New E-Resource – Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) Archive

The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) Archive is now available to access for members of the University of Cambridge.

Royal Geographical Society (with Institute of British Geographers) was founded in 1830. The learned Society promotes the advancement of geographical science in all its aspects. The Society’s archive contains vast collections of documents, maps, photographs, expedition reports, manuscript materials and books, and span 500 years of geography, travel and exploration. The RGS holds one of the largest private map collections in the world. It includes one million sheets of maps and charts, 3000 atlases, 40 globes (as gores or mounted on stands) and 1000 gazetteers. The earliest printed cartographic item dates back to 1485.

The Wiley Digital Archives-RGS collection also boasts over one hundred unique special collections. These include the Everest Collection; the David Livingstone Collection; the Sir Ernest Shackleton Collection; the Stanley Collection; the Younghusband Collection; the Speke Collection; and the Gertrude Bell Collection.

Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) Archive is also available to access via the Databases A-Z.

Text from the Wiley platform for the database.

Photo by Frans van Heerden: https://www.pexels.com/photo/gray-stone-mountain-beside-body-of-water-868990/

 

 

Royal Geographical Society & Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland digital archives : access until 16 March 2021

In addition to the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS) digital archive access, Cambridge University members have temporary access to the Royal Geographical Society and Royal Anthropological Institute digital archives via the Wiley Online Archives platform.

• Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) archive
• Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland archive

Access is available until 16th March 2021.

Please send your feedback via the online form.

Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) archive

Royal Geographical Society (with Institute of British Geographers) was founded in 1830. The learned Society promotes the advancement of geographical science in all its aspects. The Society’s archive contains vast collections of documents, maps, photographs, expedition reports, manuscript materials and books, and span 500 years of geography, travel and exploration. The RGS holds one of the largest private map collections in the world. It includes one million sheets of maps and charts, 3000 atlases, 40 globes (as gores or mounted on stands) and 1000 gazetteers. The earliest printed cartographic item dates back to 1485.

The Archive includes Maps, Atlases, Charts and Plans; Expedition Reports; Fieldnotes, Correspondence and Diaries; Grey Literature; Photographs, Artwork and Illustrations; Journal Manuscripts; Photographs; Proceedings, Lectures, and Ephemera. The collection spans a wide variety of interdisciplinary research areas, and supports educational needs in Anthropology, Area Studies; Cartography and Visualizations, Colonial, Post-Colonial & Decolonisation Studies; Development Studies; Environmental Degradation; Historical & Cultural Geography; Historical Sociology; Human Geography; Identity, Gender & Ethnic Studies; Geology; International Relations; Trade and Commerce, and Law and Policy relating to Colonization.

Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland archive

The Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (RAI) is the world’s longest-established scholarly association dedicated to the furtherance of anthropology (the study of humankind) in its broadest and most inclusive sense.

This archive includes maps, photographs and manuscripts.

New eresource : Global Digimap

Cambridge University members now have access to Global Digimap.

From the publisher website:

“Global Digimap provides access to global datasets in cartographic styles and downloadable formats that are useful to you. The service provides the following:

An easy to use interface to allow you to browse, annotate and print global maps.

A data download facility to providing access to global datasets for use in GIS software”

Find information about access to the Digimap collections available to Cambridge University students and academics.

Global Digimap via this direct link or the Databases A-Z.

Wiley Digital Archives : access until 30th June 2020

We now have access to 4 further collections in the Wiley Digital Archives:

• Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) archive
• Royal College of Physicians archive
• Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland archive
• New York Academy of Sciences archive

Access is available until 30th June 2020.

Please send your feedback via the online form.

Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) archive

Royal Geographical Society (with Institute of British Geographers) was founded in 1830. The learned Society promotes the advancement of geographical science in all its aspects. The Society’s archive contains vast collections of documents, maps, photographs, expedition reports, manuscript materials and books, and span 500 years of geography, travel and exploration. The RGS holds one of the largest private map collections in the world. It includes one million sheets of maps and charts, 3000 atlases, 40 globes (as gores or mounted on stands) and 1000 gazetteers. The earliest printed cartographic item dates back to 1485.

The Archive includes Maps, Atlases, Charts and Plans; Expedition Reports; Fieldnotes, Correspondence and Diaries; Grey Literature; Photographs, Artwork and Illustrations; Journal Manuscripts; Photographs; Proceedings, Lectures, and Ephemera. The collection spans a wide variety of interdisciplinary research areas, and supports educational needs in Anthropology, Area Studies; Cartography and Visualizations, Colonial, Post-Colonial & Decolonisation Studies; Development Studies; Environmental Degradation; Historical & Cultural Geography; Historical Sociology; Human Geography; Identity, Gender & Ethnic Studies; Geology; International Relations; Trade and Commerce, and Law and Policy relating to Colonization.

Royal College of Physicians archive

From the founding charter to 20th-century reports on the effects of smoking, there is a wealth of material on the RCP’s role in relation to contemporary medical advances. The RCP was founded so that physicians could be formally licensed to practise and those who were not qualified could be exposed and punished. There are many archive records defining the RCP’s changing role in setting standards in medical practice. RCP members have always collected manuscripts and papers on a wide range of medical and non-medical topics. As a result the archives contain an eclectic range of 14th- to 19th-century manuscripts. Personal papers of past fellows from the 16th century to the 20th century provide glimpses into the personal lives and social concerns of many distinguished physicians.

Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland archive

The Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (RAI) is the world’s longest-established scholarly association dedicated to the furtherance of anthropology (the study of humankind) in its broadest and most inclusive sense.

This archive includes maps, photographs and manuscripts.

New York Academy of Sciences archive

For 200 years—since 1817—the Academy has brought together extraordinary people working at the frontiers of discovery. Among the oldest scientific organizations in the United States, it has become not only an enduring cultural institution in New York, but also one of the most significant organizations in the global scientific community. Throughout its history, the Academy’s Membership has featured thinkers and innovators from all walks of life, including U.S. Presidents Jefferson and Monroe, Thomas Edison, Charles Darwin, Margaret Mead, and many more.

 

Global data on Digimap (EDINA) : access until 30th June 2020

Added to Global Data has been added to our access on Digimap (EDINA) and is available until 30th June 2020.

You will need to log in to the Digimap platform to be able to access the Global section of the site. Search for the University of Cambridge and you will be prompted to log in with Raven, if you are not already authenticated. You will then see a personal welcome message that let’s you know you have access.

Please send your feedback about the Global Data to us via the online form.

Digimap is an online map and data delivery service, available by subscription to UK Higher and Further Education establishments. Operated by EDINA at the University of Edinburgh, Digimap offers a number of data collections, including Ordnance Survey, historical, geological, LiDAR and marine maps and spatial data.

Global Digimap provides access to global datasets in cartographic styles and downloadable formats that are useful to you. The service provides the following:

• An easy to use interface to allow you to browse, annotate and print global maps.
• A data download facility to providing access to global datasets for use in GIS software.

Global Digimap offers two applications, Roam and Data Download.

Roam

Our Roam mappers let you view, customise and print maps. They all work in the same way but some offer additional features to make the most of their particular maps. You can:

• select your area of interest by searching, or zooming and panning
• view maps at one of our pre-defined scales
• annotate maps with symbols, lines, polygons and labels using drawing tools
• add buffer zones
• measure map features
• print maps at A4 and A3 size in PDF, PNG or JPG format
• customise map feature display (coming soon)
• select a different basemap
• compare 2 maps (coming soon)

Data Download

Our Data Download tools allow you to download map data for use, for example, in GIS software or CAD software. They allow:

• selection of area of interest by drawing on the map, or with coordinates or National Grid tiles
• order multiple map data product(s) in one order
• data available in various formats (varies between products)
• amend and reorder any previous orders

Guides on using the apps are available from EDINA.

Maps datasets : new from EDINA “Pilot Digimap”

EDINA is excited to announce the launch of Pilot Digimap, a new free (time limited) collection offering a selection of data on a trial basis.  

Every user in every institution will be able to access Pilot Digimap free of charge, no subscription necessary.

EDINA works hard to identify and source new and useful datasets. With Pilot Digimap our aim is to make data available on a time-limited trial basis. You can rate your interest in any dataset using our new star rating system in Pilot Roam. We will invest in making datasets more permanently available where there is demonstrable interest in them.

Initially, Pilot Digimap will offer the following:

From Geomni:

• UKMap a modern, highly detailed, feature-rich mapping database of Greater London. Its unique, innovative design offers users a flexible choice of integrated map features within a single geographic information source.
• UKBuildings a unique database created and regularly updated to help you understand the age, structure, characteristics and use, of commercial, public and residential buildings across the UK.
• UKLand a maintained, national land information database providing a detailed consistent breakdown of the use of land across the UK.

An EDINA Satellite data collection initially consisting of:

• Sentinel 2 derived cloud free optical mosaic for Great Britain, 2019.
• Sentinel 2 derived Near Infrared mosaic for Great Britain, 2019.

These collections will be available for free through Pilot Digimap until 31^st July 2020. We will continue to add new datasets when they become available.

We will be holding two webinars (and making a recording available) about Pilot Digimap:

• Wednesday 1st April,11.30am – 12:30pm: Register now

• Friday 3rd April, 11-11:30am: Register now

Jisc geospatial data gives academics access to millions of open data maps

Re-posted from Jisc News.

Integration of Airbus’ Vision-1 satellite imagery and the GeoSeer search tool give students and academics access to millions of open access geographical data sets

Jisc is pleased to announce the launch of the improved Jisc geospatial data service providing universities and colleges easy and free access to more than 1.6 million geographical datasets from around the world, including the most comprehensive index of maps ever brought together.

The service features the implementation of a new search tool, GeoSeer, and the access to Airbus’ Vision-1 satellite imagery.

The Jisc service brings open data and licensed data together in one interface, integrating GeoSeer which can search for spatial data by location and subject. It also offers the opportunity to review multiple search results at once by overlaying any of the datasets to study and compare changes in the landscape over time.

Phil Brownnett, head of UK programmes at Airbus Defence and Space – Intelligence said:

“We are very pleased to have been working with Jisc to provide academics and students easy access to valuable datasets, especially Vision-1 high-resolution satellite data. We are committed to empowering researchers and this will help transform their geographical work.”

Early next year, Airbus’ Vision-1 satellite imagery will complete this dataset, allowing researchers to focus on specific locations across the world, with fine and up-to-date details. Jisc is looking to work with universities to explore how the GeoSeer tool and Vision-1 data can enhance research, teaching and learning.

Cam Swift, geospatial data service development manager at Jisc, said:

“We worked with Airbus to integrate GeoSeer into our service, bringing together over 1.6 million open source maps and licensed data into one easy to use interface. This will make it easier for students, academics and researchers to use geographical information.

“Users can log into one service bringing together open access and licensed geography data and working with them seamlessly.”

Jonathan Moules, founder of GeoSeer said:

“It’s great to see all of this data made readily available to so many people. Freely available geographical data is really hard to find using conventional means and GeoSeer was developed to ameliorate that. Now thousands in academia have access to this data and can utilise it by simply typing in a search term and then add their desired search layers.”

Society Digimap: trial access

The University of Cambridge now has trial access to the newly launched Digimap collection: Society Digimap, via this link.

For registration for use of Digimap please see the UL Map Department’s page here:

http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/departments/maps/digital-maps/digimap

Access is enabled until 31 July 2019.  Please send us your feedback via the online form here.  Thank you.

Society Digimap allows you  to explore a range of demographic data, providing a wealth of census and socio-economic information for Great Britain. The processing required to visualise Census and other demographic datasets can be a barrier to use for many people interested in the value of the datasets. By providing these datasets as layers to visualise along with high quality Ordnance Survey data, the rich information can offer valuable insights without the need to learn how to use a GIS.

Today, the mapping facility, Society Roam is available. A full data download application is under development, which will offer the ability to download both the census data and the corresponding boundaries together.

Marine Digimap

The University of Cambridge has long subscribed to the Digimap service run by EDINA, providing maps and geospatial data from a number of national data providers, including Ordnance Survey and the British Geological Survey.

Cambridge University Library’s Map Department provides a helpful page giving details of the service and how to get access here.   This page includes the Terms of Use that specify that the data is available for teaching, educational research, academic research or limited internal business use only. Registration is required before use, and access thereafter is via Raven login.

In addition to the access to the Ordnance Survey Collection, Historic Digimap, Geology Digimap and Environment Digimap, the University has added the Aerial, Lidar, and Global services, and from 2018/2019 Marine Digimap.

Aerial: Aerial imagery data at scales ranging from 1:150,000 to 1:500 available for making maps online or for download. Complete coverage of Great Britain is available.

Lidar: Lidar data maps the earth’s surface and is captured by firing rapid laser pulses (thousands of times per second) at the ground surface. By examining the laser energy reflected back from the ground the surface is captured as a dense cloud of 3D points. These points are then converted in to highly detailed terrain models of the surface of the earth and by examining the reflections from both the ground surface and the vegetation canopy it is possible to derive both Digital Terrain Models of the bare earth surface (DTM) and also Digital Surface Models (DSM) that show the vegetation canopy.

Global: This is a service that is being developed now by EDINA, mainly using OpenStreetMap and Natural Earth data.  You can read more about this innovative new service here.

Marine: Includes the raster nautical charts derived from the UK Hydrographic Office paper charts and chart panels, and Marine Themes vector data covering all UK waters which can be loaded into Geographic Information Systems.  Marine data is extensively used in offshore engineering projects, management of marine and coastal environments, marine ecology studies, environmental impact assessments and tourism.

Within Marine Digimap are the following tools:

Roam is used to view, annotate, and save maps through your browser. Maps can be created at scales 1:2,500 to 1:5,000,000, and saved as PDF, PNG and JPG, from sizes A4 to A0.

Chart Roam provides marine charts created from the original paper charts. The digital files are available in TIFF format (from Marine Download) at scales from 1:5,000 to 1:5,000,000. They can be viewed, annotated, and saved as PDF, PNG and JPG formats from sizes A4 to A0.

Marine download enables the download of OceanWise Ltd. data for use in GIS software. Marine download contains additional data to Marine Roam such as UK Territorial Sea Area, Continental Shelf Area and Fishery Zone.

Access to Digimap is via the Maps Department page on the University Library website or via the Cambridge LibGuides Databases A-Z.

Digimap has its own YouTube  channel here.

Launching of the digital cartography tool: Mapping the Enlightenment

The research team of the project Mapping the Enlightenment: Intellectual Networks and the Making of Knowledge in the European Periphery  is thrilled to announce the release of an online digital cartography tool which provides historical information about the travels of Greek-speaking scholars during the European Enlightenment Era through a modern interactive environment!

The project Mapping the Enlightenment was funded by the Research Centre for Humanities (RCH) for the academic year 2016-2017. For more information on the project and for using our mapping tool, please visit our webpage:

https://mapping-the-enlightenment.org/