GEOG 364Spatial Analysis

3 credits · Geography · Penn State

From understanding the spread of COVID to mapping firefly populations, geospatial analysis allows us to identify and understand patterns in space and time. It allows us to make and test theories, assess how likely results would have occurred simply by chance, or to predict new outcomes. Geography 364 is an introduction to spatial analysis that focuses on statistical methods for geographers. Students will learn how to use statistics in their own work and learn how to consume statistics in everyday life. The statistical methods students will learn to use are simple descriptive statistics that we use to summarize complex data, as well as the associated charts, diagrams and maps. Building on this framework the course will move on to look at chance and probability theory, and simple inferential statistics. Throughout the course, we will be concerned with 'everyday statistics,' primarily as it relates to geography. Contemporary media are saturated with statistics, from reports of climatic change, through latest presidential election polls, to batting averages and yards-gained statistics in sports. Much of the presentation of these statistics is lazy or inaccurate, and often misleading (deliberately or not), and a major theme of this course will look at the issues involved.