Coyote medicine
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Transcript of Coyote medicine
Coyote LessonsCoyote Lessons
Michael N. DeMersMichael N. DeMersDept. of Geography, NMSUDept. of Geography, NMSU
How I How I Discovered Discovered My Coyote My Coyote MedicineMedicine
The Coyote as Divine FoolThe Coyote as Divine Fool
• People with coyote medicine …
– learn by repeated mistakes– are story tellers– use distraction– use disguise (metaphore)– are simultaneously reverent
and irreverent– are generally unorthodox
• Let’s look at these
Coyote Medicine is HeyokaCoyote Medicine is Heyoka
Heyoka (Clowns or contraries)– Demonstrate the results of
doing things the wrong way– Act out mistakes
Compare These Ground Water Compare These Ground Water Sensitivity MapsSensitivity Maps
What Do the What Do the Numbers on Numbers on the Legend the Legend
Mean?Mean?
Turns out Turns out they are not they are not
DRASTIC DRASTIC Rating #Rating #’’ss
It seems It seems they are they are
Polygon ID Polygon ID Codes.Codes.
Here are the Here are the correct correct
DRASTIC DRASTIC ratings.ratings.
Wrong Datum ExampleWrong Datum Example
Datum overlay problem (with the “A” mountain example). Uses (incorrectly)
NAD 83 instead of NAD 27.
““AA”” Mountain: Mountain:
East of East of NMSUNMSU
Coyote as Coyote as Story TellerStory Teller
Coyote Teachers Employ Coyote Teachers Employ Parables and AllegoriesParables and Allegories
• Often employ an oral tradition
• Visuals enhance the impact
• Look at the following and think in terms of the role of GIS design on the potential success of GIS operations
Coyote Medicine Employs Coyote Medicine Employs Stories, Parables and AllegoriesStories, Parables and Allegories
Coyote as ClownCoyote as Clown
Coyote medicine uses humor to make a pointCoyote medicine uses humor to make a point
Functional DistanceFunctional Distance
• Sometimes the introductory student has a hard time understanding the concept of functional distance
• The following uses a cartoon that illustrates one form that it might take
• In this case distance is based on cabbie fees
Design Your GIS for the UserDesign Your GIS for the User
CartocommunicationCartocommunication
GIS Certification ProblemGIS Certification Problem
Why Certification Is Not Why Certification Is Not Nearly EnoughNearly Enough
Why Absolute Location isnWhy Absolute Location isn’’t Enought Enough
What does this map show?What does this map show?
HereHere’’s the Map of Night Lightss the Map of Night Lights
Coyote Medicine uses Coyote Medicine uses DistractionDistraction
• Coyotes will often rub their noses on the ground and roll around to mesmerize their prey–Then pounce
Drawing AttentionDrawing Attention
Nobody liked Mr. Whipple
He told us “Don’t squeeze the Charmin.
So, to avoid looking at him…
They look at the Charmin
Getting StudentsGetting Students’’ Attention Attention
Coyote Medicine is UnorthodoxCoyote Medicine is Unorthodox• Often the more
unorthodox (or outrageous), the stronger the lesson.
• Check out the following examples of unorthodox (but relevant) tricks I use in my classroom
How Hard Can A DBMS How Hard Can A DBMS Table Search Be?Table Search Be?
Or: Why we use codes.Or: Why we use codes.
A Coyote By Any Other NameA Coyote By Any Other Name
Triangulated Triangulated Irregular Network Irregular Network
(TIN) (TIN)
Non-overlappingTriangles (facets)
A Cowtographic A Cowtographic ExampleExample
180º
A Trick from A Trick from Waldo TWaldo Tööblerbler
• Here’s an interesting piece of Coyote Medicine I borrowed from some of Waldo Töbler’s materials
• This is an excellent demonstration of how he distracts his students then snatches their attention
• The question might be… How do you define a mountain?
Two English cartographers visit the small South Wales village of Ffynnon Garw, to measure what is claimed to be the "first mountain inside of Wales". It's 1917, and the war in Europe continues. The villagers are very proud of their "mountain", and are understandably disappointed and furious to find that it is in fact a "hill". Not to be outwitted by a rule (and the Englishmen who enforce it), the villagers set out to make their hill into a mountain, but to do so they must keep the English from leaving, before the job is done.
VECTOR!RASTER!
Not Worth Butting Not Worth Butting Heads OverHeads Over
Relative ScaleRelative Scale
ItIt’’s About Scales About Scale
Where’s that footprint? It’s got
to be around here somewhere.
Line Line GeneralizationGeneralization
• Note how one needs a certain amount of information to identify the object in this caricature
Input ProblemInput Problem
Try co-registering this with Try co-registering this with new maps of North Americanew maps of North America
California as California as an islandan island
ItIt’’s All About Metaphores All About Metaphore
Choose your metaphore and you can choose your Coyote Medicine
““When raised When raised by a coyote by a coyote
one becomes one becomes a coyote.a coyote.””
Tom BrownTom Brown
PLEASE PLEASE SHARE SHARE
YOUR OWN YOUR OWN COYOTE COYOTE
MEDICINEMEDICINE
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThanks are due to the followingThanks are due to the followingMichael Running Wolf (Retired from UNM-VC)
For making me aware of my coyote medicine
John F. Kennedy (WRRI)For sharing the groundwater sensitivity maps
Wile E. Coyote, Roadrunner, & Marvin the Martian (and, of course, Chuck Jones and Mel Blank)For helping me put this presentation together
QUESTIONS?QUESTIONS?