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Department of Geography, Environment and Society
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Steven Manson

Steven Manson

612/625-4577
Geography Department 473 Social Science Bldg 267 - 19th Ave So
Curriculum Vitae

Department Affiliations

University Affiliations

  • Graduate School: Institute on the Environment [Website]
  • Graduate School: Minnesota Population Center

Narrative

Steven Manson is an associate professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities. He also directs the Human-Environment Geographic Information Science lab. Dr. Manson combines environmental research, social science approaches, and geographic information science to understand complex human-environment systems. He is a Resident Fellow at the U of M's Institute on the Environment and is a past NASA New Investigator in Earth-Sun System Science and NASA Earth System Science Fellow. He received the Young Scholar Award from the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science, the Sustainability Science Award from the Ecological Society of America, and a University of Minnesota McKnight Land Grant Professorship. Dr. Manson teaches in the areas of geographic information science and spatial analysis of human-environment systems.


Specialties

  • geographic information science
  • spatial analysis
  • biocomplexity
  • environmental science
  • global change
  • land use/cover change

Educational Background

  • Ph.D.: Geography, Clark University, Worcester, MA, 2002.
  • B.A. Honours: Geography, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, 1995.

Publications

  • Simplifying Complexity: A review of complexity theory: Manson, Steven, Geoforum, 32(3) 405-414, 2001.
  • Decision making and uncertainty: Bayesian analysis of potential flood heights: Manson, Steven, S. J. Ratick and A. R. Solow, Geographical Analysis, 34(2) 112-129, 2002.
  • Multi-agent systems for the simulation of land use and land cover change: a review: Manson, Steven, Parker, D. C., M. Janssen, M. J. Hoffmann and P. J. Deadman, Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 93(2) 314-337, 2003.
  • Agent-based modeling and genetic programming for modeling land change in the Southern Yucatan Peninsular Region of Mexico: Manson, Steven, Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 111(1) 47-62, 2005.
  • Bounded rationality in agent-based models: experiments with evolutionary programs: Manson, Steven, International Journal of Geographic Information Science, 20 991-1012, 2006.
  • Changing Landscapes in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area: Manson, Steven, M. Bauer, CURA Reporter, 36 3, 2006.
  • Land use in the Southern Yucatan Peninsular Region of Mexico: scenarios of population and institutional change: Manson, Steven, Computers, Environment, and Urban Systems, 30(3) 230-253, 2006.
  • Complexity theory in the study of space and place: Manson, Steven, D. O'Sullivan, Environment and Planning A, 38(4) 677-692, 2006.
  • Challenges in evaluating models of geographic complexity: Manson, Steven, Environment and Planning B, 34 2, 2007.
  • Heights and locations of artificial structures in viewshed calculation: how close is close enough?: Manson, Steven, Sander, H., Landscape and Urban Planning, 82 257-270, 2007.
  • Agent-based modeling of deforestation in southern Yucatán, Mexico, and reforestation in the Midwest United States: Manson, Steven, T. Evans, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104 20678–20683, 2007.
  • Does scale exist? An epistemological scale continuum for complex human-environment systems: Manson, Steven, Geoforum, 39 776-788, 2008.
  • Case studies, cross-site comparisons, and the challenge of generalization: comparing agent-based models of land-use change in frontier regions: Manson, Steven, Parker, D. C., B. Entwisle, R. R. Rindfuss, L. K. VanWey, E. Moran, L. An, P. Deadman, T. Evans, M. Linderman, S. M. Mussavi Rizi, and G. Malanson, Journal of Land Change Science, 3 41-72, 2008.
  • Complex systems models and the management of error and uncertainty: Manson, Steven, Messina, J. P., T. P. Evans, A. M. Shortridge, P. J. Deadman, and P. H. Verburg, Journal of Land Use Science, 3 11-25, 2008.
  • Projecting global land use change and its affect on ecosystem service provision and biodiversity with simple techniques: Manson, Steven, Nelson, E., H. Sander, P. Hawthorne, M. Conte, S. Polasky , PLoS ONE , 5 e14327, 2010. Link
  • Social network analysis of the academic GISc community: Manson, Steven, Sun, S, Professional Geographer, 63 1-16, 2011.
  • Simulated importance of dispersal, disturbance, and landscape history in long-term ecosystem change in the Big Woods of Minnesota: Manson, Steven, Berland, A., B. Shuman, Ecosystems, 14 410-423, 2011.

Research Activities

  • Land change in North America: Examination of the patterns, processes, and impacts of urbanization and agriculture in the United States and deforestation in Mexico
  • Big Data: Integrating local to global datasets
  • GISc, Complexity, and Scale

Professional Activities

  • Association of American Geographers
  • American Society for Photogrammetry & Remote Sensing

Awards

  • Resident Fellow, Institute on the Environment , 2009 - 2012
  • Sustainability Science Award, Ecological Society of America , 2009
  • New Investigator in Earth-Sun System Science, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 2006 - 2009
  • McKnight Land-Grant Professor, University of Minnesota, 2006 - 2008
  • Young Scholar Award, University Consortium for Geographic Information Science, 2005

Courses Taught

  • Geog 1502: Mapping Our World
  • Geog 3561/5561: Principles of Geographic Information Systems
  • Geog 5563: Advanced GIS
  • Geog 5565: Geographical Analysis of Human-Environment Systems
  • Geog 8292: Spatial Analysis and Modeling
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