New York SBDC Research Network

If you like maps, I'd recommend checking of the Department of Environmental Conservation's page of Interactive Online Maps . The DEC offers a variety of mapping tools, including the following: State Lands Interactive Mapper for customized recreational trail maps New York Nature Explorer , a gateway to biodiversity information The Geodata Map Viewer , which allows you to layer a number of geographic features There are also maps for Chronic Wasting Disease, environmental resources, mineral resources, and environmental facilities.

In today’s news, France announced plans to spend more than $2 billion (1.5 billion Euros) to create a battery-charging network for electric vehicles. In order to make owning and charging electric vehicles less onerous, the government would require charging stations in office parking lots by 2015 and in new apartment building complexes in 2012. This news reminded me of a very neat resource related to alternatively fueled vehicles in the U.S.. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (a national lab of the U.S. Dept. of Energy) offers a online GIS tool, the TransAtlas , with data on alternative vehicles and fuels. The TransAtlas can map alternative fuel stations, the vehicle density of hybrid-electric, flex-fuel and diesel vehicles (down to the county level) and the location of hydrogen, biodiesel and ethanol production facilities. You can query the system (use the Query dropdown in the top right) to find information on specific points (ie stations) or select a region to download more de...

Map pinpoints disease 'hotspots' By Mark Kinver Science and nature reporter, BBC News Map of world's Emerging Infectious Diseases hotspots A detailed map highlighting the world's hotspots for emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) has been released. Research shows that many of the diseases we contend with have beginnings in the wild kingdom and offers one more reason to be concerned about environmental issues. I am impressed that my native Canada is remarkably clear of disease.

This is purely for entertainment purposes, at least to my mind. The World 66 Travel Guide a wiki that will let you create a map of all the places you have been and to create a travel guide of your own. It calls itself an "open travel guide". You can read travel information from individuals like yourself and learn as I did, that I have only visited 5% of the world. You can also list individual travel to US states and Canadian provinces, along with the countries of the world - though you may not always agree on the boundaries and definitions of those countries. For instance, you can read the England travel guide but you cannot isolate England as a country on your map. It will select all of the UK (including Scotland, Wales - it has Ireland (both presumably) listed separately. My profile also defines me as "Travel Yup" which may not bevery complimentary but is fairly accurate.