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Affiliated Research Organizations
Alexandria Digital Library Project (ADL)
ADL began in 1995, digitizing maps and other geographically referenced
materials and developing ways for accessing them. The project is housed
in UCSB's main library. Stage 2 of the Alexandria adventure began
in 1999 with the Alexandria Digital Earth Prototype (ADEPT), funded
by the National Science Foundation until 2004. ADEPT aims to use the
digital earth metaphor for organizing, using, and presenting information
at all levels of spatial and temporal resolution.
Geography faculty involved with ADL: Michael Goodchild, Ray Smith,
Terry Smith (Director).
Information about ADL and ADEPT can be found on its website, http://www.alexandria.ucsb.edu/.
Biogeography Lab
The UCSB Biogeography Lab was originally established in 1991 within
the Department of Geography to conduct basic and applied research
on the ecology, distribution and conservation status of species and
ecosystems with the aid of geographic information systems and remote
sensing.The Lab has moved to the Donald
Bren School of Environmental Science & Management at the University
of California, Santa Barbara. Research to date has focused on regional
scale mapping and modelling of vegetation cover types, wildlife distributions,
and long-term vegetation change, as well as on methods for assessing
the accuracy of vegetation maps. Recent work has included designing
optimal networks of nature reserves for protecting biodiversity. Most
work has concentrated on the region of California and the western
United States. Research grants are administered by the Institute
for Computational Earth System Science.
The Lab is directed by Frank Davis
and managed by David Stoms.
Professor Davis is an affiliated faculty member of the Geography Department.
Information about the Lab can be found on its website: http://www.biogeog.ucsb.edu.
Center for Spatially Integrated Social
Science (CSISS)
Founded in 2000, CSISS is funded by the National Science Foundation
under its program of support for infrastructure in the social and
behavioral sciences. Its programs focus on the methods, tools, techniques,
software, data access, and other services needed to promote and facilitate
a novel and integrating approach to social science.
Geography Department faculty involved with CSISS: Michael Goodchild
(Principal Investigator), Helen Couclelis, Terry Smith, Stuart Sweeney.
Information about CSISS can be found on its website, http://www.csiss.org/.
Haptic Soundscapes
Formed in 1998, the Haptic Soundscapes research team is based at
University of California at Santa Barbara and Florida State University.
It involves interdisciplinary researchers from the Departments of
Geography, Psychology, Music, and Computer Science. The researchers'
main interests are: enabling access to maps, diagrams, and graphs
without the need for vision; sound in geographic visualization and
human-computer interaction; the use of force-feedback (haptic) devices
for human-computer interaction; sonification/ perceptualization/visualization
of data (particularly geographic); multimodal human-computer interaction;
and the application of this research to areas beyond visual impairment.
Funding has been provided by the "Research Across the Disciplines
Program" through the Office of Research at UCSB, and by the Department
of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation, National
Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation.
Geography Department faculty involved with Haptic Soundscapes: Reginald
Golledge. Project Director: Matt Rice (a graduate student).
Information about Haptic Soundscapes can be found on its website:
http://garnet.acns.fsu.edu/~djacobso/haptic/hapticmain.html.
Institute for Computational Earth System
Science (ICESS)
Formed in 1994, ICESS's mission is to provide a distributed, interdisciplinary
computer environment for the promotion and support of research and
research education in Earth system science; an interdisciplinary environment
and computer-related service that enhances the excellence and competitive
advantage of UCSB global change research; a center of excellence to
provide
visibility and aid in the attraction of top faculty and students to
UCSB; and an
efficiently-run business operation and administration that supports
research. ICESS is funded by various federal and state agencies, including
NASA, NSF, NOAA, and the Department of Navy.
Geography Department faculty involved with ICESS: Catherine Gautier,
Leal Mertes, Dar Roberts, Dave Siegel, Ray Smith, Libe Washburn.
Geography-affiliated faculty involved with ICESS: Frank Davis, Jeff
Dozier, Tom Dunne, John Melack.
Information about ICESS can be found on its website: http://www.icess.ucsb.edu/.
National Center for Geographic Information
and Analysis (NCGIA)
Founded in 1988, NCGIA is an independent research consortium dedicated
to basic research and education in geographic information science.
The three member institutions are the University of California, Santa
Barbara; the University at Buffalo; and the University of Maine. The
consortium was formed as a response to a competition for funding from
the National Science Foundation, and continues to receive much of
its funding from that source.
Geography Department faculty involved with NCGIA: Michael Goodchild
(Chair of Executive Committee), Keith Clarke (Director, NCGIA Santa
Barbara), Richard Church, Helen Couclelis, Reginald Golledge, Joel
Michaelsen, Dan Montello, Terry Smith, Waldo Tobler.
Information about NCGIA can be found on its website, http://www.ncgia.ucsb.edu/.
Ocean Physics Laboratory (OPL)
The Ocean Physics Laboratory (OPL) was started in 1978 by Professor
Tommy Dickey. The original name was the Ocean Physics Group, which
was used while Professor Dickey was at the University of Southern
California. In January 1996 the group moved to the University of California
Santa Barbara (UCSB) where it presently resides. OPL has a complementary
staff of research scientists, engineers, graduate students and undergraduate
students. Goals are to study physical, bio-optical, and biogeochemical
processes in the world's oceans with the most advanced instrumentation.
Research of the OPL has been funded by NSF, ONR, NOAA, NASA, and MMS.
Geography Department faculty involved with OPL: Tommy Dickey.
Information about OPL can be found on its website: www.opl.ucsb.edu.
Remote Sensing Research Unit (RSRU)
Founded in 1970 by Jack Estes, and directed by him until his death
in 2001, RSRU is part UCSB's Geography Department. Research is conducted
by staff and graduate students, and has covered a wide range of topics
in advanced image analysis, large spatial databases, accuracy assessment,
ecosystem analysis and modeling, land use and land cover mapping,
population and demographic analysis, agricultural studies, coastal
zone research, marine pollution monitoring, and endangered species
habitat mapping and analysis. Projects have been funded by numerous
federal, state, private industry, nongovernmental, and international
organizations.
Information about RSRU can be found on its website: http://keystone.geog.ucsb.edu/.
Research Center for Virtual Environments
and Behavior RECVEB)
Established in 1998, RECVEB is a multi-disciplinary research organization
devoted to understanding the complex interplay of computer-generated
virtual environments and human behavior. It is funded by the National
Science Foundation's "Knowledge and Distributed Intelligence"
program.
Geography Department faculty affiliated with RECVEB: Dan Montello,
Reginald Golledge.
Information about RECVEB can be found on its website: http://www.psych.ucsb.edu/research/recveb/index.htm.
Research Unit on Spatial Cognition and
Choice (RUSCC)
RUSCC is located within the Geography Department at UCSB. Its purpose
is to encourage multi-disciplinary research on Spatial Behavior. Some
of
the joint research is conducted by its associate and corresponding
participants and is published in non-geography journals or in non-US
journals. RUSCC is funded by the UCSB's Department of Geography and
the National Science Foundation's Directorates for Education and Human
Resources and Human Resource Development
Geography Department faculty involved in RUSCC: Professors Reginald
Golledge (Director), Helen Couclelis, Michael Goodchild, Dan Montello,
and Waldo Tobler
Information about RUSCC can be found on its website: http://www.geog.ucsb.edu/ruscc/ruscc.html.
Soil Science Group
The Soil Science Group is based in UCSB's Geography Department and
is
responsible for training students and for conducting basic research
in the critical role that soil plays in human affairs and global functioning.
Geography Department faculty involved in the Soil Science Group:
Oliver Chadwick (Director).
Information about the Soil Science Group can be found on its website:
http://www.geog.ucsb.edu/pedology/.
Terrestrial Plant and Ecosystem Ecology
Founded in 2004, the Terrestrial Plant and Ecosystem Ecology group
was formed to help attract and train graduate students in plant and
ecosystem ecology. It involves, interactively, four campus departments:
(1) Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology (EEMB), (2) Geography,
(3) Environmental Studies (ES), and (4) the Bren School for Environmental
Science and Management.
Geography Department faculty involved in the Soil Science Group:
Oliver Chadwick, Dar Roberts, and Chris Still.
Information about the plant ecology group can be found on its website:
http://www.lifesci.ucsb.edu/eemb/resources/tepee/index.html
Vehicle Intelligence and Transportation
Analysis Laboratory (VITAL)
Although transportation studies at UCSB's
Geography department began approximately a decade prior, VITAL was
established in 1997. Its mission is to research transportation: specifically,
Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and applications of remote
sensing to transportation infrastructure management. VITAL is part
of the NCGIA at UC Santa Barbara, and is currently funded by US DOT,
a leading National Consortium on Remote Sensing in Transportation-Infrastructure.
USDOT (FHWA) and Caltrans provided earlier funding.
Geography Department faculty involved with
VITAL: Michael Goodchild (Principal Investigator), Richard Church
(Principal Investigator).
Information about VITAL can be found on
its website, http://www.ncgia.ucsb.edu/vital/.
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