Industry News
OS: For many people map reading can be a struggle, but for the hundreds of thousands that are colour-blind it can be an even more arduous experience. The traditional rainbow of cartographic colours – green for grass-land and trees, red for main roads & public footpath, and blue for motorways & rivers – can become indistinguishable, therefore making map reading extremely difficult.
Colour blindness is the result of damage to the specialised ‘cone’ cells in the eye which make colour vision possible. It is the most common genetic disorder among humans, afflicting mostly men, with around 8% unable to tell the difference between reds & greens. Instead these colours appear as shades of grey or brown, making it difficulty to interpret the colour‑coded features shown on maps.
Help may be on the way though, thanks to a new product - OS VectorMap - from mapping agency Ordnance Survey that can be specifically styled to make mapping easier on the colour-blind eye.
The new OS digital mapping has been developed to be customisable, allowing for the creation of colour-blind-friendly styles, which to most people will look very strange but could help avoid future confusion for those with the condition.
CLG: Ocella Software Systems Limited has launched the first Connector for the Planning Portal e-Consultation Hub, which provides a fully integrated online consultation solution for Local Planning Authorities. The Hub is the only e-consultation method which actively works to improve standards in planning, a key part of the recent Killian Pretty recommendations and delivers the full benefits of a joined up e-Planning system.
South Oxfordshire District Council has been working in partnership with Ocella during the development phase and has been the pilot site for the first Connector. The pilot was a success and South Oxfordshire District Council went live with the Connector on 30 September 2009.
Press release ~ Ocella ~ Benefits of using the e-Consultation system ~ Killian Pretty recommendations
MO: Met Office climate science has been used as part of a major new book, highlighting the impacts of climate change on our health. ‘The Health Practitioner’s Guide to Climate Change’ focuses on the health benefits that can be realised by tackling & adapting to a warming world. It is hoped that the publication will be a particularly useful reference for anyone involved in the health sector.
Joining forces with other leading organisations in the field, the Met Office Hadley Centre has authored the first chapter, which concentrates on the science behind climate change.
OS: Delegates at last month's AGI (Association for Geographic Information) conference had the chance to get hands-on experience of Ordnance Survey's enhanced, free service OS OpenSpace. In a series of workshops run by OS, delegates could access the latest mapping application programme interface (API), which is freely available to developers for use online.
Over 2,400 developers have signed up use the OS OpenSpace API; the number has dramatically increased since May (when an improved version was released) and is expected to rise again with the launch of OS OpenSpace Pro - designed for use with high-volume and commercial websites.
Community initiatives can also make good use of the service, with the Assynt Angling Research website leading the way. The website is part of a larger research project, undertaken by Substance, called 'The Social and Community Benefits of Angling' and is supported by the Big Lottery Fund.
The research uses web-based tools to gather information on anglers visiting the Assynt area. It utilises OS OpenSpace to show the best locations for angling in the north-west of Scotland along with markers allowing users to post information about which lochs they used, what they caught and how good the location was, with comments regarding long walks, wildlife or good views.
Press release ~ OS OpenSpace ~ AGI (Association for Geographic Information) conference ~ 'The Social and Community Benefits of Angling'
LD: Land Data, the NLIS regulator, has announced that Thames Water, the UK’s largest water & sewerage company, has been awarded a National Land Information Service channel license enabling the company to provide authoritative electronic land and property searches through NLIS.
Thames Water, which covers London & the Thames Valley, is already active in the conveyancing market. Through its property searches business, Property Insight, the company is the official provider of the CON29DW drainage & water search data across the region. Property Insight, which has been compiling property search data since 2002, now provides more than 300,000 searches per year. Its customers will soon be able to access data from the Hub via its website.
STFC: Immediate & accurate breath tests that diagnose medical conditions such as stomach ulcers are being developed by North-west company - Tip Chip - using a technology originally developed for space by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.
Tip Chip is a new & innovative technology that it is hoped will enable patients suffering from suspected stomach ulcers to be tested for a bacteria called Helicobacter Pylori (H. pylori) at their doctor’s surgery in minutes and with laboratory-standard accuracy.
Tip Chip is the result of an innovative collaboration between the Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus based businessand STFC Innovations Ltd, the wholly owned technology exploitation company of STFC.
Scientists from STFC involved in developing Tip Chip were formerly engaged in producing the Ptolemy instrument for the Rosetta mission.
Ptolemy required scientists & engineers to reduce a laboratory full of chemistry equipment into a space the size of a shoebox - and yet make it durable enough to survive the rigours of launch and a 10 years in deep space.
Press release ~ STFC Innovations Ltd ~ Spinouts ~ Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus (Daresbury SIC)
Socitm: Socitm, the organisation for ICT & associated professionals in the public sector, has appointed a Head of Membership to develop member services and build the depth & breadth of its membership. The appointment signals a commitment by Socitm to follow through on last year’s decision to open up membership to ICT & related professionals at all career stages, working in or for all parts of the public and third sectors.
