Fondren’s GIS/Data Center offers resources for mapping
Center offers free courses on geographic information systems

BY JENNIFER EVANS
Rice News staff

Where do songbirds nest on the Rice campus? How has Houston’s population changed over the past 100 years? What would happen if the Astrodome were turned into a shopping mall?

People with geographic questions such as these can find the resources to research their answers at Fondren Library’s GIS/Data Center.

		Rice faculty, students and staff can use the GIS/Data Center to access GIS software, hardware and data resources as well as print and digital map resources.

Geographic information systems (GIS) are computer-based tools that allow users to visually convey information from databases and spreadsheets — such as demographics and dates — in the form of a map, an electronic one that allows for manipulation, analysis and modeling. Rice’s GIS/Data Center has helped historians map events, architects develop site graphics, biologists see distribution of flora and fauna and civil engineers create elevation maps.

“GIS software can be applied in an endless list of disciplines,” said Kim Ricker, head of the GIS/Data Center. “And GDC staff members are here to help users understand the technology and help them apply it in their studies and research.”

Rice faculty, students and staff can use the GIS/Data Center to access GIS software, hardware and data resources as well as print and digital map resources. The center maintains and purchases both local and global GIS data sets — from Houston and Harris County to the U.S. and beyond.

“GDC staff are also here to offer one-on-one training and assistance using the software and data sets,” Ricker said. Staff can also help in integrating GIS sessions into class curriculum and research projects.

The GDC offers free, one-time short courses that provide a hands-on way to learn about GIS. The short courses are very basic, use the popular GIS software ArcGIS Desktop 9.x and strive to form a strong foundation of GIS software knowledge. They are structured to teach central concepts and provide the necessary necessary tools to complete a broad spectrum of GIS projects and analysis.

There are no prerequisites for the Introduction to GIS course. Intermediate and advanced courses, which range from mapping locations and spatially referencing data to data manipulation, are available to those who have completed the intro course or are familiar with ArcGIS Desktop 9.x.

Schedules and more information on the classes are available at http://library.rice.edu/services/gdc/training-gis. All short courses are held in Fondren Library, Room 156. Enrollment is limited to 11 people per course.

To sign up for a short course, visit the GIS/Data Center Web site, http://library.rice.edu/services/gdc/course-registrations or e-mail gisdata@rice.edu with your preferred dates and course titles.

For more information on the GIS/Data Center, visit http://library.rice.edu/services/gdc. The center is located in the basement of Fondren Library (Room B40), and its hours this fall are 9 a.m to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.