Darren Ruddell
School of Geographical Sciences
Arizona State University

 Third-year PhD student in the School of
Geographical Sciences
 Specializing in GIS and Sustainability
 Completing GIS certificate program
 BA in Political Science from San Diego St.
 MS in Global Technology & Development from ASU
 Peace Corps Volunteer, Cameroon 2000-02

Geographic Information Science
What is GIS?
How do we use
GIS?

 GIS is a technology used for handling, processing, and analyzing geographic data.
 GIS is a research tool:
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Explore spatial data
Produce digital maps
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Estimate trends
Planning/resource management

 Almost everything happens somewhere
 Knowing where some things happen is critically important
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Position of boundaries
Location of hospitals
Routing delivery vehicles
Management of forest stands
 Allocation of funds for environmental concerns

 Multidimensional , need 2 coordinates
GIS databases store spatial attributes
• Examples?

 Data : observations or measurements recorded from real world objects. Data are transmitted through signals .
 Information : the intelligent interpretation of data. Must know the rules.
 Knowledge : the body of information collected over time.

Signal : . . . - - - . . . (3 short, 3 long, 3 short tones)
Data : If the syntax of Morse code is known, the signal can be translated into data: SOS
Information : This message only makes sense after the receiver interprets (decodes) it, i.e. after it becomes information: 'Save Our Souls'
What is the most common method for converting data to information?

 worldwide fast communication (e.g. internet services)
 large changes in job requirements (e.g. from the typewriter to the word processor)
 data as a tool of power, problems of data protection
 computer criminality

BC number systems of the Sumerians, Egyptians, Romans; abacus used for calculations; Greek mathematicians PYTHAGORAS (- 500), EUCLID (-300), ARCHIMEDES (-250) among others, lay the
1524 Adam RIESE writes a computation book according to the decimal system
1623 SCHICKARD constructs the first mechanical computing machine for Kepler with 2 basic computational (+, -) forms
1818 reliable mechanical computation machines are mass-produced
1838 BABBAGE designs the 'analytical engine', steered by a program written on punched cards; he was not able to technically materialize his design; his assistant ADA writes the first "program"
1886
1941
HOLLERITH builds an electric counting machine for the punched cards
ZUSE builds the first electronic programmable machine Z3 (2000 relays);
1944
1 multiplication takes 4 seconds
AIKEN at IBM builds the programmable machine MARK1 (length 15m, 80 km wires); 1 multiplication takes 3 seconds
1950 VON NEUMANN, TURING, among others, develop the principal of the modern
1954 computer: single processor; program and data in the same memory
In the USA, ENIAC is developed as the first electronic computer (18,000 electron pipes, 20 tons); 1 multiplication takes 3 milliseconds
1964 FORTRAN becomes a widely distributed programming language, especially in the natural sciences
1973
1976
1979
UNIX developed as an operating system for workstations
WOZNIAK & JOB build the first personal computer (Apple) in the USA.
CRAY builds the first supercomputer
MS-DOS for PCs is developed
1983 First PC-XT (extended) from IBM arrives on the market
>> now Hardware becomes increasingly powerful and more affordable; software becomes more efficient but requires more hardware resources

The science concerned with the systematic and automatic processing of data and information with the help of computers.

the science concerned with the systematic and automatic processing of spatial data and information with the help of computers.
Spatial component of information:
The spatial reference informs geoscientific questions. Geoscientists are interested in special features (attributes) of spatial objects, also called geographic objects.

Task 1:
"Look for all locations of home fires in Phoenix."
This task can be completed with the help of a normal information system (database).
Task 2:
"Look for all locations of home fires in Phoenix and the distance they are from a fire station."
This task can only be completed with the help of a geographic information system (GIS), which has special capabilities allowing it to analyze the relationship between geographic objects (home fires and fire stations).

 Use of hardware, software, tools
 Theory behind how to solve spatial problems with computers

GIS combines data at a single location to provide a better understanding of that place.
GIS merges and analyzes various databases

Representation:
•Points
•Lines
•Polygons

 Exercise:
 Your dorm, house, or apartment?
 Your commute to school?
 This classroom?
 The intersection of two streets?

Data gathering
(input)
Data storage and specification
Data use and analysis
Data output

 GIS questions: 1. Locations What is at….?
Who owns the lot at 3233
E. College Ave and what is its zoning?
parcel no. 565-23a area 118,245 sq. ft.
owner Triangle Development address 500 Water St., Pittsburgh zoning R-3 assessment $950,000

 GIS questions: 2. Objects Where is…?
parcel no. 565-23a area 118,245 sq. ft.
owner Triangle Development address 500 Water St., Pittsburgh zoning R-3 assessment $950,000
Where are houses located you might consider buying?

 GIS questions: 3. Patterns Which things are related…?
Where have traffic accidents occurred over the past year at intersections without a traffic light?

 GIS questions: 4. Models What if…?
What would happen to traffic patterns if a new
Wal-Mart were built here?

 GIS questions: 5. Trends What has changed since…?
How has land cover changed since 1950?

Examples of GIS use… Summary
 Wide range of applications: engineering mining natural resource management agriculture planning (all gov’t levels) etc...

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Natural Resource Management
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Forest & Wildlife
Hydrological
Minerals
Urban and Regional Management
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Public Works
Landuse Planning
Emergency Response
Commercial
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Site Selection
Market Area Analysis
Routing
Agricultural Management
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Animal Management
Field Records
Climate Change / Human Impact

 Theory and concepts (GIScience)
 How to think spatially
 How to ask questions spatially
 Software training (GISystems)
 How computers store spatial information
 How to answer spatial questions

 Read
 Experiment with the software
 Talk to GIS users
 Talk with me
 Talk to each other
 Pay attention
 Take a GIS course