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(Geographic Information Systems)

An Introduction

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GIS--What is it?
No easy answer anymore!
Geographic Information
information about places on the earths surface
knowledge about what is where when
(Dont forget time!)

Geographic Information Technologies

technologies for dealing with this information
Global Positioning Systems (GPS)
Remote Sensing (RM)
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

GIS--whats in the S?
Systems: the technology
Science: the concepts and theory
Studies: the societal context

Geographic Information Technologies

Global Positioning Systems (GPS)
a system of earth-orbiting satellites which can provide precise
(100 meter to sub-cm.) location on the earths surface (in
lat/long coordinates or equiv.)

Remote Sensing (RS)

use of satellites (and aircraft) to capture information about the
earths surface

Geographic Information Systems (GISy)

at a minimum, comprises a capability for input, storage,
manipulation and output of geographic information
GPS and RM are sources of input data for a GISy.
A GISy provides for storing and manipulating GPS and RS data.

GI Systems, Science and Studies

Systems
technology for the acquisition and management of spatial
information

Science
comprehending the underlying conceptual issues of
representing data and processes in space-time
the science (or theory and concepts) behind the technology

Studies
understanding the social, legal and ethical issues associated
with the application of GISy and GISc

Which GIS will we do?

Systems: GIS=GISy
Focus on the technology system
introduce enough of the science to apply the systems
correctly and understand their capabilities and
limitations
discuss societal implications primarily in POEC 6383
(Management and Implementation of GIS), and POEC
6381 (Intro to GIS) as they arise
combine hands-on technical training with broader
education, and an emphasis on multidisciplinary
applications
Lets begin.

enabler of studies

2002

object of study

1998

Changing Domain of GIS

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Why Study GIS?

80% of local government activities estimated to be geographically based
plats, zoning, public works (streets, water supply, sewers), garbage collection, land ownership and valuation

a significant portion of state government has a geographical component

natural resource management
highways and transportation

businesses use GIS for a very wide array of applications

retail site selection & customer analysis

logistics: vehicle tracking & routing
natural resource exploration (petroleum, etc.)
precision agriculture

civil engineering and construction

scientific research employs GIS

geography, geology, botany
anthropology, sociology, economics, political science
epidemiology

.the next slides illustrate more of these

Where GIS is being Applied: I

Urban Planning,
Management & Policy

Zoning, subdivision planning

Land acquisition
Economic development
Code enforcement
Housing renovation
programs
Emergency response
Crime analysis
Tax assessment

Environmental Sciences
Monitoring environmental risk
Modeling stormwater runoff
Management of watersheds,
floodplains, wetlands, forests,
aquifers
Environmental Impact Analysis
Hazardous or toxic facility
siting
Groundwater modeling and
contamination tracking

Where GIS is being Applied: II

Political Science

Redistricting
Analysis of election results
Predictive modeling

Civil Engineering/Utility
Locating underground
facilities
Designing alignment for
freeways, transit
Coordination of infrastructure
maintenance

Business
Demographic Analysis
Market Penetration/ Share
Analysis
Site Selection

Education Administration

Attendance Area Maintenance

Enrollment Projections
School Bus Routing

Real Estate
Neighborhood land prices
Traffic Impact Analysis
Determination of Highest and
Best Use

Health Care
Epidemiology
Needs Analysis
Service Inventory

Where Most UT-D Students Come From/Go To

the major areas of GIS application
Local Government
Public works/infrastructure management (roads, water, sewer)
Planning and environmental management
property records and appraisal

Real Estate and Marketing

Retail site selection, site evaluation

Public safety
Crime analysis, fire prevention, emergency management

Natural resource exploration/extraction

Petroleum, minerals, quarrying

Transportation
Airline route planning, transportation modeling

Public health and epidemiology

The Geospatial Industry
Data development, application development, programming

What GIS Applications Do:

manage, analyze, communicate
make possible the automation of activities involving geographic data

map production
calculation of areas, distances, route lengths
measurement of slope, aspect, viewshed
logistics: route planning, vehicle tracking, traffic management

allow for the integration of data hitherto confined to independent domains (e.g
property maps and air photos).
by tieing data to maps, permits the succinct communication of complex spatial
patterns (e.g environmental sensitivity).
provides answers to spatial queries (how many elderly in Richardson live
further than 10 minutes at rush hour from ambulance service?)
perform complex spatial modelling (what if scenarios for transportation
planning, disaster planning, resource management, utility design)

Defining Geographic Information Systems

(GIS)
The common ground between information processing and
the many fields using spatial analysis techniques.
(Tomlinson, 1972)
A powerful set of tools for collecting, storing, retrieving,
transforming, and displaying spatial data from the real
world. (Burroughs, 1986)
A computerised database management system for the
capture, storage, retrieval, analysis and display of spatial
(locationally defined) data. (NCGIA, 1987)
A decision support system involving the integration of
spatially referenced data in a problem solving
environment. (Cowen, 1988)

An Inelegant Definition for GISy

A system of integrated computer-based tools for end-toend processing (capture, storage, retrieval, analysis,
display) of data using location on the earths surface
for interrelation in support of operations management
and decision making.
set of integrated tools for spatial analysis
encompasses end-to-end processing of data
capture, storage, retrieval, analysis/modification, display

uses explicit location on earths surface to relate data

aimed at decision support, as well as on-going operations

How GIS differs from Related Systems

DBMS--typical MIS data base contains implicit but not explicit locational information

city, county, zip code, etc. but no geographical coordinates

is 100 N. High around the corner or across town from 200 E Main?
automated mapping (AM) --primarily two-dimensional display devices
thematic mapping (choropleth,etc such as SAS/GRAPH, DIDS, business mapping
software) unable to relate different geographical layers (e.g zip codes and counties)
automated cartography--graphical design oriented; limited database ability
facility management (FM) systems- lack spatial analysis tools

CAD/CAM (computer aided design/drafting)--primarily 3-D graphic

creation (engineering design) & display systems

dont reference via geographic location

limited (if any) database ability (especially for non-spatial data)
scientific visualization systems--sophisticated multi-dimensional graphics, but:
lack database support
lack two-dimensional spatial analysis tools

Knowledge Base for GIS

Computer
Science/MIS
graphics
visualization
database
system administration
security

Geography
and related:
cartography
geodesy
landforms
spatial statistics.

Application Area:
GIS

public admin.
planning
geology
mineral exploration
forestry
site selection
marketing
civil engineering
criminal justice

.next slides show details

Contributors to GIS: I
The convergence of technogical fields and traditional disciplines
Geography
Broadly concerned with
understanding the world and man's
place in it
long tradition in spatial analysis
provides techniques for conducting
spatial analysis

Cartography
concerned with the display of spatial
information
maps have been a major source of
information input for GIS
long tradition in map design which is
an important output from GIS

Remote Sensing
images from air and space are a
major (& growing) source of spatial
data
low cost and consistent update of
input data anywhere in the world
remote sensing software contains
sophisticated analytical functions
interpreted data from remote sensing
can be merged with other GIS data

Photogrammetry
uses aerial photographs for making
accurate spatial measurements
source of most data on topography
(elevation) used in GIS

Contributors to GIS: II
The convergence of technogical fields and traditional disciplines
Surveying
provides high quality data on
positions of land boundaries,
buildings, etc.

Geodesy

Statistics
many GIS models are statistical
many statistical techniques used in GIS
analysis
statistics important to understanding issues
of error and uncertainty in GIS data

Operations Research

Source of high accuracy

optimizing techniques used in many GIS
positional control for GIS
applications such as routing
GPS (global positioning system) Computer Science
earlier computer-aided design (CAD)
technology is revolutionizing
work in CS
efficiency, cost, and accuracy
computer graphics and visualization
database management systems (DBMS)

The Purpose of a GISystem

allows the geographic features in real world
locations to be digitally represented so that
they can be abstractly presented in map
(analog) form, and can also be worked with
and manipulated to address some problem
provides a digital representation of the real
world for use in operational management,
decision making, and science
(see associated diagrams)

The GIS Data Model:

Geographic Integration of Information
Administrative Boundaries
Utilities
Zoning
Buildings
Parcels
Hydrography
Streets
Digital Orthophoto

Data is organized by layers, coverages or themes (synonomous

concepts), with each theme representing a common feature.
Layers are integrated using explicit location on the earths
surface, thus geographical location is the organizing principal.

The GIS Model: example

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Here we have three layers or themes:

roads

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longitude

hydrology

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longitude

topography
longitude

--roads,
--hydrology (water),
--topography (land elevation)
They can be related because precise
geographic coordinates are recorded
for each theme.
Layers may be represented in two ways:
in vector format as lines
in raster(image) format as pixels

GIS System Architecture and Components

Data Input

Query Input

Output: Display
and Reporting

Geographic
Database

Transformation
and Analysis

Course Content
Part I: Overview
What is GIS
Fundamental GIS Concepts and
Primary Software
Hands-on Intro to ArcGIS
(lab sessions @ 4:00-7:00pm or 7:0010:00pm)

Part II: Principles

Terrestrial data structures
representing the real world

GIS Data Structures

representing the world in a computer

Data Quality
The essential ingredient

Part III: Practice

Data Input:
preparation and
integration
Data analysis and
modeling
Data output and
application examples
Part IV: The Future
Future of GIS

Hands-on Projects

Locating a Day-care

intro to GIS capabilities

illustration of a major application: site selection

Texas Demographic growth

manipulation of data and mapping principles
another major application: analysis of spatial patterns

Geocoding Housing Sales

techniques and data requirements for geocoding
another application: geocoding/address matching

Creating a Census Tract layer

editing and creating topological consistent data
how new data layers can be created

Pipeline Routing
data selection, buffering and spatial analysis
another major application: corridor studies

Thank You