GIS 6005 Communicating GIS Final

I have reached the final assignment of this course. This week we had to put all the skills that we learned during this class together and produce an infographic on our own. We had to choose and research a topic and find data that we could use as variables to try and answer a question using geospatial analysis. 

I chose to determine if electric vehicle sales are influenced by electric vehicle incentives offered by states. I compared data containing electric vehicle registrations by state and available electric vehicle incentives by state. 

To find the answer to my question I created a choropleth map that uses color to demonstrate the amount of incentives available in each U.S. state. I also mapped electric vehicle registrations by state using proportional symbology. My resulting map showed some kind of correlation between my two variables. It is evident that the states that offer the most elective vehicle incentives do have the most registered electric vehicles. 

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I added a secondary analysis to my infographic comparing electric vehicle sales to the average price of a gallon of gasoline on a timeline chart. In this analysis it could be determined that there was no relation between gas prices and electric vehicle sales during the analyzed time period. 

Overall this was a fun map to make. There was lots of data management involved along with a few table joints to get everything to work. I enjoyed using the custom symbology and not being constrained by some of the common constraints associated with more common cartography. 

 Module 6 GIS 6005

This week Module 6 has introduced us to proportional symbol and bivariate mapping. During this module we learned to explore data and determine what method is best used to present the data particularly when there is more than one variable and there is a link or potential link between the data. 

We started off with proportional symbol mapping. Proportional symbols are good way of simplifying data on maps and making it easier to understand. Unfortunately proportional symbols take a good amount of effort to get just right. Symbol size, shape and color are all vary important when using proportional symbols. 

Our task was to make a proportional symbol map that demonstrates job losses and gains in the US between 2007 and 2015. When working with this kind of data we know we are going to encounter negative values. ESRI ArcPro is unable to symbolize negative values. In order to overcome the inability of ArcPro to symbolize negative values we had to create extract negative values from our original dataset and create a new feature class with negative values converted into positive values by utilizing the field calculator. By creating a second feature class we could represent negative values as a proportional symbol. When showing two feature classes with the same data it is important to keep parameters for your symbology equal or the reader could be misled. My final proportional symbol map below. 

The second part of Module 6 had us create a bivariate map. A bivariate map is a helpful way of mapping two distinct variables that have some relation. We created a map that shows a link between inactivity and obesity in the US. Showing a link between the data starts by creating physical links in the data/attribute table. In order to create a bivariate map the data from the two variables needs to interact with each other. To prepare our data we had to come up with different statistical classes and then assign values to each class in a manner that would relate to the other variable. For example areas with high levels of obesity were issued a value of 1 while areas with less obesity were assigned the number 2. For inactivity data we assigned a letter with A being designated for areas with high inactivity and C for areas with low inactivity. To carry out the classification of data we had to carry our various search by attribute and field calculator operations. Eventually the data from both variable (1,2,3 and A,B,C) was combined into a single field that could be mapped. We learned that colors and legends are the basis of bivariate maps and are crucial to creating a good product. 

My final bivariate map

 Module 5 Communicating GIS

During this weeks module we learned about using and presenting analytical data. We downloaded county health ranking data and used it to create our own infographic. Our infographic was made up of two maps and two charts showing associations between the two data variables that we selected. We also had to search for other data sources and present that data in a creative manner. I chose to use data related to infant mortality and food insecurity. I figured that there had to be a correlation between the infant mortality and food insecurity. 

For my infographic design I had to carefully plan my layout considering potential readers and the serious nature of the topic that was being presented. I wanted to keep frills to a minimum and make sure that my infographic was easy to read and straightforward. I chose somewhat muted colors with the exception of a bright red that I used to show extremes and data and to highlight some of the data presented. I made sure to use plenty of guidelines in my ArcPro layout to ensure that all the items I used were properly sized and aligned. I used a couple of pie charts to visualize some data that I included. I thought the pie charts were simple to read and did not draw attention away from other items on the document. Below is my final infographic.  

 GIS 6005 Module 4

This week we are working with colors and choropleth maps. We took a deep dive into the meaning of HSV in terms of colors and we learned how to use different colors for different types of data. We learned about differentiating data into categories such as qualitative, sequential or converging to determine how to best represent it on a map and in a legend. 
We got to experiment with color ramps in ArcPro and in ColorBrewer. As part of our assignment we had to create our own sequential color ramps. Below is the color ramps I created. When created the color ramps we had to carry out calculations and determine what values to use on an RGB scale to create a legible and distinctive color ramp. 

  

The first two color ramps are ones that I made by varying RGB values. I derived my second color ramp by choosing RGB values one third greater and one third less than the average difference between each color. The third color ramp is one that I derived using data from ColorBrewer. The ramp I created using ColorBrewer  data has more differences amongst the colors. ColorBrewer added green to the ramp at the lower end to create lighter more distinct colors. 

The final portion of our assignment required us to make a map depicting population change in individual counties in Colorado. The data provided allowed to compare the change in population between 2014 and 2010. Below is my final map. 

I chose to use a diverging theme to represent my data as the data has a center value and seems to diverge away from the middle value. To best represent my data I chose to use a map with varying hues. The varying hues provide a clear distinction of the counties and also are good at representing the change in the population. I wanted to keep my legend simple and legible. I did not have much room for the legend so I had to limit features such as borders and titles. I added percentage signs to all values as I did not have room to explain that numbers were presented in percentages. 

 GIS 6005 Module 3

This week in class we learned about terrain visualization. We learned the fundamentals of terrain visualization and we got to practice some techniques for enhancing terrain in our maps. We carried out various exercises with digital elevation models and hillshade analysis. Along with terrain visualization we learned how to best represent contour lines and their associated labels. I really enjoyed learning about hypsometric tinting. I am looking forward to incorporating hypsometric tinting in my regular work. As part of this week's assignment we also got to experiment with terrain visualization in 3D scenes. 

Below is one of the maps that we had to produce this week. Our goal was to show land cover within Yellowstone National Park while effectively representing the terrain of the park. 

GIS 6005 Module 2

Module 2 GIS 6005

This week's module was all about map projections. We learned lots about choosing the correct projection system for individual areas and how to determine if a given map projection is appropriate for an area. We learned the proper use of common map projections such as State Plane, and UTM. 

In the lab portion of this module we got to experiment different projections. We got to see how having an appropriate projection can help with issues such as inaccurate sizes, location shifts and distortion. One of our tasks was to choose an area and create a map using the appropriate coordinate system. I chose the state of Nevada. To map the State of Nevada I used NAD 1983 UTM 12. The projection I chose was the most appropriate to map the entire state. Nevada has multiple State Plane zones so choosing State Plane for a map of the entire state would likely have created some errors in the final product. There is no state specific projection system to choose for Nevada. Nevada is nice in that it is longer (north to south) than it is wider. UTM projections work well for areas that are longer than wider. Conveniently, the easter and western boundaries of Nevada run along the boundaries for the UTM zone. The entire state of Nevada fit into a single UTM zone. Because there is no special state system and there are multiple State Plane zones and because of the reasons mentioned above the UTM system was the best choice for Nevada. 

 

GIS 6005 Module 1

This is the first blog for GIS 6005 Communicating GIS. For this week's module we learned about and practiced employing the five primary design principles. The fiver primary design principles for maps as stated by Aileen Buckley (2012) are legibility, visual contrast, figure ground organization, hierarchical organization and balance. In the lab portion of this module we were provided with some basic maps and some maps that really lacked elements associated with primary design principles. Our job was to use the limited data that was provided and attempt to improve on various aspects of the map to help achieve some of the basic design principles. 

Our first task was to improve upon a map that was very poorly designed in order to create some balance, visual contrast and legibility. The data we had to work with was very limited. I changed colors, symbols and other essential map elements to make a map that was more subtle while still conveying some form of organization and balance. 

For our second exercise we had to change the map in order to cater to new audience. We had to to use the same data but change the theme of the map entirely. Previously the map was meant to demonstrate areas where logging was restricted, so non-harvestable areas were overwhelming. Our goal was to show areas that were harvestable and to make the map more appealing to a potential organization looking to potentially acquire the lease. I lowered the emphasis on restricted areas and tried to pick colors that would clearly show harvestable areas while adding some elements to make the map more appealing to a potential lessor. 

Our third challenge this week was to modify a layout containing the San Francisco Bay area. The main objective was to alter and experiment with typography to make a legible balanced map. We were given a list of landmarks and areas to label and had to find colors, fonts, styles and placements that would work to make a legible and usable map. 

For the map of Mexico above we were asked to experiment with dynamic labeling and try to come up with the most legible and conflict free labels that we could without manually placing any labels. Chaing the sizes, font style, letter spacing and features symbol all impacted how the dynamic labels rendered. 

Our final map was a variation of the previous map that depicts rivers in Mexico. For this map we had to symbolize Mexican states major cities, the capital of Mexico and the rivers. It took a good amount of effort to make a map with all the required information that is still legible. In this case I had to make labels into annotations and do a good amount placing manually. Hierarchical organization and legibility were definitely challenges on this map.