Contact Information
1301 West Green Street
M/C 150
Urbana, IL 61801
M/C 150
Urbana, IL 61801
Teaching Assistant Professor
Education
- 2014, PhD, Pennsylvania State University - Geography "Looking back to inform the future: The role of cognition in forest disturbance characterization from remote sensing imagery"
- 2010, MS, University of Idaho - Physical Geography "Classification of Mixed-Conifer Forest Stands using SPOT-5 Imagery"
- 2009, BS, University of Idaho - Physical Geography
- 2009, BEnvs, University of Idaho - Environmental Science (Senior thesis: "IKONOS Imagery Analysis for Shoreline Change Detection at Sand Point, Michigan")
Highlighted Publications
Central to this work is examining human ways of knowing through imagery: how we interpret, contextualize, and derive meaning from visual information across various scales and orientations. I'm particularly interested in how vertical perspectives challenge traditional modes of seeing and representation, revealing new possibilities for understanding space, power, and perspective. Through an interdisciplinary approach that combines art practice and cognitive science, with critical analysis, I investigate how vision operates across different contexts—from the embodied experience of looking up and down to the cultural implications of aerial views, spatial representation, and dimensional representation.
- 2022 Portelli, R.A. and Pope, P. Remote Sensing and Human Factors Research: A Review, Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing Vol. 88 Issue 1 Pages 55-64
- 2020 Portelli, R.A. Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater: Re-appreciating the dynamic relationship between humans, machines, and landscape images. Landscape Ecology, 35(4), 815-822
- 2018 White, R. A., Coltekin, A., Hoffman, R. eds. Remote Sensing and Cognition: Human Factors of Image Interpretation. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
- 2015 Portelli, R.A. and MacEachren, A. Cognitive Themes Emerging from Air Photo Interpretation Texts Published to 1960. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information Vol. 4 Issue 2 Pages 551-571
- 2013 Bianchetti, R.A. Considering Visual Perception and Cognition in the Analysis of Remotely Sensed Images. Conference on Spatial Information Theory, Doctoral Colloquium. Rio de Janiero, Brazil.