MHonArc v2.4.5 -->
emergency message
[Date Prev]
| [Thread Prev]
| [Thread Next]
| [Date Next]
--
[Date Index]
| [Thread Index]
| [List Home]
Subject: Long Term Liaisons
Title: Long Term Liaisons
Greetings GeoVRMLers,
PlanetEarthers,
I am posting this message to both of these mailing lists, whle copying
the OASIS Emergency Management Technical Committee (EMTC) and the
OASIS HumanMarkup Technical Committee for two specific purposes.
1. Inform you about the OASIS Emergency Management Technical
Committee's work, which includes the use of general Geospatial
information including OpenGIS-related datastandards
http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=emergency
The working draft of the requirements document for the work of this
committee lists these standards and introduces other established and
developing standards
http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/documents.php?wg_abbrev=emergency
Of particular interest at this time is the Common Alerting Protocol
which addresses immediate, mostly American, needs. However, it can be
expanded and extended.
http://www.incident.com/cap/index.html
Reciprocally, I am also introducing these two groups to the EMTC, and
the HumanMarkup TC, although I have mentioned them to the HumanML
folks on several occasions.
Planet Earth:http://www.planet-earth.org/
website geospace placeholder
http://www.ping.com.au/3map
Australian-based, Telstra-funded, open source 3map (ISO
Standard
X3D/VRML) working software project
GeoVRML:http://www.ai.sri.com/geovrml/
SRI
Artificial Intelligence Center's maintenance site for the
GeoVRML 1.1 specification, part of Amendment 1 to the
VRML97
ISO
standard and the GeoVRML Working Group of the
Web
3D Consortium
To make a long story short, I think all four of these groups can
benefit in the long term from building some liaisons now, and I fill
that particular bill because I subscribe to these four mailing lists
as a member or interested potential member.
2. To propose a specific long term liaison project involving all four
of these somewhat disparate groups, and others which will eventually
be recruited when the timing is correct and necessary.
A working name for this project could be "Global Emergency Alert,
Response and Human Aid Delivery Assistance."
The Emergency Management TC, to which I belong, numbers among its
members folks employed at USGS, ESRI, and other consultanting
services. It also numbers among its members, at least one who is also
a member of the OASIS E-Gov TC, which somewhat ensures that
governmental issues are included or at least communicated. There are
other governmental ties as well.
At this point in time, mid-2003, the EMTC is aimed at establishing
point-radius and polygon grided geographical/geospatial area alerts
based on WGS 84, NAD 83, adhering to FIPS, (and NIMA, FEMA and
NOAA where and as applicable) standards with a suggested 3D component
for above mean sea-level air space volumetric area mapping.
One suggestion that I would like to make and see implemented is a
collaboration between GeoVRML and Planet-Earth would be a system of
automatic conversions for all geospatial measurement and projection
systems from any other system, and from a standard point-radius
location if/when that is adopted by the EMTC or other global standards
body. Then supply a standard X3D/VRML representation at the most
appropriate level of detail for the indicated terrain and airspace.
Supplying such a service would seem like a natural implementation of
these interests, and it would allow anyone on the planet with a web
connection to get information in the systems for which they are
suited, prepared or accustomed, using global localization for
languages and, eventually, as I will mention later, cultures. They
would also received a 3D visualization of the area that could be
recognized and related to by means of known landmark locations.
Beyond introducing truly global considerations into the discussions of
emergency management and intergovernmental considerations, one of the
interests of the Human Markup Language initiative is to pull together
the existing standards for the accurate description and representation
of the human body, and human ancestral remains and artifacts into a
single integrated system that includes the domains of medicine and
anatomy.
I happen to be the chair of the OASIS Human Physical Characteristics
Description Markup Language Subcommittee, which has recently had its
charter approved by the OASIS HumanMarkup Technical Committee to
undertake this task, and that is the proximate reason for this
message.
While I think the connection between the work of this subcommittee and
the work of the Emergency Management Technical Committee and the
Geospatial groups I am addressing should be clear, I have discovered
that it is not as clear to others as it is to me, so I will be
explicit.
With a unified descriptive vocabulary that is anatomically and
medically accurate, and that can be tied into Health Care Standards
and Legislation such as the new Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act in the USA, an individual's vital statistics and
medical history can be available in emergencies to augment the correct
delivery of individual care. 3D-capable imaging systems can be can
built into EMT equipment and even remote diagnosis will be possible,
not to mention avoiding bad drug interactions, allergic responses to
antibiotics, etc.
A second reason that HumanMarkup needs to be included in this effort
is that when these Emergency Management efforts expand to include the
entire planet, we must have a system that allows for both
language translation and cultural translation. I won't belabor
this because it is much too complex an issue for this discussion, but
this, perhaps more than most other work of the HumanMarkup TC, is a
key to ensuring that appropriate aid is delivered when and where
needed and inadvertent cross-cultural offenses are avoided.
I realize, I'm quite far ahead of myself in addressing these issues
now, but I really think now is the best time to do this and provide
that such human issues are addressed, before we empower the inevitable
agencies and bureaucracies that must arise to deliver such services.
If we ensure sensible allowance for human cultural concerns, we will
save ourselves time and frustration, if not tragedy, later.
The other longer term interest herein is the ability to model and
dynamically update geographic data in accurate 3D models of terrain
and transportation conditions in emergency situations. Flooded rivers,
washed out bridges, mudslides blocking roads, wind shifts in wildfire
situations, secondary structure collapses due to aftershocks in
earthquake situations, and more can be adapted to in ways that will
save lives and money. Such considerations also apply to
terrorism-related emergency situations.
These last two issues, Culturally-Aware 3D Health Care Delivery and 3D
Geographical Updating are much longer term than the other
concerns I have stated, but standards exist or can be developed and
technologies such as GPS exist now. So, adaptations are feasible as
the information evironment expands and progresses that will allow for
such dynamic, cost-efficient, more rapid and accurate alerting and
response delivery systems that meet human needs worldwide.
I welcome comments and suggestions about how to go about beginning
this work.
Thanks,
Rex Brooks
Rex Brooks
President, Stabourne Communications Design
Executive Director, Humanmarkup.org, Inc.
Vice Chair, Secretary, OASIS HumanMarkup Technical Committee
Chair OASIS Human Physical Characteristics Description Markup Language
Subcommittee
Member Web Services for Interactive Applications Technical
Committee
Chair Web Services for Remote Portal Markup Subcommittee
Member OASIS Emergency Management Technical Committee
GeoAddress: 1361-A Addison, Berkeley, CA, 94702 USA, Earth
W3Address:
http://www.starbourne.com
Email:
rexb@starbourne.com
Tel: 510-849-2309
Fax: By Request
[Date Prev]
| [Thread Prev]
| [Thread Next]
| [Date Next]
--
[Date Index]
| [Thread Index]
| [List Home]