This dissertation, "An Alternative Perspective on the Mapping of Built Environments: Space Use Within a College Campus" by Ding Yuan, Tseng-Chyan, 錢定媛, was obtained from The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong) and is being sold pursuant to Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License. The content of this dissertation has not been altered in any way. We have altered the formatting in order to facilitate the ease of printing and reading of the dissertation. All rights not granted by the above license are retained by the author. Abstract: Abstract of thesis entitled An Alternative Perspective on the Mapping of Built Environments: Space Use within a College Campus Submitted by Tseng-Chyan, Ding Yuan For the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Hong Kong In August, 2007 One of the lessons learnt from the terrorist attacks of the World Trade Center is the need for spatial and timely data on human activities in a complex built environment. Open coordination among different sectors and enterprises is needed to bring together data needed to monitor space usages and support reliable prediction of the population at risk within the spatial setting. This research highlights the importance of obtaining timely information in a public and confined environment. The author argues that the patterns of space use and activities, referred as space use events, must be observed and categorized as a data resource for effective operation and management of space. The development of a Timely Event Geo-Information Service ("Timely-Event GIService") is discussed from the perspectives of its conceptual construct and system requirements. The research has three aims. Firstly, it is an attempt to ascertain the significance and possible impacts brought by the mapping of space use events. Secondly, it offers a theoretical framework to bond the intricate relationships among space, people, event and time. Lastly, it shows the feasibility of the proposed geographical information service to approximate human flow over time and space in an application setting of a university campus. The Timely-Event_GIService is envisioned as a systems development integrating events, spatial, temporal rule, corporate structure and narrative data in one unified setting. As events are inseparable from space, time, and players, a well-conceived database structure with essential components is integral to a functional and useful system. The Timely-Event GIService maintains spatio-temporal relationships by way of active and regular update cycles of the relevant component data to permit the dynamic monitoring of event occurrences in place and time. The utility of the resultant system is expandable and limited only by imagination. The advancement of technology revolutionizes cartography in terms of data acquisition, process, presentation and visualization. The research shows that with minor changes and rigorous procedures in data update, the present day geographic information systems technology can be extended to provide timely data for efficient communication, effective planning and competent monitoring. It also opens a wide range of research possibilities in creating a sustainable system from the perspectives of an enterprise, human and resource requirements, data management, and operational constraints. (368 words) DOI: 10.5353/th_b3883545 Subjects: Space (Architecture) Campus planning - China - Hong Kong - Case studies Geographic information systems