wednesday, november 19, 2003
news
the university daily kansan 5A
Symposium to discuss map software
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By Amber Bylarl
abylarly@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
While Orwell's characters feared the technology used by Big Brother and thought police that tracked their movement, the University of Kansas is celebrating it.
The world George Orwell created in his book 1984 could be as close as the nearest computer.
GIS is software that compiles levels of information about a location, including sewer lines, population or geographic features, from a database. GIS is the technology that allows MapQuest.com to give directions to a specific location.
A symposium will be held today to educate people about Geographic Information Systems for GIS Day.
GIS technology can be used with the GPS Positioning System, or GPS, technology to track
individuals, a use that Jerry Borda said was not often discussed.
"I've been pointing out that, at present, GIS is changing society in all sorts of ways people don't realize," said Dobson, president of the American Geographical Society and professor of geography. "GIS is changing fundamental relationships between countries and between people."
GIS devices on the market can measure every step a person takes, Dobson said. For example, a wife could watch her husband's every move on her PalmPilot by downloading the software and planting a tracking device on him.
Tracking individuals isn't the most common use of GIS technology, but Dobson will discuss it at the symposium.
"Tracking people is a danger of this type of technology," said Kevin Dobbs, president of the Mount Oread Geospatial Technologies
Club and project coordinator for the Kansas Biological Survey.
Though this danger will be discussed at the symposium, it won't be the event's main focus. Dobbs said. The symposium will focus on how cities, states and governments use GIS technology. It will feature speakers from local, state and federal levels who use GIS. A public health adviser for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will speak at 4 p.m. about how GIS was used to track SARS and anthrax outbreaks, Dobbs said.
Speakers will also discuss how GIS is used in developing Lawrence and modeling terrorism risks throughout the country. David Cartar, lead modeler for Risk Management Solutions, 2113 New Hampshire St., will talk about how his company uses GIS to access the level of damage that could be done by catastrophes. The company helps clients throughout
MAPPING SYMPOSIUM
What: Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Day Symposium, sponsored by the Geography Graduate Student Organization, Mount Oread Geospatial Technologies Club and University of Kansas Georhany Club
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Who: Anyone interested is welcome to attend.
Where: Lindley Hall, morning in room 317; afternoon in room 412
When: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today
Why: To inform people about the importance of GIS and allow networking among those interested in GIS
the world estimate what could happen if natural or terrorism-related catastrophes occurred.
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Edited by Katie Bean
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Dead zones kill cell phone reception
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By Steve Schmidt
sschmidt@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
You go to make a call on your cellular phone but you have hardly any reception. You may have entered the dead zone.
Different cellular providers have various dead zones, but no one company is in the clear when it comes to clear reception.
"There's no perfect wireless service out there," said Tucker Bickel, manager of Mobile Communications Centre, 1610 W. 23rd St. "If there was a perfect wireless service, we'd only sell one. We wouldn't sell three. You need to find one that works in the places that you need it to."
Bickel said T-Mobile and Sprint had the fewest dead zones around the Lawrence area. His store sells Sprint, Nextel and T-Mobile products. He said most stores, including his,
had a 14-day return period when they would take the phone back.
Bickel said there were two types of phones: Global System for Mobile Communications, or GSM, and Code Division Multiple Access, or CDMA. GSM operates completely with digital signals and are good for users who spend most of their time in urban areas. CDMA operates on both digital and analog signals and is good for rural areas, he said.
Dead zones can vary from month to month and even day to day, said Cheryl Bini, Verizon Wireless spokeswoman. She said numerous factors such as foliage and construction could alter coverage. Her company offers a 15-day return policy, she said.
Jim Stiles is an associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science. He said there were two main causes of dead zones.
The first was a lack of nearby cell towers. When users move away from their companies' cell towers the reception worsens, he said.
The lack of cell phone towers is largely because of their size, Stiles said.
"Nobody wants one in their backyard. They're a bit of an eyesore," he said.
The exact amount of cell towers in Lawrence is not on record, said Bill Ahrens, transportation planner in Lawrence Douglas County Metropolitan Office.
Zoning restrictions also play a role, he said, leaving cell phone companies to prop their towers on top of tall buildings.
Stiles said the second cause for dead zones was an area where the radio waves could bounce around, especially in buildings composed largely of reflective materials like metal.
If a cell phone cuts out in an
area with good coverage, Stiles said, the user might have walked into a small area where there was no signal called a multi-path null. It is caused when a positive and negative radio waves come together and essentially cancel each other out.
Brandon Perkins, Lawrence junior, said he always had trouble getting a signal with his Sprint phone inside of Budig Hall. Perkins thought this was because of a number of interferences, including sound systems and camera systems inside the building.
Zach Sediqaz, Overland Park junior, he only had a problem with his T-Mobile phone when he was in a confined area like a basement.
"It doesn't go dead." Sediqzad said. "It's not like, 'Can you hear me now,' you know?"
Edited by JJ Hensley
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