GIS 601: Fundamentals of GIS

Dr. Nabil Moustafa AbdelAziz

Assistant Professor, Information Systems
Department.
Coordinator of Medical Informatics BSc. Program,
Coordinator of Master of Computing in Geographic
Information Systems and Remote Sensing Program,
Faculty of Computer and Informatics,
Management Information Systems Manager,
Communication and Information Technology Center,
Zagazig University.
 Geographic Data

• Information about geographic

features, including their location,
shapes, and descriptions (spatial
and nonspatial data).
 Geographic Data

◼ Geospatial data
tells you where it is
and attribute data
tells you what it is.
Metadata describes
both geospatial
and attribute data.

In GIS, we call geographic data as GIS data or spatial

data
 Discrete and Continuous Data
• Discrete data: distinct and noncontinous data, with
definite values that are not transitional from one
number to the next; definite boundaries and
identities. For example, a district has a definite
location and shape, as do houses, towns,
rivers,..,etc.

• Continuous data: data values that transition from

one number to the next, with no definite boundary
between the two. For example, temperature maps
show definite zones for convenience, but in reality
temperature typically transitions from one measure
to the next , without a defining border.
 Discrete Objects
• In the discrete object view, the world is empty, except
where it is occupied by objects with well-defined boundaries
that are instances of generally recognized categories.
• Objects can be counted.
• Objects have dimensionality: 0-dimension (points), 1-
dimension (lines), 2-dimensions (areas, polygons):
– 3-dimensions are problematic in GIS.
• Associating attributes to discrete objects can be expressed
in a table:
– each row corresponding to a different discrete object;
– each column corresponding to an attribute of the object.
• A table does not look like the real world.
 Discrete Objects
• Points, lines, and areas
• Countable
• Persistent through time, perhaps mobile
• Biological organisms
– Animals, trees
• Human-made objects
– Vehicles, houses, fire hydrants
 Continuous Fields view

• In this view the geographic world can be described by a

number of variables, each measurable at any point on
the Earth’s surface, and changing in value across the
surface.
 Continuous Fields
• Properties that vary continuously over space
– Value is a function of location
– Property can be of any attribute type, including direction
• Elevation as the archetype
– A single value at every point on the Earth’s surface
– The source of metaphor and language
• Any field can have slope, gradient, peaks, pits
 Examples of Fields
• Soil properties, e.g. pH, soil moisture
• Population density
– But at fine enough scale the concept breaks down
Identity of landowner
– A single value of a nominal property at any point
• Atmospheric temperature, pressure
 Phenomena conceptualized as fields. The
illustration shows elevation data from the Shuttle
Radar Topography Mission draped with an image
from the Landsat satellite, looking SE along the
San Andreas Fault in Southern California, plus a
simulated sky
 Rasters and Vectors

• How to represent phenomena conceived as

fields or discrete objects?
• Raster and vector are two methods that are
used to reduce geographic phenomena to
forms that can be coded in computer
databases.
• In principle, each can be used to code both
fields and discrete objects, but in practice there
is a strong association between raster and
fields, and between vector and discrete objects.
 GIS Data Characteristics
• Geographic data has numerous properties
that make it much more functional and
valuable than serving as mere features on a
map.

• Major characteristics of geographic data are:

1. Location
2. Size
3. Shape
4. Spatial relationships
5. Time.
 Location, Size, and Shape
• Location (position): is a major starting point of spatial
measurements. Standard geographic coordinate
systems are normally used to define location.

• Size : is calculated by the amount of area, perimeter

or length.

• Shape : the shape of a feature is an important

descriptive element used in map and image
interpretation. It often indicates the feature’s identity
and role on the landscape.
 Spatial Data Relationships
• Features on maps have spatial relationships; that is,
how they relate to each other in space.

• Spatial relationships can be very important in many

applications, and GIS is an excellent tool for
determining such characteristics.

• The major spatial relationships are:

1. Distance
2. Distribution
3. Density
4. Pattern.
 Distance, Distribution, Density, and Pattern
• Distance: The amount of space between two things
that may or may not be connected, such as two
points. Differentiated from length, which always
implies a physical connection.

• Distribution: the amount or frequency of the

occurrence of a thing or things within a given area.

• Density: the number of items per unit area; how

close features are to each other.

• Pattern: the consistent arrangements of features,

similar to (and can include) distribution and density.
 Proximity Relationships

• Proximity relationship refers to closeness; features

that may have associations because they are
spatially near each other.
• Proximity (neighborhood) analysis: selecting
geographic features based on their distance from
other features.
• The three major proximity relationships are:
1. Connectivity :How geographic features in a network
of lines are attached to one another functionally.
2. Contiguity: The degree of connectivity.
3. Adjacency: considers nearness, or the features that
are close to each other.
 Time and GIS Data

• Time is an important data quality element that can

be a critical descriptive characteristics of spatial
data.
• Time can be used or expressed in terms of data
quality, dynamic data, and trends (temporal
components).
• Temporal components can be very important in
understanding the processes affecting and shaping
physical and cultural landscapes.
• Dynamic Data: Changing data. Features can change
shape, size, position, and attributes over time.
• Trends: Trends are determined from comparisons of
data over time (temporal trends) and over space
(spatial trends).
 Real World and Data Models
• The real world is far too complex to model in its entirety
within any information system, so only specific areas of
interest should be selected for inclusion within a given
GIS application.
• Once a particular application area has been chosen the
next task is to select those features which are relevant to
the application and to capture information about their
locations and characteristics.
• In order to bring the real world into GIS, one has
to make use of simplified models of the real world
Real world - phenomena that exist

Data model - an abstraction

Data and file structures - computer representation

and storage scheme of the data model
 Entity
Entities - those things in the
real world we wish to represent
(rivers, buildings, soil types,
wetlands)

Objects - our representation

in a data model; generally Object
includes both geometric
information (spatial data) and
descriptive information
(aspatial or attribute data)
Real World
Data Model Data
Structure
1.2 , 4.7
5.8 , 3.6
8.9 , 7.2
.
.
 Data models
• A Data model is: A set of constructs for describing and
representing selected aspects of the real-world in a computer.

• A GIS Data model is :A consistent way of defining and

representing spatial objects and of representing the relationships
among the objects

• GIS Data models include at least 2 parts –

– Coordinate data - pairs or triplets of numbers that define location

– Attribute data - text, numbers, images, or other “non-spatial” data

Levels of Data Model Abstraction
 Levels of Data Model Abstraction :
Reality

• Reality is made up of real-world phenomena and includes all

aspects that may or may not be perceived by individuals, or
deemed relevant to a particular application.
 Levels of Data Model Abstraction:
conceptual model
• The conceptual model is a human-oriented, often
partially structured, model of selected objects and
processes that are thought relevant to a particular
problem domain.
• The conceptual modeling phase begins with definition
of the main types of objects to be represented in the GIS
and concludes with a conceptual description of the main
types of objects and relationships between them
 Levels of Data Model Abstraction:
Logical model
• The logical model is an implementation-oriented representation
of reality that is often expressed in the form of diagrams and lists.
• The logical modeling phase leads to the creation of diagrams and
lists describing the names of objects, their behavior, and the type
of interaction between objects.
 Levels of Data Model Abstraction:
Physical model
• The physical model portrays the actual implementation in a GIS,
and often comprises tables stored as files or databases.
• The physical modeling phase involves describing the exact files
or database tables used to store the data, the relationships between
objects types, and the precise operations that can be performed.
 Common Data Models
Vector Raster

Y Points Points

( x,y )

Area Area
Line Line

X
© 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
 Raster and Vector Models
• Raster – implementation of field conceptual model
– Array of cells used to represent objects
– Useful as background maps and for spatial analysis
• Vector – implementation of discrete object
conceptual model
– Point, line and polygon representations
– Widely used in cartography, and network analysis
Two representations of San Diego, California: (A) panchromatic SPOT raster
satellite image collected in 1990 at 10 m resolution; (B) vector objects digitized
from the image.
• Raster uses a grid cell structure
• Vector is more like a drawn map 35
36
 Raster – Advantages and Disadvantages
• Advantages
– Simple data structure
– Easy overlay
– Various kinds of spatial analysis
– Uniform size and shape
– Cheaper technology
• Disadvantages
– Large amount of data
– Less “pretty”
– Projection transformation is difficult
– Different scales between layers can be a nightmare
– May lose information due to generalization
Vector – Advantages and Disadvantages
• Advantages
– Good representation of reality
– more efficient data storage
– Topology can be described in a network
– Accurate graphics
• Disadvantages
– Complex data structures
– Simulation may be difficult
– Some spatial analysis operations are difficult or
impossible to perform
 Raster Vs. Vector
• Must Consider
– Discreteness of the entity being depicted
– Intended application (efficiencies)
– Source data
– Storage considerations
• Resolution
• Color
 Comparisons, raster vs. vector
Characteristics Vector Raster
Positional Precision Can be Precise Defined by cell size
Attribute Precision Poor for continuous data Good for continuous data
Analytical Capabilities Good for spatial query, Spatial query more difficult,
adjacency, area, shape good for local
analyses. Poor for neighborhoods, continuous
continuous data. Most variable modeling. Rapid
analyses limited to overlays.
intersections. Slower
overlays.
Data Structures Often complex Often quite simple
Storage Requirements Relatively small Often quite large
Coordinate conversion Usually well-supported Often difficult, slow
Network Analyses Easily handled Often difficult
Output Quality Very good, map like Fair to poor - aliasing