Introduction to

Geographic Information System

Arden Peejay L. Ezaki, MSEM

Assistant Professor I
 What is GIS?

• A geographic information system—or GIS—is a

special type of information technology that can help
us understand and relate to the “what,” “when,”
“how,” and “why” of the world by answering
“where.”
• Geographic information systems are indeed about
maps, but they are also about much, much more.
 What is GIS?
• A tool to be used by researchers
• System involves collected, tabulated, processed, analyzed
geographical data used to solve, diagnose or prevent
problems
• Maps are heavily utilized
– Not the only means of portraying information
– Differs from a CAD* system or a CAC‡ system
• Arguably more powerful due to ability to generate DERIVATIVE data sets from
pre-existing data
• * Computer Aided Design
• ‡ Computer Aided Construction
 Subsystems for GIS
• Data input and Preprocessing
– Transformation of spatial data types
• E.g., from topo lines to elevation data points
• Data storage and retrieval
• Data manipulation and analysis
– Modeling, simulations, estimates
• Lloyd expressway example
• Data reporting and display of information
– Tabular, graph-based, or map based
 1.1 Spatial Thinking

Learning Objective:
• The objective of this section is to illustrate how we
think geographically every day with mental maps and
to highlight the importance of asking geographic
questions.
 1.1 Spatial Thinking
• A GIS is used to organize, analyze, visualize, and share all
kinds of data and information from different historical
periods and at various scales of analysis. From
climatologists trying to understand the causes and
consequences of global warming, to epidemiologists
locating ground zero of a virulent disease outbreak, to
archaeologists reconstructing ancient Rome, to political
consultants developing campaign strategies for the next
presidential election, GIS is a very powerful tool.
 Mental Maps
• Mental or cognitive maps are psychological tools that we
all use every day. As the name suggests, mental maps are
maps of our environment that are stored in our brain. We
rely on our mental maps to get from one place to
another, to plan our daily activities, or to understand and
situate events that we hear about from our friends,
family, or the news.
• Mental maps also reflect the amount and extent of
geographic knowledge and spatial awareness that we
possess.
 Activity 1
To illustrate this point, pretend that a
friend is visiting you from out of town for
the first time. Using a blank sheet of
paper, take five to ten minutes to draw a
map from memory of your hometown
that will help your friend get around.
 Activity 2
• What did you choose to draw on your map? Is
your house or where you work on the map?
What about streets, restaurants, malls,
museums, or other points of interest? How did
you draw objects on your map? Did you use
symbols, lines, and shapes? Are places
labeled? Why did you choose to include
certain places and features on your map but
not others? What limitations did you
encounter when making your map?
 Activity 3
Take a moment to look at each map and compare the
maps with the following questions in mind:
• What similarities are there on each map?
• What are some of the differences?
• Which places or features are illustrated on the
map?
• From what you know about Los Angeles, what is
included or excluded on the maps?
• What assumptions are made in each map?
• At what scale is the map drawn?
 Asking Geographic Questions
• Filling in the gaps in our mental maps and, more generally, the gaps in our
geographic knowledge requires us to ask questions about the world where
we live and how we relate to it. Such questions can be simple with a local
focus (e.g., “Which way is the nearest hospital?”) or more complex with a
more global perspective (e.g., “How is urbanization impacting biodiversity
hotspots around the world?”). The thread that unifies such questions is
geography. For instance, the question of “where?” is an essential part of
the questions “Where is the nearest hospital?” and “Where are the
biodiversity hotspots in relation to cities?” Being able to articulate
questions clearly and to break them into manageable pieces are very
valuable skills when using and applying a geographic information system
(GIS).
 Asking Geographic Questions
• Though there may be no such thing as a “dumb” question,
some questions are indeed better than others. Learning how
to ask the right question takes practice and is often more
difficult than finding the answer itself. However, when we ask
the right question, problems are more easily solved and our
understanding of the world is improved. There are five general
types of geographic questions that we can ask and that GIS
can help us to answer.
 1) Questions about geographic location:

The position of a phenomenon on the surface of the

earth.
• Where is it?
• Why is it here or there?
• How much of it is here or there?
 2) Questions about geographic distribution:

Describes how phenonmena are spread across the

surface of the earth.
• Is it distributed locally or globally?
• Is it spatially clustered or dispersed?
• Where are the boundaries?
 3) Questions about geographic association:

Refers to how things are related to each other in space.

• What else is near it?
• What else occurs with it?
• What is absent in its presence?
 4) Questions about geographic interaction:

Describes the linkages and relationships bewteen

places.
• Is it linked to something else?
• What is the nature of this association?
• How much interaction occurs between the locations?
 5) Questions about geographic change:

Refers to the persistence, transformation, or

disappearance of phenomena on the earth.
• Has it always been here?
• How has it changed over time and space?
• What causes its diffusion or contraction?
 How GIS helps?
• A GIS can assist in answering all these questions and
many more. Furthermore, a GIS often opens up
additional avenues of inquiry when searching for answers
to geographic questions. Herein is one of the greatest
strengths of the GIS. While a GIS can be used to answer
specific questions or to solve particular problems, it often
unearths even more interesting questions and presents
more problems to be solved in the future.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
• Mental maps are psychological tools that we
use to understand, relate to, and navigate
through the environment in which we live,
work, and play.
• Mental maps are unique to the individual.
• Learning how to ask geographic questions is
important to using and applying GISs.
• Geographic questions are concerned with
location, distributions, associations,
interactions, and change.
 ACTIVITY 4
• Draw a map of where you live. Discuss the similarities,
differences, styles, and techniques on your map and compare
them with two others. What are the commonalities between
the maps? What are the differences? What accounts for such
similarities and differences?
• Draw a map of the world and compare it to a world map in an
atlas. What similarities and differences are there? What
explains the discrepancies between your map and the atlas?
• Provide two questions concerned with geographic location,
distribution, association, interaction, and change about global
warming, urbanization, biodiversity, economic development,
and war.
 1.2 Geographic Thinking

Learning Objective:
• The objective of this section is to introduce and
explain how the key concepts of location, direction,
distance, space, and navigation are relevant to
geography and geographic information systems
(GISs).
 Location

• The one concept that distinguishes geography from

other fields is location, which is central to a GIS.
Location is simply a position on the surface of the
earth. What is more, nearly everything can be
assigned a geographic location. Once we know the
location of something, we can a put it on a map, for
example, with a GIS.
 Location
• Generally, we tend to define and describe locations in nominal or absolute
terms. In the case of the former, locations are simply defined and described by
name. For example, city names such as New York, Tokyo, or London refer to
nominal locations. Toponymy, or the study of place names and their respective
history and meanings, is concerned with such nominal locations. Though we
tend to associate the notion of location with particular points on the surface of
the earth, locations can also refer to geographic features (e.g., Rocky
Mountains) or large areas (e.g., Siberia). The United States Board on
Geographic Names maintains geographic naming standards and keeps track of
such names through the Geographic Names Information Systems (GNIS;
http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic). The GNIS database also provides
information about which state and county the feature is located as well as its
geographic coordinates.
 Location
• Contrasting nominal locations are absolute locations that use some
type of reference system to define positions on the earth’s surface.
For instance, defining a location on the surface of the earth using
latitude and longitude is an example of absolute location. Postal
codes and street addresses are other examples of absolute location
that usually follow some form of local logic. Though there is no
global standard when it comes to street addresses, we can
determine the geographic coordinates (i.e., latitude and longitude)
of particular street addresses, zip codes, place names, and other
geographic data through a process called geocoding8. There are
several free online geocoders (e.g., http://worldkit.org/geocoder)
that return the latitude and longitude for various locations and
addresses around the world.
 Location
• With the advent of the global positioning system (GPS), determining
the location of nearly any object on the surface of the earth is a
relatively simple and straightforward exercise. GPS technology
consists of a constellation of twenty-four satellites that are orbiting
the earth and constantly transmitting time signals. To determine a
position, earth-based GPS units (e.g., handheld devices, car
navigation systems, mobile phones) receive the signals from at least
three of these satellites and use this information to triangulate a
location. All GPS units use the geographic coordinate system (GCS)
to report location. Originally developed by the United States
Department of Defense for military purposes, there are now a wide
range of commercial and scientific uses of a GPS.
 Location
Location can also be defined in relative terms.
• Relative location refers to defining and describing places
in relation to other known locations. For instance, Cairo,
Egypt, is north of Johannesburg, South Africa; New
Zealand is southeast of Australia; and Kabul, Afghanistan,
is northwest of Lahore, Pakistan. Unlike nominal or
absolute locations that define single points, relative
locations provide a bit more information and situate one
place in relation to another.
 Direction
• Like location, the concept of direction is central to geography
and GISs.
• Direction refers to the position of something relative to
something else usually along a line. In order to determine
direction, a reference point or benchmark from which
direction will be measured needs to be established.
• One of the most common benchmarks used to determine
direction is ourselves. Egocentric direction refers to when we
use ourselves as a directional benchmark. Describing
something as “to my left,” “behind me,” or “next to me” are
examples of egocentric direction.
 Direction
• As the name suggests, landmark direction uses a known
landmark or geographic feature as a benchmark to
determine direction. Such landmarks may be a busy
intersection of a city, a prominent point of interest like
the Colosseum in Rome, or some other feature like a
mountain range or river. The important thing to
remember about landmark direction, especially when
providing directions, is that the landmark should be
relatively well-known.
 Direction
In geography and GISs, there are three more standard benchmarks that are used
to define the directions of true north, magnetic north, and grid north.
• TRUE NORTH is based on the point at which the axis of the earth’s rotation
intersects the earth’s surface. In this respect the North and South Poles serve
as the geographic benchmarks for determining direction.
• MAGNETIC NORTH (and south) refers to the point on the surface of the earth
where the earth’s magnetic fields converge. This is also the point to which
magnetic compasses point. Note that magnetic north falls somewhere in
northern Canada and is not geographically coincident with true north or the
North Pole.
• GRID NORTH simply refers to the northward direction that the grid lines of
latitude and longitude on a map, called a graticule, point to.
 Distance
• Complementing the concepts of location and direction is DISTANCE.
Distance refers to the degree or amount of separation between locations
and can be measured in nominal or absolute terms with various units. We
can describe the distances between locations nominally as “large” or
“small,” or we can describe two or more locations as “near” or “far apart.”
Absolute distance is measured or calculated using a standard metric. The
formula for the distance between two points on a planar (i.e., flat) surface
is the following:
 Distance
• We also use a variety of units to measure distance. For
instance, the distance between London and Singapore
can be measured in miles, kilometers, flight time on a
jumbo jet, or days on a cargo ship. Whether or not such
distances make London and Singapore “near” or “far”
from each other is a matter of opinion, experience, and
patience. Hence the use of absolute distance metrics,
such as that derived from the distance formula, provide a
standardized method to measure how far away or how
near locations are from each other.
 Space

• Where distance suggests a measurable quantity in

terms of how far apart locations are situated, space
is a more abstract concept that is more commonly
described rather than measured. For example, space
can be described as “empty,” “public,” or “private.”
 Space

• Within the scope of a GIS, we are interested in space,

and in particular, we are interested in what fills
particular spaces and how and why things are
distributed across space. In this sense, space is a
somewhat ambiguous and generic term that is used
to denote the general geographic area of interest.
 Space
• One kind of space that is of particular relevance to a GIS
is topological space. Simply put, topological space is
concerned with the nature of relationships and the
connectivity of locations within a given space.
• What is important within topological space are (1) how
locations are (or are not) related or connected to each
other and (2) the rules that govern such geographic
relationships.
 Space
• Transportation maps such as those for subways provide some of the
best illustrations of topological spaces (see Figure 1.6 "Metro Map
from London" and Figure 1.7 "Metro Map from Moscow"). When
using such maps, we are primarily concerned with how to get from
one stop to another along a transportation network. Certain rules
also govern how we can travel along the network (e.g., transferring
lines is possible only at a few key stops; we can travel only one
direction on a particular line). Such maps may be of little use when
traveling around a city by car or foot, but they show the local
transportation network and how locations are linked together in an
effective and efficient manner.
Metro Map
Metro Map
 Navigation
• Transportation maps like those discussed previously illustrate
how we move through the environments where we live, work,
and play. This movement and, in particular, destination-
oriented travel are generally referred to as navigation. How
we navigate through space is a complex process that blends
together our various motor skills; technology; mental maps;
and awareness of locations, distances, directions, and the
space where we live. What is more, our geographical
knowledge and spatial awareness is continuously updated and
changed as we move from one location to another.
 Navigation
The acquisition of geographic knowledge is a lifelong endeavor.
Though several factors influence the nature of such knowledge,
we tend to rely on the three following types of geographic
knowledge when navigating through space:
1. LANDMARK KNOWLEDGE refers to our ability to locate and
identify unique points, patterns, or features (e.g., landmarks) in
space.
2. ROUTE KNOWLEDGE permits us to connect and travel
between landmarks by moving through space.
3. SURVEY KNOWLEDGE enables us to understand where
landmarks are in relation to each other and to take shortcuts.
 Navigation
Each type of geographic knowledge is acquired in stages, one after the
other. For instance, when we find ourselves in a new or an unfamiliar
location, we usually identify a few unique points of interest (e.g., hotel,
building, fountain) to orient ourselves. We are in essence building up
our landmark knowledge. Using and traveling between these landmarks
develops our route knowledge and reinforces our landmark knowledge
and our overall geographical awareness. Survey knowledge develops
once we begin to understand how routes connect landmarks together
and how various locations are situated in space. It is at this point, when
we are somewhat comfortable with our survey knowledge, that we are
able to take shortcuts from one location to another. Though there is no
guarantee that a shortcut will be successful, if we get lost, we are at
least expanding our local geographic knowledge.
 Navigation
• Landmark, route, and survey knowledge are the cornerstones of
having a sense of direction and frame our geographical learning and
awareness. While some would argue that they are born with a good
sense of direction, others admit to always getting lost.
• The popularity of personal navigation devices and online mapping
services speaks to the overwhelming desire to know and to situate
where we are in the world. Though developing and maintaining a
keen sense of direction presumably matters less and less as such
devices and services continue to develop and spread, it can also be
argued that the more we know about where we are in the world,
the more we will want to learn about it.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
• Location refers to the position of an object on
the surface of the earth and is commonly
expressed in terms of latitude and longitude.
• Direction is always determined relative to a
benchmark.
• Distance refers to the separation between
locations.
• Navigation is the destination-oriented
movement through space.
Activity 5
• Find your hometown in the PhilGIS.org and see what other
features share this name. Explore the toponymy of your
hometown online. What are the other information you can
find about your hometown.
• How are GPSs and related navigation technology influencing
how we learn about our local environments?
• Does navigation technology improve or impede our sense of
direction and learning about where we live?
• Compare and contrast the driving directions between two
locations provided by two different online mapping services
(e.g., Google Maps vs. Yahoo! Maps). Is there a discrepancy?
If so, what explanations can you think of for this difference? Is
this the best way to travel between these locations?
 1.3 Geographic Information Systems for Today and
Beyond

Learning Objective:
• The objective of this section is to define and describe
how a geographic information system (GIS) is
applied, its development, and its future.
 GIS Defined

• So what exactly is a GIS? Is it computer software? Is it

a collection of computer hardware? Is it a service
that is distributed and accessed via the Internet? Is it
a tool? Is it a system? Is it a science? The answer to
all these questions is, “GIS is all of the above—and
more.”
 GIS Defined
• From a software perspective, a GIS consists of a special type of computer
program capable of storing, editing, processing, and presenting geographic
data and information as maps. There are several GIS software providers,
such as Environmental Systems Research Institute Inc.
(http://www.esri.com), which distributes ArcGIS, and PitneyBowes
(http://www.pbinsight.com), which distributes MapInfo GIS. Though
online mapping services and interfaces are provided by companies like
Google, Yahoo!, and Microsoft, such services are not (yet) considered fully
fledged GIS platforms. There are also open-source GIS options, such as
GRASS (http://grass.itc.it), which is freely distributed and maintained by
the open-source community. All GIS software, regardless of vendor,
consists of a database management system that is capable of handling and
integrating two types of data: spatial data and attribute data.
 Two Types of Data

• SPATIAL DATA refer to the real-world geographic

objects of interest, such as streets, buildings, lakes,
and countries, and their respective locations. In
addition to location, each of these objects also
possesses certain traits of interest, or ATTRIBUTES,
such as a name, number of stories, depth, or
population.
 Two Types of Data
• GIS software keeps track of both the SPATIAL AND
ATTRIBUTE DATA and permits us to link the two types of
data together to create information and facilitate
analysis. One popular way to describe and to visualize a
GIS is picturing it as a cake with many layers. Each layer
of the cake represents a different geographic theme, such
as water features, buildings, and roads, and each layer is
stacked one on top of another (see Figure 1.8 "A GIS as a
Layered Cake").
GIS as a layered cake
• As hardware, a GIS consists of a computer, memory, storage devices,
scanners, printers, global positioning system (GPS) units, and other
physical components. If the computer is situated on a network, the
network can also be considered an integral component of the GIS because
it enables us to share data and information that the GIS uses as inputs and
creates as outputs.
• As a tool, a GIS permits us to maintain, analyze, and share a wealth of data
and information. From the relatively simple task of mapping the path of a
hurricane to the more complex task of determining the most efficient
garbage collection routes in a city, a GIS is used across the public and
private sectors. Online and mobile mapping, navigation, and location-
based services are also personalizing and democratizing GISs by bringing
maps and mapping to the masses.
 Three Approaches to GISs
• In addition to recognizing the many definitions of a GIS, it
is also constructive to identify three general and
overlapping approaches to understanding GISs—the
application approach, the developer approach, and the
science approach. Though most GIS users would
probably identify with one approach more than another,
they are not mutually exclusive. Moreover, as GISs and,
more generally, information technology advance, the
following categories will be transformed and reshaped
accordingly.
 Three Approaches to GISs
1) Application Approach
• The application approach to GISs considers a GIS primarily to
be a tool. This is also perhaps the most common view of a GIS.
From this perspective, a GIS is used to answer questions,
support decision making, maintain an inventory of geographic
data and information, and, of course, make maps. As a tool,
there are arguably certain skills that should be acquired and
required in order to use and apply a GIS properly. The
application approach to a GIS is more concerned with using
and applying GISs to solve problems than the GIS itself.
 Three Approaches to GISs
• For instance, suppose we want to determine the best location for a
new supermarket. What factors are important behind making this
decision? Information about neighborhood demographics, existing
supermarkets, the location of suppliers, zoning regulations, and
available real estate are all critical to this decision. A GIS platform
can integrate such information that is obtained from the census
bureau, realtors, the local zoning agency, and even the Internet. A
suitability analysis can then be carried out with the GIS, the output
of which will show the best locations for the supermarket given the
various local geographic opportunities (e.g.,
demographics/consumers) and constraints (e.g., supply chain,
zoning, and real estate limitations) that exist.
 Three Approaches to GISs
• The ongoing integration and evolution of GISs, maps, the Internet, and web-based
mapping can be considered an outcome of the developer approach to GISs. In this
regard, delivering maps, navigation tools, and user-friendly GISs to people via the
Internet is the central challenge at hand. The underlying, and to a large extent
hidden, logic and computer code that permit us to ask questions about how to get
from point A to point B on a navigation website or to see where a new restaurant
or open house is located on a web-based map are for the most part the domain of
GIS programmers and developers. The Open Source Geospatial Foundation
(http://www.osgeo.org) is another example of a community of GIS developers
working to build and distribute open-source GIS software.
• It is the developer approach to GISs that drives and introduces innovation and is
informed and guided by the existing needs and future demands of the application
approach. As such, it is indeed on the cutting edge, it is dynamic, and it represents
an area for considerable growth in the future.
 Three Approaches to GISs
4) Science Approach
• The science approach to GISs not only dovetails with the
applications and developer approaches but also is more concerned
with broader questions and how geography, cognition, map
interpretation, and other geospatial issues such as accuracy and
errors are relevant to GISs and vice versa.
• This particular approach is often referred to as geographic
information science (GIScience), and it is also interested in the
social consequences and implications of the use and diffusion of GIS
technology. From exploring the propagation of error to examining
how privacy is being redefined by GISs and related technology,
GIScience is at the same time an agent of change as well as one of
understanding.
 Three Approaches to GISs
• In light of the rapid rate of technological and GIS innovation, in conjunction
with the widespread application of GISs, new questions about GIS
technology and its use are continually emerging. One of the most discussed
topics concerns privacy, and in particular, what is referred to as locational
privacy. In other words, who has the right to view or determine your
geographic location at any given time? Your parents? Your school? Your
employer? Your cell phone carrier? The government or police? When are
you willing to divulge your location? Is there a time or place where you
prefer to be “off the grid” or not locatable? Such questions concerning
locational privacy were of relatively little concern a few years ago. However,
with the advent of GPS and its integration into cars and other mobile
devices, questions, debates, and even lawsuits concerning locational
privacy and who has the right to such information are rapidly emerging.
 Three Approaches to GISs
3) Developer Approach
• As the name suggests, the developer approach to GISs is concerned with
the development of GISs. Rather than focusing on how a GIS is used and
applied, the developer approach is concerned with improving, refining, and
extending the tool itself and is largely in the realm of computer
programmers and software developers. For instance, the advent of web-
based mapping is an outcome of the developer approach to GISs. In this
regard, the challenge was how to bring GISs to people via the Internet and
not necessarily how people would use web-based GISs.
• The developer approach to GISs drives and introduces innovation and is
guided by the needs of the application approach. As such, it is indeed on
the cutting edge, it is dynamic, and it represents an area for considerable
growth in the future.
 GIS Futures
• The definitions and approaches to GISs described previously illustrate the
scope and breadth of this special type of information technology.
Furthermore, as GISs become more accessible and widely distributed,
there will always be new questions to be answered, new applications to be
developed, and innovative technologies to integrate.
• One notable development is the emergence of what is called the
GEOSPATIAL WEB. The geospatial web or geoweb refers to the integration
of the vast amounts of content available on the Internet (e.g., text,
photographs, video, and music) with geographic information, such as
location. Adding such geographic information to such content is called
geotagging and is similar to geocoding. The integration of geographic
information with such content opens up new ways to access, search,
organize, share, and distribute information.
 GIS Futures
• Mapping mashups, or web-based applications that combine data and information
from one source and map it with online mapping applications, are an example of
the geoweb at work. There are mashups for nearly everything that can be assigned
a location, from restaurants and music festivals to your photographs and favorite
hikes. Several examples of such mapping mashups can be found on the Internet at
sites such as http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com.
• Though the geoweb may not necessarily be considered a GIS, it certainly draws
upon the same concepts and ideas of geography and may someday encompass
GISs. Perhaps more important, the diffusion of GISs and the emergence of the
geoweb have increased geographic awareness by lowering the barriers of viewing,
using, and even creating maps and related geographic data and information.
Though there are several benefits to this democratization of GISs, and more
generally information and technology, it should also be recognized that there are
also consequences and implications.
 GIS Futures
• As with any other technology, great care must be taken in the use
and application of GISs. For instance, when was the last time you
questioned what appeared on a map? For better or worse, maps
are among the most authoritative forms of information and are the
subject of Chapter 2 "Map Anatomy".
• As tomorrow’s GIS practitioners, you will have the ability to
influence greatly how decisions are made and how others view and
relate to the world with the maps that you create in a GIS
environment. What and how you choose to map is therefore a
nontrivial exercise. Becoming more aware of our biases, limitations,
and preferences permits us to take full advantage of geographic
information systems with confidence.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
• There is no single or universal definition
of a GIS; it is defined and used in many
different ways.
• One of the key features of a GIS is that
it integrates spatial data with attribute
data.
 Activity 6
• Explore the web for mapping mashups
that match your personal interests.
How can they be improved?
• Create your own mapping mashup with
a free online mapping service.
 References:

• Campbell, J. & Shin, M. Geographic Information

System Basics. 2012. Pp. 8-71.
• Huisman, O. & de By, R. Principles of Geographic
Systems: An Introductory Textbook. 2009. Int’l
Institute for Geo-Information Science & Earth
Observation. Pp. 25-57
Thank you!