Wykorzystanie numerycznych modeli terenu w badaniach zmian środowiska geograficznego miasta Mysłowice

Author(s): Małgorzata Manowska,Maciej Szuba / Language(s): English Issue: 4/2015

The aim of the study is to demonstrate the usefulness of methods of analysis in GIS software, in broad studies of changes in the geographical environment of the city Myslowice. Geographical environment are created of natural and anthropogenic elements, concluded on maps for centuries. Assumed research method showed a very high possibility of using GIS software to analyze the changes, which took place in the town of Myslowice in the years 1883–1993. For this purpose, two digital elevation model (DEM) were generated by vectorization of izohips and altitude point. The first model was based on the old German Messtischblatt topographic maps at scale of 1:25 000 from the years 1883–1942. The second model was generated from Polish topographic maps at a scale of 1:10 000 from the year 1993. All these maps have been calibrated (registered) to a common coordinate system Poland 1992. Generating uneven-aged DEM also gave the opportunity to track changes in morphology on selected lines of cross-sections. Myslowice is a city of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin, in which the exploitation activity is dating back more than two hundred years. However, due to the limited number of maps the study only shows the effects of 110 years of exploitation. The usefulness of the method was confirmed in determining the precise areas of the city, which were hardest hit by the effects of mining activities. This fact was also verified in the field. As a result of the surface exploitation in several large quarries traces of underground mining operations are erased, but with a careful analysis they can be distinguished from each other. With GIS software and precise calibration of old maps is it possible to trace the changes in the components of the geographical environment, such as rivers, water reservoirs, roads, building development, afforestation. In addition, it enables the precise location of some elements of the environment that no longer exist such as old excavation of raw materials, sand, clay and limestone or traces of the former ironworks.

Wykorzystanie programów QuantumGIS i SAGA GIS do budowy cyfrowego modelu wysokościowego zlewni Grajcarka

Author(s): Grzegorz Wałek / Language(s): Polish Issue: 2/2013

In this paper use of 1:10 000 scale topographic maps and open-source GIS software to build Digital Elevation Model (DEM) with 5-meters resolution was analysed. DEM was built from contour lines vectorised in Quantum GIS using five different interpolation methods available in SAGA GIS: Ordinary Kriging, Ordinary Kriging with Block Kriging, Thin Plate Spline (Local), Thin Plate Spline (TIN), Multilevel B-Spline Interpolation. Special attention was given to the accuracy of DEM's built with those methods. DEM's were analyzed by crossvalidation of their surface with elevation points vectorised from topographic maps, which were not used in DEM interpolations. Correctness of generated drainage network was also investigated. Although construction of DEM in presented way is very time-consuming, it is often the only way to build high-resolution DEM of small catchments or other spatial units, which could be used in large-scale hydrological or geomorphological modeling.

Ocena przydatności automatycznego wyznaczania linii szkieletowych terenu do analiz geomorfometrycznych

Author(s): Marcin Jaskulski,Aleksander Szmidt / Language(s): Polish Issue: 2/2013

The aim of following article is to present and evaluate possibility of automatic extraction of terrain skeleton lines using computational methods from Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Authors describe examples of morphological analysis in geomorphology, difficulty and time-consuming of executing of this kind of research using traditional, manual methods. Topography map of quaternary ground of Lodz Region has been analyzed. Firstly terrain skeleton lines were traced using traditional ways. After that lines were generated and analyzed by using ArcGIS software with ArcHydro and SpatialAnalyst extensions. Both of received maps were compared and evaluated.

Integrated reporting vs. sustainability reporting for corporate responsibility in South Africa

Author(s): Alexandra Clayton,Jayne M. Rogerson,Isaac Rampedi / Language(s): English Issue: 29/2015

Large corporates have come under increasing pressure to conduct their business in a more transparent and responsible manner. In order for business to fulfil its obligations under the ethic of accountability stakeholders must be given relevant, timely, and understandable information about their activities through corporate reports. The conventional company reports on annual financial performance, sustainability and governance disclosures often fail to make the connection between the organisation's strategy, its financial results and performance on environmental, social and governance issues. Recognising the inherent shortcomings of existing reporting models, there is a growing trend to move towards integrated reporting. South Africa has been one of the most innovative countries in terms of integrated corporate reporting. Since 2010 companies primarily listed on the country's major stock exchange have been required to produce an integrated report as opposed to the former sustainability report. The aim in this study is to review the development of integrated reporting by large corporates in South Africa and assess the impact of the required transition from sustainability reporting to integrated reporting on non-financial disclosure of eight South African corporates using content analysis of annual reports.

Assessing accuracy of forest cover information on historical maps

Author(s): Urs Gimmi,Christian Ginzler,Matthias Müller,Achilleas Psomas / Language(s): English Issue: 146/2016

Assessing the uncertainty of historical map information is a prerequisite for using this source type for land cover reconstructions. We assessed the accuracy of forest cover information from 1930 / 1940 Swiss topographic maps (Siegfried maps) by comparing them with forest cover gained from orthophotos and terrestrial photos from the same period. Orthophotos were considered to contain the true forest cover information and consequently inconsistencies between historical maps and orthophotos were considered as true errors (over or underestimation of the forest cover on the map ). Terrestrial photos reflect the surveyors perspective in the field and we therefore used this source type to develop hypotheses on potential reasons for inaccuracy of map information. Generalized linear models were used to test the hypotheses. The results confirmed our expectation that disagreement between maps is more likely to occur near forest edges, at higher altitudes and in less accessible and visible areas. Contrary to our expectations terrain slope did not play a significant role to explain surprisingly high rates of inaccuracy occurred in forest core areas.

PROSPECTĂRILE GEOMAGNETICE DE LA SCÂNTEIA

Author(s): Cornelia-Magda Lazarovici,Carsten Mischka / Language(s): English,Romanian Issue: 1/2016

Over the time several magnetic prospectings have been performed for the investigation of the site: 1993-1994, M. Ghiţă, G. Manea; 2001-2004, Fl. Scurtu; 2007, 2015, C. Mischka; 2008, D. Micle, L. Măruia. Some of the magnetic anomalies have been verified through excavations (Surfaces I-VII/1995-2005). According to the last magnetic prospecting the site includes a very complex defensive system; two ditches surround an area of 6ha (external ditch) and respectively 4ha (internal ditch). Moreover, in the southern part another ditch has a parallel route with the two mentioned ditches. On the S and W part this ditch seems to have had a 5-8m width, while the others 3-5m. This outermost ditch does not have a clear outline on the N part. In the middle of the external ditch there is an entrance (6-7m) bordered by two parallel edges, 15m long, permitting the access. If to these ditches we add the defensive wall(crossed by our excavations in 2005), and the possible palisade (Fig. 10), as well as the entrance, we can consider the settlement as a real fortress. In the inner ditch (enclosing 4ha) 55 dwellings with massive fired clay structures have been identified; we should also consider some unburned dwelling with rectangular foundation ditches which have not given enough signals to be integrated into magnetograms.

Institutional Aspects for Improvement of the Current System for Real Property Appraisal for Tax Purposes in Moldova

Institutional Aspects for Improvement of the Current System for Real Property Appraisal for Tax Purposes in Moldova

Author(s): Olga Buzu / Language(s): English Issue: 22/2017

A new market value-based system for real property appraisal for tax purposes has been in the process of implementation in Moldova since 2004. The relevance and importance of such appraisal has been increasing with time, requesting improvements to the current mass valuation methodology and review of the roles played by diverse authorities and in particular by local governments, tax and cadastral authorities in property appraisal for tax purposes. The article presents a comparative analysis of diverse options for funding and handling mass real property valuation efforts. Suggestions have been developed to perform property revaluation intended to update databases and to expand the current tax base.

Flood Vulnerability Usage for Flood Risk Assessment in the Republic of Moldova

Flood Vulnerability Usage for Flood Risk Assessment in the Republic of Moldova

Author(s): Vasile Grama,Agostino Avanzi,Lucia Căpățînă,Enrico Frank,Vitalie Dilan / Language(s): English Issue: 21/2016

Vulnerability is the extent of harm, which can be expected under certain conditions of exposure, susceptibility and resilience. The most recent flood events in 2008 and 2010, occurred on the territory, demonstrated that the country is vulnerable to inundation. The concept of vulnerability covers three dimensions: social, economic, and environmental. In this paper the focus will be given on the economic dimension of the flood vulnerability. In the framework of the Management and Technical Assistance Support to Moldova Flood Protection Project a damage model was applied at a national scale using three land-use classes. Evaluation of economic damages has been performed using depth-damage curves for each land-use type. These depth-damage functions have been built taking into account data and functions found in literature and the particular characteristics of assets in Moldova.

Identifying and Using the Natural and Human Resources Found in the Aghireșu Fabrici – Băgara Region

Identifying and Using the Natural and Human Resources Found in the Aghireșu Fabrici – Băgara Region

Author(s): Florina Voicu / Language(s): English Issue: 21/2016

Natural and human resources are the main vectors for the development of any territory. The scientific substantiation of these resources is an important pillar of territory valorisation. Writing projects for the valorisation of existing resources can contribute to the preparation and substantiation of possible development projects eligible for EU or national funding. The natural and human resources in the Aghiresu Fabrici - Bagara region have not been valorised enough for many reasons: privatisation of processing units, migration of the young workforce to the city, lack of interest and involvement of young people in learning this activity and the lack of a youth training centre that could help the youth acquire knowledge and experience in extractive and processing industries. The present study is aimed at identifying the natural resources in this region and at proposing a customised valorisation that can lead to its harmonious and sustainable development. Potential or existing investors can support this development by attracting funds to be invested in this region.

Smart City as a Solution to Overcoming Crisis Situations

Smart City as a Solution to Overcoming Crisis Situations

Author(s): Alexandra Nadia Cîrdei,Daniela Răboj / Language(s): English Issue: 28/2020

In the current context it is necessary to find solutions to support the smooth running of day to day activities, specific to a modern society, an urban environment, and smart cities can respond effectively to many such challenges.This article presents the elements with which surveying can contribute to the development of a plan for smart city and also proposes several solutions, which can become part of a smart city in Romania, contributing to the sustainable development of cities.The solutions presented come in response to the current challenges that people face and can continue to be used for the development of the society, especially since other countries have successfully implemented part of such solutions and the European Union supports the implementation of such project.

Smart Value Report

Smart Value Report

Author(s): Daniela Răboj,Alexandra Nadia Cîrdei / Language(s): English Issue: 28/2020

The smart value report is useful in a smart market. This phenomenon is shaping an interdisciplinary attention amongst researchers. The purpose of this article is to identify a research scheme so that in the future, researchers can make valuable contributions.This paper presents a lot of aspects used to describe the operating mechanism of the value report through blockchain technology. Our proposal consists in the schematic realization of a smart value report for real estate, in order to facilitate its execution, advantages and methods of implementation of this report. The smart value report aims to reduce costs and improve efficiency methods in the domain of real estate appraisal.

Study on the Evolution of the Displacement and Deformation of the Surface Produced by the Exploitation of Iron Deposits in the Mining Perimeter of Ghelari, Hunedoara County, Romania

Study on the Evolution of the Displacement and Deformation of the Surface Produced by the Exploitation of Iron Deposits in the Mining Perimeter of Ghelari, Hunedoara County, Romania

Author(s): Ioan Voina,George Emanuel Voicu,Florina Voicu / Language(s): English Issue: 28/2020

The mining activities for the exploitation of the iron deposits often lead to massive deformation and displacement of rocks, with major consequences on the civil and industrial buildings on the surface, sometimes even including the loss of human lives. The mining activity in the research area have had in time a series of negative effects on the soil and human settlements. The first manifestations of the deformation were the appearance of cracks in the monumental building of the Orthodox Church of Ghelari, as well as to some houses in the influence area of the mining exploitation.The great degradation in the perimeter of Ghelari is well-known. In time, a series of submergence of the land due to the mining activities was signalled. The present paper intends to present a study on the character and the amplitude of the phenomenon of mining subsidence as a result of the anthropic activity mentioned above.

Toward the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Testing the Capability of Machine Learning in Predicting Normal Gravity

Toward the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Testing the Capability of Machine Learning in Predicting Normal Gravity

Author(s): Bernard Kumi-Boateng,Yao Yevenyo Ziggah / Language(s): English Issue: 28/2020

As the world enters the fourth industrial revolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, virtual and augmented reality, researchers like geodesist have been challenged with the task to apply and ascertain the capabilities of such technologies in solving real life problems. Machine learning which a subset of AI is increasingly being applied as alternative predictive tool to solve geospatial problems. In this study, the normal gravity is considered. The objective of the presented work is to test the capabilities of machine learning approaches (strengths and weaknesses) in evaluating (predicting) normal gravity. Looking at the current fourth industrial revolution where machine learning is at its centre stage, the main motivation of this study is to seek answers to the following questions: can machine learning be used to create a normal gravity prediction model?; and can the machine learning model predict normal gravity values with sufficient accuracy? In line with these questions, the study applied the supervised learning approach to develop Backpropagation Neural Network (BPNN), Radial Basis Function Neural Network (RBFNN), Group Method of Data Handling (GMDH), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Least Squares Support Vector Machine (LSSVM) and Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS) models. Statistical analysis revealed good prediction accuracy for all the proposed models. In comparison, the RBFNN achieved the best RMSE, NRMSE, MAPE, VAF and PI values of 2.93E-05 mGal, 5.97E-10%, 2.20E-09%, 99% and 1.9, respectively.

Granica w badaniach historycznych przy wykorzystaniu serwerów GIS

Author(s): Romualda Piotrkiewicz / Language(s): Polish Issue: 4/2020

This article presents the possibilities of using geographic information systems (GIS) by scientists analysing the process of shaping administrative borders. This still evolving and perfected technology used for introducing, collecting, processing and visualising spatial data provides the researchers with previously unattainable possibilities of data analysis. It is certainly a milestone in historical research on geographic and cultural environments as it carries many new perspectives which not only pertain to analysing spatial data, but also map-making. The examined or presented space ceases to be a “colour agreed upon” on paper, and becomes a precisely localised area that can be seen in the old and contemporary form in multiple shots. With such possibilities, history, this synonym of passing time, becomes a living picture.

Digitale Werkzeuge zur Analyse von Straßen und Wasserwegen als Rückgrat eines vormodernen Märktenetzwerks in Zentral- und Ostmitteleuropa

Author(s): Niels Petersen,Bart Holterman,Angela Huang Ling / Language(s): German Issue: 3/2021

"In the late Middle Ages, Central Europe was considered an important transit region for long-distance trade in goods imported over the Baltic and Black Seas, as well as from the urbanized areas of Flanders and Eastern Europe. At the same time, Central Europe displayed remarkable diversity in terms of language and ethnicity, which impacted intermediary trade and trade practices as a whole. A number of very significant trade routes crisscrossed central Europe and facilitated both north-south and east-west traffic through the area. A digital survey and detailed mapping of these premodern road connections are providing new insights and are allowing quantitative analyses of trade and traffic. Network analysis lends itself as a basis for further research. If one understands roads and places as a physical network, there are various elements that merit consideration, including, for example, the locations and dates of fairs, customs posts, staples, and ports, all of which can be viewed as nodes. The highways and regional routes are accordingly to be addressed as edges. Both can be weighted by linking them with statistical sources. Customs registers, for example, provide information about transport frequency and the value of transported goods. This article presents various existing applications of digital cartography, especially the Viabundus map of premodern transport. They are intended to encourage additional investigations for central Europe. Such studies would allow for a more thorough contextualization of trading cities like Cracow in the supra-regional transport network and thereby foster a better understanding of related economic developments.

The Most Successful Trading Hub in Late Imperial Russia: Using Historical GIS to Map Riga as a Global Port City

Author(s): Katja Wezel / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2021

In the first decade of the twentieth century, Riga became imperial Russia’s most successful trading hub in terms of sales volume. This concluded a development which began in the 1860s with the rapid expansion of Russia’s railroad network, the rise of supplies of agricultural products, and the increase of Riga’s trade contacts on a global scale. This article uses historical GIS to display the agglomeration of trade contacts on the supplier side, i.e. central Russia, and the rising demand in Western Europe, the Americas, and Australia. The article’s GIS visualizations allow the study of Riga’s development into a global trading hub and the city’s increased industrialization. The article argues that the sharp increase of sales volume was due to two developments: Riga’s successful expansion of exports, including new products such as eggs and butter, and a rise of imports due to the increased need of various raw materials for Riga’s native industry. The article also uses GIS to demonstrate the variety of ethnic backgrounds of Riga’s business owners, which included Baltic Germans, Jews, Latvians, Russians, and Poles. A micro-study of Riga’s biggest industry at the time, the rubber-processing factory “Provodnik,” concludes the argument underlining the incorporation of Riga into the global trade network prior to World War I.

Digital Spatial Methods for Soviet-German History: An Investigation of German Prisoners of War in the Soviet Union, 1941–1956

Author(s): Susan Grunewald / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2021

This article explores the methodology of creating a geographic information system (GIS) in order to reach new historical conclusions that can otherwise not be reached due to the nature of Soviet archival sources. The article uses the case of German prisoners of war (POWs) of World War II in the Soviet Union to illustrate how digital methods can lead to new research findings. It shows the exact methods the author used to build and refine the GIS as well as the iterative process of developing new maps and research questions. The results are historical conclusions that could only partially be answered solely using archival documents, memoirs, and interviews. The case of the POWs thus serves as a call for similar studies to continue to be undertaken for history in general. By exploring the steps taken to create the maps, the author hopes to be transparent about the amount of time a project like this can require, while also showing how rewarding it can be. Initial results for the POW study have been substantial and many other scholars can benefit from the methods used. Finally, the article concludes with the introduction of a collaborative historical spatial-historical project known as the “World Historical Gazetteer,” which provides mapping services and serves as a data store for digital, data-driven historical scholarship. The author shows how her small subset of spatial historical data can be contributed to this larger system, which will help scholars not only to further their own research, but also to engage with other scholars around the world who are interested in similar historical periods and geographic locations.

Mechanisms of the overcoming the digital inequality of the population in Ukraine: interoperable governance, educational technologies of artificial intelligence and geoinformational startups

Author(s): Oleksandr Valentinovich Karpenko,Anton Osmak,Yulia Karpenko / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2020

The article deals with the theoretical substantiation of the mechanisms of overcoming the digital inequality of the population in Ukraine, among which the main ones have been defined as follows: creation of interoperable governance systems, introduction of educational algorithms of artificial intelligence and application of geo-information technologies (startups). Digital inequalities are classified as technical, inclusive, educational and economic. It has been proven that digital education of the future must be based on individual contextual learning, which is based on technological capacity, inclusion and interaction of teachers and students within personalized curricula. It has been substantiated that there is the necessity to create in (or at) public authorities centers of interoperable governance – organizational and technological complexes of intellectually organized workplaces of public officials, experts-analysts and specialists-communicators who carry out modeling, analysis, forecasting, graphic visualization of the situation by means of digital software, technical and communicational tools to support decision-making based on neural network technologies and artificial intelligence algorithms. A model of interaction (movement) of informational and communicational flows and influences of a typical center of interoperable governance has been developed. The use of the visual representation of spatial data and digital services of geo-information systems is recommended on the example of the EasyWay startup, a digital logistics system of public transport routes to ensure the effectiveness of the centers of interoperable governance.

Successful Completion of an International Project of the Department of Natural Sciences at New Bulgarian University

Author(s): Daniela Pilarska,Christa Schafellner,Gernot Hoch,Margarita Georgieva,Georgi Georgiev,Plamen Mirchev / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2021

The paper presents the results of a successfully completed international project of the Department of Natural Sciences titled “Monitoring and identification of the entomopathogenic fungus Entomophaga maimaiga in Lymantria dispar populations” and funded by the National Research Fund in 2017-2019. Investigating the distribution of E. maimaiga in Austria and Bulgaria in 2018-2019 shows that the pathogen has expanded its range to the west and reached Lower Austria. E. maimaiga has been identified in Bulgaria as well and has become part of the natural enemy complex of L. dispar.

20 Years of Operation of the Agricultural Land Market in the Republic of Moldova: Achievements and Perspectives

Author(s): Tudor Bajura,Efim Zubco / Language(s): English Issue: 33/2022

Being at the stage of 20 years of operation, the agricultural land market in the Republic of Moldova collided with several socio-economic problems, which limited (partially) the dynamic development of this market. Although in the process of identifying the market prices of agricultural land in the Republic of Moldova, different evaluation methods are widely used, the method, based on comparable prices, is the preferable one, the most often used. At the same time, this method is the most dependent on the stability of the purchasing power of the national currency - the Moldovan lei. The sudden increase in the level of inflation in the last two years has disorientated the participants of the land market and negatively influenced both the number of transactions for the sale and purchase of agricultural land, as well as the area of land included in the market circuit. The deeper analysis of the current state, as well as the elaboration of reasoned recommendations, regarding overcoming the crisis situation on the agricultural land market in the Republic of Moldova, is the main purpose of this publication.