1st October 1997 - 30th November 1999
ESRC Award R000237260
The galloping computerisation of nearly all of society's administrative and management functions is creating an immensely data rich situation.
Much of these data are geographically referenced; for instance by postal address or postcode. Unfortunately, there are as yet few geographical analysis methods able to explore large databases for evidence of patterns if the analyst has no good ideas of where and when to look for the patterns and what characteristics they may have. As a result many important datasets in both the public and private sector are not being analysed to the fullest extent, if indeed at all. For example, data about crime, disease and marketing behaviour are collected and at best poorly analysed using often inadequate methods.
This project aims to develop a novel new approach to the exploratory analysis of geographical data that is widely applicable.
The idea is to use techniques developed in an area of artificial intelligence known as artificial life to create artificial pattern hunting creatures able to move around the complex many dimensional space of a complex multivariate databases in a search for potential patterns where further investigation may be worthwhile.
Other than checking out the above peoples' homepages, you might also like to check the first 'Smart Spatial Pattern Explorer' project webpage.