Geoscience

Geoscience

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Institution:

Geoscience

Question 1

Government institutions and practitioners should understand that the GIS is a tool that should be taught in institutions of higher education and is a science that demands adequate recognition as a special faculty. Geographic information systems (GIS) have evolved significantly from a theoretical model into software applications. The understanding of GIS as a science has taken time to develop. It continues to elicit debates amongst scholars and practitioners alike. A number of schools such as Tomlinson have provided clear descriptions and qualifications that render GIS as a computer generated application oriented towards performance of specific functions. However, the ambiguities associated with the term GIS add to the complexities associated with definition of the term.

Goodchild (2010) provides an adequate discussion of the characterization of GIS as both a tool and science applicable in geography. The author notes that scholars and professionals should consider GIS as a spatial information science given that numerous developments achieved in algorithms and development of data structures. In addition, the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science describes GIS as the development and subsequent application of theoretical models, methodologies, data, and technology towards understanding geographical relationships, processes, and patterns.

Furthermore, as a science, GIS has been described as a research faculty that is oriented towards redefinition of geographical relationships and concepts as applied in relation to geographical information systems. In addition, GIS is strongly a science in that it has brought about critical methodological transformations applicable in overlay, geo-coding and other essential manipulations (Wright, Goodchild, & Proctor, 1997).

Question 2

Tomlinson’s development of the term Geographic Information System has been transformational to the discipline of geography, while at the same time eliciting different arguments on whether it is a science or tool. At the center of the debate, it is evident that GIS is both a science and tool used to assist geography departments in their day-to-day operations. Essentially, the developments achieved concerning computer technology and analytical methods have contributed towards the automation of different aspects of research and daily operations of geography research and practice (Goodchild, 2010).

GIS as a science has contributed significantly towards elimination of traditional barriers that have impeded interactions between fields such as remote sensing, photogrammetry, cartography, geodesy, geography, surveying, spatial statistics, computer science, and other disciplines related to use of spatial data (Wright, Goodchild, & Proctor, 1997). The identified components are disciplines of a vast geographical science, which is suggestive of a system as opposed to science. GIS may be described as a tool when applied as an approach for advancing investigations into problems faced by professionals.

GIS as a tool is described by professionals as related to development of the tool or system, with such parities being responsible for development, specifications, assessment, and ultimate use in professional settings. GIS is made up of primitive elements used by geographers in developing GIS tools, which include different theories, methodologies and models necessary for rendering GIS tools effective (Wright, Goodchild, & Proctor, 1997). Thus, from existing literature, GIS is a tool and a science depending on the context of discussion in that it is inclusive of numerous methodologies and techniques used in development of comprehensive tools for assessment and analyses for various geographical purposes.

References

Goodchild, M. F. (2010). Twenty years of progress: GIScience in 2010. Journal of Spatial Information Science, 1, 3-20.

Wright, D. J., Goodchild, M. F., & Proctor, J. D. (1997). ForumGIS: Tool or Science? : Demystifying the Persistent Ambiguity of GIS as Tool versus Science. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 87, 2, 346-362.