Botany GIS Lab - St. John 411A

Contact Information

Stephanie Saephan
Lab manager/Researcher
University of Hawaii at Manoa, Botany Department
3190 Maile Way, St. John 411A
Honolulu, HI 96822
Email: saephan@hawaii.edu
Phone: (808) 956-9512
Fax: (808) 956-3923

Lab hours may change each semester, so please see posted hours on the door or contact Stephanie for an appointment.

Purpose of the lab

The Botany GIS lab is located in St. John 411A. It is one of the few facilities on the Manoa campus that has the capacity and equipment to do advanced GIS research. The lab has five workstations, a 42 inch plotter, a color laserjet printer, and two high resolution scanners. Available GIS and remote sensing software include ArcGIS, Erdas Imagine, and IDRISI. In addition, Feature Analyst, LiDAR Analyst, and Urban Analyst extensions for ArcGIS are available.

In general, the GIS lab has four functions. First, it is a teaching facility offering students and faculty the chance to participate in labs and training exercises and workshops that are designed to help non-users begin using GIS software and existing users to expand their skills in such areas as understanding cartographic design and production, remote sensing, and GPS. Currently, the lab provides training and one-on-one GIS assistance including research design support to approximately 50-60 graduate students and a dozen faculty members. Second, the lab provides a forum in which students can hone the skills needed to satisfy the department's technical skills graduation requirement. The third function of the lab is to support high level faculty research. A GIS facility is rare among Botany programs and as such provides an effective recruiting tool for potential hires and collaborators (as well as prospective students). Finally, the lab provides the hardware and software (color laserjet printer, scanner, and plotter) that many students and faculty use to produce posters and other graphic materials for conference presentations and classroom teaching.

GIS Workshops

As a teaching and research facility, the GIS lab strives to provide GIS-related lectures and hands-on training to graduate students and faculty in Botany. Training workshops are GIS-related and/or technology oriented and are primarily focused on botanical/ecological issues that students are most likely to encounter in their research. These workshops are three to four hours long and are limited to 10-12 participants on a first come first serve basis with priority given to incoming students.
The topics of these workshops are primarily based on the five study concentration areas within the Botany graduate program. Current Fall 2008 workshop topics include suitability modeling and spatial statistics for botanical studies. Some past workshop topics have included introductory statistics (e.g. R, SAS), remote sensing, Google Earth, and webpage design. Workshop training guides and data sets are available on all the lab computers for student access. For more information on the workshops or one-on -one consultation, please contact the lab manager.

Current Projects

3D Campus Map

Currently the lab is conducting two projects that are undertaken by Stephanie under the guidance of Dr. David Duffy. The first project is the development of a highly realistic 3D map of the UH Manoa.campus using a combination of LiDAR and CAD/GIS data and aerial and ground photographs. The project is broken up into five phases. Phase 1 is the collection, assessment, and preparation of the needed data. Phase 2 is the extraction of building footprints, rooftops, and other features with height information from the LiDAR data. Phase 3 is the creation of building facades using aerial and ground photographs and other auxiliary information. Phase 4 is the inclusion of all mapped plants and trees on campus. Phase 5 is the creation of an interactive web or Google Earth application. Currently the project is in phase two. Changes to and completion of the project is dependant on funding and interests of parties involved.

The intention of this project is to provide a useful resource for the University. For example, the 3D map can be used for campus facilities planning and management purposes. In addition as an interactive web application, the 3D map can serve as a public relations/recruitment tool by offering virtual tours for perspective students. Also with the inclusion of over 500 tropical plants and trees on campus, the 3D map can function as a virtual botanical laboratory for students and faculty.



Other Ongoing Projects

- Wetland simulation (link to pdf…coming soon.)
- Seabird foraging (link to pdf…coming soon)
- Avian flu risk maps for Oahu (http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/duffy/nino.htm)