A-Xing Zhu

Professor, Department of Geography and Institute of Environmental Studies

Adjunct Professor, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Professional Background

Ph.D. University of Toronto, 1994

Professional Activities

Lead delegate to University Consortium for Geographical Information Sciences (UCGIS)

Chairman of the CPGIS Research Development Committee

Chairman of Spatial Information Analysis Consortium (SIAC) at UW-Madison

Research Areas

Areas of primary research focus on:

Geographical Information Science
Environmental Modeling with GIS
Physical Geography

Current Research

My current research interests and projects include:

Spatially detailed, GIS-based quantitative environmental modeling as scenario analysis tool for land use planning and natural resource management
Spatial data mining and knowledge discovery
Quantification of detailed spatial variation of geographical phenomena using GIS and fuzzy logic
Uncertainty in GIS and its propagation through environmental models
Soil survey using GIS, artificial intelligence and fuzzy logic (SOLIM)
Landslide mapping using GIS, remote sensing and fuzzy logic

Honors and Awards

"One-Hundred Talent" Award, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Senior Research Fellow, Chinese Academy of Sciences
The ASPRS Intergraph Award for best paper in spatial data standards, 1998
World Bank Scholarship for Outstanding Chinese Scholars

Selected Publications

A.X. Zhu, 2005. "Research issues on uncertainty in geographic data and GIS-based analysis." In Robert McMaster and Lynn Ursery (eds.) A Research Agenda For Geographic Information Science, CRC Press, New York, pp. 197-223.

A.X. Zhu, R.X. Wang, J.P. Qiao, Y.B. Chen, Q.G. Cai, C.H. Zhou, 2004. “Mapping landslide susceptibility in the Three Gorge Area, China using GIS, expert systems and fuzzy logic.” GIS and Remote Sensing in Hydrology, Water Resources and Environment, IAHS Publication 289 (IAHS Red Book), International Association of Hydrological Sciences, Wallingford, UK, pp. 385-391.

W. Li, J.E. Burt, A.X. Zhu, C. Zhang, and J. Feyen, 2004. “Two-dimensional Markov chain for simulating spatial distribution of soil types.” Soil Science Society of America Journal, Vol. 68:1479-1490.

X. Shi, A.X. Zhu, J. Burt, F. Qi, and D. Simonson, 2004. “A case-based reasoning approach to fuzzy soil mapping.” Soil Science Society of America Journal, Vol. 68, pp. 885-894.

F. Qi and A.X. Zhu, 2003. “Knowledge discovery from soil maps using inductive learning.” International Journal of Geographical information Science, Vol. 17, No. 8, pp. 771-795.

A.X. Zhu, B. Hudson, J. E. Burt, and K. Lubich, 2001. “Soil mapping using GIS, expert knowledge and fuzzy logic.” Soil Science Society of America Journal, Vol. 65, pp. 1463-1472.

A.X. Zhu and D.S. Mackay, 2001. “Effects of spatial detail of soil information on watershed modeling.” Journal of Hydrology, Vol. 248, pp. 54-77.

Courses Taught

Geog 120 Introduction to Global Physical Environment
Geog 377 Introduction to Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
Geog 570 Problems in Cartography: Environmental Modeling with GIS
Geog 578 GIS Applications
Geog 579 GIS and Spatial Analysis
Geog 970 Seminar in GIScience

View all geography syllabi

Current Graduate Students

Jian Liu (Ph.D)
Dissertation: Distributed hydro-ecological modeling as scenario analysis tool for soil erosion assessment

Adam Simcock (Ph.D)
Dissertation: Multiscale terrain analysis using wavelets

Junghwa Ahn (Ph.D)
Dissertation:

Rongxun Wang (Ph.D)
Dissertation: Expert Knowledge-based Landslide Susceptibility Prediction Using GIS and Fuzzy Logic

Feihua Yang (Ph.D)
Dissertation:

Qiguang Zhu (Ph.D)
Dissertation:

A Message for Prospective Graduate Students

For prospective students >

Research Focus: My research focus is 1) the development of modern spatial information processing techniques (such as GIS/remote sensing, artificial intelligence techniques, and fuzzy logic concepts), and 2) the application of these techniques in natural resource management and environmental modeling. Current efforts focus on: the quantification of gradual spatial variation of geographic features/phenomena using GIS techniques and fuzzy logic concepts; development of spatially detailed, GIS-based quantitative models as scenario analysis tool for land use planning; and natural resource management. See the SOLIM website for more details.

Graduate Training Focus: My focus has been on the integration of modern spatial information processing technology and natural resource disciplines. Most of my students develop "dual proficiencies", that is, on one hand, they develop a high proficiency in technical fields which allows them to conduct comprehensive spatial analysis using modern information technology; on the other hand, they develop a profound background in disciplines related to the natural resource field (such as forestry, soils, water resources, and ecology) which allows them to apply the spatial analytical techniques effectively.

Contact Information

A-xing Zhu
Associate Professor
Department of Geography
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Room 255 Science Hall
550 North Park Street
Madison, Wisconsin 53706-1404 USA

Phone 1-608-262-0272
Fax 1-608-265-3991
Email: azhu@wisc.edu

Personal webpage