A GIS project is required for all students. The project is intended to provide a deeper understanding of a GIS application through experience. The project should investigate a particular research problem using the GIS software packages that we use in class. You should acquire spatial data and if necessary digitize the data and the project should involve some type of spatial analysis.  The deliverable is a printed Powerpoint presentation that you will present to the class. You should use the knowledge and skills you acquired in the class discussion, book, papers, and practical component of the course. Every project must include the following sections: an Introduction, Methods, Results, and Conclusions. Your methods section might be a detailed cartographic model with descriptions of each of the steps.  A cartographic model is an interconnected flow chart describing spatial and attribute operations on single or multiple layers.  The introduction should situate your project within the theoretical context that you learned about in this class.  Hint: I want you to tie what you learned in theoretical part of the course (readings, discussion) to the practical part of the course and at the same time make sure that you were working hard to understand the theory.

There are two stages to the project (the dates they are due are listed on the course schedule):

Submit a one or two page project proposal. It should include a research question, a detailed description of the spatial and attribute databases you will use, and a conceptual description of the methods you will use.
Oral presentations.  The presentation should describe your research question, the theoretical context, the data sets, the analyses you performed, and display the maps and tabular output.  Give the instructor a printed Powerpoint presentation.

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