The University of Sheffield
Department of Geography

Stephen Wise

Stephen Wise

Room number: C5a
Telephone (internal): 27940
Telephone (UK): 0114 222 7940
Telephone (International): +44 114 222 7940
Email: S.Wise@Sheffield.ac.uk

Steve Wise graduated in Geography from Bristol University, and then spent 4 years in London, firstly as a PhD student looking at sediment movement using Cs-137 and Pb-210 dating techniques, and then as an RA on a project on prehistoric landuse in SE Spain. He then spent 10 years in University computer centres, providing general advisory services and supporting a range of graphical and mapping software packages. During this period Steve was involved with the ESRC-funded Wales and South-West Regional Research Laboratory, and chaired a committee which selected ARC/INFO for purchase for the whole academic community. Steve Wise has been at Sheffield since 1990, where he lectures in GIS.

Research Interests

Error in Digital Terrain Models; Geomorphometry; Extraction of data from scanned maps; Spatial Analysis using GIS.

Current research

My main research interests can be grouped under three headings. My primary interest is in the analysis of errors in Digital Elevation Models – what is the nature of DEM error, how best can it be measured and what effect does it have on analytical results produced using DEMs. A recent interest is in the potential which global DEMs offer us to address some fundamental questions in geomorphology, using geomorphometric techniques. Over the years I have also worked on methodological developments in GIS in a number of areas, including data capture and spatial analysis.

Teaching

I have a particular interest in helping students develop and prepare for their careers during their time at university and I am responsible for organising a range of activities in the department to support this. This is also part of the focus of a large Level 1 module which I am in charge of. The aim of the module is to provide students with the information management skills they will need to study successfully in a university environment. These skills are also very relevant to graduate level jobs.

Teaching is by a mixture of lectures, tutorials and practicals but independent work by students is a key element of the module and this culminates with groups of students preparing and presenting a talk on a topic of their choice at an undergraduate conference at the end of Level 1.

My area of specialist teaching is in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or the handling of geographical data on the computer. The rise of satnavs, GPS devices and mapping on the Internet has made this an everyday topic which is why I teach a compulsory Level 1 course on GIS and computer mapping. This initial grounding means that in my Level 2 and Level 3 courses I can provide students with enough skill in using GIS software to be able to make use of it in their dissertation work and even to consider GIS as a career. The greater availability of geographical data in computer form brings many benefits but also the potential for increasing levels of surveillance and intrusion into people's lives and so I use the courses to allow students to explore these issues through seminars and debates.

Steve teaches on a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses including:

GEO210 Geographic Information Systems
GEO362 GIS and the Environment

GEO6606 Spatial Techniques for Environmental Analysis

All staff also engage in personal supervision and tutoring of individual students at all three undergraduate levels in the following modules:
GEO163 (Information & Communication Skills for Geographers)
GEO263 or GEO264 (Research Design in Human or Physical Geography)
GEO356 (Geographical Research Project)

Key Publications
  • Wise, S.M. (in press, 2007). The effect of differing DEM creation methods on the results from a hydrological model. Computers & Geosciences.
    doi:10.1016/j.cageo.2007.05.003
  • Brindley, P., Wise, S.M., Maheswaran, R. and Haining, R.P. (2005). The effect of alternative representations of population location on the areal interpolation of air pollution exposure. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 29(4), 455-469.
    doi:10.1016/j.compenvurbsys.2004.01.001
  • Kim, Y-H., Rana, S. and Wise, S.M. (2004). Exploring multiple viewshed analysis using terrain features and optimisation techniques. Computers & Geosciences 30(9-10),1019-1032.
    doi:10.1016/j.cageo.2004.07.008
  • Wise, S.M. (2002). GIS Basics, Taylor and Francis. ISBN: 0415246504
  • Wise, S.M. (2000). Assessing the quality for hydrological applications of digital elevation models derived from contours. Hydrological Processes, 14(11-12), 1909-1929.
    doi:10.1002/1099-1085(20000815/30)14:11/12<1909::AID-HYP45>3.0.CO;2-6

Other information

Steve Wise is on the Steering Committee of GISRUK, which organises a major UK GIS conference each Easter and he was a member of the JISC/OS liason committee which was involved in obtaining access to Ordnance Survey digital mapping for higher education establishments in the UK.

When not working he is usually involved in musical activities of one sort or another. He is a member of an Appalachian String Band called the Down Trodden String Band and he helps organise music and dance events in his home town of Bakewell. Most Thursday evenings will find him playing guitar and octave mandolin in the regular music session in The Manners, Bakewell.