Geospacial intelligence is gaining new ground as analysts are starting to see the value of utilizing more open sources produced by individuals on the ground and then collaborating that information with other sources of intelligence. Cell phones play a big part in this analysis - both as a producer information with their built-in cameras, and a homing device that can easily be tracked or triangulated. Experts cite the importance of pictures taken by those in close proximity to the London bombings in 2005 and how these images are being easily spread with file sharing sites on the internet.

Developments are also being made in interpreting the massive amount of text that exists in open sources, especially on the internet. John Pierre, a former analyst with SAIC, founded a start-up that utilizes artificial intelligence to gather intelligence from text in geographic perspective. This can give analysts more awareness of context, regional conflicts and inside information. Additionally, progress is being made on coordinating massive amounts of photos taken of one place or landmark and forming them into a manipulative whole. This can greatly improve mobile mapping, global positioning information and satellite images.

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Labels: Advanced Computing