What is GIS? CONS 340 Lecture 1

Abstract concepts Goals Understand basic concepts of GIS design Database Development Cartographic Modeling Prepared for future coursework Application Goals Introduction, not GIS proficiency Application of broader issues in lecture, through the software Software utilized ArcGIS 10.1 ArcCatalog ArcMap ArcScene ArcGlobe LecturesLabs Course Organization

Evaluation Two exams Final Exam is cumulative but emphasizes the last half of class Lab Attendance is mandatory! Don’t fall behind – we have a lot of ground to cover

Today’s Learning Objectives By the end of today’s class you should be able to: Accept that GIS data is NOT reality Explain the five components of a GIS List the three main components of geographic data Summarize what a GIS should be able to do

GIS is really about how we conceive spatial information Cognitive mapping How do we make sense of our world Two tracks in the brain What vs. Where

This include concepts as well Courses enroll in Students Programs have consist of

GIS concepts are not new! In the London Cholera epidemic of 1854 Dr. John Snow was able to locate the source of a cholera outbreak by plotting the locations of fatal cases in relationship to nearby wells. Cholera death Water pump +

The five components of GIS People Data Hardware Software Procedures

People Business Banking and Insurance Media Real Estate Retail and Commercial BusinessBanking and InsuranceMediaReal EstateRetail and Commercial Business Communications Location Services TelecommunicationsLocation ServicesTelecommunications Defense and Intelligence Educators Universities and Colleges K-12, Primary and Secondary Libraries and MuseumsUniversities and CollegesK-12, Primary and SecondaryLibraries and Museums Engineering Pipeline SurveyingPipelineSurveying Environmental Management Archaeology Cave and KarstArchaeologyCave and Karst Government Federal Government Homeland Security Law Enforcement Public Safety Local GovernmentFederal GovernmentHomeland SecurityPublic SafetyLocal Government Health and Human Services Natural Resources Agriculture ESRI Conservation Program Forestry Marine and Coast Mining and Earth Sciences PetroleumAgriculture ForestryMarine and CoastMining and Earth SciencesPetroleum Sustainable Development and Humanitarian Affairs Transportation Utilities Electric and Gas Water/WastewaterElectric and GasWater/Wastewater

Hardware & Software Hardware Software

Procedures GIS analysis requires well-defined, consistent methods to produce correct and reproducible results. We will spend much of this course learning procedures

Data This is by far the most important aspect of GIS Without data we can’t do anything! Approximate time breakdown of most GIS projects: 80% = Database development 10% = Data analysis 10% = Cartographic production

The five components of GIS

There are three main components to geographic data:

GIS data is organized in Layers

Database “ Not Easy to Interpret”

Visualization “Worth a Thousand Words”

What can a GIS do? A GIS should be able to:  Capture data  Store data  Query data  Analyze data  Display data  Output data

Capturing Data Digitizing Heads up Tablet Scanning Tabular GPS Downloading

Storing Data

Querying Data SELECT CntryName, PopCntry FROM Countries WHERE Landlocked=No ORDER BY CntryName

Analyzing Data Proximity Overlay Etc.

Displaying Data Graphs Charts Tables Maps Etc.

Outputting Data Sharing the results of your geographic labor is one of the primary justifications for spending resources on a GIS.

Questions?