The Evolution of GPS
In this paper I am going to compare the development of the GPS (Global Positioning System) using incremental model and a social construction model. I believe that in this case the incremental model does a better job of describing the development of the GPS since it allows innovation and evolution compared to linear one, since it is more precise in everyday life. In order to compare the GPS evolution I must go back to the early years when ships navigated through the world by using mean tools. However, I will elaborate further three crucially important eras of navigation. The three eras of the navigation I am going to talk about are: navigation of explorers, the evolution printed maps and GPS of nowadays.
First of all, explorers of the early times used mean tools to navigate through the world. Beside that they also discovered unknown places by those tools of navigation and they used the accurate enough to bring them to new places. Referring to Olivia Isil, on her article “Navigation and Related Instruments in 16th-Century England” she argues that: “Beginning at a known or assumed position, the navigator measured, as best he could, the heading and speed of the ship, the speeds of the ocean currents and the leeward (downwind) drift of the ship, and the time spent on each heading” (Isil p. 1). Therefore, by having those information we can infer that mean tools such are compass, stars, and their own written maps; for instance, those were used at their most to bring results to the explorers. Even though they were primitive tools they led room to develop something better to become more accurate than ever. Moreover, people saw the need to bring something that would have included most of the world so they could naviga...
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...ed to maps are that it finds the current location, calculates the route where you are heading, and has the talking feature (gives direction what should you do next).
In conclusion, the incremental model has led to the perfection of the means of orientation. Therefore, nowadays all the previous versions were good but not better than the GPS. The features that GPS possesses have led to the replacement of the previous versions. Nevertheless, this incremental model will bring something better for the future since it will evolve more and more. All those occurrences happened because of the social constructionism because the demand of the people pushed further the evolution of the navigation tools. Therefore, we must see the disadvantages of this model and start building something better for the population that is now and we will inherit for the future to our children.
The Exploration Era was a time period when countries and people made journeys overseas to find “the New World.” With the help of the printing press, the discoveries of the Americas were known globally making people curious to explore it themselves. In the map “Distribution of Columbus’ Letter” (Document D), it shows where the letter was published and where it was translated to different. This is due to the printing press. Along with the many documents, the news of Christopher Columbus’ discoveries of “India” or the New World had sparked the curiosity of people all over the world. People became more interested in geography and seeing what’s out there along with the different resources. The New World discovery opened up a new trade route and different trade items. This would create pros and cons like economic growth and slavery. In addition the exploration of the Europeans helped us gain knowledge and get a picture of the Americas. In the “Henricus Martellus’ World Map, 1489” (Document E), it shows the world as they knew it with Europe, Africa, and Asia. The “Martin Waldseemuller's World Map, 1507” was an updated, more correct version of the world we see today. Waldseemuller’s map includes the Americas and was much bigger than Martellus’. The printing press had helped Waldseemuller use this new knowledge to create a map that would depict something
on this built in compass sense to guide them in the open ocean. Another use for
The other skill that Vikings excelled at was the skill of navigation. Their longships were the cutting–edge technology at the time, and their ingenious sun-compass, which worked somewhat like a sundial, allowed them to sail to their destination with precision. The longships were usually made with oak boards stripped from trees with thin ropes soaked in pitch trapped between joints to act as a flexible, waterproof membrane. These ships, combined with their streamlines design, are very fast and seaworthy and would flex out of places when a sturdier ship would shatter. The sun compass is also very useful because it is the only directional tool at the time. It uses a shadow cast by a small pin in the middle of a round plate with bearings to give the direction. This tool allowed them to sail on open seas without landmarks for directions, a great advantage. This tool allowed them to sail on open seas without landmarks for directions, a great advantage.
During the European exploration, which was in the 15th and 16th century, explorers were sailing around to explore, trade, spread, or get new things. These places were throughout Europe (Spain, Portugal, etc.), America (The colonies), and through Asia. These explorers were sailing through the Indian, Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. These explorations started from Portugal with Bartolomeu Dias and Vasco da Gama and this time of exploration spread to different countries and other explorers such as Christopher Columbus, Hernando Cortez and more. All this exploration was all done with new sailing innovations and navigation schools (which was created by Prince Henry) which taught people to explore and sail across the sea. Some major points of European exploration were the discovery of the new world (America), which was a new place never explored by the Europeans. The exploration of the coastlines of the Indian Ocean and the China Sea, as well as explorers trying to find new and faster sea routes to different places, which was also important. European exploration in the 15th and 16th centuries was motivated by God (spreading Christianity), gold (wealth), and glory (becoming glorious for your country
To navigate during the night and day they looked out for well-known landmarks such as mountains. They could also follow the sun and stars or watch out for birds that were found at different times and places of the year. Navigators were needed in the time of Vikings as they were the key to successful voyages. Without them Vikings would have never been able to sail across Western Europe and leave an impact that would actually make way into our history. Therefore their would of not been any impact to live on today. One example was when the Viking found their way into the Mediterranean Sea and raided the coasts of Spain but of course with the help of navigation. In addition to navigation, religion also did impact.
“Some of the world’s greatest inventions came from China.” Much of the world today has still been undiscovered. But without the compass the Chinese and Americans might not have known each other existed. With the compass, explorers were able to navigate their way through many of the seas and land into the Western Hemisphere.
The invention of the GPS started with Dr. Ivan Getting leaving his position at Raytheon Company, and armed with the knowledge of what was at the time the most advanced navigational technology in the world, they began developing the Global Positioning System. He, Roger L. Easton, and Bradford Parkison began in the 60’s with a constellation of 24 satellites (placed in six orbital planes) orbiting the earth at a very high altitude (about
It's impossible to teach someone the significance or the act of loving the stars and the ocean but that's what makes navigation without instruments (wayfinding) so beautiful. One can "give the heavens a meaning his own meaning" says Nainoa Thompson. Anyone can learn the aspects of navigation through personal observation and the study of charts and maps. Thus creative thinking and logic are two important skills in learning the ancient art of wayfinding.
...regarded GPS – an indispensable part of GIS. Discussions on cartographic principles, commercial GIS software programs, satellite images, aerial photos, and geodatabases are some of the other conspicuous omissions in this book. There is an inconsistency in the depth of topics explored; for example map projections are explored in great depth, while vector topology is merely glossed over. These omissions and inconsistencies would in my opinion make this book marginally less beneficial to all the three audiences together. However, there is something for all them; structure for engineers, equations for engineers and students, and GIS concepts for students, engineers and users. This book will therefore be undeniably valuable if used to complement the material in some of the other fundamental GIS books in the discipline. It has merits, but there is room for improvement.
The following is a brief illustration of the principles of GPS. For more information see previous chapter. The Global positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-base navigation system that provides a user with proper equipment access to positioning information. The most commonly used approaches for GPS positioning are the Iterative Least Square (ILS) and the Kalman Filter (EKF) methods. Both of them are based on psuedorange equation:
/ charted on a map, this is better explained in the next line where he
According to the article “is scientific progress inevitable?” can understand that advances in technology are in the order of nature and advances in technology are regular. This article may be expanded many ideas about the progress and development of technology. Technology must be progress, but the progress of scientific discovery may not be able to promote social development in a short time. Although the power source of social development is the advancement of technology, but technology discovery just a part of system and it is an integral part, but only "essential" conditions, rather than "full" condition. Anyway, the article has made the readers to
Fast Globalization and interconnectivity create the major driving force in creating and enhancing chance. Therefore, the society has to acquire new trends of innovation to prosper in their ways of life. Our community has revolutionized due to the interconnectivity greatly compared to some years back when usage of internet connection did not exist. It has quickly changed our culture, socialization patterns and styles, political and business advancement. Internet has proved itself as a tool to spread news all over the world within a little time period. Physical space transformation according to mankind has been innovative as from historical times. The space was fully discovered as globalization and civilization made more and more locations accessible. Therefore, the time that was required to cover great distances was greatly reduced through the industrial revolution as globalization also lead to urbanization.
There was a time a person would use a roadmap to get from one location to another. Some also would stop and ask for directions. Today, you seldom see paper maps and people stopping at a local gas station for directions. Many vehicles come with a navigation system that provides a real-time map of the vehicle’s current location as well as systematic directions to requested destination.
GPS is a system of satellites radio-transmitters that orbit the planet in great numbers; their purpose is to be able to pinpoint the exact location of an individual or any type of vessel that is equipped with a receiver transmitter within a very small radius. GPS navigation has had a great impact upon society in general as well and its commercial and military applications. Global Positioning is made available at no cost to anyone who has a GPS receiver unit anywhere on the planet. A GPS unit is able to give the user longitude/latitude information as well as, altitude, traveling speed, distance traveled, distance remaining and time in any type of weather conditions imaginable.