, and push yourself
to record the details of your ideas rather than just a few brief points.
The more thorough your answers at this point, the easier you will find the
assessment work.
Start
thinking about environnmental management
This is a point for summing up and moving forward.
You are making predictions which you can test and add to as you continue
through the topic. Clearly establishing the relevance of GIS to environmental
management is an important concept for this unit, so don't be tempted to
treat this activity lightly.
GIS
diagram
Reshape the information you have been reading into
something that makes visual connections, to give yourself a different way
of thinking about it, and check your understanding of the relationship between
GIS components.
Inputs
and outputs
Apply your knowledge of how GIS works to a scenario
of an environmental GIS to examine land use and land change over time. Identifying
appropriate inputs and outputs is necessary for anyone working with GIS,
and environmental applications are the most common use of GIS in the NT.
Many of you may find this directly relevant to current or future work. If
you can see yourself working in another application of GIS, you could extend
this activity to considering input and outputs for other applications, marketing,
for instance.
Background
investigation
The most up to date information about these changing
technologies can often be obtained from the Internet. In this exercise you
need to access a source outside of CDU to find the background information
you need about remote sensing. The general categories of information you
need are provided in question 1, but it is question 2 that will move your
thinking into the application of this information. Again, you are encouraged
to think deeply and make aas many connections as possible.
Specific
GIS uses
The two readings you are directed to describe environmental
studies that used GIS. Completing this activitiy will allow you to check
some of your previously noted ideas about how GIS can be applied to environmental
work.You may find this particularly helpful for your final assignment.
Justifying
raster or vector
Selecting raster or vector data is something you
are likely to need to do on multiple occassions and you need to have a thorough
understanding of when one is more appropriate than the other, and be able
to defend the choices you make.
Researching
suppliers
At some time you are likely to need to get data from
a commercial supplier or private organisation. This activity helps to make
you familiar with the suppliers, the types of data they offer, and the practicalities
of obtaining and using that data. It gives you practice in considering the
appropriateness of data and an undertsnading of the logisitcs of obtaining
it. You might also want to consider how you could streamline this process,
if, for instance, the project that needed this data was urgent.
Summarising
referencing
Georeferencing affects the quality of your output
and in this activity you are efectively being asked to explain what the
impact would be of not doing it, or not getting it right. GPS is a tool
that can help but you might also want to think about what else could help.
Predicting
error
This is another application activity relating the
concepts you have been reading about to a system which uses three particular
data types with different entry charactersitics. Without identifying the
potential causes of error, you will not be able to plan to avoid errors
or minimise them. Obviously minimising error has an impact on the quality
of your output and it is important to get it right.
Finding
the error source
In this higher level task you are asked to apply
your understanding to a particular hypothetical situation.
Managing
error and uncertainty
This reading contains some suggestions for how to
deal with the problems you have been reading about. While listing the suggestions
in the reading you should also be critically analysing the approach that
is being taken to see if you agree or can suggest something better.
Review
database structures
The first part of this a simple listing task to help
you review important information, but don't forget to attend to the connection
part. For most benefit you should try to explain why (or when) each database
structure might, or might not, be useful.
Investigating
a real GIS
This is another introductory activity to get you
thinking about the areas that will be covered, only this time you can get
your starting ideas from the case study. Mind you, you can still be critical
of what has been done in this case study and think about what might have
been better.
Relating
functions to purpose
Selection of functions is another commonplace task
that you are likely to have to do.This is a practice acitvity.
Real
questions and answers
This activity helps you review the reasons for using
a GIS by seeing the way that it has been used to answer particular questions.
Internet
research
Searching the internet for environmental medelling
begins to prepare you for the final assignment as well as extending your
understanding of this section
Applying
spatial analysis
Another application activity, you are asked to evaluate
the usefulness of a particular technique with the needs of a specific study.
Using
Patch Analyst
In this activity you are almost doing the reverse
of the previous activity by considering the effectiveness of the case study
without the patch statistics available through the noted tools. This helps
to reinforce the significance of selecting appropriate tools and techniques.
Possible
applications
This is a preparation activity for the final assignment
and an extension acitvity that moves you beyond the initial thoughts you
had about how GIS might be used. Try to make comprehensive notes for all
of these specific landscape ecology applications. You could treat this as
a culminating activity that draws together your initial understandings and
the areas you have covered in this course without the pressure of an assessment
grade
More
possible applications
This reading extends the list of possible applications
used in the previous activity. You might select your final assignment topic
from this list.
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