----------------------------Original message----------------------------
 
From: Marshall Feldman <[log in to unmask]>
Subject:      Spatial Data Analysis Summary (Long
Date:         Fri, 26 May 1995 17:21:55 EDT
To: [log in to unmask]
Message-Id: <[log in to unmask]>
Organization: The University of Rhode Island
 
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    Since this might substitute for one of our current planning methods
courses, it might also have to spend some time on things like population
projections, census data, etc.
    Does anyone out there teach a course like this?  Do any of you have
ideas or suggestions about such a course?  Two things of particular
concern are textbooks and software.  Can anyone suggest a textbook that
would be appropriate?  What about software with general purpose
statistical capabilities and the ability to make decent, presentation-quality
analytical maps?  One of the things I've learned the hard way is that any
software like this would have to be extremely user-friendly or else the
software becomes the focus of the course.  While bright, some of these
students have minimal computer experience, and I can't imagine using an
algorithmic package in this course: this rules out S+, SAS (even with
ASSIST, SAS GRAPH is way too complicated), and ARC/INFO.  Ideally,
the software should be cheap and run on fairly basic PC's (but this may be
wishful thinking).
    Please let me know what you think, and if there's sufficient response
I'll summarize and post to this list.  Thanks for your time.
 
Well, there certainly was sufficient response.  The subject appears to interest
many people
from diverse disciplines.  Replies ranged from, "let me know what you find out"
to "I've
been doing this for several years."  Some replies discussed fairly elementary
approaches,
others strongly advised that such a course could only be taught to students wit
several
semesters of aspatial statistics under their belts.
 
2 Descriptions of Courses on the Subject
 
    2.1     Courses Emphasizing Statistics
 
        2.1.1 Lynn Rosentrater a graduate student in the Department of
Geography,
University of Oregon ([log in to unmask]) took a course called Geographic
Data
Analysis using Chapman and Monroe (1993) and Minitab for Windows.  She also TA'
a course called Statistics for Social Scientists which uses SPSS and Norusis
(1990).
 
        2.1.2 Dartmouth College (Adrian Bailey)
 
Megan Blake also recommends Dr. Adrian Bailey ([log in to unmask]) at
Dartmouth who used spatial autocorrelation considerably and she believes has
also has
taught a statistical methods class like this.
 
        2.1.3  Duke University
 
Richard Smith taught a course in spatial statistics at Duke a couple years ago.
It was a
little more theoretical than what you have described, though most of the
students were in
an environmental science curriculum. You might want to contact him.  I don't
know his
Cambridge e-mail address, but he still has one at UNC, which I believe he check
now
and then: [log in to unmask]  -- Patrick Crockett, [log in to unmask]
 
        2.1.4  Edith Cowan University (Lyn Bloom, [log in to unmask])
 
I do run such a course (called MAT5104 Spatial Data Analysis) here at Edith
Cowan
University as part of our MSc (Mathematics and Planning) degree.  At present I
am using
Upton & Fingleton (1985, vol. 1) covering most of the material in Chapters 1-4
with
supplementary material on spatial EDA and geostatistics from Cressie (1991) and
Isaaks
and Srivastava (n.d.).
    Software is a problem but I have been using MINITAB 10 for Windows (with
appropriate macros) and also the public domain Geostatistics package GEOEAS.
The
students also have access to IDRISI and MapInfo.
 
Here is the course content:
 
1   Exploratory data analysis of spatial data.
 
2   The Identification of Pattern:  alternative patterns, quadrat counts,
distance methods,
    spatial mapping methods.
 
3   The Estimation of Spatial Intensity:  quadrat methods, line transects,
distance methods,
    areal methods.
 
4   Spatial Autocorrelation:  randomization, Monte Carlo approach, normal
approximation,
    join-count statistics, Moran's I statistic, Geary's c statistics,
correlograms.
 
5   Inter-type Relations:  bivariate point patterns, analysis using quadrats,
analysis using
    transects, distance analysis, spatial rank correlation.
 
6.  Spatial Prediction:  triangulation, h-scatterplots, variograms, ordinary
kriging.
 
        2.1.5 University of Idaho (Scott Morris)
 
The Geography Department at the University of Idaho offers a 300-level course
called
"spatial analysis."  It is taught by Scott Morris and uses Clark and Hosking.
The course
is part of the geography core and has a 200-level statistics class as a
prerequisite.  The
class goes through the glm with some emphasis on cluster and factor analysis.
 
        2.1.6  Indiana University (Daniel Knudsen)
 
Daniel Knudsen ([log in to unmask]) at Indiana University (Geography)
teaches
a similar course.  I gather he uses Clark and Hosking as well as Hanushek and
Jackson.
 
        2.1.7  Iowa State (Noel Cressie)
 
Noel Cressie teaches a course like this at Iowa State.  He was visiting Ohio
State and
teaching a seminar on Spatial Statistics.  The textbook written by him would be
good for
such a course. -- John P Lawrence.
 
        2.1.8  Michigan State University (Bruce Wm. Pigozzi
[log in to unmask])
 
I teach a course somewhat like what you describe (Quantitative Methods for
Geographers
and Planners).  It attracts about 50-60 students each fall semester.  Recent
texts: Earickson
and Harlin (1994), McGrew and Monroe (1993), and Clark and Hosking (1986).  I'v
been most satisfied with Earickson and Harlin for the basic course (there's als
a
multivariate oriented second course) in a semester format.  Bruce uses SYSTAT i
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