GIS 5990 - Special Topics in GIS Archaeology - Module 8

The above layouts show the ENC chart data, the 1863 Nautical Chart and the Bathymetric raster clipped to the boundary of Biscayne Bay in Florida. The information will be used over the next two weeks to perform a marine archaeology study to predict potential shipwreck locations within the boundaries of the park.

GIS 5990 - Special Topics in GIS Archaeology - Module 7

Over the past several weeks, I have worked on a project which involved a study on detecting Scythian burial mounds, in the general area of Tuekta, Russia. The ultimate goal of the study was to generate a raster file, containing a random distribution of points which would express the possibility of presence of a Scythian burial mound, based on previously known information.

The metrics considered for a possible presence of a burial mound in the immediate area of the points were: slope, aspect and elevation. All of these layers were created, and generated in ArcMap based on DEMs downloaded from the web. The study itself was confined to a general greater, area of Tuekta, Russia, and the random points of the predictive model were merged with previously marked locations of known burial mounds, in order to have the spatial data of the known locations influence the appearance of similarly-set points.

The results of the study are represented based on an OLS model, which was created after the merging of the point files. With zero being an average value, the coloring of the points will tell us not only how compatible (or incompatible) the location of the given point is with a possible burial mound, but also express the degree of confidence in the result based on the data provided. The spatial autocorrolation test that was ran on the data showed the z-score (indication of the normal distribution of data) of 14.36 and the p-value (the likelihood that the data is not randomly distributed) at 0.0.

There are factors in the predictive model, which were not considered for this study but may be of importance to its overall accuracy. These factors may include the proximity to water, the landscaping of the landmass, proximity to other sites, and maybe even the overall space around the point. (The known burial mound locations all occur close to one another, in a very large cluster.) The model does however provide locations of potential locations based on the exact coordinates of each point. Each positive hit could benefit from a field survey, with all other factors neutral.

GIS 5990 - Special Topics in GIS Archaeology - Module 6

The series of maps provided represent a set of data gathered in preparation for a final study on Scythian mound location distribution. Four out of five layers shown above are generated directly from a Digital Elevation raster downloaded from Earth Explorer: the Slope, the Aspect, the Elevation and the Contour.

The last map shows a point shapefile created based on known mound locations, visible on basic aerial imagery.

GIS 5990 - Special Topics in GIS Archaeology - Module 4

The map shown above shows the results of a predictive model done on the general area of the Tangle Lakes Archaeological District in Alaska. The areas in red represent the highest potential for finding archaeological sites based primarily on the slope, aspect, elevation, proximity to water and the presence of pre-pleistocene ice caps.

The yellow and green areas represent moderate and low probability respectively.

GIS 4944 - GIS Internship

To wrap up my Internship, I created a personal website portfolio which details some of my GIS related accomplishments to date. It contains my contact information, as well as my updated professional resume.

URL: https://amadeuszzajac1987.wixsite.com/gisportfolio


Excerpt from the Home page which highlights my career goals:

''It seems to me the nature of our existence is inseparable from physical phenomenon that we regularly encounter. In a way, everything that is of interest to human beings can be boiled down to physical things that surround us. Whether they be natural resources that we need for survival, or simply physical phenomenon of cultural or spiritual significance. Either way, an easy access to this knowledge is essential to fully understand the implications of our surroundings, as they are essential for our continual thriving as a civilization. My career goal is to contribute to revolutionizing the use of spatial data in all areas which aim to enhance human progress and understanding. Large and easily accessible databases would allow us, as a civilization to obtain spatial information faster and cheaper in all areas of work. Efficient use of geospatial data, and the creation of publicly accessible databases may ultimately cut down the need for time consuming, costly and sometimes dangerous process of physical exploration. GIS is just one of many, but nevertheless a great tool to use when striving for this goal.''

GIS 5990 - Special Topics in GIS Archaeology - Module 5

This weeks lab assignment focused on gathering data for an upsoming analysis of Scythian burial mound locations. The data included a DEM elevation raster obtained from the earth explorer website (represented above as the large, colorful area), an aerial image of the nearby region for the purpose of detail, and a shapefile containing the location of the Tuekta site.

GIS 5990 - Special Topics in GIS Archaeology - Module 3

This weeks lab focused primarily on creating interactive data based off what we had worked on for the past several modules, in a KMZ format. KML files can be viewed/opened on google earth, from which they can be exported into a google maps format.

Any user with viewing access can project the data on the go from any device with internet access (via google maps), and anyone with modify access can also change the data on the go.