What is Geographic Information Systems (GIS)? According to an ESRI website, a GIS software manufacturer ."..GIS combines layers of information about a place to give you a better understanding of that place." (http://www.gis.com Accessed: 4 June 2004). Put simply GIS is a way to combine and interpret spatial information using technology such as computers. A website (http://www.geoinnovations.com.au Accessed: 4 June 2004) suggests, most data that is used today has a spatial component or spatial data. Basically this is data with a location. For example it can tell you the land value of certain parcels or land or even things much more complicated like telling you the rapid erosion of sensitive sand dunes. A map is the representation of this spatial information. The basis of using GIS software is simple however there are many complex parts to it. Basically as was stated before all you are require to do is add and alter the layers needed for your specific task. A layer is a group of similar information/data, for example roads and rails could a layer and houses/buildings could be another. To pick out certain data you can run query's through the software. Another feature of the software is that, with permission, you can edit nearly everything simply and also write programs to do tasks for you. With most Geographic Information systems it is a matter of adding the appropriate data in layers to co-inside with the consumers needs. For example, Fire and emergency services would need maps that show data like available water and access tracks while people interested in environmental damage would need information on the spread of feral species ect. With spatial data, geographical features are represented mainly using symbology. For example a tree may be a triangle or a certain data may be shaded in colour. They basically use points, lines, or polygons which are the three basic types of geographic features. Points are dots, triangles square, ect. used to show positional data for example trees may be triangles. Lines or thin polygons area used to show linear data. Polygonal information is placed over an area with a common attribute (something in common). These can also show graduating colours/symbols to show a differences in the attributes. For example the change in the height of a certain terrain. As well as shows symbology it is important for the maps dynamics that you generalised the information.
It gives people an overview of a large subject with colors, shapes and images which help a lot in people’s memorizations. After having a knowledge bank, people are able to create possibilities and counterfactuals. “Once you represent spatial information in a map you can use that information much more flexibly and productively. One thing a map does is to let you make blueprints. A blueprint looks like a map, but instead of making the blueprint match the world, we change the world to match the blueprint. Once we know how to make spatial maps, we can also decide to make changes in the spatial layout of objects, including our own bodies, and predict the effects of those changes” (Gopnik 176). Constructing by images, colors and shapes, mental map can be easily and readily memorized. People can recall things faster when they using mental map than note-taking. Mental map help people always point the direction at the unknown city, help people have no problem in remembering where they park their car in the parking lot. Besides, mental map is the important key for people to generate efficient ideas and make decisions. “Information that assisted me in my goal attracted my attention, what did not was judge irrelevant (63). After brainstorming, people will structure the ideas to a mental map. They can scan it very fast and find the most efficient route or way. And other useless things might
In response to the two basic types of urban data at the City of Windsor, two GIS web service providers are devised, respectively a vector data service provider and an aerial photo service. Web service providers are computer servers to publish maps. The vector data service provider is an Object-Relational Database (ORD) based server where all GIS vector data is stored and indexed. The aerial photo service provider is a RDMS based server. High resolution aerial photos are stored in RDMS as pyramid images that can accelerate data distribution at different scales. ArcSDE, a middleware that can facilitate data management, data transfer, and data interaction in one RDMS or among RDMSs, is used to help the data communication between the database servers and map servers.
Geography is the study of Earth and how people used the resources. We study geography to understand what goes on in the environments around us. Geography is always in our lives, even when we do not realize is. Geographers study geography all the time and see why people put things where they are. There are 5 themes of geography; location, place, region, movement, and human/environment interaction.
Hillier, A., & Culhane, D. (2013). GIS Applications and Administrative Data to Support Community Change. In M. Weil (Ed.), The Handbook of Community Practice (2nd ed., pp. 827-844). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. Retrieved from
Map scale and projections in making map takes an important role because they interpret the result of the map’s image. A map scale shows the feature’s size compared to how it is on a map. Projections can determine what type of map it would be.
What is geography, and why do we use it? Geography is the study of the Earth. We use it to understand the basic physical systems that affect everyday life. First, we need to learn
Geographers plan new communities, decide where new highways should be placed, and establish evacuation plans. Computerized mapping and data analysis is known as Geographic Information Systems (GIS), a new frontier in geography. Spatial data is gathered on a variety of subjects and input onto a computer. GIS users can create an infinite number of maps by requesting portions of the data to plot.
Yi-Fu Tuan once stated “Geography is the study of earth as the home of people”. The quote is saying that Geographers study the earth and how the earth affects humans that live on the planet. It is also saying that humans can affect the earth as well. Geography comes from the Greek roots geo and graphia. Geo means Earth and graphia is the study of. Therefore, Geography is the study or the writings of Earth. Geography is a science devoted to the study of earth and its ways. Geography developed as a science to show humans certain things on Earth, such as landforms, locations, landmarks, and other specific places or objects on maps. Most geographers can agree that geography is the study of how humans change their environment or adapt to it to
Map was used to find the route or location; later on it changes into many different types, for example- country boundary, population, climate, bomb range, etc. “Humans have created maps depicting their physical world since the Paleolithic Era. Approximately 25,000 years ago, Paleolithic hunter-gathers in present-day Czech Republic drew a map of local rivers and hills on a cave wall,” (Hyder 1). Map is very useful to locate something or know something about the world. In the map above shows the remaining 26 monarchies around the world. This map help us to know where are the location of the monarch countries and which country don’t have monarchy.
There are many definitions that refer to the term geography. You can take the technical term straight from a geography textbook that says, “Physical geography is the study of spatial distributions of phenomena across the landscape, processes that created and changed those distributions, and implications for those distributions on people.” While physical geography refers to the geography of the land, urban geography refers to the geography of the city. By definition urban geography is, “the sub-discipline of geography which concentrates on those parts of the Earth’s surface that have a high concentration of buildings and infrastructure.” Geography is not only a natural science though; it is a social science as well. When building a city and
The claim being discussed here is that the only way a map or a way of representing things can be useful is if it simplifies the knowledge that the actual territory gives, that is, if it reduces the salient i...
GIS is an emerging method of data storage and interpretation. GIS is, simply put a database. It is many tables of data organized by one common denominator, location. The data in a GIS system is organized spatially, or by its physical location on the base map. The information that is stored in the database is the location and attributes that exist in that base map, such as streets, highways, water lines, sewers, manholes, properties, and buildings, etc. each of these items don’t just exist in the database, the attributes associated with the item is also stored. A good example of this would be a specific sewer line, from and arbitrary point A to a point B. Ideally, the sewer line would be represented graphically, with a line connecting the two points or something of the like. When one retrieves the information for that line in particular, the attribute data would be shown. This data would include the size of pipe, the pipe material, the upper invert elevation, the downstream invert elevation, the date installed, and any problem history associated with that line. This is the very gist of what a GIS system is.
In today’s society, humans are constantly changing the world day after day to accommodate their needs or wants throughout their lives. Human geography, for example, is the study of languages, cultures, technological advancements, and also the interactions between humans and their environment. In fact, without human geography we would never be able to comprehend different cultures, experiences, or anything about ourselves. Thus, knowing what’s going on in your geography can help you understand the benefits/downsides to your environment and how your culture has an impact on your life.
Physical map indicates country borders, cities and landforms such as mountains, deserts and plains. Physical map has its own topography style to present overall picture of the local area.
Geography is a decisive factor in many different aspects of human life and development and it has played a major role in battles, building, cultural events and the development of civilization. Geography refers to all the physical features and resources in any area. The features and resources available, or unavailable, in a certain area can pose certain advantages as well as disadvantages to the development of civilizations and cultures. Weather patterns, naturally available resources and topography are all geographical factors that were highly influential in the development of civilization.