Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies Recognized for Spatial Education and Research
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies in Fulbright College received the North American Oracle Spatial Education and Research Award during the 2005 North American Oracle Spatial Users Conference held in Denver in March.
CAST was singled out for its research and education in large databases as well as in interdisciplinary, interoperable datasets and their practical uses by state, local and federal governments.
“We are very pleased to have been selected for this award,” said CAST Director Fred Limp. “It recognizes the hard work and creativity of all the research staff at CAST.”
Access to powerful information technology tools such as those in Oracle is as critical for many areas of university research in the 21st century as was access to a Bunsen burner or an optical microscope in the past.
Research projects developed by CAST have also had immediate and sometimes lasting economic benefit to the community and state. One of the research projects that served as the basis for the award was the Arkansas GeoStor system. Using Oracle and other tools, CAST researchers designed the nation’s first interoperable statewide geospatial warehouse. The system holds many terabytes containing more than 650 different kinds of geographic data about the state, ranging from information on roads, addresses and soils to aerial and satellite photography. This system, now part of the state of Arkansas’ “mission critical enterprise architecture,” is being moved to the Department of Information Systems in Little Rock.
“University research is its own reward,” said Limp, “but is it particularly gratifying when a research project such as GeoStor proves to have real day-to-day value in peoples’ lives.”
The Oracle Conference was held in conjunction with the Geospatial Information and Technology Association’s (GITA) Conference. The event attracted nearly 2,100 participants. Members of GITA, a nonprofit educational association serving the global geospatial community, particularly emphasize the ways in which geospatial information and technologies can be used in utilities, telecommunications, oil and gas, public works and local governments.
Contacts
Fred Limp, director, Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies, J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, (479) 575-6159, flimp@uark.edu
Lynn Fisher, communications director, Fulbright College, (479) 575-7272, lfisher@uark.edu
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