Artificial Crime Analysis Systems: Using Computer Simulations and Geographic Information Systems

In the last decade there has been a phenomenal growth in interest in crime pattern analysis. Geographic information systems are now widely used in urban police agencies throughout industrial nations. With this, scholarly interest in understanding crime patterns has grown considerably. Artificial Crime Analysis Systems: Using Computer Simulations and Geographic Information Systems discusses leading research on the use of computer simulation of crime patterns to reveal hidden processes of urban crimes, taking an interdisciplinary approach by combining criminology, computer simulation, and geographic information systems into one comprehensive resource.

Lin Liu is professor of geography at the University of Cincinnati. His main area of expertise is geographic information science (GIS) and its applications to urban-economic problems. In 2000, he became interested in crime analysis and simulation. Dr. Liu is a former president of the Association of the Chinese Professionals in GIS Abroad. He currently serves in the advisory panel of the Geography and Regional Science program at the National Science Foundation. Dr. Liu received his bachelors and masters degrees from Peking University and his PhD in geography from the Ohio State University.

John Eck is professor of criminal justice at the University of Cincinnati. He has written extensively on police effectiveness, drug markets, crime patterns, and crime prevention. He is an individual affiliate of the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing and was a member of the National Academy of Sciences Committee to Review Research on Police Policy and Practices. Dr. Eck received his bachelors and masters degrees from the University of Michigan and his PhD in criminology from the University of Maryland. Before earning his doctorate, Eck directed research for the Police Executive Research Forum, a police research organization in Washington, D.C.