Breaking News – Canada funds an Unusual Laboratory for Rehabilitation

The Laboratory for the Exploration of Media Immersion for Rehabilitation (EMIR Laboratory), the first laboratory of its kind in the world, aims to develop and evaluate immersive experiences based on enhanced body awareness, with a view to supporting applications in rehab in particular. The laboratory will complement existing laboratories at Laval University that offer immersive experiences (the Laboratoire de muséologie et d’ingénierie culturelle or LAMIC, the Laboratoire des nouvelles technologies de l’image, du son et de la scène or LANTISS, and the Laboratoire de réalité géospatiale augmenté en réseau et déplacements or REGARD and the virtual reality cave at the Centre interdisciplinaire de recherche en réadaptation et intégration sociale or CIRRIS), but the EMIR Laboratory is destined to be integrated within a clinical hospital environment (the Institut de réadaptation en déficience physique de Québec or IRDPQ) during its third year of development.

The EMIR laboratory will consist of a variety of equipment, of a total value of about 300000$, including specialized devices to record and deliver high quality and spatialized sound, a 360 degree visual surround (including an interactive floor and video cameras), tactile interfaces for capturing touch and gesture, a brain-computer interface so that the environment can be controlled to some extent by thought patterns (of special interest for quadraplegics), and the ability to track movements outside the lab and to represent these within the laboratory environment. The immersive experiences that will be designed include, therefore, a multisensory combination of artistic, pedagogique and scientific elements structured in space, which will serve to support the development of experiences that challenge and transform the embodied identity of participants undergoing rehabilitation.

Partners in the project include the IRDPQ, LANTISS, LAMIC and CIRRIS, and MercanStream Technologies Inc.

Perception and Spatial Representation - Deliverables from the First Mandate of the Chair

While the second seven year mandate of the Canada Research Chair on Cognitive Geomatics is focussed on the relationships between identity, body and space, the first mandate was concerned with understanding our mental representations of space, as derived from perception and mental imagery, and with the development of tools and software that put this knowledge to use. Application areas for this work included rehabilitation, the performing arts, navigation, landscape design, and database design.

Nested perceptions of the world

A variety of researchers have studied how our perceptions of the world are organized as a function of scale. Several schemas that describe scaled perceptions exist. One of the most interesting is that put forward by Dan Montello in 1993 (Scale and multiple psychologies of space). Montello's is interesting in part because it synthesizes the work of several researchers, but also because it critically examines the different approaches. Within Montello's framework, roughly four spaces exist at different scales :
(a) Figural space
(b) Vista space
(c) Environmental space
(d) Geographic space
Montello describes Figural space as being the space of drawings and maps, representations of the world. Vista space is conceived of as the region that can be viewed from a single location. Environmental space is defined as the region accessible via displacement or navigation. Geographic space is the space that is too large to be visited. A fifth space,
(e) Cosmic space,
covers spaces that are not accessible on the Earth.

Other categorisations of spaces also exist, some of them very useful. Hence several researchers focus on what are called "table top spaces" to describe the spaces in which objects can be picked up and manipulated (for example, Andrew Frank). In Montello's scheme, Table top space may be viewed as intermediate between Figural and Vista space. Another approach distinguishes between "within body" space, "body space" and "near body space" (Three spaces of Spatial Cognition by B. Tversky et al.). These are also spaces that are smaller than Vista space. Tversky also points out the cognitive importance of barriers within a space.


Figure 1 : Local displacement space for a household in Sillery, Quebec City

Along with my collaborator-postdoc Dr. Isabelle Reginster, we found that to apply these theoretical ideas to a real application, it was necessary to subdivide Montello's Environmental Space into two different scale spaces, what we called the Local Displacement Space (see Figure 1) and the Extended Displacement Space (see Figure 2). Local Displacement Space dealt with the part of Environmental Space that can be accessed by foot, while the Extended Displacement Space accommodated the region accessed by car. We applied a time limit for displacement as a means to characterize the size of these spaces, and used the three scales (Vista, Local Displacement and Extended Displacement) as spatial units within which information was aggregated to infer perceptions for different households - perceptions of how many municipal services were accessible, of access to schools, and perceptions of how much green areas were to be found within the local environment. We showed how to determine the Vista, LDS and EDS spaces from satellite imagery, and we used the aggregated statistics to explore the relationships between scale, perception and house prices (see the publication Reginster and Edwards, 2001, for details). We tracked, in particular, the location of barriers in the space, both perceptual and navigational barriers.

At the time this work was undertaken, the displacements were tracked using phone interviews carried out with a variety of households in an Origin-Destination survey that had been conducted by colleagues in the Département d'Aménagament of Laval University. These days, the survey could be carried out much more cheaply using a portable GPS unit with a data logger.


Figure 2 : Extended displacement space for the household in Sillery, Quebec City. Note that the extended displacement space consists of corridors around each road used, and that frequency of travel along the road reinforces the intensity of that part of the displacement space

Hence we were able to implement these theoretical constructions of embedded spaces in a study on scaled perceptions of the local environment from the point of view of members of a household.

Rooms and gateways

A second study, undertaken with Dr. Gerard Ligozat and later with his daughter, Anne Laure Ligozat, focused on the development of formal representations of perceived space, especially outdoor, natural spaces. In this project, we were interested in developing a formal (i.e. mathematical) representation of perceived space and in implementing this representation on a computer. We were particularly interested in the fact that, within exterior environments, one may move a certain distance and yet still conclude that one was within the same place as before the move. What determines when we conclude that a change has occurred in our location?

We determined that either the neighborhood had changed, or the order of landmarks on the horizon had change (the latter is called the "panorama" in technical terms). Therefore, we set about to characterise a space in terms of its neighborhoods and panoramas. This led to the idea of "perceptually stable zones" and "zones of transition", which one may metaphorically associate with "rooms" and "gateways". We found that all outdoor spaces could be reconfigured as a set of "rooms" and "gateways", making them analagous to interior spaces. Visual barriers act, within such a viewpoint, as metaphorical "walls". The set of rooms and gateways forms a kind of dual or alternate representation to the set of neighborhoods and panoramas, and we found that one could infer the one from the other and vice versa, to some extent. This work was published in two papers (Ligozat and Edwards, 1999; Edwards and Ligozat, 2004).


Figure 3 : A fictional landscape created within the software prototype PERSEUS

A software prototype called PERSEUS was developped to showcase the model. The prototype divides space up in terms of what are often called "viewsheds", that is, areas of intervisibility, and then subdivides these areas in terms of panoramas, defined as regions in which the order of landmarks on the horizon is stable. To some extent, therefore, the maps produced depend on what objects are labelled as landmarks by the user. We have been able to generate maps of stable perceptual zones for both fictitious landscapes, but also for a study of the Plains of Abraham, the large park within Quebec City.


Figure 4 : Map of the perceptually stable zones for the three landmarks within the fictional landscape used by the PERSEUS prototype

Understanding near-body spaces as a function of disability

The work by Reginster and Edwards, and that by Edwards, Ligozat and Ligozat, constitute new material representations of space (i.e. maps) that incorporate understanding of our mental representations of space as derived from modern cognitive psychology. However, they handle vista spaces and larger regions.

In work aimed at supporting the movement of disabled users in the landscape, another postdoc, Pierre-Emmanual Michon, and a full time Research Professional, David Duguay, and I, developed a new kind of representation, this time a special kind of 3D map, aimed at representing near-body spaces.


Figure 5 : An part of the research centre in rehab in Quebec City, as portrayed within the CADMUS prototype software

For this work we drew on the concept of affordances as proposed by James J. Gibson in the 1950s. The idea is that objects permit certain kinds of functional use but not others - they are said to "afford" such uses. Hence a chair affords that one can sit on it, but not that one can eat it (unless it were a chocolate chair!). We implemented the concept of affordances in a 3D database (see Edwards, 2006, for a description of this process). Hence in our database, doors may afford opening via a "door handle" or a "push button" as in some hospitals. In addition, we matched the affordances of such objects to the physical capabilities of the user. Hence a "door handle" requires the ability to twist as well as a certain level of physical strength, whereas the push button requires a much lower level of strength. Using the combination of affordances and user profiling, we were able to generate maps that showed areas of different accessibility levels as a function of a users physical profile. In a second version of the prototype, which is called CADMUS, we also incorporated mental competencies as well as physical competencies.


Figure 6 : The same region as shown in Figure 5, but color coded in terms of accessibility for a given class of disabled user. Red means access is difficult, green that access is easy

Image schemas and performance design

The work on affordances and user profiling, although it led to the creation of a new kind of 3D map, could also be used to evaluate the effectiveness of particular environmental or building designs for different handicapped profiles. Likewise, the rooms-and-gateways representation of outdoor spaces could be used not only to understand an outdoor space, but also as a support for redesigning such a space.

Our interest in designing spaces extended into another arena, that of performance design (i.e. for the performing arts). Here, the understanding of space requires a connection to their emotional impact and not just their perceptual impact. A useful tool for capturing the relationship between space and emotion is found in image schemata.

Image schemata were unearthed by philosopher Mark Johnson in the early 1980s (see his book The Body in The Mind for a clear exposition of the concept), and their study and use matured under Johnson's collaborator with the linguist, George Lakoff (see Women, Fire and Dangerous Things : What Categories Reveal About the Mind) for this later work. They are basic images that are found to be common across most languages, and that are used to talk about abstract ideas. Common examples of image schemata include CONTAINER, PATH, CYCLE, LINK, ENABLEMENT, FORCE, BLOCKAGE, SPLIT, and COLLECTION. Later studies have found that image schemata also turn up in most forms of expression, including the visual arts, music, gesture and dance, sculpture, and cinema - as such, they constitute a powerful means of coordinating design that must serve our many different senses.

Lakoff and Johnson developed a theory that image schemata are formed during early childhood by a process of binding embodied actions to word concepts. Within this framework, therefore, image schemata are linked to emotional responses, albeit in a manner that is itself rather complex and likely to vary from one individual to another. Nevertheless, artistic design uses image schemata, often unconsciously and intuitively.

In a study callaborative study carried out in 2005, Marie Louise Bourbeau, a mezzo-soprano soloist, and I used image schemata to design a performance of Claudio Monteverdi's opera fragment, Arianna. We showed that image schemata, when used consciously and explicitly, constitute a powerful tool for performance design, for delivering an experience to an audience. In a sense, image schemata allow us to design experiences directly rather than just their progenitors, the objects or events that produce experiences. More details of this work can be found in our paper on the subject (Edwards and Bourbeau, 2005), and the results of the design can be viewed on youTube.


Ariadne Emerging Video Clip

Cognitive Design of Assistive Technologies

In addition to the work on designing maps and spaces, we have been interesting in designing tools that facilitate the navigation and movement within spaces, not just mapping tools. The first significant effort in this direction has been undertaken by a Ph.D. student, Mr. Reda Yaagoubi. The idea is to use what we know about how people represent spaces mentally to assist in the navigation of the blind.

Modern geomatics technology that is useful in this context is, of course, the GPS receiver. However, all current GPS devices rely on the visualization of a map to provide what one might call situational awareness. Instructions on where to go might be provided by a computerized voice, but the devices rely on the visual availability of a map to let people know where they are and the location of objects and landmarks in their immediate environment. Without such landmarks, directional instructions are useless. For the blind, this is a problem - situation awareness is lost many times over the course of a day, and direction that are given without situation awareness may be less than useless.

We are therefore using information about how people, in particular people without recourse to sight, store and maintain mental representations of their immediate surroundings. The tool we are developing seeks to use natural strategies to help individuals update their local mental representation in such a way that a GPS directional instructions may become meaningful. The design process is quite challenging, because it requires that one understands both the cognitive processes and representations in operation and that these inform the engineering and technical principles that must be used to develop a particular form of technology. A paper has been submitted to a journal describing this work (Yaagoubi and Edwards, 2007).

We also undertook behavioral experiments that tested the ability of blind subjects to understand and manipulate mental representations of space. A paper has been submitted describing this work as well (Eardley, A., G. Edwards, F. Malouin, P.-E. Michon and J. Kennedy, 2007). We found that a certain group of people without sight (those born with sight but who lost it a year or so after birth) actually perform better than the sighted at certain tasks involving spatial reasoning on their mental representations. Those born blind from birth with no neurological complications had similar competency as the sighted. Only those born blind with neurological complications performed significantly worse than the sighted on these manipulation tasks.

Resonant Installations - Designing the Immersive Experience for Maximum Impact

The work on image schemata in support of performance design was aimed at connecting performance spaces to their emotional impact. Although image schemata were found to be a powerful tool for design, their connection to emotional response was weaker than we would have liked. In an attempt to develop a stronger connection to emotional response, we (Marie Louise Bourbeau and myself) investigated the use of devices that enhance our awareness of our own bodies during performance.

We began this work by focusing on the act of breathing, perhaps the most important aspect of body-awareness because it is the source of ongoing life. So many studies and body-training disciplines are all based on the act of taking a breath, including all of modern athletics, but also all the performance arts. Marie Louise Bourbeau is a specialist in breath training for singers and dancers, so this choice made double sense as a first target.

We developed an installation, called Incarnatus, that sought to create a new relationship between the participating audience and classical lyrical music. Using one of Mahler's lieder (the Schildwache Nachtlied, or Soldier's Nightsong), sung in German and based on a traditional folk verse, we developed an instatallation that culminated in the use of a device we call the "co-breather". This is a cushion that breathes at the same time as the singer, while the participant is listening to the music sung by the same singer. Far from being experienced as an imposition, participants adapted their breathing to that provided by the co-breather within seconds, and many participants reported a near-ecstatic connection with the music, completely unexpected.


Incarnatus Video clip

Following the public presentation of the Incarnatus installation, we determined that the co-breather creates a rather paradoxical state that includes a heightened state of body awareness combined with a "loss of self" (as well as a stronger sense of identification with the music), a dropping of the barriers that define and protect the self.

We are now in the process of developing new installations that put such "body opening experiences" first, and follow it up with other body exploration processes as well as an integration and a closure phase. The installation that generates such a sequencing of experiences we call a "Resonant Installation", and several examples are presently under development (for more details about Resonant Installations, see the blogsite ResonantInstallations). These form the heart of the second mandate of the Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Geomatics.

Virtual and Mixed Reality Environments - Embodiement and Identity

Finally, during the final year of the first mandate of the Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Geomatics, we have begun a systematic investigation of the relationship between virtual worlds and embodied experience. This is another paradoxical study. At first site, virtual worlds would appear to be a perfect example of a "disembodied experience". This intuitive evaluation that many of us form at a distance is almost completely false, as it turns out. Virtual worlds generate highly embodied experiences. But our understanding of what embodiment is has changed, as a result of this work.

This work is supported by the ongoing discussions undertaken by the Embodied Research Group (ERG), an active group of researchers that meets every week online (on Second Life) to discuss our understanding of embodiment. For more information about the work of the group and the results of the discussions, see their blogsite, EmbodiedResearch. Within this context, it has become apparent that embodiment is "performative" rather than simply "physical". As a result, it is possible to develop a sense of embodiment within virtual worlds, even though our physical bodies are not directly engaged.

This results in a profound rethinking of what it means to be embodied, and even what constitutes "body awareness". In a recent discussion by the Embodied Research Group, it was noted that within Second Life we may actually develop a kind of "reflexive muscle" for an embodied functionality available within Second Life but not in our physical environments. An example is the use of a virtual camera to look at objects that would normally be "out of sight" of one's body. When the reflex develops, we find ourselves "trying" to use it in our physical bodies, and frustrated that we cannot. We have developed our virtual camera as a kind of phantom limb - the neurons still activate it, but there is no follow through to a muscular action.

Within virtual worlds, our identity is also multiplied, resulting in another rethinking of what it means to be a person. The multiplication of identity and the spatial redistribution of our sense of embodiment are two startling mutations in our sense of self that derive from an engaged presence within virtual worlds of such complexity.

This is of special interest for so-called "mixed reality" environments, that is, environments that combine parts of virtual worlds within our physical, material experience. Gaining understanding of the impacts of such mixed reality environments on our sense of self and our ability to act in the world has become a major source of study for the Canada Research Chair in Cogntive Geomatics, and this work will also form part of the second term mandate. A paper on this was recently presented (in French) at the Geocongrès International in Quebec City in October 2007.


Conclusions



Table I : Representations (R) and Tools (T) developed during the first seven year term of the Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Geomatics

Table I shows a summary of the innovations of the first seven year term of the Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Geomatics, in the area of Perceptions and Representations. At the scale of the body, we developed tools we call Resonant Installations. At the near body scale, we developed tools that use image schemata and representations based on the theory of affordances. At the scale of vista space, we developed a map representation that views all spaces, indoors and outdoors, in terms of conceptual rooms, barriers and gateways. At the scale of environmental spaces, we developed map representations in terms of local and extended displacement spaces that can be derived from satellite imagery (e.g. Google Earth). Together, these constitute an "end-to-end" collection of tools for representating, handling and manipulating the full range of perceptual spaces, and informing design processes focussed on the spaces themselves, their map representations, and tools and methodologies that facilitate their understanding. Applications presented include aids for the disabled, for the performing arts and museology, and aids for architecture and landscape design.

CRC Publications up to 2007

I have organized my research and artistic contributions over my career into broad categories so that it is easier to understand their range, scope and relevance.

CULTURE, ART AND MUSEUM STUDIES (1989 – 2007)
The work here spans my entire career, but with a much heavier concentration of work in the past few years. Significant work includes the study of identity (Dornic & Edwards 2007), issues concerning installation design (Coté et al. 2006; Edwards & Bourbeau 2005), and efforts to develop a shared arts and science process (Bourassa & Edwards, 2007; Edwards and Tremblay 1999, Edwards 1989). Significant audiovisual work has been produced and several artistic productions as well. This area if research is presently mushrooming through new collaborations.

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS (5) - CULTURE, ART AND MUSEUM STUDIES

• *Dornic, I., and G. Edwards, 2007, Le partage des émotions ou quand le corps part à la recherche des mémoires : des pistes de réflexion pour l’élaboration de nouvelles orientations dans les arts de la scène , submitted.
  
• *Côté, F., P. Dubé, G. Edwards & M.L. Bourbeau, 2006, Museum, Motion and Emotion in the City, Museum International 58(3): 43-49.
  
• *Edwards, G., and M.L. Bourbeau, 2005, Image schemata – a guiding principle for multimodal expression in performance design, International Journal of Performing Arts and Digital Media.
  
• Edwards, G. & C. Tremblay, 1999. Pour une géométrie de l'intime: la science et la poésie se rencontrent. Nouaison, vol. 1, no 1, pp. 1-30.
  
• Edwards, G., 1989, Le champs poétique – les échoes d’un scientifique, La révue Trois, Volume 5.
  

OTHER REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (2) - CULTURE, ART AND MUSEUM STUDIES

• Edwards, G., and M. L. Bourbeau, 2007, ICOM Conference on Museums of Cities (CAMOC), Vienna, August, accepted.
  
• Bourassa, R., and G. Edwards, 2007, La réalité mixtes, les mondes virtuels et la géomatique : de nouveaux enjeux, Geocongress 2007, accepted.
  

INVITED PRESENTATIONS (2) - CULTURE, ART AND MUSEUM STUDIES

• Edwards, G., 2007, Le musée en périphérie – un changement de paradigme?, Invited presentation for the EMUL workshop on museology, Laval University, Quebec City, May 26.
  
• Edwards, G., and M. L. Bourbeau, 2007, Conversations with the Inner Body – Moving Into and Beyond Pain, Invited paper for the Annual Interdisciplinary Workshop in Health Care, Technology and Place, May 4, University of Toronto
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (5) - CULTURE, ART AND MUSEUM STUDIES

• Edwards, G. (under the pseudonym « Magellan Egoyan »), 2007, A sense of presence – lessons from an experiment in RL, blog, http://virtualartistalliance.blogspot.com
  
• Edwards, G. (under the pseudonym « Magellan Egoyan »), 2007, Second Life Sculpture – Beauty and Harmony, blog, http://virtualartistalliance.blogspot.com
  
• Edwards, G. (under the pseudonym « Magellan Egoyan »), 2007, Second Life Sculpture – Visual Poetry, blog, http://virtualartistalliance.blogspot.com
  
• Edwards, G., & M. L. Bourbeau, 2006, Cognitive Design Factors for Mixed Reality Environments, First International Conference on Mobile Geospatial Augmented Reality, Banff, May.
  
• Edwards, G., 2005, La micro-géomatique et les arts de la scène: un usage inusité de la géomatique, La revue Géomètre.
  

AUDIO-VISUAL CONTRIBUTIONS (6) - CULTURE, ART AND MUSEUM STUDIES

• Edwards, G., 2007 (under the pseudonym « Magellan Egoyan »), Kinetic Sculptures in Second Life, Part 1, video blog, http://www.youtube.com
  
• Edwards, G., 2007 (under the pseudonym « Magellan Egoyan »), Kinetic Sculptures in Second Life, Part 2, video blog, http://www.youtube.com
  
• Edwards, G., 2007 (under the pseudonym « Magellan Egoyan »), body or no, video blog, http://www.youtube.com
  
• Bourbeau. M. L., and G. Edwards, 2007, Incarnatus, Video clip.
  
• Edwards, G., and M.L. Bourbeau, 2005, Ariadne Emerging, Video clip.
  
• Edwards, G., and M.L. Bourbeau, 2005, Lamento d’Arianna, Video clip.
  

ARTISTIC PRODUCTIONS (5) - CULTURE, ART AND MUSEUM STUDIES

• Bourbeau, M. L., G. Edwards and F. Gasse, 2006, Incarnatus, 20 minute public installation, December
  
• Edwards, G., 2004, The Egg Garden, a residence at the LANTISS facility at Laval University.
  
• Edwards, G. (translator), 1995, Poems of Clarisse Tremblay
  
• Edwards, G., 1990, Un Pas de Plus, Imagine, No. 40 (SF short story)
  
• Tremblay, C., and G. Edwards, 1990, Le projet Icare, diffusé sur les ondes de Radio Canada (short story for radio)
  

B) VISIONING (2006 - 2007)
Since the summer of 2006, a synthesis that crosses the complete range of disciplines and collaborations I developed over my career has emerged, providing new insights into how society is evolving and changing. This led to the development of a book manuscript. In order to get more feedback and, perhaps, leverage a readership, I have been converting parts of this into a blog, for which there are currently 14 posts, with more being written in a nearly daily basis. In addition, I have also been investigating the use of video blogs to further promote this work.

BOOKS (1) - VISIONING

• Edwards, G., 2007, Living in the Twenty-first Century – From Orthodoxy to Paradoxy, 250 pp., submitted for publication.
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (14) - VISIONING

• Edwards, G., 2007, 21st Century Musings – From Orthodoxy to Paradoxy, blog, http://21stcenturyparadoxes.blogspot.com (12 posts from April 29, 2007 to May 22, 2007 as follows : Introduction to 21st Century Musings; Moving Away from Orthodoxy – A Portrait of Our Times; The Demographics of Change; Population Growth versus Environmental Activism; What is a Paradox?; The Importance of Paradox in a Convergent World; Timing and Dynamics – Towards the Collapse of Several Socio-economic Bubbles; Convergent End States and the Post-Sustainable Society; The Changing Nature of Identity; On Relationships; On Children; On Change, Action and Paradox)
  
• Edwards, G., 2007, Paradoxes and Consequences, blog, http://21stcenturyconsequences.blogspot.com (2 posts from May 22, 2007 to May 26, 2007 as follows : Opening Statement; Institutions that must and will change)
  
• Edwards, G., 2007, Doomsayers and Doomsaying, blog, http://doomsaying.blogspot.com (3 posts)
  

C) SPATIAL COGNITION AND COGNITIVELY-INFORMED SPATIAL DESIGN (1993-2007)
My work on cognition and cognively informed design began very early in my career, but seminal papers in 1993 and 1997 led me into collaborations with top psychologists working in spatial cognition. This led to the hiring of several postdocs with training in cognitive psychology and the development of a whole series of papers both studying spatial cognition and applying knowledge of it to the problems of designing spaces and technologies.

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS (2) - SPATIAL COGNITION AND COGNITIVELY-INFORMED SPATIAL DESIGN

• *Eardley, A., G. Edwards, F. Malouin, P.-E. Michon & J.M. Kennedy, 2007, Allocentric spatial frameworks derived from verbal description: Evidence from the blind & sighted, Perception, submitted.
  
• *Reginster, I. & G. Edwards, 2001. The Concept and Implementation of Perceptual Regions as Hierarchical Spatial Units for Evaluating Environmental Sensivity. Journal of URISA, 2001, vol. 13, no1, p. 5-16.
  

OTHER REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (10) - SPATIAL COGNITION AND COGNITIVELY-INFORMED SPATIAL DESIGN

• Eardley, A. F., Edwards, G., Malouin, F., & Michon, P-E., 2006, Challenging the importance of vision for the development of an extrinsic spatial framework: evidence from the blind and sighted. Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Spatial Cognition, Cognitive Processing 7 (suppl. 1), S30-31
  
• Michon, P.-E., D. Duguay & G. Edwards, 2006, CADMUS : Use of Affordances in Cognitive Modeling for Wayfinding, Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Spatial Cognition, Cognitive Processing 7 (suppl. 1), S65.
  
• *Fontaine, S., G. Edwards, M. Denis and B. Tversky, 2005. Expert and non-expert knowledge of loosely structured environments, Proceedings of the International Conference on Spatial Information Theory COSIT’05, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Volume 3693: 363-378.
  
• Michon, P.-E., D. Duguay and G. Edwards, 2005, Fondements et approche d’un modèle cognitive du déplacement, Proceedings of the International SAGEO Conference, Montpellier.
  
• *Edwards, G., 2001, A Virtual Test Bed for Cognitively-aware Plausibility metrics, Lecture Notes in Computer Science….
  
• *Edwards, G. & M.-J. Fortin, 2001. A Cognitive View of Spatial Uncertainty. Spatial Uncertainty in Ecology. Implantation for Remote Sensing and GIS Applications. Hunsaker Goodchild Friedl Case Editors. (Chap. 7), p. 133-157.
  
• Edwards, G., T.E. Bittner, M. Chabot, S. Epstein, J. Glasgow, G. Ligozat, B. Moulin, A. Marley, 2000. Apprehending and Designing Navigable Spaces - Issues for Park Design. National Symposium Geomatics 2000: Excellence in the New Millennium, Montreal, March, 8-10, Resumed.
  
• Edwards, G. & M. Fortin, 2000. Aesthetics for spatial design. Proceedings of the Second Annual GEOIDE Conference. From Ideas to Innovation: Geomatics for a new Millennium, http://www.geoide.ulaval.ca/conference/proceedings, Calgary, May, 25-26.
  
• *Edwards, G., 1997. Geocognostics - A New Framework For Spatial Information Theory. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Proceedings of the International Conference on Spatial Information Theory, COSIT'97, Pittsburgh, October
  
• Edwards, G., 1996. Geocognostics - A new paradigm for spatial information? AAAI-96 Spring Symposium Series: Cognitive and Computational Models of Spatial Representation, Stanford, California, March 25-27, p. 6-14.
  
• *Edwards, G., 1993. The Voronoi Model and Cultural Space: Applications to the Social Sciences and Humanities. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Proceedings of the European Conference on Spatial Information Theory, COSIT'93, vol. 716, Elba Island, Italy, p. 202-214.
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (3) - SPATIAL COGNITION AND COGNITIVELY-INFORMED SPATIAL DESIGN

• Dandjinou, H., & G. Edwards, 2006, La lisibilité spatiale dans les centres commerciaux, un outil de marketing, Géomatique VII, Montréal.
  
• Dandjinou, H., & G. Edwards, 2005, La lisibilité spatiale : le cas des centres commerciaux, Géomatique VI, Montréal.
  
• Edwards, G., 1997. La géomatique cognitive dimension cachée de la géomatique. InfoSIT, magazine publiÉ par l’École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, no 1, Avril, p. 2-4.
  

D) PUBLIC HEALTH AND REHABILITATION (2003-2007)

In 2002, my work on spatial cognition and design dovetailed with interests among health scientists concerning the body in movement. This led to collaboration on joint projects and eventually new areas of research in rehabilitation and public health, that are still emerging.

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS (2) - PUBLIC HEALTH AND REHABILITATION

• *Yaagoubi, R., & G. Edwards, 2007, Cognitive Design in Action : Designing Assistive Technology for Situational Awareness in the Blind, Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, submitted.
  
• *Michon, P.-E., D. Duguay & G. Edwards, 2007, Fondements et approche d’un modèle cognitive du déplacement, Journal international de géomatique, in press.
  

OTHER REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (1) - PUBLIC HEALTH AND REHABILITATION

• Edwards, G., A. Eardley, F. Malouin, M. Viger, R. Yaagoubi & D. Lambiel, 2006, Assistive Navigational Devices that Incorporate Principles of Spatial Cognition and Imagery, Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Spatial Cognition, Cognitive Processing 7 (suppl. 1), S174
  

INVITED PRESENTATIONS (4) - PUBLIC HEALTH AND REHABILITATION

• Edwards, G., 2007, Resonant Installations, Invited presentation at the opening course of Health Settings, Technology and Place, University of Toronto, January.
  
• Edwards, G., 2007, Le design cognitif et les technologies d’aide aux personnes à déficit visuel, Présentation invitée pour la Journée scientifique du CRIR/CIRRIS, May.
  
• Edwards, G., 2007, La conscience corporel et l’espace – plaidoyer pour une ouverture de l’esprit scientifique, Présentation invitée pour la 10e symposium en santé de la vision, Institut Nazareth et Louis-Braille, February, Montréal
  
• Edwards, G., 2006, Designing for Safety, Invited keynote presentation at the Annual Conference of the Centre for Research in Aging, Geriatrics and Rehabilitation, London, Ontario, November.
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (5) - PUBLIC HEALTH AND REHABILITATION

• Yaagoubi, R., G. Edwards, T. Badard, 2006, Élaborer une approche d'assistance à la navigation à inspiration cognitive pour les personnes souffrantes d'une incapacité visuelle majeure, dans Actes de colloque pour la conférence Géomatique 2006, 25 et 26 Octobre 2006, Montréal.
  
• Yaagoubi, R., G. Edwards, & T. Badard, 2006, Increasing safety and its perception among people who suffer from a major visual impairment, through a systemic approach focused on the person, First International Conference on Mobile Geospatial Augmented Reality (séance d’affichage), Banff, May
  
• Lambiel, D., G. Edwards & M. Viger, 2006, Aider à la restauration du couplage entre le ”où” et le ”quoi” chez les personnes atteintes d’une incapacité visuelle partielle. First International Conference on Mobile Geospatial Augmented Reality (séance d’affichage), Banff, May
  
• Yaagoubi, R. & G. Edwards, 2006, Increasing safety and its perception among people who suffer from a major visual impairment, through a systemic approach focused on the person, Journée scientifique et pédagogique de l’Institut de réadaptation et déficiscience physique du Québec, mai.
  
• Lambiel, D., G. Edwards & M. Viger, 2006, Aider à la restauration du couplage entre le ”où” et le ”quoi” chez les personnes atteintes d’une incapacité visuelle partielle. Journée scientifique de l’Institut de réadaptation et déficiscience physique du Québec, mai.
  

E) KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTATION (2000-2006)

Knowledge Representation is a broad and somewhat loose label for a variety of research concerned with developing formal representations of space and semantic knowledge about space. This is a bridging area, as there is interest in knowledge representation both in geomatics and remote sensing (Bittner and Edwards 2001), but also in the health sciences, the arts and museum studies – for example, issues around3D representations of space (Edwards 2006) and the development of computer implementable models of perceived space (Edwards and Ligozat 2004; Ligozat and Edwards 2000).

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS (5) - KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTATION

• *Edwards, G., 2006, Des environnements 3D et le corps humain – une nouvelle classe de modèles qui portent sur l’interaction entre humain et espace, International Journal of Geomatics, Volume 16(2), 233-247.
  
• *Edwards, G. and G. Ligozat, 2004. A Formal Model for Structuring Local Perceptions of Environmental Space. Cognitive Processing, Volume 5, 3-9.
  
• Brodeur, J., Y. Bédard, G. Edwards, and B. Moulin, 2003. Revisiting the Concept of Geospatial Data Interoperability within the Scope of Human Communication Processes. Transactions in GIS, vol. 7 no 2, pp. 243-265.
  
• *Bittner, T.E. & G. Edwards, 2001. Towards an Ontology for Geomatics. Geomatica, Journal of the Canadian Institute of Geomatics, 2001, vol. 55, no 4, p. 475-490.
  
• *Ligozat, G. & G. Edwards, 2000. Implicit Spatial Reference Systems using Proximity and Alignment Knowledge. Journal of Spatial Cognition and Computation, Vol. 2, pp. 373-392.
  

OTHER REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (3) - KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTATION

• Mostafavi, M., G. Edwards & R. Jeansoulin, 2002. Ontological consistency of spatial databases in support of data fusion. Colloque géomatique 2002. Palais des Congrès de Montréal., Montréal, Québec, Canada, 30 et 31 octobre.
  
• Ligozat, G. & G. Edwards, 2000. Local and global environmental space. Proceedings of the Second Annual GEOIDE Conference. From Ideas to Innovation: Geomatics for a new Millennium, http://www.geoide.ulaval.ca/conference/proceedings, Calgary, May, 25-26, (poster).
  
• Shu, H. & G. Edwards, 2000. Quasi-metrics for psychological distances. Proceedings of the Second Annual GEOIDE Conference. From Ideas to Innovation: Geomatics for a new Millennium, http://www.geoide.ulaval.ca/conference/proceedings, Calgary, May, 25-26, (poster).
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (1) - KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTATION

• Edwards, G., & R. Jeansoulin, 2004. Data fusion – from a logic perspective with a view to implementation, Editorial for a Special Issue on Data Fusion, IJGIS, Volume 18, Number 4, 303-307.
  

F) SPATIAL LINGUISTICS AND FORMAL REASONING (1991-2003)

In an effort to understand how space could be represented and manipulated on a computer, a broad range of issues were investigated in collaboration with computer scientists who specialize in natural language (Moulin, Ligozat, Fraksak, Gryl, etc.). This work eventually shifted to cognitive psychology, as many of the problems were found to be intractable without good psychological insight.

OTHER REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (14) - SPATIAL LINGUISTICS AND FORMAL REASONING

• Khelfallah, M., R. Jeansoulin & G. Edwards, 2003, Piecewise Revision for Geographic Information, Proceedings of the 6th AGILE Conference.
  
• *Edwards, G., 2002. Reasoning about Shape using the Tangential Axis Transform of the Shape's 'Grain'. Chapter 1 in Coventry, K. R. & Olivier, P. (edts), Spatial Language: Cognitive and Computational Perspectives, Kluwer Academic Publishers, p. 1-18.
  
• Brodeur, J., Y. Bédard, B. Moulin & G. Edwards, 2001. Geosemantics proximity and data fusion. International Specialists Workshop on Geoinformation fusion and revision, organized by GEOIDE, REVIGIS and MURMUR, Québec City, April 10-11.
  
• *Edwards, G. & B. Moulin, 1998. Towards the simulation of spatial mental images using the Voronoï model. In P. Olivier, K-P. Gapp (edts.), Representation and Processing of Spatial Expressions, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, p. 163-184.
  
• Edwards, G., A. Gryl, G. Ligozat & B. Moulin, 1997. Sémantique des expressions spatiales: coment parle-t-on des données géographiques. Actes de la la Conférence RIAO'97, Computer-Assisted Information Searching on Internet, MontrÉal, June, p. 721-730.
  
• Edwards, G., 1997. Reasoning about shape using the tangential axis transform (TAT) or the shape's "grain". AAAI-97, Rhode Island, July, 27-28.
  
• Gryl, A. & G. Edwards, 1997. Descriptions in natural language and cartographic generalization: similar functionalities? 2nd Workshop on Progress in Automated Generalization, Suéde, June, 21-27.
  
• Gryl, A., G. Edwards & G. Ligozat, 1997. Pivot representations for modeling space. Workshop on Spatial and Temporal Reasoning, Japan, August.
  
• Edwards, G. & B. Moulin, 1996. Vers l’utilisation du modéle Voronoi pour la simulation d’images mentales spatiales. Colloque Informatique & langue naturelle, I.L.N., Nantes, France, 9-10 octobre, p. 233-248.
  
• Gryl, A., G. Ligozat & G. Edwards, 1996. Spatial and temporal elements of route descriptions. Spatial and Temporal Reasoning. AAAI-96 Workshop Program, Thirteenth National Conference on Aritificial Intelligence, Portland, Oregon, August, p. 33-38.
  
• *Edwards, G., G. Ligozat, A. Gryl, L. Fraczak, B. Moulin, C.M. Gold, 1996. AI-based pivot representation of spatial concepts and its application to route descriptions expressed in natural language. Proceedings of the 7th International Conference SDH'96, Spatial Data Handling, M.J. Kraak, M. Molenaar (eds), Delft, The Netherlands, August, p. 7B1-7B15.
  
• Edwards, G., G. Ligozat, A. Gryl, L. Fraczak, B. Moulin, C.M. Gold, 1995. Un modéle pivot pour la représentation de l’espace basé sur les diagrammes de Voronoi: application aux descriptions d’itinéraires en langage naturel. Compte rendu des journées CASSINI, Marseille, France, Novembre, p. 1-27.
  
• Edwards, G. & B. Moulin, 1995. Towards the simulation of spatial mental images using the Voronoi model. International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI-95), Workshop on representation and processing of spatial expressions, Montreal, August 26-28, p. 63-73.
  
• *Edwards, G., 1991. Spatial Knowledge for Image Understanding. In D.M. Mark and A.U. Frank (eds.), Cognitive and Linguistic Aspects of Geographic Space. Chapitre de livre, Madrid, Spain, July 8-20, p. 295-307.
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (1) - SPATIAL LINGUISTICS AND FORMAL REASONING

• Brodeur, J., Y. Bédard, B. Moulin & G. Edwards, 2001. Geosemantics proximity and data fusion. International Specialists Workshop on Geoinformation fusion and revision, organized by GEOIDE, REVIGIS and MURMUR, Québec City, April 10-11.
  

G) GEOMATICS AND SPATIAL DATA HANDLING (1989 – 2007)

The first fifteen years of my career were heavily focussed on problem of spatial data handling, especially problems related to the integration of image and cartographic data, the extension of spatial data structures to handle time, and the development of an understanding of spatial error and uncertainty. Addition work used cognitive methods to improve understanding of geospatial decision-making.

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS (8) - GEOMATICS AND SPATIAL DATA HANDLING

• *Ciobanu, D.-L., S. Roche, F. Joerin & G. Edwards, 2006, Vers une intégration des SIG participatifs aux processus de design urbain délibératifs, Revue internationale de géomatique, Volume 16(2), 249-267.
  
  
• Marchand, P., A. Brisebois, Y. Bédard et G. Edwards, 2003. Implementation and evaluation of a hypercube-based method for spatio-temporal exploration and analysis, Journal of the International Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) theme issue "Advanced techniques for analysis of geo-spatial data" dans la catégorie" multi-scale hierarchies of spatial operators".
  
  
• Fortin, M.J., R.J. Olson, S. Ferson, L. Iverson, C. Hunsaker, G. Edwards, D. Levine, K. Butera, V. Klemas, 2000. Issues related to the detection of boundaries. Landscape Ecology, vol. 15, no5, p.453-466.
  
  
• *Edwards, G. & K.E. Lowell, 1996. Modelling uncertainty in photointerpreted boundaries. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, vol. 62, no 4, p. 377-391.
  
  
• *Lowell, K.E., G. Edwards & G. Langran-Kucera, 1996. Modelling heterogeneity and change in natural forests. Geomatica, Journal de l’Association canadienne des sciences géomatiques, vol. 50, no 4, p. 425-440.
  
  
• *Gold, C.M. & G. Edwards, 1992. The Voronoi Spatial Model - Two and three Dimensional Applications in Image Analysis. ITC Journal International Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Science, vol. 1, p. 11-19.
  
  
• *Ehlers, M., G. Edwards and Y. Bédard, 1989, The Integration of Remote Sensing with Geographic Information Systems: A Necessary Evolution, Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Volume 11, pp. 1619-1627.
  
  
• Bédard, Y., J. Prince, R. Robitaille and G. Edwards, 1989, "Mise en place d'un cadre conceptuel bi-dimensionel de classification des systèmes d'information à référence spatiale", Mensuration, Photogrammétrie, Génie Rural, Zurich, Suisse.
  

OTHER REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (15) - GEOMATICS AND SPATIAL DATA HANDLING

• Fortin, M.-J. & G. Edwards, 2001. Delineation and Analysis of Vegetation Boundaries. Spatial Uncertainty in Ecology. Implantation for Remote Sensing and GIS Applications. Hunsaker Goodchild Friedl Case Editors. (Chap. 8), p. 158-174.
  
  
• Edwards, G., M. Benmahbous, M. Courteau, T. De Groeve, M. Fortin, I. Reginster, G. Plouffe, T. Roméo, B. Thierry, F. Vincent, 2000. Spatial error and uncertaintly and the decision-making process. Spatial Data Handling, Beijing, August.
  
  
• Moulin, B., Y. Bédard, G. Edwards & M. Allouche, 2000. Research Progress on a Cognitive Approach of Spatial Generalization and Multiple Representation. Proceedings of the Second Annual GEOIDE Conference. From Ideas to Innovation: Geomatics for a new Millennium, http://www.geoide.ulaval.ca/conference/proceedings, Calgary, Canada, May, 25-26.
  
  
• Rouabah, S. & G. Edwards, 2000. The perception and design of forest spaces for integrated management. Proceedings of the Second Annual GEOIDE Conference. From Ideas to Innovation: Geomatics for a new Millennium, http://www.geoide.ulaval.ca/conference/proceedings, Calgary, May, 25-26.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1998. Towards a theory of vector error characterisation and propagation. Proceedings of 3rd International Symposium on Spatial Accuracy Assessment in Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, Quebec, May 20-22.
  
  
• *Edwards, G., T. De Groeve, A. Gryl, J. Kritter & M.A. Mostafavi, 1998. Extending GIS - integrating multiple spaces into a single concept. Proceedings of the 8th International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling'98, Vancouver, July, 11-15, p. 123-137.
  
  
• Fortin, M., G. Edwards & K.P.B. Thomson, 1998. The role of error propagation for integrating multisource data within spatial models: the case of the DRASTIC groundwater vulnerability model. Proceedings of 3rd International Symposium on Spatial Accuracy Assessment: Land Information Uncertainty in Natural Resources / edited by Kim Lowell and Annick Jaton, ISBN 1-57504-119-7, Quebec, May 20-22, p. 437-443.
  
  
• *Allen, E., G. Edwards & Y. Bédard, 1995. Qualitative causal modeling in temporal GIS. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Proceedings of the International Conference on Spatial Information Theory, COSIT’95, Austria, September, p. 397-412.
  
  
• Lowell, K.E., G. Edwards & K. Esbensen, 1995. Towards a more human (re)design of digital spatial technologies. Proceedings of the 28th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (H1CSS-28), Minitrack on GIS, vol. 4, Maui, Hawaii, Jannary 3-6, p. 123-130.
  
  
• *Edwards, G., 1994. Characterising and maintaining polygons with fuzzy boundaries in geographic information systems. Sixth International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling, vol. 1, Edingburgh, September 5-9, p. 223-239.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1994. Modelling of fuzzy data: Aggregation and disaggregation of fuzzy polygons for spatial-temporal modeling. Proceedings of the Advanced Geographic Data Modeling Workshop (AGDM'94): Spatial Data Modelling and Query Languages for 2D and 3D Applications, Delft, Netherlands, Sept. 12-16, p. 141-154.
  
  
• Gagnon, P., Y. Bédard and G. Edwards, 1992, "Fundamentals of Space and Time and Their Integration Into Forestry Geographic Databases", Proceedings of the IUFRO Conference on Integrating Forest Information Over Space and Time, Canberra, Australia, Janvier, 24-34.
  
  
• *Edwards, G., 1992. Error Minimization in Integrated GIS/IAS System Design. 5th International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling - IGU Commission on GIS, vol. 1, Charleston, August 3-7, p. 20-29.
  
  
• Gold, C. and G. Edwards, 1991, "Why do spatial models matter?", invited paper for the ISPRS Commission II/2 Workshop, Munich, Germany.
  
  
• Bédard, Y., J. Prince, R. Robitaille and G. Edwards, 1989, "Le spectre de classification des systèmes d'information à référence spatiale", Arpenteur-Géomètre, Vol. 16, No. 1, pp.36-38.
  
  
• Bédard, Y., J. Prince, R. Robitaille and G. Edwards, 1989, "Échelle d'utilisation de la référence spatiale dans les SIRS (Systèmes d'Information à Référence Spatiale)", Arpenteur-Géomètre, Vol. 15, No. 5, pp.16-18.
  

INVITED PRESENTATIONS (2) - GEOMATICS AND SPATIAL DATA HANDLING

• Edwards, G., M. Fortin, K.P.B. Thomson, E. Aubert & K.E. Lowell, 1997. Propagating boundary uncertainty from maps to models. First International CASSINI Workshop on Spatial Data Quality; from Error to Uncertainty. Invited speaker, April 21-23.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1991, Remote Sensing Image Analysis and Geographic Information Systems: Laying the Groundwork for Total Integration, invited paper for the NCGIA Initiative 12 Special Session on Remote Sensing and GIS integration, Baltimore, March.
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (12) - GEOMATICS AND SPATIAL DATA HANDLING

• Fortin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1997. Intégration de données multisources et propagation des erreurs dans un modèle de vulnérabilité de la nappe d'eau souterraine. Compte rendu du symposium international : La géomatique à l'Ère de Radarsat (GER'97), Ottawa, 25-30 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Bouchard, C., K.E. Lowell & G. Edwards, 1996. Quantification de l’incertitude spatiale des cartes forestières: Automatisation d’une méthode manuelle. Actes de la 8e Conférence internationale sur la géomatique, Ottawa, 28-30 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Aubert, E., G. Edwards & K.E. Lowell, 1994. Quantification des erreurs de frontière en photo-interprétation forestière pour le suivi spatio-temporel des peuplements. Actes de la Conférence canadienne sur les SIG, Ottawa, 4-10 juin, p. 195-205.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1994. Characterising spatial uncertainty and variability in forest databases. ASPRS Conference on Spatial Data Accuracy in Natural Ressource Databases, Williamsburry, Virginia, May 16-20, p. 88-97.
  
  
• Bilodeau, J.M., S. Gosselin, G. Edwards, C.M. Gold & K.E. Lowell, 1993. Operation Integration of GPS into Forest Management Activities which use a GIS to Monitor Forest Operations. GIS'93, Eyes on the Future, Vancouver, February 15-18, p. 195-200.
  
  
• Edwards, G., P. Gagnon & Y. Bédard, 1993. Spatial-Temporal Topology and Casual Mechanisms in Time-Integrated GIS: from Conceptual Model to Implementation Strategies. The Canadian Conference on GIS, Ottawa, 23-25 mars, p. 842-857.
  
  
• Gagnon, P., Y. Bédard & G. Edwards, 1992. La gestion du temps dans les SIRS: certains concepts fondamentaux. Actes de la Conférence canadienne sur les SIG, Ottawa, 24 au 26 mars, p. 393-405.
  
  
• Lowell, K.E., C.M. Gold & G. Edwards, 1992. The Next Generation of Digital Spatial Technologies: Error Utilization, Thematic Map and Remote Sensing Integration, Spatial Operators, and Data Structures. Proceedings of the GIS'92 Symposium, Vancouver, February 10-13, 7 p. (no page number).
  
  
• Lowell, K.E., G. Edwards & C.M. Gold, 1992. Considerations for Adapting Conventional Forest Management Methodologies to a Spatial Framework Using GIS: Data, Statistical Techniques and Errors. Proceedings of the IUFRO Conference 1992, Canberra, Australia, p. 429-439.
  
  
• Lowell, K.E., G. Edwards & C.M. Gold, 1992. Localizing Forest Management Using GIS and Remote Sensing: the Research Agenda of the Industrial Research Chair in Geomatics with Applications to Forestry. Actes de la ConfÉrence canadienne sur les SIG, Ottawa, 24 au 26 mars, p. 191-201.
  
  
• Edwards, G., Y. Bédard & Y.M. Ehlers, 1990. Advanced Integration of Remote Sensing Image Analysis With Geographic Information Systems. Actes de la conférence nationale sur les SIG, Ottawa, mars, p. 1574-1584.
  
  
• Edwards, G., Y. Bédard and M. Ehlers, 1989, On the Integration of Remote Sensing with Geographic Information Systems, National Conference on GIS'89, Ottawa, Canada (abstract only).
  

H) IMAGE PROCESSING AND REMOTE SENSING (1987 – 2007)

In an effort to understand how space could be represented and manipulated on a computer, a broad range of issues were investigated in collaboration with computer scientists who specialize in natural language (Moulin, Ligozat, Fraksak, Gryl, etc.). This work eventually shifted to cognitive psychology, as many of the problems were found to be intractable without good psychological insight.

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS (14) - IMAGE PROCESSING AND REMOTE SENSING

• Vincent, F., D. Raucoules, T. DeGroeve, G. Edwards and M. Mostafavi, 2004. Monitoring river/sea ice break-up using satellite interferometry : limits and potential, International Journal of Remote Sensing, Volume 25(18), 3555-3571.
  
  
• Bolduc, P., K.E. Lowell & G. Edwards, 1999. Automated estimation of localized forest volume from large scale aerial photographs and ancillary cartographic information in a boreal forest. International Journal of Remote Sensing, vol. 20, no 18, p. 3611-3624.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1998. On nonparametric edge detection in multilook SAR images. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, vol. 36, no 5, p. 1-4.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1998. On the hausdorff distance used for the evaluation of segmentation results. Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing, vol. 24, no 1, p. 3-8.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1996. Edge detection and speckle adaptive filtering for SAR images based on a second-order textural measure. International Journal of Remote Sensing, vol. 17, no 9, p. 1751-1759.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1996. Optimization of the Gamma-Gamma MAP filter for SAR image clutters. International Journal of Remote Sensing Letters, vol. 17, no 5, p. 1063-1067.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1996. The ratio of the arithmetic to the geometric mean: an efficient first-order statistical test for multi-look SAR image homogeneity. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, vol. 34, no 2, p. 604-606.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1995. Modeling Forest Stands with MIMICS: Implications for Calibration. Invited paper for special issue of Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing on Radar Applications, vol. 21, no 4, p. 518-526.
  Edwards, G. & S. Rioux, 1995. A detailed assessment of relative displacement error in cutover boundaries derived from Airborne C-Band SAR. Invited paper for special issue of Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing on radar applications, vol. 21, no 2, p. 185-197.
  
  
• Fournier, R.A., G. Edwards & N.R. Eldridge, 1995. A catalogue of potential spatial discriminators for high spatial resolution digital images of individual crowns. Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing, vol. 21, no 3, p. 285-298.
  
  
• Touré, A., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards, R.J. Brown & B. Brisco, 1994. Adaptation of the Mimics Backscattering Model to the Agricultural Context: Wheat and Canola Cases at L and C Bands. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, vol. 32, no 1, p. 47-61.
  
  
• Ait Belaid, M., J.M. Beaulieu, G. Edwards, A. Jaton & K.P.B. Thomson, 1992. Post-Segmentation Classification of Images Containing Small Agricultural Fields. GEOCARTO International, vol. 7, no 3, p. 53-60.
  
  
• Touré, A., G. Edwards, K.P.B. Thomson, R. Brown & B. Brisco, 1991. Applying the Mimics Backscattering Model in an Agricultural Context. Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing, vol. 17, no 4, p. 339-347.
  
  
• Thomson, K.P.B., G. Edwards, R. Landry, A. Jaton, S.-P. Cadieux, and H. Gwyn, 1990, "SAR Applications in Agriculture: Multiband Correlation and Segmentation", Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing, Volume 16, 47-54.
  

OTHER REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (4) - IMAGE PROCESSING AND REMOTE SENSING

• Edwards, G., 2000. Attentional focus in biresolution visual processing of remotely sensed scenes. Proceedings of the Second Annual GEOIDE Conference. From Ideas to Innovation: Geomatics for a new Millennium, http://www.geoide.ulaval.ca/conference/proceedings, Calgary, May, 25-26, (poster).
  
  
• Vincent, F., G. Edwards, R. Santerre & K.P.B. Thomson, 1999. Intégration de l'interférométrie radar et du GPS pour l'étude des changements dynamiques du relief. 9e Congrès annuel de l'Institut Atlantique, Université Laval, Québec, 8-9 juin.
  
  
• Esbensen, K., G. Edwards & N.R. Eldridge, 1993. Multivariate Image Analysis in Forestry Applications involving High Resolution Airborne Imagery. Proceedings of the 8th Scandinavian Conference on Image Analysis, vol. 2, Tromso, Norway, May, p. 953-963.
  
  
• Edwards, G., M. Ait-Belaid, K.P.B. Thomson, G. Cauchon and J.-M. Beaulieu, 1990b, "Cartographic Information as a Structuring Principle for Image Segmentation", ISPRS Commission II/VII International Workshop on Advances in Spatial Information Extraction and Analysis for Remote Sensing, January 14 - 17, 1990, University of Maine, Orono, 41-49.
  

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (41) - IMAGE PROCESSING AND REMOTE SENSING

• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1997. On the hausdorff concept of distance used for the evaluation of segmentation results in remote sensing. Proceedings of the International Symposium: Geomatics in the Era of Radarsat (GER'97), Ottawa, 25-30 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Michaud, N., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1997. L'extraction de l'information forestière des données RAS - Projet ADRO No 83: Résultats préliminaires. Compte rendu du symposium international : La géomatique à l'Ère de Radarsat (GER'97), Ottawa, 25-30 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1996. La détection d’arêtes dans les images radar: une approche basée sur les statistiques de rang. Actes du 9e CongrËs de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril - 3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Bolduc, P., K.E. Lowell & G. Edwards, 1996. Développement d’une méthode pour estimer localement le volume de bois à l’aide de photographies aériennes numérisées. Actes de la 8e Conférence internationale sur la géomatique, Ottawa, 28-30 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1996. La comparaison de résultats de segmentation et de classification d’image à l’aide des matrices PSE. Actes du 9e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril-3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Fournier, R.A., G. Edwards & R.P. Gauthier, 1996. Une analyse de la réflectance des couverts forestiers de résineux. Actes du 9e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril-3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Fournier, R.A., G. Edwards & R.P. Gauthier, 1996. Geometric-optics forest canopy modelling for high spatial resolution imagery. Proceedings of the Second International Airborne Remote Sensing Conference and Exhibition. Technology, Measurement & Analysis, vol. III, San Francisco, California, June 24-27, p. 436-445.
  
  
• Michaud, N., M. Beauchemin, K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1996. Synthèse de l’information forestiere contenue dans les images radar de la Forêt Montmorency. Actes du 9e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril-3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Poirier, S.P.E. & G. Edwards, 1996. Regroupement contextuel d’arbres individuels, basé sur la caractéristique des cimes dans les images aéroportées. Actes du 9e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril-3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Pouliot, J., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards & M. Rheault, 1996. Exploitation des images ERS-1 pour la cartographie de la vulnérabilité de la nappe souterraine. Actes du 9e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril-3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Supronowicz, J., G. Edwards, K.P.B. Thomson & A.A. Viau, 1996. Spectral reflectance of forest understorey in various types of forests within the BOREAS North Study Area in Manitoba. Actes du 9e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril-3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Yan, Y.M. & G. Edwards, 1996. Classification des cimes d’arbres individuels à l’aide de photographies aériennes. Actes du 9e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Québec, 30 avril-3 mai, CD-ROM.
  
  
• Beauchemin, M., K.P.B. Thomson & G. Edwards, 1995. SAR adapted techniques for image analysis. Proceedings, IGARSS’95 Symposium, Firenze, Italy, July 10-14, p. 175-177.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1995. Method for assessing local map accuracy in thematic classifications derived from remotely sensed images. Proceedings of 17th International Cartographic Conference, Barcelone, September 3-9, p. 1521-1530.
  
  
• Mancilla, B., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards & M. Beauchemin, 1995. Analysis of factors influencing the visibility of forest clear cuts in radar images. Proceedings of the 17th Canadian Symposium on Remote Sensing, Saskatoon, June 13-15, p. 532-535.
  
  
• Pouliot, J., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards & M. Rheault, 1995. Exploitation des images ERS-1 pour la cartographie de la vulnérabilité de la nappe souterraine. Actes de la Conférence sur l’extraction de paramètres bio-géophysiques à partir de données RSO pour les applications terrestres, Toulouse, 10-13 octobre, 11 p.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1993. The Integration of Remote Sensing and GIS: Fundamental Questions and New Approaches. 16th Canadian Symposium of Remote Sensing - 8e congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Sherbrooke, June 7-10, p. 873-878.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1993. Image Analysis for Locally Reliable Information. GIS'93, Eyes on the Future, Vancouver, February 15-18, p. 783-790.
  
  
• Eldridge, N.R. & G. Edwards, 1993. Continuous Tree Class Density Surfaces Derived from High Resolution Digital Image Analysis. GIS'93, Eyes on the Future, Vancouver, February 15-18, p. 947-954.
  
  
• Eldridge, N.R. & G. Edwards, 1993. Acquiring Localized Forest Inventory Information: Extraction from High Resolution Airborne Digital Images. 16th Canadian Symposium of Remote Sensing - 8e congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Sherbrooke, June 7-10, p. 443-448.
  
  
• Fournier, R.A., G. Edwards & N.R. Eldridge, 1993. Towards Spatial Species Discriminators for High Resolution Digital Imagery of Individual Trees. 16th Canadian Symposium of Remote Sensing - 8e congrËs de l'Association quÉbÉcoise de tÉlÉdÉtection, Sherbrooke, June 7-10, p. 829-834.
  
  
• Edwards, G. & K.E. Lowell, 1992. Spatial Considerations for Forest Canopy Modelling and Biomass Estimation Based on Remotely Sensed Data. Proceedings of the GIS'92 Symposium, Vancouver, February 10-13, 8 p., (no page number).
  
  
• Edwards, G., O. Chuzel & K.P.B. Thomson, 1992. An Expert System for Helping Forest Managers Choose among Data Sources of Remotely Sensed Imagery. Proceedings of the GIS'92 Symposium, Vancouver, February 10-13, 10 p. (no page number).
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1992. The Integration of Remotely Sensed Data Analysis into GIS: Time and Uncertainty Management Needs. Proceedings of the Canadian Conference on GIS, Ottawa, March 24-26, p. 432-440.
  
  
• Edwards, G., K.P.B. Thomson & N. Eldridge, 1992. Regeneration Stocking Derived from High Resolution Airborne Imagery Via Texture Measurements. Proceedings of the GIS'92 Symposium, Vancouver, February 10-13, 6 p. (no page number).
  
  
• Thomson, K.P.B., A. Jaton, G. Edwards, J. Pouliot & A. TourÉ, 1992. Analyse des donnÉes ROS multibandes et multipolarisation en milieu agricole. Comptes rendus du 15e Symposium canadien sur la télédétection, Toronto, 1-4 juin, p. 227-232.
  
  
• Touré, A., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards, R.J. Brown & B. Brisco, 1992. Adaptation du modèle MIMICS au contexte agricole: cas du blé et du colza. Comptes rendus du 15e Symposium canadien sur la télédétection, Toronto, 1-4 juin, p. 192-197.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1991. Archimage: Un outil de gestion des archives de la télédétection. Actes du 7e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Montréal, Octobre, p. 237-240.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1991. Remote Sensing Image Analysis and Geographic Information Systems: Laying the Groundwork for Total Integration. Proceedings of a Special Session held at the Baltimore 1991 ACSM-ASPRS Annual Conventom on the Integration of Remote Sensing and GIS, p. 21-31.
  
  
• Edwards, G., A. Jaton & K.P.B. Thomson, 1991. Manipulating Hyperspectral Data. Proceedings of the 14th Symposium on Remote Sensing, Calgary, Alberta, p. 356-359.
  
  
• Edwards, G., A. Jaton & K.P.B. Thomson, 1991. La manipulation de données hyperspectrales. Actes du 7e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Montréal, Octobre, p. 295-299.
  
  
• Touré, A., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards, R.J. Brown & B. Brisco, 1991. Utilisation du modèle MIMICS pour modéliser le couvert agricole. Actes du 7e Congrès de l’Association Québécoise de Télédétection, Montréal, Octobre, p. 203-208.
  
  
• Touré, A., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards, R.J. Brown & B. Brisco, 1991. Backscattering Characteristics of Soil Using the Mimics Microwave Canopy Model. Proceedings of the 14th Canadian Symposium on Remote Sensing, Calgary, Alberta, p. 188-191.
  
  
• Brunelle, J., C. Cantin, K.P.B. Thomson and G. Edwards, 1990, "Évaluation spectrale et texturale des données du capteur MEIS II — Superficies forestières en régénération", Proceedings of the 13th Canadian Symposium of Remote Sensing, Fredericton, Canada, 94-97.
  
  
• Thomson, K.P.B., G. Edwards, R. Landry, S.-P. Cadieux, A. Jaton, and H. Gwyn, 1990, "Radar en agriculture: corrélation multibande et segmentation", 13th Canadian Symposium of Remote Sensing, Fredericton, Canada, 439-442.
  
  
• Edwards, G., 1990, "Image Segmentation, Cartographic Information and Knowledge-Based Reasoning: Getting the Mixture Right", International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium '90, Washington D.C.
  
  
• Edwards, G. and J.-M. Beaulieu, 1989, "Segmentation of SAR Imagery Containing Forest Clear Cuts", International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium '89, Vancouver, Canada, pp. 1195-1197.
  
  
• Thomson, K.P.B., R. Landry, G. Edwards and M. Cantin, 1989, "Radar en agriculture: resultats preliminaires sur un site agricole au Québec", International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium '89, Vancouver, Canada, pp. 415-417.
  
  
• Ait Belaid, M., K.P.B. Thomson, G. Edwards and J.-M. Beaulieu, 1989, "Segmentation d'image SPOT intégrée à l'information cartographique en vue de l'établissement de la carte d'utilisation de sol au Maroc", International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium '89, Vancouver, Canada, pp. 56-59.
  
  
• Edwards, G., R. Landry, and K.P.B. Thomson, 1988, "Texture Analysis of Forest Regeneration Sites in High Resolution SAR Imagery", International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium '88, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1355-1360.
  
  
• Landry, R., G. Edwards, and K.P.B. Thomson, 1988, "Analyse des zones de régénération forestière par la texture dans les images radar à ouverture synthétique (ROS)", Sixième Congrès de L'Association Québécoise de Télédétection, University of Sherbrooke (abstract only).
  
  
• Landry, R., G. Edwards, K.P.B. Thomson and P. Gilbert, 1988, "Analyse texturale en milieu forestier: Données radar à ouverture synthétique de haute résolution spatiale", Quatrième Colloque International sur les Signatures Spectrales d'Objets en Télédétection, Paris, 341-345.
  

I) MISCELLANEOUS

NON-REFEREED CONTRIBUTIONS (4) - MISCELLANEOUS

• Fertas, S., & G. Edwards, 2005, Gestion urbistique du désastre dans les agglomerations: une approche systémique, Second International Conference on Urbistics, Montreal, May, 2005.
  

The Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Geomatics Renewed for a Second Seven Year Mandate (2008-2015)

Created in 2001, the Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Geomatics seeks to understand the relationship between identity, the human body, and our environmental space. The chairholder, Dr. Geoffrey Edwards, and his team of researchers, are particularly interested in the mental representations people maintain of their spatial environment, the diverse ways we have of representating the relationship between the body and space (for example, the body schema, the body image, and so forth) in support of action, and the influence this intentional performance has on the continual process of identity renewal.

Understanding the relationships between the body and space is useful for a variety of different application areas. In this second mandate of his research chair, Dr. Edwards is working particularly with specialists in rehabilitation, museology and the performing arts. His research in cognitive geomatics seeks
(a) to help individuals with a disability to resituate themselves within a process of identity transformation and to evaluate the utility of immersive aesthetic environments to achieve this goal ;
(b) to situate the city museum as a catalyst for change in our modern urban environment, drawing on both the real and the virtual worlds ; and
(c) to develop new means of artistic performance that integrate a scientific sensitivity and exploit our body’s natural ability to understand the world, what one might call "body intelligence".

The tools and research methods used are extremely varied, as this work brings together many different domains and disciplines. The work of the chair will include ethnographic studies of the body as it manifests itself within virtual worlds such as Second Life, cognitively-informed engineering and design, behavioural experiments such as used in psychology or medicine, artistic design and creative processes, and evaluation methods developed within the field of education. As a result, the CRC in Cognitive Geomatics now functions at the intersection between the four main sectors of research and creativity, bringing together the natural sciences and engineering, the social sciences and humanities, the health sciences and the arts in order to develop new ways of understanding and acting.

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