GEOG 586
Geographic Information Analysis

Lesson 1 Overview

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Spatial data is special and can be problematic. However, as we will see later in this course, there are instances when this can be useful, so understanding how we deal with it is important.

Modifiable Areal Unit Problem
Figure 1.0. Modifiable Areal Unit Problem
Credit: Blanford, © Penn State University, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

  • List four major problems in the statistical analysis of geographic information: autocorrelation, the modifiable areal unit problem, scale dependence, edge effects.
  • Identify and discuss the implications of the Modifiable Areal Unit Problem.

Checklist

Lesson 1 is one week in length. (See the Calendar in Canvas for specific due dates.) The following items must be completed by the end of the week. You may find it useful to print this page out first so that you can follow along with the directions.

Lesson Roadmap
Step Activity Access/Directions
1 Work through Lesson 1 You are in the Lesson 1 online content now. Be sure to carefully read through the online lesson material.
2 Reading Assignment Before we go any further, you need to complete the reading from the course text plus an additional reading from another book by the same author:
  • Chapter 1 in the Lloyd textbook, pages 1-21.
  • Chapter 3, The Modifiable Areal Unit Problem, pages 29-44 in Lloyd, C. D. (2014). Exploring Spatial Scale in Geography. West Sussex, UK: Wiley Blackwell. This text is available electronically through the PSU library catalog. You will need to be logged into the Library through your PSU account and then can access the chapter here.
After you've completed the readings, go back into the course lesson, work through the interactive assignment and test your knowledge with the quiz.
3 Weekly Assignment Examine the Modifiable Areal Unit Problem while analyzing voting results
4 Term Project Post term-long project topic idea to the project topic discussion forum in Canvas.
5 Lesson 1 Deliverables
  1. Complete the quiz
  2. Complete the Project 1 activities - the materials for this project and where to find them are described on the 'Weekly Assignment' page.
  3. Post your project topic idea to the project topic discussion forum in Canvas.

Questions?

Please use the 'Discussion Forum' to ask for clarification on any of these concepts and ideas. Hopefully, some of your classmates will be able to help with answering your questions, and I will also provide further commentary where appropriate.