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The WHOCC provides a number of skills and services to the Public Health and other research arenas, with a focus on geospatial data gathering and analysis. Select any of the links below for more details on WHOCC lab techniques and sample cartographic animations and GIS-derived maps. |
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Lab Services and Skills |
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WHOCC personnel provide research and training in GIS applications and GIscience. The lab works with both the ESRI suite of ArcGIS products and Intergraph’s Geomedia. We also use a variety of additional programs or applications and even develop some of our own applications. We pride ourselves on providing a “vendorless” GIS environment, focused more on data analyses and hypothesis testing. Shown here a screenshot of ArcGIS 9.0 showing a Kernel Density Analysis of anthrax in Kazakhstan. |
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Geographic animation is a growing technique in spatial analysis to understand the relationships between space and time. We use a variety of software packages both within and outside of the GIS environment to develop animations of disease spread, epidemics, and animal movements. Several of these are available on our website. Shown here a cartographic animation of the 1878 yellow fever epidemic of New Orleans. |
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The WHOCC is actively involved in the application and development of PDA technologies for geospatial data collection and field support of ongoing projects. We use ESRI’s ArcPad and ArcPad application developer software to create project-specific data collection templates and integrate these with GPS linked PDA’s for digital data capture in the field. We also do grid sampling with Field Rover software. We are also beginning to develop and utilize this technology for real-time internet based data analyses. Shown here Frances Currin mapping locations in Mexico (left) and a close-up of a Dell Axim 5 with a Pharos CF-GPS mapping locations at an offshore oil platform. |
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The WHOCC is active in both academic and applied research focused on the use of advance spatial models and spatial statistics. We work with a variety of spatial techniques that focus on global, local, and time-space clusters. We are also working to develop SAS-based methods for assessing temporality with spatial auto-correlation techniques. Shown here the output from a Gi*(d) analysis performed using ClusterSeer2 (www.terraseer.com) to evaluate clustering of yellow fever mortalities in New Orleans during the 1878 epidemic. |
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We use a number of remote sensing techniques and data sources to answer questions specific to disease ecology and natural resource distribution. The lab is equipped with ERDAS Imagine remote sensing software. Additionally, we work closely with the LSU Earth Scan Laboratory for remotely sensed imagery of coastal areas and the pelagic environment. Shown here a screenshot of a tasseled-cap transformation of a LandSat 7 TM+ image for southern Texas. |
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Internet GIS servers are a fast growing component of the GIS environment. WHOCC members work closely with the CADGIS lab to develop web-based GIS applications, online data entry systems, and digital maps. We work extensively with the Atlas online digital database for Louisiana GIS developed by Farrell Jones. Shown here a screenshot of the WHOCC’s Chagas map webmap interface. An online databasing and mapping tool for Chagas surveillance in Veracruz, Mexico. |
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The LSU WHOCC is active in the application of acoustic and VHF radio telemetry for understanding animal movements. Specifically, WHOCC personnel are involved in tracking white-tailed deer to determine behaviors during an anthrax season in West Texas, sharks to understand habitat needs in Louisiana, and gopher tortoises to understand population health, disease ecology, and survival in eastern Louisiana. Shown here the tracks of two nurse sharks in the Dry Tortugas National Park (left) and of four smooth dogfish near Martha’s Vineyard (right). |
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The WHOCC has a number of projects dedicated to the development and analysis of historical disease data sets. These prove to be very valuable when evaluating disease diffusion, clustering, and spatio-temporal patterns. Shown here the output from a Gi*(d) analysis of the 1906 and 1907 typhoid outbreaks of Washington, DC.
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© LSU WHOCC 2005 |
