Wassookeag students and parents took a trip to UMaine last Friday to learn about G.I.S., a program that displays and analyzes geographic information. Paul Smitherman (Lucia’s dad), is a researcher in the Spatial Information Science and Engineering Department and has been working on some exciting projects. Students were shown information on seals that wore tracking devices over extended periods.
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The paths of these seals were then shown on the computer as zigzagging lines off of the east coast. Students were able to see where the seals started and ended up and how far off the coast they sometimes go. Wassokeagers played around with the program to find interesting results. Paul also showed us some of his G.I.S. research on cancer in Maine. The study is working to link information on demographic, health and environmental factors in certain regions in Maine and will hopefully help expose a clearer spatial view of cancer in the state.