Decision Framework
Definition
A structured protocol for selecting geophysical methods based on documented site characteristics (soil type, target depth, cultural noise) before fieldwork begins, with the selection rationale recorded for the survey report.
- Purpose
- Selects geophysical methods before fieldwork begins
- Inputs
- Soil type, target depth, cultural noise
- Timing
- Applied at the site-assessment stage, pre-fieldwork
- Output
- Documented method-selection rationale for the survey report
- Field
- Forensic geophysics, multi-method site investigation
Common questions
Why does a decision framework need to be documented rather than left as informal judgement?+
A documented rationale lets a court or reviewer verify that the survey method was chosen for sound technical reasons tied to the actual site conditions, rather than convenience or habit, which matters if the method choice is later challenged as inappropriate for the target.
How does cultural noise factor into the framework's method selection?+
Buried services, fencing, and other metallic or electrical interference can swamp certain instruments, so a site with heavy cultural noise may rule out magnetometry in favour of ground-penetrating radar or resistivity, and that reasoning is what the framework is meant to capture.
Related terms
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- False Positive
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- GIS Co-Registration
- Assigning consistent spatial coordinates to all survey datasets so that anomalies from different instruments can be overlaid and compared at matching ground...
- Ground-Truthing
- The physical investigation (probing, test pitting, or full excavation) of a geophysical anomaly to determine whether it represents a genuine forensic target....
- Site Datum
- A fixed reference point, established by total station or RTK-GPS, to which all survey grid positions are tied. Ensures that anomaly positions...