Government 90dn: Mapping the Census

Fall 2007
Time: 1-3PM Thursdays

Location:
Lectures followed by discussions: 1-3PM Thursday at Rm. N108 CGIS Knafel 1737
Cambridge St, Cambridge
Labs (when they are held – see schedule) will be at Rm. N018 Concourse Computer
Training Lab accessed through the Library or through the Harvard MIT Data Center Lab

Instructor: Sumeeta Srinivasan, ssrinivasan@cga.harvard.edu

Course URL: http://www.courses.fas.harvard.edu/colgsas/2017

Office Hours: As arranged with students

1.0 Course Objectives:

The major objectives are:
1. To use mapping as an analytical technique to study Census data
2. To investigate the use of geographic, economic and socio-demographic data from
the US Census
3. To enhance the research process through the use of maps and spatial queries
4. To introduce basic Geographical Information Systems software
5. To introduce cartographic techniques

2.0 Course Description:

This seminar will use mapping as a methodological technique to examine Census data for
the US. Students will be expected to use mapping software to examine Census data for a
location of their choice for their final paper. Weekly discussions will be conducted in class
on various mapping related topics. Enthusiastic participation in these discussions will
contribute to 20% of the grade. Topics include cartography techniques; web based
mapping and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and their applications. GIS is a
software with capabilities for manipulating, analyzing and displaying spatially referenced
information. Every week, there will be a brief lecture followed by a discussion and/ or a
laboratory exercise where students will work with mapping software. The course will
require a final paper to be done independently by the student(s) (See section 4.0).

There are no prerequisites. Students will be expected to have competence in

microcomputer use and familiarity with Microsoft Windows environment and file
management (directories, subdirectories, copying, etc).

3.0 Grading:
The final course grade will be based on:
Lab exercises (5 points each for short assignments 1-5) 25%

1/5
Final project proposal (5%), presentation (10%) and report (40%) 55%
Participation 20%

4.0 Final Paper

The purpose of the final paper is to provide additional experience in collecting, processing
and analyzing Census data through the use of maps. The research questions can be
relevant to your interest or to another paper/ project for a different course or an exploration
of ideas for your final thesis. The student may use Census data from another country.
However, the responsibility for making sure that the data layers you need are available will
the student’s alone.

Students must start thinking about paper ideas early in the semester. You are expected to
hand in a paper proposal by November 1st 2007. The 1 page proposal should include a
description of the data available, your research questions, a proposed methodology and a
discussion about the motivation for the research questions. Your paper should use ArcGIS
to create maps of Census data and it should discuss the spatial implications of a problem.
By Nov 1st, the student is expected to hand in a 1 page proposal (5% of course grade).
The student will also have made at least one appointment to discuss the project with the
instructor by Nov 1st to get full credit for participation.

The final project will require a formal in-class presentation on December 5th or 12th (10% of
the course grade and about 15 minutes long). The final paper (40% of the course grade) is
due Jan 1st 2008. The paper must include be at least 5 and at most 10 single-spaced
pages (excluding maps, tables, graphs and other visuals). The final paper must include
references from academic journals and books and should be relevant to the topic explored
by the paper.

5.0 Textbook
Required:
Unlocking the Census with GIS by Alan Peters and Heather MacDonald. ESRI Press
(2005) ISBN-10: 1589481135 ISBN-13: 978-1589481138

(This book is available online from ESRI Press and other online booksellers). The book
will be on Reserve at the Lamont Library.

Optional:
Making Maps: A Visual Guide to Map Design for GIS by John Krygier and Denis Wood.
The Guilford Press, New York/ London. New Ed edition (2005) ISBN-10: 1593852002
ISBN-13: 978-1593852009

Mapping Census 2000: The Geography of U.S. Diversity by Cynthia A. Brewer and Trudy
A. Suchan. ESRI Press Edition (November 1, 2001) ISBN-10: 1589480147 ISBN-13:
978-1589480148

2/5
These books are available online through online booksellers. Both are also on reserve at
Lamont and Mapping Census 2000 is a digital resource accessible via Hollis. (See the link
from the course web URL).

Other supplementary readings may be provided every week.

6.0 Student Responsibilities for Meeting Course Objectives

1. Obtain and read the required textbook and supplemental material. Students will be
evaluated on knowledge and skills obtained from lecture, discussion, the required
textbook and supplemental reading materials.
2. Be prepared for class discussions and participation. Volunteer to both discuss
information and answer questions. Outcomes of this practice will be used by the
instructor as a means to subjectively evaluate students at the end of the semester.
3. Follow the student honor code and ethical behavior standards. This code of
conduct can be accessed over the web at
http://webdocs.registrar.fas.harvard.edu/ugrad_handbook/current/chapter2/index.ht
ml
4. Out-of-class assignment must be professionally prepared. This means the course
project and exercises will have to be legible and free of spelling errors, and poor
grammar. References must be cited properly. No late assignments or paper will be
accepted under any circumstances.
5. If you need to communicate with the instructor, you may do so via e-mail, voice
mail, or by making a personal appointment. It may take at least one workday for the
instructor to return a telephone or e-mail message. Plan accordingly. If you need
more then 5-10 minutes of the instructor’s time, it may be best to schedule an
appointment

3/5
7.0 Course Outline and Readings
Lecture/ Discussion Content Laboratory Exercise Content

Week 1 Course overview: Introducing the Census No Lab

Sep 17, 18, 20 Peters and McDonald: Chapter 1

Week 2 Downloading the Census Part 1: Spatial Data Types Lab 1: Data on the web
Sep 27 Peters and McDonald: Chapter 2

Week 3 Downloading the Census Part 2: Linking Spatial and Non Spatial Data Lab 2: Census Factfinder
Oct 4 Peters and McDonald: Chapter 2

Week 4 Mapping tools: GIS Lab 3: Spatial Queries

Oct 11 Krygier and Wood: Chapter 2-4
Krygier’s blog at http://makingmaps.wordpress.com/ categories 01-05

Week 5 Basic cartography Lab 4: Simple maps in ArcGIS

Oct 18 Krygier and Wood: Chapter 6-8
Krygier’s blog at http://makingmaps.wordpress.com/ categories 06-11

Week 6 Census for demographic and social conditions Lab 5: More mapping in ArcGIS
Oct 25 Peters and McDonald: Chapter 3

Week 7 Discussion: What makes a good research question? Project proposal due Nov 1st
Nov 1 Google-Scholar: “How to research, Blaxter” to get this chapter titled “Thinking about (No lab)
research” http://mcgraw-hill.co.uk/openup/chapters/0335209033.pdf by L Blaxter, C
Hughes, M Tight
Sample paper: www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1590018&blobtype=pdf

Week 8 Census for economic conditions Paper preparation/ Lab hours

Nov 8 Peters and McDonald: Chapter 4

Week 9 Census for housing and transportation issues Paper preparation/ Lab hours
Nov 15 Peters and McDonald: Chapter 5-6

Week 10 Thanksgiving break: Labs 1-5 due on Nov 20th

4/5
 Lecture/ Discussion Content Laboratory Exercise Content

Week 11 Discussion: Paper progress reports Paper preparation

Nov 29 Sample papers:
http://ssc.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/25/2/194

Week 12 In class presentation/discussion of paper followed by lab help

Dec 6

Week 13 Lab help

Dec 13, 20

Project Report is due Jan 1st however early submission is encouraged.

Note: All final due dates are final

5/5