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Joe Dolan, PLS, NSPS Foundation Chair
We had a great meeting with the Texas Society of Professional Surveyors (TSPS) in Frisco TX last week. I can't say enough about the Texas Society's generosity! They are truly a wonderful group!
It was quite an experience to meet people who were close to those who received grants from the Foundation. They let us know that when no government organizations had offered assistance "Your Foundation" helped them! A few tears were shed on both sides when meeting those people! I really can't describe all the feelings knowing we made such a positive impact on our fellow professionals lives, in their time of need!
We are starting to hear from Puerto Rico and the Western States. After the Texas meeting I expect more requests, as the word spreads.
Because of the number of grant requests we have received, the Trustees were forced to set a cap on the grants we will award going forward. The grants we have made have severely depleted our fund. I am very disappointed that we had to take this step. Please help us rescind this action! Your Foundation needs donations! We need money to replenish our Disaster Relief Fund! Please be as generous as possible with your donations. Please send whatever you can afford. We will gratefully accept any donation you can make! The need is not going to go away anytime soon!
Ask your state chapter to make a donation! Some chapters are stepping up with $500.00 donations. If all the state affiliate chapters did that we would be in a much better position than we are currently in.
Send your donations to headquarters: Please mark Disaster Relief on your checks and remember we are a tax deductible 501 c 3 organization.
National Society of Professional Surveyors Foundation, Inc.
5119 Pegasus Court, Suite Q
Frederick, MD 21704
Remember that the next check we send could be to you! Thank you for your anticipated generosity!
Brian Portwood, federal land rights expert and historian of land rights law
This article is part of a series by Brian Portwood on the wide variety of title issues associated with boundary and easement disputes which arise in the federal context, emphasizing the importance of understanding federal land rights, from the perspective of a professional land surveyor. The series is being produced and published for the educational benefit of all professionals in the many branches of the title and land acquisition industry, as well as professional land surveyors.
This edition returns us to the vital subject of land rights associated with legal access to real property. Here we will watch as a typical developer struggles to navigate the numerous bureaucratic hurdles which threaten his development plan, learning some painful but crucial lessons about the value of professional guidance and collaboration along the way. Reliable identification of land rights has become a matter of high importance to our society, and properly utilizing all relevant documentation is essential to that task, but comprehending federal land rights can be problematic, and often requires judicial resolution.
NSPS
Kelly Jeffery, with HeroX, has notified NSPS that after reviewing the response to the "Prototype Phase of the Land Survey Automation" challenge, The William Warren Group has decided to leave the competition open indefinitely without a deadline date. The award will go to the first team who is able to fulfill the minimum requirements set forth in the challenge guidelines. At this time HeroX feels the goal of the challenge is too audacious for the current state of technology, so they would like to allow anyone who comes across it to participate without the burden of a time limit.
She says that NSPS should feel free to reach out if there are any questions or comments. Otherwise, they will certainly update NSPS once a winning solution is received.
NSPS News & Views readers will recall that this challenge was initiated to identify how new technologies can expedite the process for ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys. Click here to see the challenge.
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PropLogix, a property due diligence company, is helping to grow residential surveys by:
1) Educating Realtors, Buyers and Title Agents.
2) Making the Survey Process Easier.
Learn more or apply to their network HERE.
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NSPS
By now, the word is widespread about the use of "The Sandbox" as a way to help students and the general public grasp some of the elements of the Surveying profession. Darren Leavitt P.L.S. is an instructor/program coordinator in the Civil Engineering Technology and the Surveying and Engineering Geomatics Technology programs at Idaho State University College of Technology. He is also the brother of NSPS President-Elect Kim Leavitt.
Darren will join host Curt Sumner to talk about how to build a Sandbox, what an effective PR tool it is, and the number of Surveyors in the Leavitt family.
To listen to the current show, or archives of previous shows, visit americaswebradio.com/nsps-radio-hour. Click the "Play" arrow to on the "radio" to start streaming Audio of the current show on your computer.
Richard R. (Rick) Casteel, President WVASHS/Past President of WVSPS)
Mason Dixon 250 at the Mason Dixon Historical Park was the final celebration of, arguably, the most famous line in the world. Many months of planning culminated in the success of this event from a 16-member board made up of amateur astronomers, indigenous historians, local crafters and Surveyors.
So how did Surveyors get involved in this event? We asked! As a member of the Surveyors Historical Society and the president of the WV Affiliate of Surveyors Historical Society (WVASHS), I felt an overwhelming desire to be a part of this event to commemorate the final point set by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon on the famous line which bears their names. Knowing this may be a daunting task, I enlisted the help of all who would be inclined to do so. Reaching out to our WVASHS, our West Virginia Society of Professional Surveyors (WVSPS), the local Laurel Highlands Chapter and Southwest Chapter of Pennsylvania Society of Land Surveyors (PSLS), and the local Mountain Regional Chapter of WVSPS, without whose help this may not have been as successful. We are also thankful to our National Society of Professional Surveyors for providing promotional items and providing a NSPS banner for display.
Read Rick's entire article.
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Personalized, Connected, Secure Cloud
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A modern cloud platform. What if your cloud was truly personalized to your business? What if it seamlessly connected your entire organization from anywhere and from any device? What if you were confident that your cloud data was more secure than ever? It can be with Oracle’s modern cloud.
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NSPS
Reps. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), Don Young (R-AK), Elizabeth Esty (D-CT), and Charlie Crist (D-FL) introduced H.R. 4062, the "Digital Coast Act of 2017." The House bill is a companion to S. 110, which has already been passed by the U.S. Senate. The legislation will provide coastal communities updated surveying, mapping and geospatial data that can be used to prepare for storms, manage floods, restore ecosystems and plan resilient developments near America’s coasts, harbors, ports and shorelines. The bill will also codify the "Digital Coast" project at NOAA, allowing it to begin a comprehensive mapping program and make the data available on its website for free and easy public access. NOAA will also train decision-makers at the local and state level on how to use the datasets to answer questions about storm surge, erosion, and water level trends.
NSPS
H.R. 2199, the "Federal Land Asset Inventory Reform (FLAIR) Act of 2017" recently received a budget estimate from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) of about $10 per parcel and a complete national cadaster of Federal lands of $95 million over the 2018-2022 period. CBO reported H.R. 2199 would require the Department of the Interior (DOI) to develop and maintain a multipurpose inventory (cadastre) of all federal lands in the United States ... H.R. 2199 would require DOI to create a cadastre of roughly 20 million parcels of federal land in the United States. The bill would require that the agency make the inventory available on the Internet in a searchable, geo-enabled format. CBO expects that the agency would need to perform extensive work on about half (or 10 million) of the parcels in order to complete the cadastre. That work would include validating legal descriptions, analyzing existing land surveys, attributing land rights, and making parcel data compatible with a geographic information system (GIS). CBO expects that completing that work would take five years. The funds would be used for personnel and GIS software necessary to compile the cadastre. The bill also would authorize DOI to enter into cooperative agreements with states to include nonfederal parcels in the cadastre. The bill would require that states pay half the cost of including those parcels.
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No matter what the future holds, prepare to meet challenges head on. Future-proof your resume by becoming a Certified Survey Technician (CST). This unique four-level certification program indicates official recognition by NSPS that a person can perform surveying tasks at a specific technical level.
Show what you can do! Decide between the field or office track. Visit www.nsps.us.com for details.
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Did you know the CST can be used as an assessment tool for local survey programs?
NSPS
NSPS lobbyist John "JB" Byrd recently met with Dan Meuser (R), a candidate for an open seat in the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania currently held by Rep. Lou Barletta (R), who is running for U.S. Senate. The primary in the 11th Congressional District is set for April 2018. Earlier this decade, Meuser served as Pennsylvania's Secretary of Revenue working to reform the Department of Revenue, increase efficiencies, and put into place customer-first procedures. Previously, he helped to grow a small family-owned company into an industry leader in the power mobility field, and in doing so, created thousands of jobs.
Sensors & Systems
In support of CAL FIRE's firefighting efforts in Northern California, the California Air National Guard's 163d Attack Wing operating out of March Air Reserve Base is using MQ-9 Unmanned Aircraft Systems with full-motion video (optical and infrared) and ground imaging Synthetic Aperture Radar capability, which can see through clouds and smoke.
READ MORE
Geospatial World
Professor of social geography at Newcastle University, Alastair Bonnett, recently published a unique collection of 50 maps that visualize, measure and map our physical, political and cultural world like never before. This collection is put together in the form of a book called "New Views" that is available on Amazon.com.
The book delineates energy networks to revealing new and emerging lands, information about the planet's forests and undersea cables, human migration or assessing the planet's ant populations.
READ MORE
xyHt
There is no hiding it: I’ve been building a lot of 3-D data recently, partly to sell, partly to fuel my adventures into augmented reality. The main vital thing has been the heightmap. What is a heightmap, you might ask? Well, it can be called several names, but I use this term to describe a raster that contains the relative heights necessary to extrude and height features in the third dimension.
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Inside GNSS
Key details are emerging about how Air Force managers are working to pull into line the substantially delayed and over budget program to build a new GPS ground system.
From the outside the task appears monumental. In the spring of 2016 the Senate Armed Services Committee killed funding for the GPS Next Generation Operational Control System because of cost overruns.
READ MORE
Directions Magazine
Buying a drone or unmanned aircraft vehicle can be a daunting prospect for anyone, from beginners to industry professionals. There are hundreds of options, ranging from the simplistic to the materials of science fiction. Drone technology is advancing at an ever-increasing pace. So fast, in fact, it is nearly impossible for one to stay current. Here are some of the main points for one to consider when searching for the first or next UAV.
READ MORE
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Note: NSPS members may receive calls from MultiView sales associates regarding advertising opportunities in News & Views. MultiView, a partner of NSPS, produces the News & Views newsbrief each week.
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