COMPUTER APPLICATION TO EARTH SCIENCES

The course “Computer Applications in Earth Sciences,” part of the bachelor’s degree program in Geological Sciences, has as its main objective to introduce students to the basic principles of geosciences using computational methods. In particular, the course aims to provide students with practical and versatile tools applicable to all geosciences, designed to:

Acquire knowledge and an understanding of the operational tools used in the analysis of raster images (e.g., 1-bit, 8-bit, 24-bit, multispectral, and hyperspectral), focusing on the classification, digitization, and interpolation, using ad'hoc GIS-based tools (Geographic Information System).

Develop the ability to apply the acquired knowledge and understanding to:

Acquire; integrate; analyze; process; archive; distribute; and promote the interoperability of multiscale spatial data (i.e., from satellite up to microscopic scale) in both raster and vector formats of geological interest.

Independent judgment:

Students will be encouraged to independently explore their knowledge of the topics discussed and to maintain an ongoing dialogue with their peers and the teacher so that the teacher can critically evaluate their learning progress.

Communication Skills:

Participation in class and reading the handouts and recommended texts will help students acquire appropriate technical and scientific language by learning specific terms, definitions, acronyms, and concepts related to the topics discussed in class. Through constant interaction with the teacher, students will learn to communicate the knowledge they have acquired with precision and clarity.

Learning Skills:

Students will receive guidance on improving their study methods. In particular, through specific exercises, they will be able to independently tackle new topics and reinforce previously acquired knowledge through critical analysis of scientific texts and/or scientific articles.

The course consists of 3 CFU of lectures totaling 21 hours, during which students are taught the theoretical concepts related to the following operations:

PART ONE

Database management; Online searches on the main INSPIRE/OGC-certified geoportals; Thematic extraction and Layout view assembly.

PART TWO

Digitization techniques; supervised and unsupervised classification based on multivariate statistical analysis, accompanied by maximum likelihood algorithms.

An additional 3 CFU of laboratory sessions, totaling 36 hours, are conducted in parallel with the theoretical sessions to develop basic skills in computer science applied to the geosciences.

In the second part of the laboratory course, students will be introduced to the use of ArcGIS PRO software and of a specific plug-in (the Quantitative X-Ray Map Analyzer developed in our Department’s Geoinformatics and Image Analysis Laboratory). The practical sessions will be held directly in the computer lab (equipped with 25 networked PCs that can be remotely managed from a server PC) and feature a multimedia whiteboard system for the interactive visualization of multiscale WebGIS of geological interest.

N.B., If the course is delivered in blended or remote mode, appropriate adjustments may be made to the above, in order to ensure consistency with the syllabus

Basics of the main office automation applications (Word, Excel; Access)

Significant knowledge of the main operating systems for pc (Windows 10 - 11)

At the beginning of the course, a preliminary test will be carried out to verify the basic computer skills useful for the effective attendance of the subject content. The course will subsequently be calibrated on the students' average skills. If necessary, a supplementary ‘0’ course in basic computer skills will be planned in consultation with the study course coordinator.

Mandatory, according to the rules indicated by the regulations of the CdS. Interested students can request a personal interview to plan any compensatory and/or dispensatory measures, based on the didactic objectives and specific needs, to ensure equal opportunities and compliance with university rules. It is also possible to contact the CInAP (Center for Active and Participatory Integration—Services for Disabilities and/or DSAs) through the activity of our responsible department, Prof. Gabriele Lanzafame.

COURSE SYLLABUS: COMPUTER APPLICATIONS IN EARTH SCIENCES
GIS Lectures: 3 CFU (21 hours)
GIS Computer Lab: 3 CFU (36 hours)

Lecture Content

The evolution of the analytical approach in the geosciences with the advent of data digitization:

1. The evolution of geological mapping over time: the first geological maps and the evolution of the concept of geological mapping up to the relaunch of the CARG project, including the GeoSciML/INSPIRE protocols (e.g., Auscope, EarthChem, Pet DB, and Carg-Gate projects).
2. The difference between raster and vector data and their applications in the geosciences.
3. 1-bit, 8-bit, and 24-bit raster data, and the concept of multi- and hyperspectral images.
4. Additive synthesis and the RGB composition images (filtering and classification principles).
5. Principal Component Analysis and supervised and unsupervised maximum likelihood classification,
6. Vector images and their digitization without geographic primitives (e.g., *.cdr, *.dwg) and those with geographic primitives (e.g., *.shp, *.mdb, *.gdb, *.kml).
7. The advent of GIS: open-source GIS vs. proprietary GIS; WebGIS.
8. The concept of LIS for the analysis of non-geodetic-scale data (Toward quantitative petrography).

Practical classroom exercises

• Practical exercise on database construction and management systems and methodologies in GIS and LIS environments.
• Viewing and consulting the main geoscientific portals: OGC, PCN, Auscope, SITR, Earthchem, PetDb, GeoScience IR, and CARG-Gate.

Part 2: Design and Implementation of a GIS in the Geological Field

The ESRI platform and ArcGIS Pro.

GEOLOGICAL DATA

1. Basic cartographic data, official geological maps, and specialized geoscientific maps.
2. The concepts of outcrop and measurement station in geology and their informatizitation.

LABORATORY ANALYSIS

1. The concepts of sample and subsample.
2. Classification techniques at the thin section scale using optical and/or electron microscopy.
3. X-ray maps at various observation scales.
4. Classification using the Quantitative X-Ray Map Analyzer (QXRMA—Ortolano et al., 2014; 2018).
5. An introduction to the use of the Micro Fabric Analyzer (VIsalli et al., 2021) for the vectorization of optical images at the thin section scale.

MULTISCALE DATA MANAGEMENT AND VISUALIZATION ON A WebGIS PLATFORM

1. Discretization and data storage of geological information.
2. Directories and subdirectories for managing multiscale data in the Earth Sciences.
3. Examples of multiscale WebGIS in geology (Multiscale Geo-structural Information Systems—MGS Ortolano et al. 2026; GEO-METamoRphic Information System—GEOMETRIS Ortolano et al., in progress).

Practical classroom exercises

• Use of Table of Contents and for Multiscale Data Management in Geology (Maps and Views).
• Cartographic data visualization and operations on associated alphanumeric databases.
• Overlaying various geothematic maps.
• Vectorization and creation of shapefiles and *.gdb files according to INSPIRE/GeoSciML guidelines.
• Using the Symbology menu and labeling operations.
• Sequential operations for derived maps elaborations (e.g., slope maps, aspect maps from DEMs) using standard ArcGIS PRO packaging tools.
• The QXRMA packaging tool for classifying X-ray Maps images of minerals.
• An introduction to the automatic vectorization of petrographic data and the use of the Micro Fabric Analyzer (the advent of quantitative petrography).

Title: Switching to ArcGIS Pro from ArcMap 

Author: Maribeth Hughett Price - 166 pagine 

Editor: Esri Press - Data di pubblicazione 12 luglio 2022 

Lecture notes and scientific publications, accompanied by tutorials and video tutorials, made available by the teacher

 Useful websites

1.       https://gisgeography.com/geomatics-gis-difference/?utm_source=ReviveOldPost&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ReviveOldPost

2.       100 strumenti e risorse GIS essenziali per la Gestione Ambientale - Corsi Online QGIS | Impara i GIS con Geoinnova

3.       https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/fgdc_gds/geolsymstd.php

4.       https://www.sitr.regione.sicilia.it/geoportale/it/Home/ServiceCatalog

5.       https://www.sitr.regione.sicilia.it/category/dati-territoriali/download_tematismi/

6.       https://portalesgi.isprambiente.it/it/lista-servizi-wms/Geological%20Maps/

7.       https://gisgeography.com/image-classification-techniques-remote-sensing/?utm_source=ReviveOldPost&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ReviveOldPost

8.       https://www.igmi.org/it/direzione-geodetica

9.       https://geodati.gov.it/geoportale/

10.   https://geodati.gov.it/geoportale/datiterritoriali

11.   http://www.pcn.minambiente.it/viewer/

12.   https://gn.mase.gov.it/portale/home

13.   https://enterprise.arcgis.com/it/portal/latest/use/ogc.htm

14.   https://www.cnr.it/it/comunicato-stampa/11583/una-nuova-carta-litologica-digitale-per-lo-studio-della-geologia-italiana

15.   https://semiautomaticclassificationmanual-v5.readthedocs.io/it/latest/remote_sensing.html

16.   https://gisgeography.com/free-satellite-imagery-data-list/

THE COMPUTER APPLICATION TO THE EARTH SCIENCES EXAM IS MAINLY CARRIED OUT ON A PC.

THE EXAM ALLOWS FOR THE OPTION TO COMPLETE THE FIRST PART THROUGH A FORMULA 1-STYLE TEST DURING THE COURSE, WHICH FOCUSES PRIMARILY ON SEARCHING FOR GEOSCIENTIFIC DATASETS FROM VARIOUS SOURCES TO CREATE A DERIVED THEMATIC MAP.

THE SECOND PART OF THE EXAM, TO BE TAKEN ONLY AT THE END OF THE COURSE IN TWO AND A HALF HOURS, INVOLVES THE CREATION OF A SMALL GEOLOGICAL MAP ACCOMPANIED BY ROCK SAMPLING POINTS FOR WHICH X-RAY IMAGES OF THE ENTIRE THIN SECTION AND/OR CERTAIN MICRODOMAINS ARE AVAILABLE, TO BE CLASSIFIED USING THE QXRMA SOFTWARE (Ortolano et al., 2014, 2018).

THE EXAM ENDS WITH THE ORAL VERIFICATION OF THE THEORETICAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE OPERATIONS CARRIED OUT ON PC

ORTOLANO, G., VISALLI. R., GODARD G., CIRRINCIONE R. (2018) - Quantitative X-ray Map Analyser (Q-XRMA): A new GIS-based statistical approach for Mineral Image Analysis – Computers and Geosciences, 115, pp. 56-65.

ORTOLANO G, ZAPPALÀ L, MAZZOLENI P (2014). X-Ray Map Analyser: A new ArcGIS® based tool for the quantitative statistical data handling of X-ray maps (Geo- and material-science applications). COMPUTERS & GEOSCIENCES, vol. 72, p. 49-64, ISSN: 0098-3004, doi: 10.1016/j.cageo.2014.07.006

THE EXAM WILL TAKE THE FORM OF A PRACTICAL TEST ON A COMPUTER AND WILL INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING MANDATORY QUESTIONS:

1. Online search for thematic maps from various sources to create derived maps;
2. Guided layout operations;
3. Schematic digitization of lithologies from raster-format maps;
4. Operations on DEMs;
5. Supervised classification of X-ray images of minerals at the thin-section scale using QXRMA software.

STUDENTS WHO HAVE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE ONGOING ASSESSMENT WILL BE EXEMPT FROM ITEMS “1” AND "2."

FINALLY, THE TEACHER RESERVES THE RIGHT TO ASSESS, THROUGH ONE OR TWO QUESTIONS, THE STUDENTS’ THEORETICAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE TOPICS COVERED IN THE PRACTICAL EXAM.