Digital Terrain Modeling

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Academic Experience

Cartographic modeling of the landscape (in 2d) and virtual exploration of the landscape (in 3d) -- Instruction at the University of British Columbia in the Landscape Architecture Program 1994-96

"Open Space Planning" at the University of British Columbia's Landscape Architecture Program consisted of a double-weighted practical studio course in which students addressed environmental planning and landscape design issues.

Students learned

to gather large-landscape spatial information
to assemble the gathered information as a geographic digital database (create GIS "layers")
to develop environmental policy and planning strategy based on preferred value systems
to create rule-based prescriptive cartographic models for landscape intervention (in 2d) i.e., planning proposals
to cast 2d models into 3d representations and to visually explore planning and design issues
to create and shape spaces architecturally at a broad scale

Student plan proposal draped over terrain

Silver Valley Planning area, Coquitlam, BC

2d modeling was carried out on a mac platform with the desktop GIS application macGIS from the University of Oregon. 3d modeling was carried out on a Unix platform with the application CLRview from the University of Toronto. Other work (e.g., capturing text and images) was carried out on a PC platform using Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Word, etc.