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Faculty & Staff |
Graduate Courses
| Facilities
| Geology
Dept. |
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| Geographic Information
Systems (GIS) is becoming the latest "buzz word" in geology.
GIS is actually a technique and approach that marries traditional
geology to new computer technology. In the past, most of the
sources of information were a geologist's own field observations and
those of his/her colleagues. In many cases, these information
sources were reported to others in the form of a map. Any particular
problem that a geologist may address could include several different
types of maps paired with theoretical models built upon general scientific
principles. The advent of the computer has changed how spatial
information can be manipulated and assimilated. |
| GIS
systems allow the geologist to gather different types of spatially
referenced data in one useable configuration. In many cases,
these are maps that have been converted into a digital form for easier
manipulation and display. GIS allows the geologist to take data
from any number of maps and combine them in a meaningful way to address
a particular problem. As the model is refined, GIS allows the
geologist to modify the map combinations accordingly to produce a
better result. Rather than create a single version as a paper
map, the data are kept in a malleable form that can be looked at in
various ways to answer different questions, all under the GIS.
It is for this reason that many federal and state agencies are utilizing
digital data and GIS in their daily operations. The U.S.G.S.
is one of the biggest users of GIS in the federal government.
GIS in the survey has included projects from basin analysis, mineral
leases, geological hazards research, in addition to the more traditional
map-making processes. |
| GIS
has been especially useful in environmental geology. The ability
to combine data sets from a variety of levels and quickly answer spatially-oriented
questions has made GIS a widely used tool. Projects incorporating
numerical models for environmental spills into a GIS framework of
population density, soils, underlying bedrock, surface hydrology,
transportation networks, etc. have become more commonplace. |
| GIS
at Bowling Green |
| At
BGSU, our GIS laboratory utilizes outstanding
computer facilities, including several
Sun workstations, large format color plotter, large format digitizer,
and many peripherals. Currently, we are the only school in Ohio
to have a geology Masters program in GIS. We have produced groundwater
pollution potential maps for the State of Ohio,and are producing flood
analysis maps for regional government organizations. Using GIS
as our primary tool, we are further refining techniques for predicting
groundwater pollution response to man's influence. Additional opportunities
to utilize GIS to help solve other geological problems as well as
opportunities to perform research within GIS itself can be explored
using these facilities. |
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GIS is an integral part of our
environmental geology program. This program is very interdisciplinary
and integrates groundwater hydrology, surface water hydrology, applied
geophysics, geochemistry, and GIS. This program provides
the broad background necessary for careers in environmental geology.
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