Course Overview

This intensive course introduces different components of Geospatial analysis and their applications in Anthropology: Remote Sensing (RS), Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Global Positioning System (GPS), and their integration. The course covers basic concepts necessary to work with geospatial data. We pay particular attention to research set-up and design, and the use of specialized software, such as ArcGIS and Erdas Imagine via hands-on activities. By the end of the course, participants should understand:

• How geospatial data sources can be relevant to their research
• How to georeference geospatial data
• How to collect GPS points and incorporate them into a georeferenced map
• How to run basic geospatial analyses
• How to develop survey questions specific to the collection of geospatial data

Participants will be exposed to the basic features of ArcGIS and Erdas Imagine (GIS and remote sensing software) and will understand the types of analyses that can be conducted with the software including detection of change and geospatial analysis.

Each section (5 days, 10 sections) of the course will comprise a lecture or demonstration and an interactive component. Interactive sections include discussion of individual problems and hands-on use of software or tools (e.g., GPS).

Course Requirements

It is highly recommended that all participants come with a laptop that has the ability to run Windows-based software programs. Participants may be asked to install additional demo or free software during the course.