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June 2006 eNews


Welcome to your new WALIS eNewsletter!

Welcome to Your New WALIS eNewsletter!

In response to the feedback received to the WALIS eNews survey, you now receive by default your eNewsletter in HTML format.  Please follow the link at the bottom of the page to adjust your preferences.


Headlines

1. What's Happening in the WALIS Community?

2. WALIS Stakeholders in the News

3. Australian Angle

4. News from Around the Globe

5. Upcoming Events

6. Interesting Website of the Month


1. What's Happening in the WALIS Community?

WALIS Forum 2006

Registration is now open!  Register online before 31 July to receive the Early Bird rate.  Registration is available at: www.walis.wa.gov.au/forum/registration.

The draft program is now available, along with a list of all sponsors and exhibitors. Please see the Forum website for further information (www.walis.wa.gov.au/forum/) or contact David Lee Steere in the WALIS Office on (08) 9273 7695 or davidls@walis.wa.gov.au.

WALIS eNews Survey

The WALIS eNews Survey closed on 22 May and the results have been compiled.  Much of the feedback was positive and some fantastic ideas were suggested.  Most respondents indicated a preference for the eNews to be distributed in html and a section on Western Australia separate to the Australian Angle.  The feedback provided has been used to improve your eNews.

2007 WALIS Calendar

The WALIS Office is planning to put together a 2007 calendar featuring the application of GIS and spatial information within Western Australia.  The calendars will be released at this year's WALIS Forum with each delegate receiving one in their satchel.  Submissions are now being requested from anyone wishing to be featured in the Calendar.  Each month will feature a different application.

It is requested submissions adhere to at least one of the following criteria:

1. Applied, innovative use of GIS and/or spatial information

2. Western Australian focussed

3. Evidence of collaboration between WALIS agencies, private sector, academia or community groups

4. Industry leading GIS software development.

An independent judging panel will consider all submissions based on the above criteria, but will also make the final selection based on breadth of coverage.  The panel also reserves the right to seek additional entries or request submitters to modify their design.

Please send all submissions to David Lee Steere on davidls@walis.wa.gov.au by Friday 30 June. David can also be contacted on 9273 7695 for any additional assistance.

Spatial Technology in Schools Competition

WA regional winners for 2005 of the Spatial Technology in Schools Competition were presented with their prize at the SSI Regional Conference last week.  The girls from St Mary's Anglican Girls' School looked at the effect of speed cameras on traffic accidents.  They used ESRI's ArcView software to overlay speed camera and accident information and tried to determine if there was a correlation between fewer accidents around speed camera sites.  The three girls, Nandika Manchanda, Ashlee Burgess and Amy Pannell, were one group of five from St Mary's who submitted projects in the 2005 competition.  Prizes were donated by PSMA of MapInfo software for the school and a cheque for $500, Digital Mapping Solutions and DLI/WALIS jointly donated a handheld GPS unit loaded with MapInfo software for the school, and DLI/WALIS donated $30 book vouchers for each girl.  St Mary's teacher, Judy Cocks, was the first teacher to submit her registration for the 2006 competition!

JPEG2000

Based on some preliminary work done within industry, the WALIS office is now leading a project to assess the potential benefits of migrating from ECW to JPEG2000 as the WALIS standard format for storing satellite imagery and aerial photography.  This new technology has been developed to provide an international image compression standard and has already been adopted by the major vendors of image processing and GIS/mapping software and systems. Unlike the current pseudo standard (ECW "” lossy compression) being used by WALIS agencies, JPEG2000 offers both a 'lossless' (no image quality loss) and a graduated 'lossy' (image quality loss) compression.  However, the adoption of JPEG2000 may have impacts on operational and archive systems, software, and processes (e.g., slower compression times, image correlation difficulties).  These need to be investigated before JPEG2000 could be adopted as a standard across WALIS agencies.  A consultant will be appointed early in the new financial year to consult with key stakeholders and develop a report for consideration.

Drainage Dataset Working Group

There is no single definition of a drainage dataset that exists within WA.  Around 80% of the information is owned and managed by Local Government, and the quality/coverage/currency of the spatial data for the various Local Governments is unknown.  This has been recognised as a problem for a considerable time and the WALIS Core Management Group (the strategic direction-setting arm of WALIS) have endorsed that a preliminary review be undertaken of the drainage dataset.  There are early indications that stakeholders would be receptive to a project to assess the situation with a view to consolidating data into a single drainage dataset.  An initial meeting to kick off the drainage working group will be held within a few weeks to drive the process of bringing the multiple stakeholders together and determining whole of government needs for the dataset.

ANZLIC Metadata Project Update

As part of the recent organisational changes with the WALIS Office and DLI, responsibility for project management of the ANZLIC Metadata Project has been transferred to Mike Bradford.  Mike is the Manager Business Programs within Information Access Division.  Mike is also responsible for the SLIP Enabling Framework and SLIP Catalogue, for which the outcomes of the Metadata Project are essential.  While Mike works for DLI, the new organisational structure has his group and WALIS Office working closely together so WALIS retains responsibility for project delivery, as agreed by ANZLIC.

WALIS Office is also funding a part-time project manager to assist with the project, and a high priority is to revise the project plan, in consultation with the other project team members.

State Land Information Capture Program (SLICP) Review

A review of the SLICP has produced a technical report and an overview report with a number of recommendations to improve the SLICP program.  It offers suggestions for improving the administrative and governance arrangements for the program, as well as showing a need for more education about the program in general.  Further recommendations look at the overall SLICP requirements and technical improvements such as utilising new remote sensing platforms (LIDAR, Satellite, SONAR etc.).


2. WALIS Stakeholders in the News

Latest Achievements for the Shared Land Information Platform

SLIP was recently showcased at the Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) WA forum, held at the Burswood Convention Centre on Thursday 25 May 2006.  The seminar, entitled 'Connected Government - Yes', provided an opportunity for attendees from a wide cross-section of government and private organisations to see how the development of SLIP is progessing.  Attendees were shown "live" demonstrations of the SLIP Enabling Framework online connectivity and its application to two prototype systems (Register of Interest and Natural Resource Management).  The demonstrations showed real-time access to government's spatial information across agencies.  Guest speakers discussed their projects, achievements to date and how SLIP can facilitate joined-up government to provide online access to shared spatial information that supports cross-government policy development and business solutions. 

Feedback from the forum was very encouraging with many attendees commenting on the impressiveness of the demonstrations and the knowledge of the presenters.

Among many of the up-coming presentations on SLIP is the WALIS Forum from 13-15 September 2006 held at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre.  WALIS has allocated a "stream" of the Forum to SLIP, providing a great opportunity for all areas of SLIP to make a presentation and provide demonstrations of newly developed applications and business solutions.  Stay tuned for further details.

Electronic Land Development Process (eLDP)

(Lead Agency:  Department for Planning & Infrastructure)

eLDP Business Case Phase II continues with significant milestones achieved in the past month.  This includes the completion of a detailed and complex capture of agency integration - interfacing cost of connecting to the eLDP system for the Department of Land Information, Water Corporation, Department of Industry and Resources, Department of Environment and Western Power.  Feedback and the level of stakeholder engagement have been both positive and supportive.

The eLDP Focus area initiated a number of Government workshops with participants actively involved in determining their integration requirements and the potential costs of connecting to the eLDP system.  The WA Local Government Association, the peak advocacy organisation for Local Government bodies, indicate strong support for the work undertaken to date.

Emergency Management (EM)

(Lead Agency:  Fire & Emergency Services Authority)

The development of the SLIP EM portal has concluded, and testing has commenced.  SLIP EM infrastructure and the EmergGeo application have now been installed and configured at FESA and WAPOL (WA Police).  EmerGeo was used by the WAPOL Emergency Management Commitee to support a Counter Terrorism exercise in June and the SLIP EM team has worked closely with WAPOL to facilitate this exercise.  Bushfire analysis has now commenced and EmerGeo is to be installed at the Department of Conservation and Land Management.  Collation of the Northern Wheatbelt Emergency Services Directory has been completed and printed for distribution.

Natural Resource Management (NRM)

(Lead Agency:  Department of Agriculture)

A significant milestone has been achieved for the NRM team with news that the Australian Government Ministers have considered and approved the proposal for NAP/NHT2 Strategic Reserve funding for NRM.  The approved funding will provide a much needed impetus to the NRM activities such as the development of other information products, integration baseline data with NRM databases and establishment of data and information sharing arrangements between SLIP NRM and Australian Government information systems.

The pilot NRM portal has been updated with new information products and tools, as well as the Crown Land Information Management pilot.  NRM is expecting to finalise the Pilot Portal configuration for Phase 1 in late June.

Register of Interests (ROI)

(Lead Agency:  Department of Land Information)

ROI is progressing well with the development of a final Pilot system scheduled for completion in February 2007.  The pilot system will have the functionality to produce an interest report for the SLIP data products and add new data products as they are identified.

The ROI team held extensive consultation with both government agencies and private sector groups, in particular the Housing Industry Association and the Law Society, to ascertain how the ROI solution could meet their business needs.  Strong interest was expressed for access to the Native Title data set and the Heritage reports from the Department of Indigenous Affairs.  Ongoing work is being carried out in identifying interest types for inclusion in the data dictionary and the interest report.

The Enabling Framework (EF)

(Lead Agency:  Department of Land Information)

The development of the Enabling Framework (EF) is progressing well towards the target of delivery of an initial production system in December 2006.  This initial production system will comprise development, testing and production environments at DLI and within each environment there will be a range of servers  hosting core services such as security, metering, metadata catalogue and charging.  It will connect the infrastructure at DLI with SLIP servers located at 15 government agencies via the Internet (ServiceNet) to facilitate access to the spatial data of the agencies.

A pilot system has connected four government agencies to the SLIP Enabling Framework providing access to more than 10 data sets.  By the middle of the year the pilot will be extended to six agencies and more than 20 data sets.  By the end of 2006, considerably more data sets will be made available as the system moves from a pilot into production.

During May, the SLIP Enabling Framework team conducted four workshops demonstrating the capabilities of the pilot system and, is in the process of connecting two more agencies as well as continuing the development of  EF core services such as catalogue, data services and security.

For further details on SLIP, refer to the SLIP Collaboration Portal.

DLI Exports Expertise to China

The Department of Land Information (DLI) has signed off on a groundbreaking agreement to provide technical support to China, to assist with disaster and environmental management.  Land Information Minister Michelle Roberts said the agreements came after a technical mission to China by DLI's chief executive, Grahame Searle, earlier this year.

DLI will provide technical support to the Hunan Department of Land and Resources (HDLR), the provincial branch of the Ministry of Land and Resources, to help improve its survey and mapping information system and also to improve its satellite remote sensing capabilities; helping HDLR to monitor and predict landslides.

The MOU is to provide technical support to the academy in developing their pasture growth rate monitoring project, using DLI's satellite remote sensing services. Over-grazing of pasture lands in Northern China has led to rapid desertification - a major environmental challenge which CAAS is seeking to overcome.

http://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/media/media.nsf/news/CA621B803441FF5848257192001B3AF4?opendocument

Spatial Technology in Schools seeks Frogs

Nyindamurra Community School (Augusta) and Harmony Primary School (Atwell) are working with the "Frog Doctor" Johnny Prefumo to develop their spatial skills by mapping areas around their local schools for frog habitats.  Initial work will be to develop a poster showing various spatial aspects of frog habitats and eventually the project will combine hands on skills by engaging students to help the Frog Doctor to build a frog pond on school grounds.


3. Australian Angle

Meeting the Growing Demand for People with Spatial Skills

National bodies in the Australian spatial industry have agreed to a coordinated strategy to address the shortage spatial skills.  Demand for spatial products and services are increasing and the need for skilled people are at high levels not only in traditional disciplines like surveying, hydrography and cartography but also in growth areas like application of geographic information systems, location based services and remote sensing.

Visit http://www.crcsi.com.au/pages/news.aspx?NewsArticleID=304&Display=1 for more information and to read a communiqué from the Spatial Information and Skills Development Strategy Workshop.

Explore Australia's Marine Environment without getting your Feet Wet

An innovative spatial mapping program that explores Australia's vast marine environment and resources is now easily accessed online.  Launching the Australian Marine Spatial Information System (AMSIS), the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Resources, the Hon Bob Baldwin MP, said the new web-based mapping tool would assist in the understanding, management and exploration of Australia's marine world.

AMSIS is an easy to use interactive management tool, encompassing Australia's marine interests, environment and uses. The online program delivers over 80 layers of interactive information which the user can choose from to create personalised maps to either answer specific questions or to gain a holistic understanding of Australia's marine attributes.

http://www.ga.gov.au/news/index.jsp#amsis

Survey Detour Discovers Underwater Mountain

An underwater mountain rising 300m from the sea floor, and 5km in length has been discovered using a swath mapper onboard the National Facility Research Vessel, the Southern Surveyor.  The discovery came about unexpectedly during a voyage to investigate continental shelf processes between Cape Leeuwin and the Great Australian Bight.  The underwater mountain, named Mt Gabi by the Chief Scientist of the expedition, Professor Charitha Pattiaratchi from the University of Western Australia, is located 50kms south of Augusta on the Western Australian coast.  The unexpected find came about in April when Cameron Buchanan, a Multibeam Sonar Specialist from Geoscience Australia, took advantage of a last minute detour to the planned schedule when the vessel had to increase its fresh water supply.

Although Mt Gabi is not an unusual feature on the seabed in this region, exercises like this demonstrate that there are large areas of the sea floor that remain uncharted and scientists like Cameron Buchanan will play a valuable role completing this enormous task.

http://www.ga.gov.au/news/index.jsp#gabi

Mineral Mapping with ASTER

Geoscience Australia has developed a new remote sensing tool that will assist explorers discover Australia's future mineral wealth.  Mineral index maps generated using data from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) have put Geoscience Australia at the global forefront in the provision of remote sensing products tailored for mineral exploration.  ASTER mineral index maps have improved the way we map alteration mineralogy.  While previous studies required many months of detailed mapping and sample collection, ASTER maps enable alteration to be identified before field work is undertaken, maximising the value of time spent in the field.  They are one of the few remote sensing products to map mineralogy on a regional scale with sufficient spatial and spectral detail for mineral exploration, and are highly suited to first-pass reconnaissance and selection of exploration targets in areas of outcrop to moderate surficial cover.

http://www.ga.gov.au/ausgeonews/ausgeonews200606/aster.jsp

Young Ambassadors to attend the 2006 FIG Congress in Munich

On behalf of the Institution of Surveyors Australia, the Sydney Congress Organising Committee (SCOC) for the FIG 2010 Congress would like to sponsor four Young Ambassadors to attend the 2006 FIG Congress in Munich in October this year. 

The selection criteria (and financial support details) are on the attachment and submissions must reach the Congress Director by Friday 7 July 2006.  Successful sponsorship would involve a commitment to carry out the duties of a Young Ambassador (although not necessarily be sponsored to other events, which is at the discretion of the Organising Committee and ISA) in the four years leading to the Sydney Congress in 2010.  It is expected that more Young Ambassadors will be selected in coming years.

http://www.crcsi.com.au/pages/news.aspx?NewsArticleID=303&Display=1

Geoscience Australia Contributes to Sentinel Asia

Geoscience Australia's Sentinel bushfire monitoring system, through its Web Mapping Service (WMS) and Web Feature Service (WFS), will become a data node of Sentinel Asia providing access to Australian hotspot information.  Sentinel Asia will initially disseminate information about forest fires and then will expand its services in the future to provide data on other natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and landslides.

Sentinel Asia is modelled on the Australian Sentinel hotspot system and is a network of distributed web mapping systems consisting of three types of nodes: data provider nodes-agencies that collect and distribute satellite data; user nodes or local service providers-government departments and Non-Government Organisations; and Research and Training nodes-universities and research and development institutes.  As well as Geoscience Australia, other nodes will include the Singapore Centre for Remote Sensing and Tokyo University, which are also ready to commence operations.

http://www.ga.gov.au/ausgeonews/ausgeonews200606/inbrief.jsp#inbrief4

Release of Final Data from Airborne Geophysical Surveys over the Gascoyne and East Yilgarn Areas

Final located data, grids, and images from airborne magnetic and radiometric surveys over the Gascoyne and East Yilgarn areas were released on Wednesday, 7 June 2006.  The final datasets can be downloaded from the Geoscience Australia Geophysical Archive Data Delivery System (GADDS) facility free of charge or requested from the Department of Industry and Resources' Information Centre at the cost of $99.00 per disk (incl. GST). Final images are available for download through the GSWA Maps and Images page under Other Maps and Images.

For further information on the survey locations and release schedule for the regional survey program, visit http://www.doir.wa.gov.au/documents/gswa/gsdNews_000354_david_howard.pdf.

APEC Pandemic Response Exercise

Emergency communication and response to a human influenza pandemic was tested on 6 June when 21 APEC economies participated in a regional exercise launched in Canberra by the Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock.  It is a key initiative to combat the threat of pandemics and other emerging infectious diseases within the region.  Senior officials around the region made real-time decisions based on a hypothetical scenario.  From their usual work places, they shared information and communicate as they would in a real pandemic situation across eight different time zones.  "This is the first exercise in a series that will prepare the emergency management sector for a large-scale medical emergency," Mr Ruddock said.

All 21 members of APEC committed to participate with Chile, China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Chinese Taipei and Viet Nam taking an active role in the scenario as 'primary' participants.  Other APEC members - Brunei, Canada, Hong Kong China, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, Thailand and the US - had a less hands-on role, but will share in the information learned from the exercise.

http://www.ema.gov.au/agd/EMA/emaInternet.nsf/Page/NewsMedia#emanews

EarthData Wins $16-Million Contract to Map Papua New Guinea

EarthData International (EarthData) announced on 31 May the award of a $16 million contract by the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia to produce the first-ever high-resolution image and terrain maps of Papua New Guinea.  The Australian Government is funding the project under a memorandum of understanding with the government of Papua New Guinea.  EarthData will deploy its GeoSAR radar mapping system to complete airborne data acquisitions over the 318,000-square-kilometer area.  Mounted on a jet aircraft and using two radar bands simultaneously, the GeoSAR system will fly over the area and collect extremely accurate images and three-dimensional models of the forest canopy surface, as well as the terrain beneath the canopy.  The resulting data will be used with standard geographic information system (GIS) software to support decision-making in a variety of land management and engineering applications.

To complement the radar image maps and terrain models with detailed infrastructure information, Fugro Spatial Solutions Pty Ltd. of Perth, Australia, a team member on this contract, will be responsible for the acquisition of aerial photography over critical infrastructure in 35 individual sites throughout Papua New Guinea. Horizon Geoscience Consultants, of Sydney, Australia, EarthData's strategic partner in the Asia Pacific region for the past 2 years, will provide local project management support, as well as training to Australian Government staff on radar data interpretation.

http://www.earthdata.com/newsarticle.php?id=36

New Sustaining Member for ASIBA

ASIBA is pleased to announce ACSIS Limited is its first Sustaining Member.  "Sustaining Members provide us with long-term benefits and services," said ASIBA Chairman, Michael Easton.  "They offer essential commodities and quality products at competitive prices and are invaluable partners to our members' business interests.  ACSIS is a leading supplier to our industry and we are delighted they have agreed to formalise their long-standing relationship with us," he said.

http://www.asiba.com.au/static/index.php

Spatially Enabling Government

During the 30 March launch of "Responsive Government -­ A New Service Agenda" the 2006 e-Government Strategy by the Special Minister of State, The Hon. Gary Nairn MP, special mention was made of the importance of spatially enabling the Australian Government.  But what exactly does spatially enabling mean and why is it important?

The business of government agencies lies principally in policy development and program implementation.  These activities depend upon quality information, analysis and decision-making.  Spatial (or geographic) information is one of the many types of information used in analysis and decision-making.  It helps answer the where question in government policy development and program implementation.  In simple terms spatially enabling government means optimising the accessibility and use of spatial information in government decision-making.

For more information, visit http://www.ga.gov.au/ausgeonews/ausgeonews200606/inbrief.jsp#inbrief6

 

4. News from Around the Globe

GIS: Road Map for Health

Environmental conditions have long acted as markers for public health problems in notorious places such as the contaminated Love Canal landfill in Niagara Falls, N.Y., or the area surrounding the failed Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine.  But researchers know that more subtle geography-related influences can also wreak havoc.  Fortunately, disease sleuths have increasingly sophisticated digital maps and spatial analysis tools to help them spot problems areas before they become infamous.  Population health mapping can aggregate statistics from a variety of sources and overlay the data with digital maps to help public officials target responses to problems or decide where to focus clinical resources.

For more information, visit http://www.govhealthit.com/article94791-06-12-06-Print.

Defining and Communicating Geospatial Industry Workforce Demand

The first report produced for the US Department of Labor's High Growth Job Training Initiative has been released.  This initiative is "a collaborative effort to help team people with the jobs that are needed.  The initiative is a strategic effort to prepare workers to take advantage of new and increasing job opportunities in high-growth, high-demand, and economically vital sectors of the American economy.  The High Growth Job Training Initiative has identified the geospatial sector as one of 12 that is projected to have far-reaching impact on the US economy."  The initiative is being undertaken jointly by the Geospatial Information & Technology Association and the Association of American Geographers.  For more information, visit the project's website at http://www.aag.org/giwis/.

http://www.crcsi.com.au/pages/news.aspx?NewsArticleID=298&Display=1

Google Earth and GIS Gives Avian Flu Fight a Lift

Poultry experts are turning to Google Earth and sophisticated computer imaging to help them prepare for the expected arrival of the deadly bird flu virus in the US later this year.  Geographic Information System (GIS) technology is being used to pinpoint the location of commercial poultry flocks, feed mills and processing plants, said Sherrill Davison, professor of avian medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.  The information will be used to help create buffer zones around an infected flock to contain the H5N1 strain when it makes its US appearance.  Since the beginning of the year, experts have also been using Google Earth, which combines satellite imagery, maps and the company's search engine to span the globe.  It gives extra details including the location of buildings, schools and roads near large chicken and turkey farms and production facilities.

http://software.silicon.com/applications/0,39024653,39159208,00.htm

Geospatial Technology Gaining Acceptance

Growth in the use of spatial technologies based on maps and satellite imageries has secured acceptance for geospatial technology in India as an effective decision-making tool.  This technology is used in integrated land information systems, education sector and urban planning.  Many government agencies have now realised that this technology can provide them the much-needed tool to address the ever increasing demand for data availability. 

The first ever Indian geospatial industry survey report conducted by leading geospatial publications Geospatial Today and Spatial India, says that the market estimates for these services (domestic and export markets) is expected to record a potential growth from Rs 962 crore in the year 2005 to Rs 2,820.30 crore by 2010 at a CAGR of 14.5 per cent.

Find out more from Business Standard at http://businessstandard.com/common/storypage_c.php?leftnm=10&autono=92997.

International Society of Digital Earth Inaugurated in Beijing 

The inaugural ceremony for the International Society of Digital Earth (ISDE), the first global collaborative research program initiated by Chinese scientists, was held on 21 May in Beijing.  Digital Earth, a virtual reality planet which collects geological, geographical and space resources into one database, is expected to help economic development, environmental protection, disaster control and prevention, heritage preservation and tracking of terrorism. 

ISDE is an international non-governmental science body initiated CAS with the joint support from a dozen or so countries such as China, Canada, the US, Japan and the Czech Republic.  Headquartered in Beijing, it aims to promote academic exchange and cooperation under the concept of Digital Earth, playing a constructive role in sustainable development of the national economy and social progress, environmental protection, mitigation of calamities, protection of the world's cultural heritage and natural resources, anti-terrorism and maintenance of the political stability worldwide.

http://english.cas.ac.cn/eng2003/news/detailnewsb.asp?infono=26052

BBC Uses Aerial Imagery for London Marathon

The GeoInformation® Group recently provided the BBC with high resolution aerial imagery for its broadcast of the 2006 Flora London Marathon.  The BBC used the aerial imagery to create a seamless fly-through of the Capital, that gave 4.2 million viewers a bird's eye view of the entire route, and to pinpoint and track the position of the elite and celebrity runners using GPS technology.

The BBC has been using aerial imagery in its sports broadcasts for some time now.  Martin Webster, at the BBC, commented, "I think the benefits of using aerial imagery within the BBC broadcast of the London Marathon are twofold.  Firstly, for those viewers unfamiliar with London, the aerial imagery helps them to geographically understand the route and provides an opportunity to view London in a different form.  Secondly, the bird's eye view that the BBC created, using the aerial imagery and runner tracking system, promoted viewer interest after the elite races have finished. The feedback has been very positive."

http://www.citiesrevealed.com/news/news_frm.htm

Will the US Consider RFID Chips under the Skin for Migrant Workers?

The latest scare story relates to the appearance on American TV of VeriChip's Chairman Scott Silverman this week.  "He bandied about the idea of chipping foreigners on national television Tuesday," reported RINF.  RINF said Silverman appeared to be emboldened by the Bush Administration call to know "who is in our country and why they are here."  He told Fox & Friends that the VeriChip could be used to register guest workers, verify their identities as they cross the border, and "be used for enforcement purposes at the employer level."  There's a long journey between having a lobbyist wittering on Fox & Friends, and any policy decision, even if a former Homeland Security boss, Tommy Thompson, sits on the Verichip board - but the story shows the level of anxiety about radio frequency ID chips in society generally.

http://www.newswireless.net/index.cfm/article/2723

GIS in the Public Interest

Open source GIS: there is a rumour floating around that there is GIS software available without "ARC" anywhere in the title... and here is the really juicy part; "...its free!"  The future of GIS is browser based-GIS functionality served off of enterprise db architectures and the open source answers for both are ready for serious consideration when choosing development solutions for commercial and enterprise GIS needs.

http://www.gateway-gis.com/community/2006/05/open-source-gis.html

Can the NSA Really Find Meaningful Patterns in Phone Records?

USA Today reported 11 May that the National Security Agency (NSA) was performing "social network analysis" to detect patterns of terrorist activity in its database of US call records.  In defending the program, Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., confirmed that the White House had told him the NSA was probing calling patterns to "detect and track suspected terrorist activity."  But is that really possible?

The "tracking" part makes sense.  Assuming that intelligence had sussed out suspected terrorists, certainly the vast database could be used to track whom those people had called. 

The "detecting" part, however, is another story.  Can terrorists be spotted simply by analysing who calls whom and when "” without any other leads?

http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060530/BUSINESS01/605300315/1066

The View from Here

Adena Schutzberg writes: "I'm a big fan of homework.  I know that'll rattle a lot of cages, especially for those of you who have kids who hate it.  But, let's face it, to learn a new skill or improve at something you already know, you need to practice.  I'm going to offer you some homework topics and assignments.  I've picked out ten topics about which I get a lot of questions."

To view Directions Magazine's Ten Homework Assignments for Geospatial Practitioners, visit http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=2210&trv=1.

 

5. Upcoming Events

GeoWeb 2006

24-28 July 2006, Vancouver, Canada

GeoWeb 2006 will bring together two worlds which up to now have been largely separate: the world of professional GIS"”the world focused on the standards of the OpenGeospatial Consortium (OGC) and ISO TC/211, and the broader world of the Web"”the world focused on the standards of W3C and allied technologies. For more information, visit http://www.geoweb.org/.

UWA Science Courses Information

Wednesday 28 June 2006, University Club of Western Australia, Hackett Drive, Entrance 1, Car Park 3, Crawley

Interested in studying at university next year but want more information on courses and careers?  Talks will be held at UWA this month on Geosciences and Mining Exploration and Geographical Sciences at 6:30pm and 7:30pm.  Course advisers will be available from 6:00 - 9:00pm.  For more information, visit http://www.fnas.uwa.edu.au/home/courseinfo.

2006 GITA Annual Conference

21-23 August 2006, MCG, Melbourne

The 2006 GITA Annual Conference will provide a comprehensive and full programme of speakers, covering topics traditionally of interest to delegates as well as some new themes especially related to management of the environment, urban and rural water, and GIS in agriculture.  Delegates will also be treated to very special conference dinner and entertainment.  For more information, visit http://www.gita.org.au/Default.aspx?tabid=1012.

400 Years of Mapping Australia Conference

23-25 August 2006, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Darwin

The 400 Years of Mapping Australia Conference and exhibition are being held under the national Australia-on-the-map 1606-2006 programme of events to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first European contact with Australia.  The technical programme will run over three days and cover aspects of the mapping achievements of early European cartographers, hydrographers, land explorers and colonial land administrators.  For more information, visit: http://www.mappingsciences.org.au/, and for programme details: http://www.mappingsciences.org.au/nt/MSIA_Conf_2006/MSIA%20Conference%202006%20Notice1.pdf.

1st Indonesian Geospatial Technology Exhibition

23-27 August 2006, Jakarta Convention Centre, Jakarta

In the framework of overcoming the challenge of global rapid development in mapping and geo-spatial technology, the National Coordinating Agency for Surveys and Mapping (BAKOSURTANAL), in cooperation with PT Mediatama Binakreasi, will host the 1st Indonesian Geospatial Technology Exhibition.  The theme for the exhibition will be "The World is in Your Hand", and represents the significant role of mapping and geospatial technology as well as its application in the business and industrial world.  It will be an opportunity and platform for industries of mapping and geospatial technology to promote and socialise their products and services to the industrial, telecommunication and consultancy service sectors, as well as the general public.  For more information, visit http://www.geospatial-exh.com/home_en.php.

Map Asia 2006

29 August - 1 September 2006, Bangkok, Thailand

Map Asia leverages an international initiative aimed to provide an apt platform for the convergence, sharing and use of Geospatial technologies.  Map Asia 2006 with its theme GeoICT for Good Governance will re-emphasise the linkages between the GIT and ICTs and will promote GeoICT tool as a valuable means of effective and good governance.  For more information, visit: http://www.mapasia.org/.

CRCSI Conference 2006

12-13 September 2006, Esplanade Hotel, Fremantle

CRC-2006 ties in with the WALIS Forum 2006 and will focus on project outcomes and their adoption by users for commercial and other purposes.  Features of the two days include success stories from CRCSI projects, new markets and projects, virtual Australia session and networking opportunities across education, industry and business.  For further information, visit http://crcsi2.vividcluster.global.net.au/uploads/cc9f5b84-42e1-4f86-95e0-51a0d85aa0ee/docs/Flyer_1_-_Conference_2006.pdf.

WALIS Forum 2006

13-15 September 2006, Perth Convention Exhibition Centre, Perth

The 2006 WALIS Forum will be held on 13-15 September 2006 at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre, and will be preceded by other spatial activities during the week.  For further information refer to the Forum website (www.walis.wa.gov.au/forum) or contact David Lee Steere from the WALIS Office on (08) 9273 7695 or email davidls@walis.wa.gov.au.

Combined 5th Trans Tasman Survey Conference and 2nd Queensland Spatial Industry Conference 2006

19-23 September 2006, Cairns Convention Centre, Queensland

The theme of the Combined 5th Trans Tasman Survey Conference and the 2nd Queensland Spatial Industry Conference 2006 is "Land and Sea Spatially Connected - in a Tropical Hub" and aims to demonstrate initiatives across the spatial industry, providing a forum for ongoing discussions and interaction relating to their applicability to the community.  The Conference will draw together spatial professionals from the host state and nation, as well as those from across neighbouring seas.  For more information, visit http://www.icms.com.au/cairnsspatial2006/.

Intergeo 2006

10-12 October 2006, Munich, Germany

The 12th Intergeo conference and trade fair for geodesy, geoinformation and land management will be run in parallel with the FIG World Conference in Munich.  Expressions of Interest are currently being sought from companies interested in participating in a Pavilion designed to showcase the power and capability of the Spatial Industry in Australia and New Zealand.  For more details visit: http://www.intergeo.de/englisch/page/main/index.php.

GSDI-9: 9th International Conference of the Global Spatial Data Infrastructure

3-11 November 2006, Historical & Military Museum of Chile, Santiago, Chile

The theme for the 9th International Conference of the Global Spatial Data Infrastructure is "Spatial Information: Tool for reducing poverty".  GSDI-9 will provide opportunities to participate in and attend plenary sessions, technical sessions, regional discussions groups, workshop, poster sessions and commercial exhibits.  For more details visit: http://www.gsdi9.cl/index.html.

APSEA 2006: Asia-Pacific Spatial Excellence Awards

9 November 2006, Hilton, Brisbane, Queensland

The annual Asia-Pacific Spatial Excellence Awards are the only awards for the Asia-Pacific region that recognise, at the same event, the excellent achievements of both individuals and organisations engaged in the spatial information industry across the region.  APSEA sees a diverse range of individuals and small, medium and large private, public and academic sector organisations vie for these prestigious awards.  For more information contact (02) 6282 5793 or email apsea@asiba.com.au.  To find out how to enter APSEA 2006, visit http://www.asiba.com.au/clients/asiba/UserFiles/File/APSEA2006/APSEA06_Entrants_InfoKit.pdf.  Entries close 25 August 2006.

http://www.asiba.com.au/eventsAPSEA2006.php

13 ARSPC: Earth Observation - From Science to Solution

20-24 November 2006, National Convention Centre, Canberra

The 13th Australasian Remote Sensing & Photogrammetry Conference (ARSPC) is expected to be the largest ever staged in Australia and will bring together data providers, modellers, researchers, policy makers and end users.  The Conference will provide opportunity to discover latest tools, technologies and applications of remote sensing and photogrammetry.  For more information, visit http://www.arspc.org/.


6. Interesting Website of the Month

Bikely

Bikely helps cyclists share knowledge of good bicycle routes.  It can be quite tricky traversing a car dominated city such as Melbourne on a bike, particularly when you need to travel an unknown route to a new destination.  But, chances are, someone has cycled that way before you.  Bikely makes it easy for him or her to show you the best way.

http://www.bikely.com/

                                                                                                                                                                 

Disclaimer: The information contained in this newsletter is provided for general information purposes.  It does not constitute professional or expert advice and you must not use or rely upon it for that purpose.  WALIS and the State of Western Australia, do not guarantee and do not accept responsibility for the accuracy, currency, completeness and reliability of the information contained in this newsletter.  The opinions contained in the information do not necessarily reflect the opinions of WALIS or the State of Western Australia.  Links to other Internet sites are provided for your convenience only and they do not constitute an endorsement, approval or recommendation of the material contained in those other Internet sites.  It is your responsibility to evaluate the relevance, accuracy, completeness and reliability of material contained in those other Internet sites.