Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Twenty (80 %) of the tools provide more than one basemap option, while seven
(28 %) of the tools provide all four basemap options. While provision of multiple
different basemap options supports a wider array of map use tasks and allows users
to set their preference, such provision also requires that the symbolization of the
overlay features works across various basemaps. All of the included basemaps are
much more detailed on the land side of the coastline compared to the water side,
again a concern given the possibility of a declining water level in the Great Lakes.
Most of the tools provide additional overlay context layers (18/25; 72 %) beyond
the waterline/flood extent or an indication of its uncertainty, as described above.
The most frequent overlay layers provided are flood/surge benchmarks specific to a
notable flood scenario or historical event (11/25; 44 %). For instance, the Sea Level
Rise Visualization for Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida provides a storm surge
overlay for Hurricane Katrina and the Coastal Resilience Future Scenarios Map,
New York & Connecticut (v2) provides several flood and storm surge benchmark
overlays for Super Storm Sandy (Fig.
1d
). Such benchmark overlays are useful
because they provide a meaningful and memorable point of reference against which
to compare future sea level rise scenarios (Harrower
2002
).
Additional overlay context layers provided by at least two separate visualization
tools include: marsh/wetlands (9/25; 36 %), critical facilities or infrastructure
(8/25; 32 %), socioeconomic vulnerability (7/25; 28 %), land use or land manage-
ment (4/25; 16 %), populated areas (5/25; 20 %), photos of historic or simulated
flooding (4/25; 16 %), parks or protected natural areas (3/25; 12 %), and erosion
susceptibility (2/25; 8 %). The overlay options are perhaps the best way to infer the
intended use case scenarios of the visualization tool using the competitive analysis
method. There appears to be a split in emphasis between visualization tools
supporting adaptive management of the human or built environment—with layers
including critical facilities/infrastructure, socioeconomic vulnerability, and popu-
lated areas—and visualization tools supporting adaptive management of the phys-
ical or natural environment—with layers including marsh/wetlands, land use or
land management, parks or protected areas, and erosion susceptibility. An inte-
grated approach providing overlay layers about both the human and physical
environment, and the interaction therein, supports a more robust geographic dia-
logue about the impact of changing water levels across the Great Lakes.
Supported Interaction Operators
Interaction operators
describe the generic kinds of interactive functionality
implemented in the visualization (Roth
2012
,
2013a
). Interaction operators can be
delineated into
work operators
, or operators that are performed explicitly to
accomplish the user
s goal or objective, versus
enabling operators
, or operators
that are performed to prepare for, or clean up from, a work session (Whitefield
et al.
1993
).
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