Andrew Hudson-Smith' Digital Urban

Visualising cities over time is a great way to portray a sense of life/speed and the general hustle of the urban landscape. Albee, a grad student from Atlanta, has created an inspiring movie containing timelapse sequences of cities:



The music is Telepopmusik, Just Breathe.

We are looking into a tutorial on using the Nokia N95 to create HD timelapse movies, we should have some examples online soon...

The animation below by Leo de Wijs tells the story of a tree outgrown by an evolving city, it is both unique and charming:

Maps represent a moment in time and when your creating a mood map of the United Kingdom. In relation to the countries on the impact of the Credit Crunch, 24 hours can be a long time, as we explore below.

Our work with BBC Radio 4's PM show is yielding interesting results with the fuel prices coming out as the nations biggest concern in these times of tight credit. Yet look closer at the data and it becomes clear that the nations mood has shifted over the last few weeks.

To recap, listener's are being asked to answer the following question:

What single factor is hurting you most about the credit crunch?

Please select one of the answers below:

Mortgage or Rent
Fuel
Food Prices
Holidays
Other
The Credit Crunch is not affecting me

We generated a new map every 30 minutes, providing an up to date view of the nations mood.

In addition to mapping the data it can also be analysed over time, the image below represents the percentage of answers on May 1st:
On May 1st the nations biggest concern was the price of food, yet by May 3rd fuel had taken over with food slipping back down in terms of overall percentage:
The nations mood over the last few weeks has been changing quite notably over time, perhaps in relations to the amount of media coverage anyone topic has received. Food prices were in the news earlier in the month and now fuel prices are hitting the headlines with the current blockage of London by lorry drivers.

At the present time fuel prices are again leading the poll, you can view the timeline using the interactive version embedded below. Annoyingly Google Docs does not save the viewing preferences when embedding motion graphs so to match our set up simply:

Click below to set both size and colour to view by percentage and move the time slider to gain a unique insight to the nations mood over time.

If you click each circle it will highlight each category in turn to match the images above:



The data poses the question if we as a nation are indeed worried about the credit crunch or is it the media inducing worry by the the amount of coverage given and shock headlines?

You can view the map at http://www.maptube.org with full details on the BBC's iPM page.

Over the last few weeks Radio 4's PM show has been carrying out a survey on the UK's fears on the Credit Crunch. In association with our MapTube site at CASA listeners were asked for the first part of their postcode and to answer the following question:

What single factor is hurting you most about the credit crunch?

Please select one of the answers below:

Mortgage or Rent
Fuel
Food Prices
Holidays
Other
The Credit Crunch is not affecting me

We generated a new map every 30 minutes, providing an up to date view of the nations mood.


The results are fascinating, with over 22,000 responses 49% were most worried about fuel price with food running in second at 19%. The interesting part for us is to view these results both statistically and geographically as the results come in, to date the breakdown is as follows:


You can view the map at http://www.maptube.org with full details on the BBC's iPM page - of note is the rural/urban split with urban areas being notably more worried about mortgage or rent payments compared to other areas of the UK.

Second Life is a natural home to agent based modelling, while not as graphically impressive as high end solutions such as 3D Studio Max, it does allow real-time data analysis and tracking.

The movie below shows our first tentative steps in CASA to setting up a agent based model in the Second Life environment:



Our next step is to look at examples such as evacuation analysis and pedestiran movement in the cityscape, the movie below issustrates our earlier example in 3D Studio Max - we should be able to port this into Second Life:



If you would like to know more about agent based modelling take a look at http://gisagents.blogspot.com/

MapTube, the new mapping site from our lab CASA at University College London to view, overlay, mix and match choropleth maps now includes a free creation tool.

Google Map Creator provides a quick and free way to convert .shp or formated .csv for viewing in Google Maps and MapTube - allowing datasets to be quickly and easily shared and visually compared against any other data on MapTube. In short it is perfect for local councils, government organizations, academics and general users who want to view and share their data in the easiest way possible.

Unlike the Google Maps API method for displaying points, lines and polygons, Google Map Creator renders the map information as a series of raster image tiles (256x256 pixels) accordingly to the level of zoom required. This protects the raw data, easing issues of copyright and data sharing while allowing any dataset to be mixed, matched and visualised with any other data on MapTube.

Before uploading to MapTube, maps need to be created from shapefiles using the Google Map Creator tool and placed on the web. Maptube takes a link to this location and creates a new map reference from the information found there.

Quickstart - How to Create a Map for MapTube

• Create the map with the Google Map Creator and save the settings xml file.

  

• Copy the tile directory and xml settings file to a web server.
• Log in to MapTube and choose Add A New Map.
• Copy the url of the settings xml file into the XML URL box and click 'Test'.
• Fill in the rest of the information on the page and click on 'Submit' to upload the map.

We will be featuring a MapTube Map of the Week - currently The Credit Crunch from our work with BBC Radio 4 - on Digital Urban and while its difficult to be unbiased about MapTube (as we are part of it) it is a notable change in the ability to view, share and visually analyse geographic data online....

To start making maps simply login to http://www.maptube.org

See http://www.maptube.org/help-createmap.aspx for full details and as ever any thoughts are welcome.

Geographic Visualization: Concepts, Tools and Applications is now available in all good book stores, edited by Martin Doge, Mary McDerby and Martin Turner it includes a chapter by us on the 'Visual City' and is genuinely a must read for those interested in the field.

The text covers the impact of three-dimensional displays on user interaction along with the potentialities in animation and clearly explains how to create temporally sensitive visualizations. It also explores the potential for handling mobile data and representing uncertainty; as well as the role of participatory visualization systems and exploratory methods.

It's hallmark features include: an introduction to the diverse forms of geographic visualization which draws upon a number of theoretical perspectives and disciplines to provide an insightful commentary on new methods, techniques and tools; richly illustrated in full colour throughout, including numerous relevant case studies and accessible discussions of important visualization concepts to enable clearer understanding for non-technical audiences; and, chapters that are written by leading scholars and researchers in a range of cognate fields, including, cartography, GIScience, architecture, art, urban planning and computer graphics with case studies drawn from Europe, North America and Australia.

This book is an invaluable resource for all graduate students, researchers and professionals working in the geographic information sector, computer graphics and cartography.

You can buy the book online via our Amazon Essential Reading Store...

MapTube is a new site from our lab, the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis at University College London. Put simply it is a place to share, mix and mash maps with a nod towards professional map makers rather than the more widely seen 'MyMaps' type applications.


The main principle of MapTube is that shared maps can be overlayed to compare data visually. For example, to see a map of the London Underground overlayed on top of a map of population you simply go to the search page and enter the keywords "tube" and "population". Then click on the two relevant maps to add them.

In this way any combination of data can be quickly and easily visually compared. The maps are created using our free of charge software - GMap Creator, a new version launches this week allowing any ESRI .SHP file or Formatted .CSV to be converted and used on MapTube.

For the last few weeks a back end section of the site has been used by BBC Radio Four's PM Show to create a mood map of the credit crunch in the UK. Radio 4 listeners have been inputting their postcode and answering a simple question on the credit crunch to automatically create a map of the nations mode. This indicates a future direction of the site with both freely available software and server based map applications, all subsequently viewable against any other local, national or global dataset on the site.

It is early days but we see MapTube as an exciting way forward in sharing and viewing maps online.....

Try it out yourself at http://www.maptube.org see BBC Radio Four for more info on Mapping the Credit Crunch

MapTube is part of the GeoVue project at CASA, a core node from the National Centre for e-Social Science.

*An update to the post - interestingly bringing in quite a few complaint emails and thus the joke it seems is on us :) our apologies if you took offense, take a look at http://admiralnovia.net/wp/2007/08/28/miss-south-carolina-vs-youtube/ for the full story

Its good to be back :) The original post is below*


We could comment on this one but really its almost beyond belief. Embedded below is Miss West Carolina's thoughts on Maps, sit back, turn up the sound and wonder what went wrong with the education system:



We are back, after a slightly extended break due to London having its warmest/sunniest start to May on record. In a city that is often cloudy and wet it was too much to miss the sunshine but from now on its back to the blog.

This afternoon look out for a post on our new mapping system known as 'MapTube', its use by BBC Radio 4 and news on its launch - its really rather good.....

City8.com in China have a unique take on the use of panoramas to provide information about the city. Systems such as Google's Street View provide a blanket coverage of the road system but in reality are little more than 'eye candy'. City 8 on the other hand allows users to tag information inside the panorama - creating a simple yet effective way to geolocate comments and info on the urban environment.

The YouTube movie below provides an insight:



Take a look at http://www.city8.com for more info...

Well after a busy few months and the publication of the booklet we are taking a week off :)

The blog will be back with new tutorials, insights and news in a weeks time. If your going to miss the posts the Digital Geography Booklet is available and is currently shipping next day with free postage world wide.

Andy

This is an experimental post to see if its possible to embed a 'click and drag' panorama into a blog post using a flash based viewer.

As an update to the original post you can now view the panorama fullscreen by clicking the right hand side icon:

Click and Drag to look around:


How is it done?

1) See http://flashpanoramas.com/player/ for the viewer.

2) Create your webpage with the viewer and your panorama

3) Embed in blogger/wordpress using an iframe as per the code below:

Another test of embedding Flash based panoramas into Blogger - this time with the Houses of Parliament at Night, click and drag to look around:

An example of Gothic Architecture the Houses of Parliament were constructed between 1840 and 1888. The panorama is taken outside the main tower near Westminster Bridge and the River Thames. The tower stands 320 foot tall and is named after the largest bell, 'Big Ben' which weighs over 13 tons, and was cast in 1858 at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry in East London.

How is it done?

1) See http://flashpanoramas.com/player/ for the viewer.

2) Create your webpage with the viewer and your panorama

3) Embed in blogger/wordpress using an iframe as per the code below:

We are pleased to announce the availability of our booklet: Digital Geography - Geographic Visualisation for Urban Environments. Printed in full colour the 10 x 8 inch booklet runs to 64 pages of insights and tutorials on Virtual Earth, Google Earth, Google Maps, Panoramas and Second Life.

With a focus on Neogeography, Web 2.0 and the various emerging techniques for urban visualisation the booklet has been written as a preview to the forthcoming Digital Urban 'recipe book' to be published fourth quarter of 2008.


The booklet is being sold at below cost price and is available now. For all those that have emailed to reserve copies, thank you, these are set aside and guaranteed for shipping soon as payment is received.


Priced at £9.99 (worldwide postage and packaging is free) it can be purchased direct via the Buy Now link using PayPal or any standard Credit/Debit card:













Alternatively you can fill out our Order Form (download in .doc or .pdf format) and FAX it direct to our offices at +44 (0)20 7813 2843. Payment is £9.99 per booklet with world wide postage and packing currently free of charge.

If you have any questions drop us a email or use the usual comment link.

We hope you enjoy the booklet.....

This is an experimental post to see if its possible to embed a 'click and drag' panorama into a blog post using a flash based viewer.


Westminster Abbey is a work of outstanding architecture, constructed between the 13th and 16th centuries. The Abbey has been the location for numerous Royal Weddings as well as every Coronation since 1066. The building as it is today features the west towers which were completed to the designs of Sir Christopher Wren and Nicholas Hawksmoor.


All being well you should be able to view the panorama below.

Click and Drag to look around:

We have over 100 panoramas on the blog so if this works for the majority of readers it could make a nice way to revisit some of the best.... (?)

We are heading off to the Association of American Geographers (AAG) Annual Conference in Boston on Wednesday. The AAG is always a good place to touch base with the latest research, we are presenting a paper on Saturday for those interested, the full details are below:

Abstract Title:
Web 2.0 and CyberInfrastructure: GeoVue Tools and Virtual Worlds for Geographic Visualisation

is part of the Paper Session:
Build it, Mapt it, Web it

scheduled on Saturday, 4/19/08 at 10:10 AM.

Author(s):
Andrew Hudson-Smith, Dr* - University College London

Abstract:

Web 2.0, specifically The Cloud, GeoWeb and Wikitecture are revolutionizing the way in which we present, share and analyze geographic data. In this paper we outline and provide working examples using our suite of tools which are detailed below, aimed at developing new applications of GIS and related technologies.

GeoVUE is one of seven nodes in the National Centre for e-Social Science whose mission it is to develop web-based technologies for the social and geographical sciences. The Node, based at the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, University College London has developed a suite of free software allowing quick and easy visualization of geographic data in systems such as Google Maps, Google Earth and Second Life. These tools address two issues, firstly that spatial data is still inherently difficult to share and visualize for the non-GIS trained academic or professional and secondly that a geographic data social network has the potential to dramatically open up data sources for both the public and professional geographer.

With our applications of GMap Creator, Image Cutter, PhotoOverlay Creator, GEarth Creator and finally MapTube, we detail ways to intelligently visualize and share spatial data. This paper concludes with detailing usage and outreach as well as an insight into how such tools are already providing a significant impact to the outreach of geographic information.

Keywords:

google earth,web 2.0, second life, visualisation, google maps

Fingers crossed for good weather as we are packing our panorama kit, all being well our previously delayed (due to fog in Hong Kong) HDR tutorial should go online next week.

Our last weeks series of posts on 3D Agent Based Models using 3D Max has been interesting (at least we have found it interesting). It is easy to set up any number of agents to swarm or wander within a set radius but adding behaviours beyond swarming is more difficult.

It seem to be down to 'vision' and how far the agents can 'see' ahead of them. In 3D Studio Max agents seem to only be capable of a complete 360x180 degree field of view or avoidance, this creates either large areas of exclusion or areas where agents fail to 'see' objects coming.

Our latest movie below illustrates this, the agents are now in our city model from the Greeble a City Tutorial:



At the moment the agents tend to get run over by the bus and roam inside the buildings, despite being set to avoid, still it is work in progress...

gisagents.blogspot.com have an interesting post on Pacman: is it an agent-based model? for those interested - a 3D Pacman would actually be quite easy as its a simple 'Seek' behaviour interlinked with paths.

Simulating traffic is a science in itself with each car acting as an agent that is aware of its surroundings. It is notoriously difficult to create convincing traffic flow in 3D packages without input from specialist simulations and as such its a good challenge for our recent explorations of using agents in 3D Max to populate city models.

New Scientist highlighted the 'Shockwave' theory of traffic simulation this month with an article on how a team of Japanese researchers has recreated the phenomenon on a test-track for the first time.

The mathematical theory behind these so-called "shockwave" jams was developed more than 15 years ago using models that show jams appear from nowhere on roads carrying their maximum capacity of free-flowing traffic – typically triggered by a single driver slowing down.



With simple agents in 3D Max our first movie interestingly produces similar results:



If you then set up 'three teams' linked to a network with behaviour based on varying speed and avoidance calculations you can create a basic traffic flow simulation.



As we have said, these are first steps and there are some obvious issues to iron out with the aim to import the traffic flow into scenes such as our 'Greeble City Tutorial' model illustrated below:

Interestingly the work going on just to our left using the Crysis game engine for traffic flow is proceeding at a notable rate, we should have a movie of this tomorrow...

Read more about the Shockwave Theory and NetLogo.

The second in what is looking like a series of posts on 3D Agent Based Modelling in cities - in short on placing crowd, pedestrian and transport behavior into 3D models.

Yesterday's post covered our first steps, developing 'Ant Like' behaviors on a surface, our next movie displays a degree of intelligence in our agents:



The agents are now aware of the environment around them and each other, as such they avoid collisions while wandering around the surface. As we mentioned this is 'first step' work and we are aware that there are advanced crowd simulations out there. We are taking a slightly different approach and as ever with the blog we will write a tutorial on the system soon as its more advanced.


It would be interesting to hear any thoughts on this line of posts and if you would like to know more about agents take a look at http://gisagents.blogspot.com/

Yesterday we posted about roads in 3d models and how small details begin to bring the 3d city to life. The same goes for pedestrians and modes of transport, in essence these objects populate the city and add a significant level of realism.

Crowd and transport simulation is at its roots down to 'Agents' or 'Objects' that are assigned a set of rules as to how to moves in relation to both the environment and other agents around them. 3D Studio Max has a built in 'Crowd and Delegate' system which can be used to assign behavior and therefore create realistic traffic of pedestrian systems in 3D space.

Our movie below displays our first tentative steps using the system to create an 'Ant Like' behavior on a surface:



Ok its far from a crowd in a city but the principle is there. We don't often put up 'early development' movies but this should be an interesting learning curve for anyone wanting to populate a 3D City. At the same time as using 3D Max we are also using Crysis for realtime agent based modelling, more on that a little later...

If you would like to know more about Agents take a look at http://gisagents.blogspot.com/ - a blog written a mere two desks away from where we are currently sat...