We are pleased to announce the Short Course on Geostatistical Analysis of Environmental Data to be instructed by one of the foremost scientists in the field of theoretical and applied geostatistics, Dr. Pierre Goovaerts, author of “Geostatistics for Natural Resources Evaluation”.

This short course is an advanced-level introduction to geostatistics and geostatistical methodology. Enrollment in this course is lim-ited to the first 30 participants, and registrations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Please note that the first time this course was offered at the Univer-sity of Florida, it filled in a matter of only a few days. Due to the specialized nature of this course, advance registration is required, and we encourage you to register early to secure a seat in the course. The course will be held March 10-14, 2008 in Gainesville, Florida at the GIS Lab in McCarty Hall B on the University of Florida campus.

• Academics • Agricultural Engineers • City and County Government Officials and Decision-makers • Climatologists • Environmental Consultants • Environmental Engineers • Environmental Epidemiologists

• Environmental Regulators • Environmental Scientists • Foresters • Geotechnical Engineers • Geophysicists and Geologists • Soil Scientists • Scientists and scientists in training • Others seeking training in GIS

Announcing the March Short Course!

Short Course Overview

2

Course Topics 2

Benefits of Attending

3

About the Instructor 3

Hotel Information 4

Inside this Issue:

January 9, 2008

Volume 1, Issue 1

Short Course on Geostatistical Analysis of Environmental Data

March 10-14, 2008 • Gainesville, Florida

Toluence Emission

For more information and to register online, visit our website at:

conference.ifas.ufl.edu/soils/geostats

Who Should Attend

This short course will introduce a suite of geostatistical methods for the spatial analysis of environmental data. Participants will learn how to apply geostatistics for the description of spatial patterns and identification of scales of variability, spatial interpolation and stochastic modeling of environmental attributes, creation of risk maps and their use in decision-making. Lectures will alternate with analysis of environ-mental data using the Stanford Geostatistical Modeling Software (S-GeMS) and the TerraSeer Space-time Information System (STIS).

• Risk mapping and incorporation in decision making. Parametric versus non-parametric approaches, indicator kriging, goodness of uncertainty models.

• Stochastic simulation. Simulation versus estimation, simulation algorithms.

• Space-time geostatistics. Approaches available, a space-time model.

• What is Geostatistics? History of Geostatistics, types of spatial data, books and on-line resources.

• Spatial exploratory data analysis. Data import and visualization, data transformation, detection of spatial outliers.

• Description of spatial pattern. Concepts of cor-relogram and semivariogram, semivariogram map, analysis of direction-dependent variability.

• Spatial prediction. Different types of kriging, change of support, cross-validation and jackknife.

• Accounting for secondary information in kriging. Algorithms to incorporate exhaustive secondary layers, cokriging, modeling of cross-semivariograms.

Course Topics

Test datasets will be prepared so that results of geostatistical prediction and impacts on decision- making can be compared and discussed during the course. Each participant will receive a set of lecture notes and have the opportunity to pur-chase a copy of Dr. Goovaerts’ textbook. A copy of the public domain S-GeMS software will be provided. Ample time will be allocated to discus-sion, and participants are invited to bring their own case studies to seek Dr. Goovaerts opinion. The course provides 30 hours of training and in-struction, and a Certificate of Completion will be provided upon conclusion.

"I enjoyed the course very much and found it to be not only quite challenging but also provocative and inspiring. For myself, there are many skills necessary to more efficiently apply this advanced knowledge, and your course and accompanying book will serve to provide a template on which to build a more confident approach to geostatistical analysis. Cheers!" David M. Mahnken South Florida Water Management District

Short Course Overview

Page 2 Short Course on Geostatistical Analysis of Environmental Data

Register Online Today! conference.ifas.ufl.edu/soils/geostats

Upon completion, you will be able to:

• Import, visualize and analyze your own data in a space-time information system.

• Conduct a complete geostatistical analysis using the new software developed at Stanford University.

• Detect spatial outliers in your data. • Analyze and model the spatial variability of

your data. • Map sparsely sampled environmental attrib-

utes, and characterize the reliability of those maps.

• Choose the interpolation technique that makes best use of the information available.

• Create risk maps, and use them in decision-making.

• Gain a basic understanding of state-of-the-art geostatistical methods for stochastic simulation and space-time interpolation.

• Explore and visualize local relationships be-tween environmental variables.

• Conduct a critical reading of the current geostatistical literature.

Benefits of Attending

For more information about Dr. Goovaerts, visit his Home Page at: http://goovaerts.pierre.googlepages.com.

Dr. Goovaerts has authored more than 80 refereed papers in the field of theoretical and applied geostatistics, and he is a reviewer for 50 international journals. He has taught numerous short courses in the US, which were attended by academics, consultants and federal employees. He acts as a consultant for the Environ-mental Protection Agency, the Nuclear Regulatory Commis-sion, and he is bringing his expertise to numerous projects dealing with the characteriza-tion of air, soil and water pol-lution and its impact on hu-man health. Most recently, Dr. Goovaerts has been appointed a Courtesy Associate Professor at the University of Florida, Soil and Water Science Department.

Dr. Pierre Goovaerts studied at the Catholic University of Lou-vain-la-Neuve (Belgium) and at Stanford

University, where he wrote the textbook entitled Geostatistics for Natural Resources Evaluation published by Oxford University Press in 1997. In 2002, after five years on the Faculty at the University of Michigan, he be-came Chief Scientist for the R&D Company, Biomedware, Inc, and he created his own consulting company, PGeostat, LLC.

About the Instructor

Page 3 Volume 1, Issue 1

"Thanks for the information on S-GEMS. I really enjoyed your short course - the lectures and exercises were excellent and I'm looking forward to using some of these geostatistical tools. Well worth the trip." Andrew Swales, NIWA, Coastal Processes Group, New Zealand

"I thoroughly enjoyed the course and learned much. The class exceeded my expectations and I am now excited to apply the geostatistical techniques on my own data. Thank you for all your hard work."

Mark Endries, FWC, Information

Reservations must be made by January 31, 2008 in order to receive a room at the dis-counted rate. For your convenience, the Clar-ion Inn is providing complimentary luggage storage for those checking out on Friday, March 14, 2008.

* Complimentary Airport Shuttle – The Clar-ion Inn provides complimentary transportation to and from the Gainesville Regional Airport. Con-tact the Clarion Inn (1-352-332-7500) at least 24-hours in advance with your flight informa-tion in order to make your shuttle reservations.

* Complimentary Area Shuttle – Complimen-tary shuttle to the University of Florida and local hospitals. Shuttle service requires 24-hours ad-vance notice.

NOTE: Tax Exemption – In order for State sales tax to be properly waived, a guest must present their tax-exempt form upon check-in. Their form of pay-ment must match the name on their tax exempt form (check or organization credit card). Cash, per-sonal checks, and personal credit cards are not ac-ceptable forms of payment for tax-exempt individu-als or groups.

Clarion Inn & Conference Center 7417 Newberry Road Gainesville, FL 32605 United States Hotel Front Desk: 1-352-332-7500 Hotel Fax: 1-352-332-0487 Toll Free: 1-(800) 551-8206

The Clarion Inn & Conference Center is one of Gainesville’s most conveniently located hotels near the University of Florida. Located just 4.5 miles from campus and 4 blocks from the Oaks

Mall and North Flor-ida Regional Medical Center, the hotel is easily accessed from I-75 and is a brief drive to the Short Course in the GIS Laboratory in UF’s McCarty Hall B.

All reservations must be made directly with the hotel in order to receive the reduced group rate. Rooms are available at the special rate of $92.00 per night, plus 9.25% tax. Be sure to specify you are attending the “Geostat Analysis” Short Course.

Hotel Accommodations

For Further Information

Course Instructor/Organizer: Dr. Pierre Goovaerts PGeostat, LLC 710 Ridgemont Lane Ann Arbor, MI 48103 PHONE: (734) 668-9900 FAX: (734) 668-7788 EMAIL: goovaerts@comcast.net

Course Organizer: Dr. Sabine Grunwald University of Florida/IFAS Soil and Water Science Department 2169 McCarty Hall A PO Box 110290 Gainesville, FL 32611-0290 PHONE: (352) 392-1951 ext. 204 FAX: (352) 392-3902 EMAIL: sabgru@ufl.edu

Registration Information: Jhanna Gilbert University of Florida/IFAS Office of Conferences & Institutes (OCI) Building 639 Mowry Road PO Box 110750 Gainesville, FL 32611-0750 PHONE: (352) 392-5930 FAX: (352) 352-9734 EMAIL: jhanna@ufl.edu