Spatial Frames of Reference

Al Ain Town Planning has established both local and precise global geodetic networks for the Eastern Region of Abu Dhabi Emirate. The networks are established to meet the various local needs for spatial data and geomatics activities. These networks are considered to be as a basis, as well as a development guide for governmental and private sector organizations in the fields of spatial data and mapping information in the region. The local geodetic network adopting Ras Ghantut datum and based on the modified Clarke 1880 ellipsoid. The local control stations are non-homogeneous, unadjusted and have many limitations in terms of spatial data applications. While the global geodetic network is tied to the ITRF system, containing 33 well-distributed geodetic control stations. The transformation parameters between the global datum and the local datum were computed. The paper presents the quality of both local and global geodetic Networks, and outlining their relationship and mapping conversion methods. Serious problems and limitations related to datum transformation in GPS operations, mapping and spatial data conversion processes are highlighted. 1. Introduction Horizontal and vertical geodetic control networks of the Eastern region of Abu Dhabi Emirate has been established by a number of different methods, and using three main datums, namely Nuhrwan, Ras Ghantut and World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84) datums. The current height network in the Region is based mainly upon a series of leveling runs carried out by BKS Surveys between 1983 and 1987. However GPS has become the most widely used method, as well known that the GPS measured heights are measured from the ellipsoid, therefore, they need to be converted into an orthometric height system, this is due to the extensive use of GPS in the region, and because much of the existing vertical control stations has been lost due to destruction or disturbance, thus the network was not dense enough to support use of GPS to derive elevations. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) primary geodetic network, known as Al Ain Primary Geodetic Network (APGN), observed using GPS techniques, then followed by the establishment of Al Ain Geodetic Network (AGN). Both networks were processed using the Bernese GPS Software. The processing steps and results are satisfactory and met the standards processing requirements of GPS data. The aim of this paper is to assess the quality of the local and Global Spatial Reference Systems, the design of the network, selection of Sites and Monumentation, and results obtained for both the APGN and AGN, and the transformation between the local geodetic system and the new global spatial reference systems. The assessment of the quality of the geodetic networks consisted of an intensive checking of the GPS results, the quality of the individual campaigns, the consistency of GPS observations, and the ties between the networks and ITRF. The general analysis procedure was used to process the various networks, started at the ITRF level and then proceeded step by step to national and regional or even local levels. This hierarchical procedure ensures, that all results are finally available in a consistent global reference frame (ITRF). The consistency from one hierarchical level to the next was maintained by fixing the coordinates of the higher order network in the adjustment of the next lower level. The paper also outlines the geodetic problems in the spatial data of Al Ain region, together with their solutions. An alternative transformation model for non-homogeneous spatial data conversion is indicated.

Different aspects of Frames of Reference (FoR) have been analyzed in detail since the early 1990s. Researchers have studied cross-linguistic variety (Levinson, 1996; Levinson and Wilkins, 2006b; Pederson et al., 1998), given detailed accounts of individual languages (François, 2003; Haviland, 1993; Hoffmann, 2011; Schultze-Berndt, 2006), considered the impact of landscape and cognition on FoRs (Bohnemeyer and O’Meara, 2012; Danziger, 2010; Levinson, 2003, 2008; Palmer, 2015), and provided regional overviews (Bohnemeyer, 2013; François, 2004, 2015). Three ‘classic’ FoRs have been described, namely intrinsic, relative, and absolute (Levinson, 2003; Pederson et al., 1998).  Little attention, however, has been paid to the usage patterns of these FoR. This paper describes and analyzes a curious restriction on the use of different types of absolute directionals within FoR and orientation settings in three Australian languages MalakMalak, Jaminjung, and Kriol. All three employ landmark-based `un-fixed' absolute terms based on river-flow or prevailing winds restricted to orientation settings and those where the the speaker is also the deictic center (ground) from which angles are projected. If a language also utilizes cardinal directions based on the direction of the rising and setting sun or a prominent riverbank, no such restrictions are observed.
The aims of this paper are twofold. Firstly, I will describe the use of Frames of Reference and Orientation in Jaminjung, MalakMalak and Kriol in detail with particular emphasis on absolute directionals. Secondly, I provide a usage-based analysis of the types of absolute FoR used in orientation and deictic as well as non-deictic FoR settings considering cognitive, morphosyntactic, semantic, and culturally specific approaches. This highlights how language-external features are reflected in language-use and vice versa.

It has been shown that spatial concepts are particularly richly lexicalized in some Mayan languages (see Brown, this volume, on Tzeltal, and references there on Tzotzil, Mam, and other members of the family). Together with the finding that spatial reference relies predominantly on an absolute frame of reference, driven by cognitive skills of spatial orientation
unattested with Euro-Americans, this has led to the assumption that space
plays a more prominent role in Mayan culture and cognition than it does in
Western culture and cognition (cf. Brown this volume, England 1978:226). The study of Yukatek Maya (YM) adds a new perspective to this line
of research. YM shares most linguistic resources for spatial reference with
the linguistically and culturally more conservative Mayan languages
spoken in the highlands of Chiapas and Guatemala (the only notable exception is bound directional particles, which are absent in YM).

The use and neural representation of egocentric spatial reference frames is well-documented. In contrast, whether the brain represents spatial relationships between objects in allocentric, object-centered, or world-centered coordinates is debated. Here, I review behavioral, neuropsychological, neurophysiological (neuronal recording), and neuroimaging evidence for and against allocentric, object-centered, or world-centered spatial reference frames. Based on theoretical considerations, simulations, and empirical findings from spatial navigation, spatial judgments, and goal-directed movements, I suggest that all spatial representations may in fact be dependent on egocentric reference frames.

This study aimed to relate two different forms of survey-based representations encoded after real-world route learning to the differential use of allocentric and egocentric frames of reference, and a navigation strategy of egocentric spatial updating that focuses on the computations of self-to-object relations. Using sketchmaps and assessments of spatial and landmark knowledge, Study 1 implicated the existence of allocentric and egocentric survey-based representations that preserved survey knowledge of the environment based on the primary engagement of allocentric and egocentric frames of reference respectively. In Study 2, an egocentric spatial updating strategy scale was designed as part of a new self-report Navigation Strategy Questionnaire (NSQ), and validated with regards to the behavioral measures of spatial and landmark knowledge. Notably, egocentric-survey map sketchers reported the highest scores on this new scale among three groups of map sketchers, supporting the proposal that they were highly involved in egocentric spatial processing during route learning.

To validate the significant relationship found previously between egocentric perspective-taking ability (PTA) and environmental learning, the current study employed an immersive, three-dimensional (3D) virtual reality PTA task coupled with in-depth assessments of environmental learning. Based on structural equation modelling, the combined use of the 3D perspective-taking task with its desktop-based computerized counterpart predicted environmental learning (based on two pointing-to-landmarks tasks, and one shortcut-finding/navigation task) with a high standardized regression weight (0.83) in terms of pointing accuracy and goal proximity (i.e., walking distance to the point-of-origin). Correlational analyses further implicated the 3D perspective-taking task to be a more sensitive measurement of egocentric perspective-taking ability. These findings were interpreted with regards to the spatial processes engendering PTA and the need for further investigations into the functional roles of different spatial or imagery strategies for perspective-taking COPYRIGHT CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0, J. Y. ZHONG 2016, GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE, US COPYRIGHT OFFICE REG. NO.: TXu-0002-053-351]. ENDNOTE: This manuscript is protected under U.S. and international copyright laws. The author reserves the right to legal actions to protect the contents featured in this paper.

Una de las maneras en las que los investigadores han tratado de comprender el papel de la gestualidad en la comunicación es a través de la Teoría de las Metáforas Conceptuales.  Entre otros principios, propone que mentalmente organizamos los conceptos abstractos en términos de conceptos concretos. Cuando hacemos gestos mientras expresamos el tiempo en lenguas orales o de señas, utilizamos el espacio. Esto ha sido analizado como parte de la metáfora TIEMPO ES ESPACIO que se encuentra en ejemplos como ‘deja atrás esos recuerdos’. En este artículo, reviso la noción de metáfora y sus principios teóricos para argumentar que, en la gestualidad, el espacio no puede ser uno de los conceptos de una asociación tipo “A en términos de B”.

One of the ways in which researchers have tried to understand the role of gestures in communication is through Conceptual Metaphor Theory. Among other principles, it proposes that we mentally organize abstract concepts in terms of concrete ones. When we gesture along with the expression of time in oral or sign languages we use space. This has been analyzed as a manifestation of the metaphor TIME IS SPACE which, in oral and written language, is found in examples such as 'Christmas is coming' or 'leave those memories behind'. In this article, I review the notion of metaphor and its theoretical principles to argue that, in gesture, SPACE cannot be taken as one of the concepts of an association "A in terms of B".

Este artículo analiza el modo en que los movimientos sociales adaptan sus marcos de referencia cuando deciden participar en la arena electoral y la política institucional. Para ello, se estudia el caso de una agrupación de electores que en 2015 llegó al gobierno local en un municipio gaditano. El artículo propone el concepto de marcos espaciales de motivación, diagnóstico y pronóstico para estudiar la acción colectiva, combinando así la teoría del enmarcamiento y la teoría espacial. Este enfoque permite identificar las transformaciones de marco y las tensiones que experimentan los activistas cuando se enfrentan a la participación institucional, así como el papel de los discursos y prácticas espaciales en estas tensiones. Abstract This article analyses the way in which social movements adapt their reference frames when they decide to participate in the electoral arena and institutional politics. For this purpose, it studies the case of a citizens' candidature that came to municipal government of a city of Cádiz in 2015. The article proposes the concept of spatial frames of motivation, diagnosis and prognosis in order to study collective action, combining frame theory and spatial theory. This approach permits to identify frame transformations and the tensions experienced by activists when they face institutional participation, and the role of spatial practices and discourses in these tensions. Cómo citar Roca, Beltrán y Díaz-Parra, Iban (2019). «Un pie en la calle y otro en la institución. Análisis socio-espacial de una iniciativa municipalista». Revista Española de Investigaciones Sociológicas, 167: 73-88.

This paper presents the results of a preliminary survey on absolute directional systems across Australia using published and unpublished material as well as fieldwork data. It aims to provide the first systematic overview of such systems in Australia and forms the basis for a larger-scale project to investigate cultural and geographic salience of absolute systems across the continent. My sample currently includes 112 languages and varieties covering diverse landscapes. The systems show variation within and across languages. For example, many languages make use of more than one absolute system; e.g. in Bilinarra (Meakins and Nordlinger, 2014) a river drainage exists alongside a compass system. Consequently, this paper sets out to create a systematic typological overview of absolute directionals in Australia taking into account cultural (Hoffmann, under review) and geographic salience (Palmer, 2015) and revisiting existing classifications of absolute systems.

This paper investigates "directionals" or geocentric spatial terms in Lamaholot, examining the interaction between directionals, topographic environment, and cultural construals of landscape. Lamaholot is an Austronesian language of eastern Indonesia spoken on the volcanic island of Flores. The Lewotobi dialect, with which this paper is concerned, is spoken on the coastal area between Mt. Lewotobi and the Solor Sea. Reflective of this topographic environment, this language has "directionals" or grammatical terms defined with respect to landmarks: rae 'mountainward', lau 'seaward', wəli 'parallel with the coast', teti 'upward', and lali 'downward'. After describing how the spatial orientation represented by directionals is embedded in linguistic and sociocultural practices in Lamaholot-speaking communities, this paper shows that directionals exhibit intriguing diversity in interpretation and morphosyntax: they constitute a coordinate system for geocentric frame of reference, refer to different directions depending on different construals of landscape, and can appear in various syntactic positions. It is argued that this diversity can be understood in terms of a complex interplay of topographic environment, sociocultural practices, language uses, and linguistic repertoire, as assumed in the Sociotopographic Model (Palmer, Bill, Jonathon Lum, Jonathan Schlossberg & Alice Gaby. 2017. How does the environment shape spatial language? Evidence for sociotopography. Linguistic Typology 21(3). 457-491). Thus, the directional system in Lamaholot makes a strong case for a sociotopographic approach to spatial language.

Is there a first-person, experiential spatial frame of reference that is
absolute? Merleau-Ponty, like Kant, recognized that there is something special about our own bodies, and that they play a specific role in the institution of spatial frames of reference. In spatial terms we treat our body differently from any other object. In this chapter I explicate the way the body helps to generate spatial frames of reference, which in turn, however, do not cross the frontier of the body itself. In addition
I show that within the envelope of the body itself we find a spatial frame
of reference that is absolute.

Resumen El objetivo de este trabajo es determinar el tipo de lengua al cual corresponde el paipai, de acuerdo con la tipología semántica del espacio desarrollada por Pederson et al. (1998). Esto se logra con el análisis comparativo entre con-strucciones del paipai y del español, elicitadas a partir de imágenes-estímulos diseñados por el Instituto Max Planck (MPI) de Psicolingüística. El paipai es una lengua yumana hablada en Ensenada, Baja California, en grave riesgo de desaparecer. Esfuerzos para su enseñanza se han llevado a cabo en español, por lo que la comparación entre estas dos lenguas es pertinente para una mejor traducción e interpretación. Uno de los principals hallazgos fue el que en paipai existe un lexema que da cuenta de un MR tipo tandem. Se concluye que aunque ambas lenguas comparten tipo semántico, presentan importantes diferencias so-bre términos espaciales y el uso de MR. Palabras clave: Tipología semántica, Marcos de referencia espaciales, paipai, español.

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to define the linguistic type of Paipai, according to the Spatial Semantic Typology developed by Pederson et al. (1998). This is achieved by doing a comparative analysis between Basic Locative Constructions of Paipai and Spanish which were elicitated based on image-stimulus designed by Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics. Paipai is an endangered Yuman language spoken in Ensenada, Baja California. Efforts for its teaching

Remembering object positions across different views is a fundamental competence for acting and moving appropriately in a large-scale space. Behavioural and neurological changes in elderly subjects suggest that the spatial representations of the environment might decline compared to young participants. However, no data are available on the use of different reference frames within topographical space in aging. Here we investigated the use of allocentric and egocentric frames in aging, by asking young and older participants to encode the location of a target in a virtual room relative either to stable features of the room (allocentric environment-based frame), or to an unstable objects set (allocentric objects-based frame), or to the viewer's viewpoint (egocentric frame). After a viewpoint change of 0° (absent), 45° (small) or 135° (large), participants judged whether the target was in the same spatial position as before relative to one of the three frames. Results revealed a different susceptibility to viewpoint changes in older than young participants. Importantly, we detected a worst performance, in terms of reaction times, for older than young participants in the allocentric frames. The deficit was more marked for the environment-based frame, for which a lower sensitivity was revealed as well as a worst performance even when no viewpoint change occurred. Our data provide new evidence of a greater vulnerability of the allocentric, in particular environment-based, spatial coding with aging, in line with the retrogenesis theory according to which cognitive changes in aging reverse the sequence of acquisition in mental development.

Spatial reference is an area of language and cognition that has received particular attention in recent decades. In responding to spatial tasks, speakers can draw of different ways to conceptualise spatial relations, which have been termed frames of reference. Previous research has shown that speakers of different languages may have different preferences in their frames-of-reference selection. It has also been shown that contextual factors may influence speakers in their frame selection when faced with a certain task. This study investigates contextual preferences of English speakers in their frame selection. The results show that, contrary to previous findings reported in the literature, English speakers generally adopted the intrinsic frame, i.e. a system that is based on the internal facets of the objects being referenced, rather than the relative frame, i.e. a system based on the viewer’s body axes. The study also explored speakers’ preferences for different subtypes of the relative frame as well as their responses to cardinal prompts, which were designed to elicit responses in line with the absolute frame of reference. Most participants were unable to identify their orientation in terms of cardinal directions and compensated in this task by using a strategy that construed cardinal terms in a relative rather than absolute way. The results from this study give insight not only into the preferences of English speakers in their frame selection, but also some of the contextual factors that can prime English speakers to adopt a particular strategy.