Department facilities include two teaching labs, a soils/hydrogeology research labs, and a 20-workstation GIS (geographic information systems) lab with up-to-date ArcGIS, Idrisi, and cartography software. Through close cooperation with the Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Research (ICER) at UWF, analytical capability for a wide range of environmental parameters is available. Five technique courses, which are invaluable in the workplace, are required: cartographic skills, photo interpretation and remote sensing, GIS, methods and techniques, and technical writing.
The Cartography Lab is located in Building 13, Room 221. The lab is designed to teach students the basics of maps, including map projections, datums, grid systems, map interpretations, elements of map design, and basic field mapping.
The GEOData Center houses the GIS Lab and the Advanced GIS lab which are located in Buildng 13. The GIS Lab is located in Building 13, Room 216. The lab is equipped with 21 pentium class computers with dual monitors, 2 large format digitizers, 4 small format digitizers, color scanning, color printing, and 42 inch 1200 DPI color plotting. Two internet mapping servers (IMS) provide the general public access to GIS databases such as Saint Michael’s Cemetery interactive map and the PERCH water quality study. Students in the GeoData center have access to a 6TB SQL Server databases via direct connect or ArcSDE, and a remote install / license server. GeoData Center software packages include ESRI ArcGIS, ESRI ArcIMS, ESRI ArcSDE, ESRI ArcView, IDRISI Kilimanjaro, SYSTAT, SAS, SPSS, and ERDAS Imagine. Specialist software includes GMS 4 for ground water modeling, Trimble Pathfinder for GPS extraction, and Creator and SiteBuilder for 3D modeling.
The GeoScience Lab is located in Building 13, Room 214. the lab is the department's main teaching lab. It is equiped for hands-on experiments in geomorphology, geology, and soil science.
The Soils Lab is located in Building 13, Room 213. The lab is predominantly a resesarch lab in which environmental analysis of soil and sediment samples are performed. The lab also has various types of samplers and other field equipment.
The GEOData Center houses the GIS Lab and the Advanced GIS lab which are located Buildng 13. The Advanced GIS Lab is located in Building 13, Room 222. The lab is a dedicated research facility equipped with 6 dual 3GHz Xeon powered workstations for advanced GIS analysis.
The Hydrogeology lab is located in Building 13, Room 221a. The lab is used for both teaching and research activities. The lab contains a chemical fume hood, chemical storage, and laboratory glassware and can be used for a variety of analyses related to environmental geochemistry. Laboratory experiments related to hydrogeology and geochemistry are performed in the lab.
The Map/Conference Room is located in Building 13, Room 202. This room stores our library of maps and aerial photography as well as a computer. The room is also used as a classroom. When not used for teaching, research, or meetings, the room functions as a study room.
