Geographical Information

Systems

Lecture 1
Concepts of Geographical Information
Systems

Prepared by
Dr. Naglaa Fathy
[email protected]
 Intended Learning outcomes (ILOs)
During and upon the completion of this course, you will:
• Understand the meaning of Geographic Information Systems and its
impact on society.
• Explore the nature of Geographic data.
• Outline the main geographic models used in GIS today.
• Describe different techniques for georeferencing (specifying location)
• Define the primary data capture techniques in remote sensing.
• Conduct spatial analysis operations using GIS software.

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 Course Textbooks

• Chang, Kang-Tsung. Introduction to geographic information systems.

Mcgraw-hill, 9th edition, 2018.

• Longley, Paul A., et al. Geographic information systems and science.

John Wiley & Sons, 4th edition, 2015.

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 Course Assessments

• Final Examination 50
• Midterm Exam 15
• Course Year work (Practical exam, Quiz, etc.) 35

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 Today’s Agenda
• Brief History
• GIS Definition
• GIS Importance
• GIS Components
• GIS Functional Elements
• GIS Applications

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 Brief History of GIS (FYI)
Roger Tomlinson
- The father of GIS
- Directed the
development of the
Canadian Geographic
System (CGIS).
- (1960s)
Dr. John Snow
Paper Mapping Jack Dangermond & his
Analysis with wife Laura
Cholera Clusters - founded Environmental
(1854) Systems Research Institute.
(Esri) – 1969
- Esri has 43% market share
of GIS products

https://www.esri.com/en-us/what-is-gis/history-of-gis 6
 What is GIS

• A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer system for

capturing, storing, querying, analyzing, and displaying geospatial
data.
• Geospatial data is data about objects, events, or phenomena that
have a location on the surface of the earth.
• Geospatial data describe both:
• locations (usually coordinates on the earth) and
• attributes (non-location characteristics e.g., ID, name)

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 Geospatial data example
To describe a road, we
refer to its location
(i.e., where it is) and
its attributes (e.g.,
length, name, speed
limit, and direction)

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 The importance of GIS
GIS provides a foundation for mapping and analysis to improve
communication and decision making in different fields, which include:
▪ Environmental Impact Analysis
➢ Many human activities (i.e., deforestation, burning fossil fuels, plastic
production) produce potential environmental effects (i.e., climate change,
poor air quality, undrinkable water, etc.)
➢ Analysis can be carried out efficiently by integrating various GIS layers to
reveal the spreading impact of human activities.

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 The importance of GIS
▪ Managing and responding to events (Disaster Management)
GIS can help with risk management and analysis by displaying which areas
are likely to be prone to natural or man-made disasters. When such disasters
are identified, preventive measures can be developed. (i.e., Mapping the
spread of Covid-19)
▪ Perform forecasting
For example, using maps to reveal how coastal communities are impacted by
sea level rise and explore data that can help us predict and prepare for
flooding.
▪ Soil Mapping to set priorities
By analyzing soil health, farmers can determine when and where to plant
certain crops, maximizing yield while minimizing environmental impact.

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 Real-world Application of GIS (FYI)
Disaster management (Japanese
tsunami earthquake 2011)
GIS played an important role in
helping responders and emergency
managers to:
• Map severely damaged areas and
infrastructure,
• Prioritize medical needs,
• Locate temporary shelters

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 Six Components of GIS
• Similar to other information technologies, a GIS requires the following
components:

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 Six Components of GIS
1. Hardware:
GIS hardware includes
• Computers for data processing, data storage, and input/ output;
• Printers and plotters for reports and hard-copy maps;
• Digitizers and scanners for digitization of spatial data;
• GPS and mobile devices for fieldwork.
2. Software:
• GIS software either commercial or open source, includes programs and
applications to be executed for:
data management, data analysis, data display, and other tasks.
• GIS software examples:
Esri ArcGIS, Google Earth Pro., BatchGeo., Google Maps API.

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 Six Components of GIS
3. Data
• The most important component of a GIS.
• GIS can integrate spatial data with other existing data resources
stored in a DBMS.
4. People
• GIS professionals who design, program, and maintain GIS, supply it
with data, and interpret its results
• GIS roles include GIS Technician, GIS Analyst, GIS Manager, etc.
• Job description for each role depends on the employer

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 Six Components of GIS
5. Procedure (workflow)
• A successful GIS operates according to a well-designed plan, business
rules, procedures and methods unique to each organization.
• methods for data collection, manipulation, representation, etc.
6. Network
• If the computer is located on a network, it can also be considered as
the component of GIS since it enables data sharing among users.
• The Internet is increasingly integrated into the GIS to provide various
application of Web GIS (next slides)

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 Integration of GIS, Web, and Mobile Technology
Web Mapping
• The server provides maps and images
through a browser (e.g., a map-based
browser), which are accessed by the
client for data display, data query, and
mapping.
• Google Maps lets users search for an
address or a business and get travel
directions to the location.
• Google Earth displays the 3-D maps of
the Earth’s surface, as the user zooms
in from space down to street level.

Google Maps Google Earth 16

 Integration of GIS, Web, and Mobile Technology
Map Mashups
• A map mashup is created using an API
(Application Programming Interface)
which combines either various maps or a
map and data (i.e., text, images) from
other sources which are represented as
symbols on the map
• In 2006, Google Maps introduced a free
API to make “Google Maps mashups.”
• 360 cities: World Panorama Map uses 360 cities
geo-referenced spots on a Google Map
to take you on a panoramic tour around
the world.
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 Integration of GIS, Web, and Mobile Technology
Collaborative web mapping
• Users collaborate on projects.
• Open Street Map (OSM):
• Free Wiki World Map providing
free geographic data to anyone
• It is collaborative project among
registered users who voluntarily
collect data, such as road
networks, buildings, land use, and
public transportation, using GPS,
aerial photographs, and other
free sources

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 Integration of GIS, Web, and Mobile Technology
Google Maps VS Open street Map (OSM)

(FYI)
With OSM, map data for the whole planet can be downloaded and used
completely offline. Google Maps can only cache small region and generally
can not work without an Internet connection.

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 GIS Basic Functions (Capabilities)
• Data acquisition
• Data Management
• Data Mapping
• Data Exploration and Analysis

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 GIS Basic Functions – Data Acquisition
• Data acquisition involves identification and collection of the required
data :
• Public Data available at different websites. Metadata is also obtained which
provide information about the data.
• New data digitized from paper maps, created from satellite images, or
converted from GPS data, survey data, street addresses, and text files with x-
and y- coordinates.
• Both existing and new spatial data require some kind of processing
and data manipulation (i.e., format conversion, error detection, etc.)
to establish a consistent system for data recording.

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 GIS Basic Functions – Data Management
• A geodatabase stores spatial and nonspatial data and organizes
it into datasets.

• In data management, existing data is modified, and new data is

added to the database as required.

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 GIS Basic Functions – Data Mapping
• A routine GIS operation is mapmaking because maps are an interface
to GIS.
• A professional map combines the title, map body, legend, scale bar,
and other elements together to convey geographic information to the
map reader.
• After a map is composed in a GIS, it can be printed or saved as a
graphic file for presentation.

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 GIS Basic Functions – Data Exploration & Analysis

• Data exploration refers to the activities of visualizing, manipulating, and

querying data using maps, tables, etc.
• GIS analysis functions use the spatial and non-spatial attribute data to
answer questions about real-world. It is the spatial analysis functions that
distinguishes GIS from other information systems.
• Examples of spatial analysis include:
• Measuring distances and shapes,
• Analyzing relationships and interactions between places
• Optimizing locations for facilities, or routes for transportation

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