West Nile Virus, WNV, is a vector-borne disease that has become an increasingly prevalent issue in Colorado and across the United States. Chet Moore, microbiology professor at Colorado State University, has tested weekly samples of mosquitoes from 43 trap sites across Fort Collins, Colorado from 2009 through 2012. Attributes including mosquito count, species type, and WNV prevalence were recorded. The Colorado State University Geospatial Centroid has created spatial representations of Chet’s compiled data using ArcMap. The created maps explore spatial topics of species distribution and WNV outbreak intensity. Pertinent land cover layers were overlaid onto these maps to reveal spatial correlations between mosquito harborage, distribution and WNV outbreak. Issues of sample size error and other spatial statistics will be addressed along with current plans to overcome these barriers. Together with the CSU Institute of Learning and Teaching and Erica Suchman, another CSU microbiology professor, the Geospatial Centroid used this project to show undergraduate students the power of geospatial technologies in the field of microbiology. The presentation showed extreme success as the students began to ask open ended questions using critical thinking skills and spatial understanding.

1. Mapping West Nile Virus Outbreak Intensities across
Fort Collins, Colorado: Opening the Eyes of Collegiate
Microbiology Students
Emma Giles
Chester Moore
Erica Suchman

4. 1. Where would you be today without the
knowledge of spatial technology?
2. What would the world look like today without
GIS?
3. When and where did you first learn about spatial
thinking and spatial technology?

5. UNIVERSALITY
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Agricultural Economics
Air Quality Control
Epidemiology
History
Marketing
Sociology
Atmospheric Sciences
Disaster Relief
Land Use Planning
Engineering

6. COMMON LANGUAGE
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Family
Children
Community Members
Students

7. DISCOVERY

8. "The maps are
really like a filter.
They filter
information for
you to make
better decisions
on where you are
going and what
to do.”
-will.i.am

10. • “TILT fosters connections among learners and
teachers throughout the University, across program and
disciplinary boundaries, and in the broader community.”
• TILT “pursue[s] a mission of enhancing learning,
teaching, and student success.”

12. Learning Ecologies
http://tilt.colostate.edu/
Course redesign with a spatial perspective
http://gis.colostate.edu
Spatial Thinking
Geospatial Tools

13. Example Courses
Horticulture
(Hort 100)
Engineering
(Eng101)
Sustainable
Watersheds
(WR304)

14. Erica Suchman
CSU Professor
Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology
Chester Moore
CSU Professor
Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology

16. “What are we looking at?”

19. “I had no idea that we had mosquito
trap sites on campus?”

20. Culex tarsalis
Culex pipiens

23. Do we see any trends?

25. Which species of mosquito is more
“dangerous”?

28. “Can we zoom to my apartment?”

30. Mosquitoes need water to reproduce.
How are Culex pipiens continuing to live
in an area with minimal water bodies?

33. “I understand that the mosquitoes live
in different areas of Fort Collins but
where are the highest areas of
actual WNV outbreak?”

38. Culex tarsais

39. 1. Importance of
Sample Size
2. Power of GIS
Future?

40. UNIVERSALITY
LANGUAGE
DISCOVERY
EDUCATION
Emma Giles
egiles@rams.colostat.edu
Geospatial Centroid
http://gis.colostate.edu/