368 Pages 8 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    367 Pages 8 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    Now ubiquitous in modern life, spatial data present great opportunities to transform many of the processes on which we base our everyday lives. However, not only do these data depend on the scale of measurement, but also handling these data (e.g., to make suitable maps) requires that we account for the scale of measurement explicitly. Scale in Spatial Information and Analysis describes the scales of measurement and scales of spatial variation that exist in the measured data. It provides you with a series of tools for handling spatial data while accounting for scale.

    The authors detail a systematic strategy for handling scale issues from geographic reality, through measurements, to resultant spatial data and their analyses. They also explore a process-pattern paradigm in approaching scale issues. This is well reflected, for example, in chapters dealing with terrain analysis, in which scale in terrain derivatives is described in relation to the processing involved in the derivation of specific terrain variables from elevation data, and area classes, which are viewed as driven by class-forming covariates. Lastly, this book provides coverage of some of the issues related to scale that are relatively under-represented in the literature, such as the effects of scale on information content in remotely sensed images, and the interaction between scale and uncertainty that is increasingly important for spatial information and analysis.

    By taking a rigorous, scientific approach to scale and its various meanings in relation to the geographic world, the book alleviates some of the frustration caused by dealing with issues of scale. While past research has led to an increasing number of journal articles and a few books dedicated to scale modeling and change of scale, this book helps you to develop coherent strategies for scale modeling, highlighting applicability for a variety of fields, from geomatic engineering and geoinformatics to environmental modeling.

    Introduction
    Issue of Scale
    Models of Scale
    Scaling Up and Down
    Book Chapters

    Geographic Representations
    Geo-Atoms
    Geo-Fields
    Geo-Objects
    Hierarchical Data Structures
    Discussion

    Geospatial Measurements
    Framework for Spatial Sampling
    Optical Remote Sensing and Resolution
    Microwave Remote Sensing and Resolution
    Discussion

    Geostatistical Models of Scale
    Geostatistical Fundamentals and Variograms
    Variogram Regularization and Deregularization
    Statistics for Determining Measurement Scales
    Discussion

    Lattice Data and Scale Models
    Lattice Data
    Spatial Autocorrelation and Its Measures
    Local Models
    Discussion

    Geostatistical Methods for Scaling
    Kriging
    Indicator Approaches
    Upscaling by Block Kriging
    Downscaling by Area-to-Point Kriging
    Geostatistical Inverse Modeling
    Discussion

    Methods for Scaling Gridded Data
    Upscaling
    Downscaling
    Discussion

    Multiscale Data Conflation
    Multivariate Geostatistics
    Image Fusion
    Other Multiscale Methods
    Discussion

    Scale in Terrain Analysis
    Digital Elevation Data and Their Scales
    Terrain Derivatives
    Models of Scale in Topography
    Methods for Scaling Terrain Variables
    Discussion

    Scale in Area-Class Mapping
    Area-Class Mapping
    Spatial Scales and Patterns in Area Classes
    Scaling Area-Class Information
    Discussion

    Information Content
    Information Theory
    Information Content in Remotely Sensed Images
    Image Resolution and Information Content
    Information Content in Map Data
    Discussion

    Uncertainty Characterization
    Accuracy Metrics and Assessment
    Geostatistical Approaches to Validation
    Analytical Approaches to Error Propagation
    Geostatistical Simulation
    Discussion
    Epilogue
    References
    Index

    Biography

    Jingxiong Zhang, Peter Atkinson, Michael F. Goodchild

    "… another excellent resource for researchers who are dealing with geospatial data, particularly
    remote sensing data/images."
    —Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, January 2016

    "… an authoritative and thought-provoking account of scaling issues in spatial information and analysis. Written by leading authorities in the field, this book should be of considerable value to anyone working with spatial data by providing a contemporary account of scale, its characterisation and analysis."
    —Giles Foody, University of Nottingham, UK

    "… a timely addition to the growing literature on the topic of scale and change of support. … The authors have done a marvelous job of tackling this difficult topic with enough breadth and depth, producing what should become the reference in the field for years to come."
    —Pierre Goovaerts, BioMedware, Inc

    "… A truly informative collection … will certainly promote the importance of scale as the importance of geography has been increasingly recognized by people while stepping into the so-called "Digital Earth" big data age.
    —Hui Lin, Institute of Space and Earth Information Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

    "… a cutting edge analytical survey that presents scale in its myriad contexts, effectively linking it with cartography, spatial accuracy, spatial sampling, and spatial statistics. As such, it will set a new standard for the next round of state-of-the-art work concerning geographic scale."
    —Daniel A. Griffith, University of Texas at Dallas

    "… the book will serve as a long and lasting contribution to the scale aspects that are fundamental to the many spatial problems that are covered."
    —Alfred Stein, University of Twente, Faculty of Geo-information and Earthobservation (ITC), Enschede, The Netherlands