This podcast episode is all about semantic search and using embeddings to analyse text and social media data.

Dominik Weckmüller, a researcher at the Technical University of Dresden, talks about his PhD research, where he looks at how to analyze text with geographic references.

He explains hyperloglog and embeddings, showing how these methods capture the meaning of text and can be used to search big databases without knowing the topics beforehand.

Here are the main points discussed:

1. Intro to Semantic Search and Hyperloglog: Looking at social media data by counting different users talking about specific topics in parks, while keeping privacy in mind.
2. Embeddings and Deep Learning Models: Turning text into numerical vectors (embeddings) to understand its meaning, allowing for advanced searches.
3. Application Examples: Using embeddings to search for things like emotions or activities in parks without needing predefined keywords.
4. Creating and Using Embeddings: Tools like transformers.js let you make embeddings on your computer, making it easy to analyze text.
5. Challenges and Innovations: Talking about how to explain the models, deal with long texts, and keep data private when using embeddings.
6. Future Directions: The potential for using embeddings with different media (like images and videos) and languages, plus the ongoing research in this fast-moving field.

Connect with Dominik Weckmüller here https://geo.rocks/

Stay up to date with AI here

https://huggingface.co/ Try searching for “map” here https://huggingface.co/spaces

Check out this project I am working on

https://quickmaptools.com/

In this episode, we welcome back Lauren Guy, CEO and founder of ASTERRA, a groundbreaking company using L band and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) for commercial purposes. Lauren shares his journey as a geophysicist and discusses the innovative applications of L band in detecting water leakages, soil moisture, and even minerals from space. Dive deep into the technical, commercial, and environmental aspects of SAR technology and learn about the future potential of this exciting field.

**Key Topics Covered:**

1. **Introduction to Astera**:

- Overview of Asterra's mission and Lauren Guy's background as a geophysicist.

- The unique use of L band and SAR for commercial applications.

1. **Understanding L Band and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)**:

- Explanation of the electromagnetic spectrum and how L band fits in.

- Advantages of L band, including its ability to penetrate the ground.

1. **Technical Insights into SAR**:

- Detailed discussion on polarizations, signal processing, and the electrical properties of materials detected by SAR.

- Comparison between L band and other bands like X and C band.

1. **Applications and Benefits of L Band**:

- Real-world examples of how Astera uses L band for water leak detection and soil moisture mapping.

- Discussion on the environmental and commercial impact of these applications.

1. **Challenges and Limitations**:

- Addressing issues such as noise interference from cell phones and radars.

- Limitations in resolution and the complexities of SAR technology.

1. **Case Studies and Success Stories**:

- Success stories including the detection of 118,000 water leakages worldwide and the discovery of significant lithium deposits.

1. **Business Strategies and Market Penetration**:

- Insights into ASTERRA's business model, customer education, and market challenges.

- Strategies for overcoming barriers and building trust with clients.

1. **Future Aspirations and Technological Developments**:

- Plans for launching their own satellites to ensure reliable data sources.

- The role of AI in enhancing SAR capabilities and improving detection accuracy.

1. **Entrepreneurial Advice for Remote Sensing Practitioners**:

- Lauren’s advice for remote sensing scientists and entrepreneurs in the industry.

- The importance of data feedback loops and the journey from a 20% to an 86% success rate in detections.

**Guest Information:**

- **Lauren Guy**: CTO and founder of ASTERRA. Connect with Lauren on https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-guy-asterra/

**Company Information:**

- **ASTERRA**: Learn more about ASTERRA’s innovative solutions at https://asterra.io/

**Additional Resources:**

- Check out Lauren’s previous appearance on the podcast for more insights into SAR technology.

- Explore ASTERRA’s groundbreaking work in remote sensing and their various applications across different industries.

**Episode Highlights:**

- "We can find water leakages from space and distinguish treated water from other types of water based on their dielectric properties."

- "ASTERRA has verified, dug, and fixed 118,000 leakages across 65 countries using L band SAR technology."

- "Our success rate has increased from 20% to around 86% thanks to the integration of AI and continuous data feedback."

**Support the Show:**

- If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review on your favourite podcast platform and share it with your network.

Thank you for tuning in to the MapScaping Podcast!

Recommended Listening

Finding Water Leaks From Space

Introduction To Synthetic Aperture Radar-SAR

Flood Monitoring From Space ( using SAR)

Cloud-native geospatial, range requests, chucks, COGs and COPCs ... [ insert confusing acronym here ]

Sometimes It feels like we need to learn a whole new vocabulary and if you have been doing #geo for a while you might be wondering how much of this is actually going to impact me. What bits of this are the ones that I need to know about?

I don’t think that anyone is going to be talking about cloud native in 10 years, in the same way, no one talks about digital cartography or computer analysis because where else would you do your cartography? And how else would you do your analysis?

Maybe the names won’t be as important but the concepts will and while this episode is focused on Geoparquet it does so within the context of cloud-native geospatial - and this concept is not going away!

You can connect with Kyle Barron here https://x.com/kylebarron2 or here https://kylebarron.dev/

If you want to learn more about cloud-native geospatial I can highly recommend these episodes

https://mapscaping.com/podcast/cloud-optimized-point-clouds/

https://mapscaping.com/podcast/introduction-to-cloud-native-geospatial/

https://mapscaping.com/podcast/planet-scale-tiled-maps-without-a-server/

https://mapscaping.com/podcast/what-is-modern-gis/

https://mapscaping.com/podcast/the-planetary-computer/

I am working on a new project called https://quickmaptools.com/ like the name suggests it is a bunch of browser-based map tools. So far we have created several different conversion tools and will continue to add more to the list. Check it and let me know what you think!