What happened in GIS while you were away...

Most of us have been on vacation since about December 23. Here's some of what happened while you were away. 

Esri is using a What3Words-like Format in its Esri UC Marketing

A physical mailer for the 2016 Esri Usr Conference appeared at the end of December with MEET.MAP.MASTER. on the front. I tried it in the What3Words tool and it's not a place. The mailer included a number-filled infographic with data to convince the recipient to attend the event. My favorite factoid:

76% of attendees gain an understanding of what others in there are doing.

Why the early mailing?

Apply your 2015 budget to the 2016 Esri UC 

GIS Education Brief: The Value of "Top x" Lists

Listicles and Top "x" Lists

BuzzFeed is know for its listicles.
via @spikedonline

Readers are likely familiar with the explosion of content on the Web in list form. There's even a term for articles that are just lists: listicles. And, of course there's always interest in what someone (or a publication) thinks are the top people, companies, events, etc. in any given category. Do these have any value in education?

Interestingly, the publications behind lists related to geospatial technologies both cite educational value, but in different way. One list is complete, and the other is coming later this year. Both lists are from publications I put in the category of "surveying."