Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Spatial Thinking

Geographical Information Systems (GIS)

• GIS is a tool for comprehending and relating to the "what," "when," "how," and "why" of the world by answering "where."
• GIS is primarily concerned with geography and learning about the world in which we live.

Mental Maps

• Mental Maps are stored, brain-based representations of the environment for our world.
• They demonstrate familiarity with our neighborhood and relationship with our local surroundings.
• Humans prefer to think spatially according to their preferences.

Asking Geographic Questions

• Clarifying and dividing questions into manageable chunks are extremely useful skills when utilizing a geographic information system.
• Question types include:
  • Geographic Location
  • Geographic Distribution
  • Geographic Association
  • Geographic Interaction
  • Geographic Change
  • Geographic Concepts

Geographic Concepts

• Location: a point on the Earth's surface, can be referenced using Latitude and Longitude, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), and Geo-Coding.
• Direction: the location of an object relative to other objects along a line, can be Egocentric, Landmark, True North, Magnetic North, and Grid North.
• Distance: the degree of separation between two locations, can be measured in Nominal, Absolute units, and other units.
• Space: an abstract concept that is typically discussed rather than measured, including Topological space.
• Navigation: movement and travel with a specific destination, often relying on Landmark, Route, and Survey knowledge.

GIS for Today and Beyond

• A GIS is a specialized computer application that stores, modifies, processes, and displays geographic data and information as maps.
• Examples of GIS software include ESRI ArcGIS, Pitney MapInfo, and Open Source GRASS.
• All GIS software consists of a database management system capable of managing and integrating spatial and attribute data.

Spatial Data and Attributes

• Spatial Data: facts regarding the location and position of phenomena on the Earth's surface, such as Streets, Buildings, Lakes, and Countries.
• Attributes: characteristics and qualities of features and occurrences located on the Earth's surface, such as Name, Street No., Depth, and Population.

GIS Approaches

• Application Approach: focuses on the use and application of GISs to address problems, such as answering questions, aiding decision-making, and producing maps.
• Developer Approach: focuses on the development and creation of GIS systems, including designing and building spatial databases and applications.

Multi-layer Cake

• A classic method to describe and represent a geographic information system, where each layer of the cake reflects a distinct geographical topic.