Components of Geographic Information Science Research

(David M. Mark)

Examine and analyze information about the true nature of geographic phenomena

• This part of GI Science examines the geographic information and geographic concepts that are used by environmental and social scientists in their research. It includes the ontology of reality at geographic scales. GI Science research in this area will be conducted by experts in geographic theory and geographic representations, by domain scientists who study geographically distributed environmental and social phenomena, by knowledge engineers and information scientists, and by philosophers.

Study the information involved in human perception, learning, memory, reasoning, and communication of and about geographic phenomena

• This research area includes studies of spatial cognition and reasoning at geographic scales, and cognitive models of geographic phenomena, such as fields, objects, and processes. GI Science research in this area will be conducted primarily by cognitive scientists and behavioral geographers.

Design and implement formal computational representations of the information about geographic concepts and phenomena resulting from (1) and (2), and seek to understand and calibrate the relations between these two groups of geographic information

• Research under this element of Geographic Information Science uses approaches and methods from mathematics and philosophy, including algebra, analytical and computational geometry, topology, mereology, and various branches of formal logic, to formalize the concepts of real and cognized geographic information discovered by research conducted under the first two GI Science research components outlined above. Researchers also implement these formalisms in computational environments, and find ways to make the programs more efficient.

Investigate and test theories about how people use geographic information systems and technology, and develop, implement, and test methods to make those systems more easily used

• This would be standard human factors or human-computer interaction research, applied to geographic information systems and other geographic technologies.

Consider the wider consequences of actual and potential uses of geographic information systems and other geographic technologies by individuals and institutions in society

• Social scientists and computer scientists concerned with technology consider connections between technology and society, and could focus on geographic information and geographic technologies.