1. 1. Drones in Academia Challenges & Opportunities Brief History of UAVs at Smith Role of Liberal Arts Colleges Observations on intersections with the GIS community
2. 2. History 2011 Kite and Balloon Aerial Photography 2012 Kite Photography in Belize 2012 / 2013 Purchased our first DIY Drone Kit 2013-2014 Develop Safety Framework 2014 5 College Proposal to develop the AIRlab 2015 Fieldwork planned in Belize, MA, ME
3. 3. Initial Questions Can we capture aerial imagery of coral reef systems suitable for habitat mapping and classification? Is low altitude aerial imagery suitable for spatial extent mapping? Can we correlate low altitude aerial imagery with underwater surveys? Is it possible to add more fun to scientific inquiry?
4. 4. Belize Coral Reef ED-Ventures
5. 5. New Opportunities Low Cost Simple Setup - capture images within minutes Timely Acquisition for areas of rapid change Imagery is High Resolution, Cloud Free Acquisition at inaccessible altitudes (~50-150m) Automate Process and Consistent Flight Parameters Transfer Technology to Local Organizations
6. 6. AIRLab make.alt.drone ~ drones for humanities Jon Caris, Spatial Analysis Lab, Smtih College Jeffrey Moro, Senior Post-Bac, 5 College Digital Humanities Eric Poehler, Classics, Umass-Amherst http://5colldh.org/current- projects/airlab/
7. 7. http://animalnewyork.com/2013/google-glass-graffiti-and-twitter-controlled-beer-bots- highlights-from-the-drone-conference/#
8. 8. Image Credit: GA- SAI Photo http://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/news/FactSheets/FS-097-DFRC.html#.VCRJbBZ9F8H
9. 9. http://thinkinc.org.au/reality-hacking-the-next- Smith College ~ Hangar
10. 10. Library of Congress. Accessed at http://ghostsofdc.org/2012/03/14/british-aeronaut-lands-biplane-between-war-department-
11. 11. 400 feet above Forbes Library
12. 12. Conceptual GeoFence
13. 13. Ethics / GISP IV. Obligations to Individuals in Society 1. Respect Privacy Protect individual privacy, especially about sensitive information. Be especially careful with new information discovered about an individual through GIS-based manipulations (such as geocoding) or the combination of two or more databases. 2. Respect Individuals Encourage individual autonomy. For example, allow individuals to withhold consent from being added to a database, correct information about themselves in a database, and remove themselves from a database. Avoid undue intrusions into the lives of individuals. Be truthful when disclosing information about an individual. Treat all individuals equally, without regard to race, gender, or other personal characteristic not related to the task at hand. http://www.gisci.org/ethics/codeofethics.asp x