Abstract
Geoinformation Analytical Game is designed for training of systems analysts, specialized in decision support in territory development management. During the game, participants are trained to plan alternative scripts for territory transformation and to choose the most effective strategy to achieve the objective, taking into account the available budget. The game is based on the methodology of comparison of formalized cartographic descriptions of the territory in the form of digital raster maps, whose elements are the names of the specified classes of the underlying surface ofthe Earth. The list of classes is determined by a classifier, which is designed to reflect the specificity of the natural resources and land usage. The technique allows not only to detect changes, but provides a quantitative assessment ofthe importance of the differences found with regard to the objectives of the territory development. A quantitative measure of the differences is calculated using special estimators. The game begins with the definition of the in itial conditions, which include: creation of the maps for source and target state of the territory, object classifier, land value array, operations table, game budget and evaluation functions for calculation of maps difference measures. The goal ofthe game is to transform the initial state of the territory to a target state. Each of the game turns involves choosing thebest script from several alternatives. Measure of the difference between the map, built as a result of this script, and amap of the target state is used as a criterion. The above version of the game has been tested in the Master course for systems analysts in International University of «Dubna».
Section: Geoinformation systems
Keywords: geoinformatics, territory development management, educational game, a quantitative measure of the mapsdifference, development scenarios, criteria for selecting control actions.