Lawrence (Larry) V. Stanislawski is a Research Cartographer for the Center of Excellence for Geospatial Information Science (CEGIS). His work focuses on generalization and multiscale representation that support or enable automated mapping and science investigations using geospatial data, particularly the National Map datasets.
Larry received his B.S. in Forest Resources and Conservation and his M.S. in Forest Remote Sensing from the University of Florida. He continued studying in the Surveying and Mapping Program at the University of Florida and performed research on GIS data accuracy and on high precision surveying with Global Position Systems (GPS). Prior to his work with the U.S. Geological Survey, Larry worked in various geoscience research and consultant positions, and as a GIS developer with the Army Corps of Engineers in Jacksonville, Florida. In 1998, he and his family moved to Rolla, Missouri where he began as a GIS Developer with National Geospatial Technical Operations Center leading development of automated systems to build the high-resolution National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) with conflation of medium resolution NHD data. During this time, he also designed and taught a Geomatics course at Missouri University of Science and Technology. Larry began working as a CEGIS research scientist in 2011. Larry’s research includes machine learning and high-performance computing to extract, validate, and generalize hydrography and other features using high resolution elevation and remotely sensed data, such as lidar from the 3D Elevation Program.
Science and Products
Comparing line feature morphology with scale specific sinuosity distributions: A modified earth mover’s distance
Scaling-up deep learning predictions of hydrography from IfSAR data in Alaska
Weakly supervised spatial deep learning for Earth image segmentation based on imperfect polyline labels
Watersheds and drainage networks
An attention U-Net model for detection of fine-scale hydrologic streamlines
Channel cross-section analysis for automated stream head identification
Preserving meander bend geometry through scale
OpenCLC: An open-source software tool for similarity assessment of linear hydrographic features
Scale-specific metrics for adaptive generalization and geomorphic classification of stream features
Simplification of polylines by segment collapse: Minimizing areal displacement while preserving area
Streams do work: Measuring the work of low-order streams on the landscape using point clouds
Automated road breaching to enhance extraction of natural drainage networks from elevation models through deep learning
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Automated accuracy and quality assessment tools (AQAT = “a cat”) for generalized geospatial data
Science and Products
- Publications
Filter Total Items: 26
Comparing line feature morphology with scale specific sinuosity distributions: A modified earth mover’s distance
No abstract available.AuthorsBarry J. Kronenfeld, Barbara Buttenfield, Ethan J. Shavers, Larry StanislawskiScaling-up deep learning predictions of hydrography from IfSAR data in Alaska
The United States National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) is a database of vector features representing the surface water features for the country. The NHD was originally compiled from hydrographic content on U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps but is being updated with higher quality feature representations through flow-routing techniques that derive hydrography from high-resolution elevation dataAuthorsLarry Stanislawski, Ethan J. Shavers, Alexander Duffy, Philip T. Thiem, Nattapon Jaroenchai, Shaowen Wang, Zhe Jiang, Barry J. Kronenfeld, Barbara P. ButtenfieldWeakly supervised spatial deep learning for Earth image segmentation based on imperfect polyline labels
In recent years, deep learning has achieved tremendous success in image segmentation for computer vision applications. The performance of these models heavily relies on the availability of large-scale high-quality training labels (e.g., PASCAL VOC 2012). Unfortunately, such large-scale high-quality training data are often unavailable in many real-world spatial or spatiotemporal problems in earth sAuthorsZhe Jiang, Wenchong He, M. S. Kirby, Arpan Man Sainju, Shaowen Wang, Larry Stanislawski, Ethan J. Shavers, E. Lynn UseryWatersheds and drainage networks
This topic is an overview of basic concepts about how the distribution of water on the Earth, with specific regard to watersheds, stream and river networks, and waterbodies are represented by geographic data. The flowing and non-flowing bodies of water on the earth’s surface vary in extent largely due to seasonal and annual changes in climate and precipitation. Consequently, modeling the detailedAuthorsLarry Stanislawski, Ethan J. ShaversAn attention U-Net model for detection of fine-scale hydrologic streamlines
Surface water is an irreplaceable resource for human survival and environmental sustainability. Accurate, finely detailed cartographic representations of hydrologic streamlines are critically important in various scientific domains, such as assessing the quantity and quality of present and future water resources, modeling climate changes, evaluating agricultural suitability, mapping flood inundatiAuthorsZewei Xu, Shaowen Wang, Larry Stanislawski, Zhe Jiang, Nattapon Jaroenchai, Arpan Man Sainju, Ethan J. Shavers, E. Lynn Usery, Li Chen, Zhiyu Li, Bin SuChannel cross-section analysis for automated stream head identification
Headwater streams account for more than half of the streams in the United States by length. The substantial occurrence and susceptibility to change of headwater streams makes regular updating of related maps vital to the accuracy of associated analysis and display. Here we present work testing new methods of completely automated remote headwater stream identification using metrics derived from chaAuthorsEthan J. Shavers, Larry StanislawskiPreserving meander bend geometry through scale
Stream meander geometry is a function of hydrologic, geologic, and anthropogenic forces. Meander morphometrics are used in geomorphic classification, ecological characterization, and tectonic and hydrologic change detection. Thus, detailed measurement and classification of meander geometry is imperative to multiscale representation of hydrographic features, which raises important questions. What mAuthorsEthan J. Shavers, Larry Stanislawski, Barbara P. Buttenfield, Barry J. KronenfeldOpenCLC: An open-source software tool for similarity assessment of linear hydrographic features
The National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) is a foundational geospatial data source in the United States that enables extensive and diverse environmental research and supports decision-making in numerous contexts. However, the NHD requires regular validation and update given possible inconsistent initial collection and hydrographic changes. Furthermore, systems or tools that use NHD data must manage rAuthorsTing Li, Larry Stanislawski, Tyler Brockmeyer, Shaowen Wang, Ethan J. ShaversScale-specific metrics for adaptive generalization and geomorphic classification of stream features
The Richardson plot has been used to illustrate fractal dimension of naturally occurring landscape features that are sensitive to changes in scale or resolution, such as coastlines and river channels. The Richardson method estimates the length of a path by traversing (i.e., “walking”) the path with a specific stride length. Fractal dimension is determined as the slope of the Richardson plot, whichAuthorsLarry Stanislawski, Barbara P. Buttenfield, Barry J. Kronenfeld, Ethan J. ShaversSimplification of polylines by segment collapse: Minimizing areal displacement while preserving area
This paper reports on a new Area Preserving Segment Collapse (APSC) algorithm for simplifying polygonal boundaries while preserving polygonal area at simplified target scales and minimizing areal displacement. A general segment collapse algorithm is defined by iteratively collapsing segments to Steiner points in priority order, guided by placement and displacement functions. The algorithm is speciAuthorsBarry J. Kronenfeld, Larry Stanislawski, Barbara P. Buttenfield, Tyler BrockmeyerStreams do work: Measuring the work of low-order streams on the landscape using point clouds
The mutable nature of low-order streams makes regular updating of surface water maps necessary for accurate representation. Low-order streams make up roughly half the streams in the conterminous United States by length, and small inaccuracies in stream head location can result in significant error in stream reach, order, and density. Reliable maps of stream features are vital for hydrologic modeliAuthorsEthan J. Shavers, Larry V. StanislawskiAutomated road breaching to enhance extraction of natural drainage networks from elevation models through deep learning
High-resolution (HR) digital elevation models (DEMs), such as those at resolutions of 1 and 3 meters, have increasingly become more widely available, along with lidar point cloud data. In a natural environment, a detailed surface water drainage network can be extracted from a HR DEM using flow-direction and flow-accumulation modeling. However, elevation details captured in HR DEMs, such as roads aAuthorsLarry Stanislawski, Tyler Brockmeyer, Ethan J. ShaversNon-USGS Publications**
Anderson-Tarver CA, Gleason M, Buttenfield B, Stanislawski L (2012) Automated Centerline Delineation to Enrich the National Hydrography Dataset, In Xiao N et al. (eds), GIScience 2012, Lecture Notes in Computer Science 7478:15-28, Springer-Verlag Berlin HeidelbergAnderson-Tarver CA, Buttenfield BP, Stanislawski LV, Koontz JM (2011) Automated Delineation of Stream Centerlines for the USGS National Hydrography Dataset, In Ruas (ed), Advances in Cartography and GIScience Volume 1 (Lecture Notes in Geoinformation and Cartography):409-423, Springer-Verlag Berlin HeidelbergButtenfield BP, Stanislawski LV, and Brewer CA (2011) Adapting Generalization Tools to Physiographic Diversity for the United States National Hydrography Dataset. Cartography and Geographic Information Science 38(3):289-301Stanislawski LV, Buttenfield BP (2011) Hydrographic Generalization Tailored to Dry Mountainous Regions. Cartography and Geographic Information Systems 38(2):117-125Stanislawski LV (2009) Feature Pruning by Upstream Drainage Area to Support Automated Generalization of the United States National Hydrography Dataset. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 33: 325-333Stanislawski LV, Dewitt BA, Shrestha R (1996) Estimating Positional Accuracy of Data Layers Within a GIS Through Error Propagation. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 62(4):429-433**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
- Science
Automated accuracy and quality assessment tools (AQAT = “a cat”) for generalized geospatial data
This project develops an open-source toolkit for the consistent, automated assessment of accuracy and cartographic quality of generalized geospatial data. The toolkit will aid USGS and other stakeholders with the development and use of multiscale data and with associated decision-making.