There will be an emphasis on the efficient creation of balanced map layouts and appropriate selection of symbols for the data portrayed. The course is designed to introduce the students to the variety of planning and land related issues, so that they understand the nature of their potential employment, why a particular job or project is occurring, who they might be working with and why the project is in a particular format. The opportunities for public, private and other types of work are also discussed. The course requires several oral presentations, a major term paper and a number of small reports. Mapping The increase in digital information and tools has not removed the need to be able to read a map.
Maps are a basic tool of anyone doing spatial analysis, information storage or retrieval.
Whether the map is in digital or analogue format, the need to be able to quickly read or interpret it, and the skills to do so are the same. The gathering of field information to plot onto maps is also important, as not all information is available on published maps. This topic is explored in this course, with reference to types of field data and how that affects their gathering. As subsidiary topics, the usefulness of the information on the maps, and its application to planning situations is also investigated. This course is designed to teach the student the information on common maps, the limits and applications of that information, and the requirements of mapping.