ENVIRONMENT/HABITAT / BIOME
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Ifgi Spring School
BY:
LENA WICKENKAMP
DIVYA RAJESWARI SWAMINATHAN
MUSSIE G. TEWOLDE
CHIMA OGBONNAYA NKWOR
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CONTENTS
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INTRODUCTION
1. AMBIGUITIES & MODES OF CLASSIFICATION
2. RELEVANT OBJECTIVE PRIMITIVES
3. PREDICATION CRITERIA
4. PARAMETERS OF VARIABILITY
5. AXIOMS EXPRESSING RELATIONS TO OTHER
GEOGRAPHIC CONCEPTS
 CONCLUSION
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INTRODUCTION
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The presence of vagueness and ambiguity in natural
language concepts present an enormous challenge to
computational representation and geographic information.
However, in the contemporary studies on applications of
formal theories of semantic and ontology minimize these
vagueness and ambiguity.
Environment/Habitat/Biome are words which are more
ambiguous in the normal language concepts.
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AMBIGUOUS DEFINITION
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Environment:
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the totality of surrounding conditions.
is our surrounding.
range of conditions where an organism thrives.
Habitat:
area where a plant or animal naturally live or makes a
living.
 type of environment in which an organism or group
normally lives or occurs.

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is the place where a population lives.
Biome:
are the major regional groupings of plants and animals
discernible at a global scale.
 is a group of ecosystems that have similar climates and
communities.

Source: Wikipedia
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AMBIGUITIES IN MODES OF CLASSIFICATION
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Environment /Habitat/Biome
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Immediate Env’t – how the env’t (water, rock, forest…) impact on a
particular animal. To what degree is immediate the env’t to impact ...
Affective Env’t – what impacts on the animal (temp, sunlight, soil,
air, water, atmosphere). A lot of factors are affective, what exactly …
Local Environment – all surrounding factor both those affecting
the organism or not. If the proximity/closeness of the locality is open
then it is vague.
Global Environment – the ambiguity here is: where exactly the
zone is? polar, equatorial, temperate? Or in deserts, TRF …
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Cotd …
AMBIGUITIES IN MODES OF CLASSIFICATION
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Cotd …
AMBIGUITIES IN MODES OF CLASSIFICATION
Cotd …
AMBIGUITIES IN MODES OF CLASSIFICATION _
Environmentt/Habitat/Biome:
Global Environment:

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(where in the globe? )
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Affective Environment: a potential habitat

w

.
where an organism can survive
Water, forest, soil…?
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Local Environment: Proximity threshold?
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o
Immediate Env’t - (water, rock, forest…) impact
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on a particular animal.
RELEVANT OBJECTIVE PRIMITIVES
Environment/Habitat/Biome
Physical measurements
 What should be the temperature, precipitation,
vegetation type of an environment to be defined as
Desert, Tropical, Temperate/moderate at a global
and local levels.
 Super valuation semantics, the real world is so
complex to define with definite primitives, like how
big, wet, deep, tall etc. Formal theories, logical
concepts, threshold or standpoints.
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Cotd …
RELEVANT OBJECTIVE PRIMITIVE
Super valuation semantics, the real world is so complex to define with
definite primitives, like how big, wet, deep, tall etc. Hence, we need
application of Semantic Ontology (formal theories, logical concepts,
threshold or standpoints)
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Env’t/Habitat/Biome
When and where do we say an area is … spatial and temporal
variations…vagueness and ambiguity in mode of classification.
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PREDICATION CRITERIA
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Physical extent (size) of environment/habitat/Biome
change though in space.
 How large is a certain env’t … standpoint? Horizontal
extent. Vertical altitude,
 How to demarcate or explain the borders
Temporal Variability in the Env’t/Habitat/Biome
Dynamism: Forest fire, urbanization, natural disaster
…causes change.
 Temporal changes: instance the Env’t changes through time

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PARAMETERS OF VARIABILITY
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Variability in terms of climatic conditions of the
environment:
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Camels can live in a hot environment - up to 400 C.
Camels can endure long periods without drinking up to 17 days
C  [temperature _ threshold  40, days _ without _ drinking _ threshold  17,...]

Rainforests are forests characterized by high
rainfall, with definitions setting minimum normal
annual rainfall between 1750–2000 mm
R  [min_ annual _ ra inf all  1750,...]
AXIOMS EXPRESSING RELATIONS TO
OTHER GEOGRAPHIC CONCEPTS
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x[landform( x)  y[ Environment ( y)  (TPP ( x, y)  NTPP ( x, y))]]
Each landform is part of an environment, either tangential or non-tangential.
x[lake( x)  y[ Environment ( y)  (TPP ( x, y)  NTTP ( x, y))]]
Each lake is part of an environment, either tangential or non-tangential.
x[ forest ( x)  y[ Environment ( y )  (TPP ( x, y)  NTPP ( x, y ))]]
Each forest is part of an environment, either tangential or non-tangential.
x[desert ( x)  y[ Environment ( y )  (TPP ( x, y)  NTPP ( x, y ))]]
Each desert is part of an environment, either tangential or non-tangential.
CONCLUSION
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There’s no threshold for the spatial extend of
environment/habitat/biome in terms of square
meters
Parameters of variability depend on particular type
of environment/habitat/biome, e.g. the camels’
habitat has a high temperature, the polar bears’
habitat has a low temperature
 impossible to make general statements about “habitats”

Environments/ habitats/ biomes contain other
geographic features described by other concepts
REFERENCES
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
crpit.com/confpapers/CRPITV63Kemp.pdf

www.meteck.org/files/WSPI06_EcoNiche.pdf
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biome
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http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B7C
RV-4SV6PHT1&_user=2160112&_coverDate=09%2F30%2F2008&_rdoc=1&_fm
t=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStr
Id=1263264653&_rerunOrigin=google&_acct=C000056461&_versi
on=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=2160112&md5=97ecc7e5863009ff1
94471dbe19bac04
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QUESTIONS
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