Handbook of Applied Spatial Analysis: Software Tools, Methods and Applications

The Handbook is written for academics, researchers, practitioners and advanced graduate students. It has been designed to be read by those new or starting out in the field of spatial analysis as well as by those who are already familiar with the field. The chapters have been written in such a way that readers who are new to the field will gain important overview and insight. At the same time, those readers who are already practitioners in the field will gain through the advanced and/or updated tools and new materials and state-of-the-art developments included. This volume provides an accounting of the diversity of current and emergent approaches, not available elsewhere despite the many excellent journals and te- books that exist. Most of the chapters are original, some few are reprints from the Journal of Geographical Systems, Geographical Analysis, The Review of Regional Studies and Letters of Spatial and Resource Sciences. We let our contributors - velop, from their particular perspective and insights, their own strategies for m- ping the part of terrain for which they were responsible. As the chapters were submitted, we became the first consumers of the project we had initiated. We gained from depth, breadth and distinctiveness of our contributors’ insights and, in particular, the presence of links between them.

Spatial data are an important source of scientific information.  The development of high capacity and fast desk and laptop computers and the concomitant creation of geographic information systems has made it possible to explore georeferenced or mapped data as never before. This Handbook summarizes, explains, and demonstrates the nature of current models, methods, and techniques particularly designed for the analysis of spatial data.  The book is designed to be a desk reference for all researchers just getting into the field of spatial data analysis as well as for seasoned spatial analysts.  Relevant references are given whenever possible to direct researchers to the most useful writings on the subject.

Unlike most compendia of this nature, the book starts out by exploring the available software for spatial analysis.  We focus on the tools that make analysis possible.  The volume then describes briefly but clearly the many techniques embodied in the fields of exploratory spatial data analysis, spatial statistics, geostatistics, and spatial econometrics.  In addition, attention is given to the methods used for the analysis of remotely sensed data.   Finally, a number of example sections are included that demonstrate the application of spatial analysis in the economic, environmental, and health sciences. The wide range of approaches described helps readers better understand their data and the techniques needed for spatial analysis.

The volume features contributions from the very best scholars in the field.  Their explanations are able to communicate the fundamental ideas of their subject area succinctly and accessibly.