Research Opportunities in Geography at the U.S. Geological Survey (2002) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
Pages 13-24
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From page 13... ...
This effort has included an attempt to become a revitalized component of a more inclusive natural science and information agency. By becoming a broader and more comprehensive organization, the USGS seeks the capacity to take a national leadership role by developing information and knowledge about the web of relationships that constitute the air-, water-, human-, and land-systems.
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From page 14... ...
The Critical Zone is a dynamic interface between the solid Earth and its fluid envelopes, governed by complex linkages and feedbacks among a vast range of physical, chemical, and biological processes. These processes can be organized into four main categories: (1)
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From page 15... ...
The Survey directly serves the natural science research needs of the Department of Interior (DON, whose numerous agencies work toward a broad array of mission goals and objectives; however, these agencies share a need for spatial data and natural science research. The USGS meets these needs through cooperative agreements with client agencies, producing geographic information-based products and by engaging in basic and applied natural science research on problems specified by the agencies.
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From page 16... ...
First, the newly defined Survey includes specific organizational accommodations for geography, including an Associate Director for Geography, a Chief Geographic Scientist, and a Geographic Information Officer. Second, the USGS now seeks to define and prioritize the potential bureau-wide contributions of geography in the Survey.
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From page 17... ...
Natural sciences deal with the interactions, transformations, flows, distributions, and changes over time of both matter and energy. Decisions on priorities for the Survey within the natural sciences depend on the demands from other goverrunental agencies and society.
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From page 18... ...
undertakes investigations related to atmospheric and marine processes. The National Park Service manages parks, but the USGS Biology Discipline conducts research on parks.
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From page 19... ...
The USGS serves the Nation by providing reliable scientific information to: · describe and understand the Earth; · minimize loss of life and property from natural disasters; · manage water, biological, energy and mineral resources; and · enhance and protect our quality of life. These vision and mission statements give geography renewed relevance to the USGS's redefined purposes and show that the USGS has rediscovered interest in recognizing social relevance, in understanding nature-society interactions, and in using geospatial data, which are all major themes in modern geography.
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From page 20... ...
The refocusing of USGS interest on geospatial data is also a primary force in renewing geography at the Survey. Mapping has always been a primary activity at the USGS, but modern geospatial datasets go far beyond paper representations of spatial data.
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From page 21... ...
In response, the USGS eliminated the former division organizational structure (Biological Resources Division, National Mapping Division, Geologic Division, and Water Resources Division) in the fall of 2001 and replaced it with a discipline-based structure: Biology Discipline, Geology Discipline, Geography Discipline, and Water Discipline.
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From page 22... ...
While geography plays a role in the new vision and mission of the USGS, the Survey can also affect the impact and progress of American geography. By providing the field of geography with an entry to federal natural science, the USGS can stimulate the best research, particularly in geospatial information science, natural hazards, and resource analysis.
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From page 23... ...
For FY2002 the budget was $133.3 million, approximately 15 percent of the total USGS budget. The Cooperative Topographic Mapping program received 61 percent of the Geography Discipline's total, Land Remote Sensing received 27 percent, and Geographic Analysis and Monitoring received 12 percent.
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From page 24... ...
Specifically, the committee was charged to consider the following areas of concern to the Geography Discipline of the USGS: The role of the USGS in advancing the state of knowledge of the discipline (geography, cartography, and geographic information sciences) ; The role of the USGS in improving the understanding of the dynamic connections between the land surface and human interactions with it; · The role of the USGS in maintaining and enhancing the tools and methods for conducting and applying geographic research; and · The role of the USGS in bridging the gap between geographic science, policy making, and management.
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