GIS and Amherst College
Getting Started | Data/Map Sources : Amherst/Mass |Sciences | Social Sciences | Humanities |Books/articles |Organizations | HELP |
Getting Started
Introduction to GIS by Andy Anderson and Janet Price, Amherst College IT. Includes how to get the software, manuals, tutorials.
Data/Map Sources:
Starting the Hunt: Guide to Mostly On-Line and Mostly Free U.S. Geospatial and Attribute Data 2nd Edition
Infomine: Maps and GIS This is a searchable database with links to thousands of resources. You can browse what's available-- from the bottom of the screen choose "Browse Subjects (LCSH)".
USGS Map Locator Good starting point for finding digital and print USGS maps.
Alexandria Digital Library, from UC Another large metasite, includes link to international as well as U.S. data sources.
UT Map Collection Large collection of digital maps from around the world, includes CIA maps.
U.S. Geospatial Datasets: Federal Government Agencies (via CU)
National Map (USGS) Product of a consortium of Federal, State, and local partners who provide public access to high quality geospatial data to enhance America's ability to access, integrate, and apply geospatial data at global, national, and local scales.
Amherst/Massachusetts
Sciences
Atlas of the Biosphere - Downloadable data/maps about the environment, including land use, human impacts, ecosystems, and water resources.
National Geologic Map Database - Contains information about print and digital U.S. geologic maps, many with downloadable data.
EROS (Earth Resource Observation Systems), from USGS (EROS) Data Center (EDC) is a data management, systems development, and research field center for the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) National Mapping Division.
Social Sciences
CSISS: Center for Spatially Integrated Social Science
ICPSR:Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research Maintains and provides access to a vast archive of social science data for research and instruction. (AC)
EconData.Net: United States socioeconomic data at the state and regional level, and Statistical Resources on the Web another collection of primarily U.S. sources
U.S. Census Data, via American Factfinder Most comprehensive demographic data available to the block level for the United States and Cartographic Boundary files, based on TIGER, are also available for import to GIS. National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) provides, free of charge, aggregate census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for the United States between 1790 and 2000.
National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership Great clearinghouse of local level data -- collaborative effort by the Urban Institute and local partners
Association of Religion Data Archives : ARDA collection includes data on churches and church membership, religious professionals, and religious groups in the U.S. to the state, county, and metropolitan area level. Increasingly it has data for other countries as well.
WDI: World Development Indicators Online From the World Bank. Time series economic and demographic data back to 1960 for many countries (AC). Also GenderStats -- include themes that range from health and education to political participation and poverty from World Bank, United Nations, and national statistics.
United Nations Common Database (UNCDB) More than 450 statistical time series for countries from around the world covering a wide range of economic and socio-demographic topics
Demographic and Health Surveys Data on population, health, HIV, female circumcision (FGM), etc. from over 75 countries.
IAU: Higher Education Systems 180 countries and territories worldwide.
Humanities
Ancient World Mapping Center "Mapping the ancient world, from Athens to Zucchabar." The Center promotes cartography and geographic information science as essential disciplines within the field of ancient studies.
David Rumsey Map Collection Collection of thousands of historic and rare maps.
Climatological Database for the World's Oceans 1750-1850 Project of the European Union, based on the climatic information contained in ships’ logbooks. Also uses GIS to display trade routes and even breaks it down by individual ships.
Books and Articles
Many books are currently being published on how to use GIS in a wide array of disciplines. Check the Five Colleges Library Catalog under the subject of Geographic Information Systems to see the array of titles the libraries own. You can also limit by date to see only the books published from 2000 to now.
Numerous articles are also being published on using GIS in various disciplines... to find articles, try one of the library's Indexes and Databases.
Organizations
Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Developer of the National Spacial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) and metadata standards for sharing of geospatial data.
Center for Spatially Integrated Social Science (CSISS) Recognizes the growing significance of space, spatiality, location, and place in social science research. Funded by NSF.
GIS at NITLE (National Institute for Technology and Liberal Education New initiative to provide resources and training for liberal arts colleges using GIS in teaching and research, funded by Mellon.
HELP
Sciences: Andy Anderson (aanderson) and Susan Kimball (sjkimball)
Social Sciences and Humanities: Susan Edwards (seedwards)
Send comments to Susan Edwards (seedwards)