As the use of geographical information systems develops apace, a significant strand of research activity is being directed to the fundamental nature of geographic information. This volume contains a collection of essays and discussions on this theme. What is geographic information? What fundamental principles are associated with it? How can

Learning to Think Spatially examines how spatial thinking might be incorporated into existing standards-based instruction across the school curriculum. Spatial thinking must be recognized as a fundamental part of Kâ€"12 education and as an integrator and a facilitator for problem solving across the curriculum. With advances in computing technologies and the increasing availability of geospatial data, spatial thinking will play a significant role in the information-based economy of the twenty-first century. Using appropriately designed support systems tailored to the Kâ€"12 context, spatial thinking can be taught formally to all students. A geographic information system (GIS) offers one example of a high-technology support system that can enable students and teachers to practice and apply spatial thinking in many areas of the curriculum.

This tutorial survey brings together two lines of research and development whose interaction promises to have significant practical impact on the area of spatial information processing in the near future: geographic information systems (GIS) and geometric computation or, more particularly, geometric algorithms and spatial data structures. In nine uniformly structured and coherent chapters, the authors present a unique survey ranging from the history and basic characteristics to current issues of precision and robustness of geometric computing. This textbook is ideally suited for advanced courses on GIS and applied geometric algorithms. Research and design professionals active in the area will find it valuable as a state-of-the-art survey.

"The Steinbergs have produced a very relevant book for the times. . . . While many books have emerged on the details of GIS, few resources exist to help teach the merger of GIS with more standard research methods. The Steinbergs accomplish this goal in a way that is readily accessible even to undergraduates." —Theodore Wagenaar, Miami University "The Steinbergs take the reader through all of the essential foundations of GIS... using examples drawn from the social sciences throughout. This book will be essential reading for any social scientist looking for a straightforward introduction to GIS." —Mike Goodchild, University of California, Santa Barbara Geographic Information Systems for the Social Sciences: Investigating Space and Place is the first book to take a cutting-edge approach to integrating spatial concepts into the social sciences. In this text, authors Steven J. Steinberg and Sheila L. Steinberg simplify GIS (Geographic Information Systems) for practitioners and students in the social sciences through the use of examples and actual program exercises so that they can become comfortable incorporating this research tool into their repertoire and scope of interest. The authors provide learning objectives for each chapter, chapter summaries, links to relevant Web sites, as well as suggestions for student research projects. Key Features: Presents step-by-step guidance for integrating GIS with both quantitative and qualitative research Provides an introduction to the use of GIS technology written at an accessible level for individuals without GIS experience while providing depth and guidance appropriate to experienced GIS users Offers an associated interactive Web site—http://www.socialsciencegis.org—to provide a forum for sharing experience and ideas, input to the authors, and a variety of other examples, data, and information related to the topics covered in the text Geographic Information Systems for the Social Sciences offers a nuts-and-bolts introduction to GIS for undergraduate and graduate students taking methods courses across the social sciences. It is an excellent textbook for courses dedicated to GIS research and its applications in the fields of Sociology, Criminology, Public Health, Geography, Anthropology, Political Science, and Environmental Studies. It is also a valuable resource for any social scientist or practitioner interested in applying GIS technology to his or her work. An Instructor′s Resource CD, containing PowerPoint slides, test questions, and suggested Web site links, among other items, is also available to all professors adopting this text.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Spatial Information Theory, COSIT 3001, held in Morro Bay, CA, USA in September 2001. The 30 revised full papers presented together with three full keynote papers were carefully reviewed and selected from more than 70 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on geographical ontology and onthologies; qualitative spatio-temporal reasoning; formalizations of human spatial cognition; space, cognition, and information systems; human and machine approaches to navigation; language and space; and cognitive mapping.

"The definitive guide to a technology that succeeds or fails depending upon our ability to accommodate societal context and structures. This handbook is lucid, integrative, comprehensive and, above all, prescient in its interpretation of GIS implementation as a societal process." - Paul Longley, University College London "This is truly a handbook - a book you will want to keep on hand for frequent reference and to which GIS professors should direct students entering our field... Selection of a few of the chapters for individual attention is difficult because each one contributes meaningfully to the overall message of this volume. An important collection of articles that will set the tone for the next two decades of discourse and research about GIS and society." - Journal of Geographical Analysis Over the past twenty years research on the evolving relationship between GIS and Society has been expanding into a wide variety of topical areas, becoming in the process an increasingly challenging and multifaceted endeavour. The SAGE Handbook of GIS and Society is a retrospective and prospective overview of GIS and Society research that provides an expansive and critical assessment of work in that field. Emphasizing the theoretical, methodological and substantive diversity within GIS and Society research, the book highlights the distinctiveness and intellectual coherence of the subject as a field of study, while also examining its resonances with and between key themes, and among disciplines ranging from geography and computer science to sociology, anthropology, and the health and environmental sciences. Comprising 27 chapters, often with an international focus, the book is organized into six sections: Foundations of Geographic Information and Society Geographical Information and Modern Life Alternative Representations of Geographic Information and Society Organizations and Institutions Participation and Community Issues Value, Fairness, and Privacy Aimed at academics, researchers, postgraduates, and GIS practitioners, this Handbook will be the basic reference for any inquiry applying GIS to societal issues.

COSIT,theseriesofConferencesonSpatialInformationTheory,hasbeenaround for more than ten years. Its hallmarks are a fruitful interdisciplinary dialogue between computational and human perspectives on spatio-temporal information and a thorough review process that selects the best papers while giving all - thors detailed feedback on how to develop their work. A clear pro?le of the COSIT community has emerged from the series of conference proceedings, all published as Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Science, and from the per- nent web site at http://www. cosit. info, containing links to the conference web sites and proceedings, a history and program of the series, an impact study, interviews with participants, and pictures. The proceedings of this sixth conference provide ample evidence that COSIT is healthy and maturing, while retaining its youth. Out of the 61 submissions, the program committee selected 26 papers for presentation, in discussions based on at least three double-blind reviews and one or more meta-review from PC members for each paper. Classical COSIT themes, such as spatial reasoning (about distances and directions, regions and shapes) or vagueness are being f- ther re?ned; topics like way?nding and landmarks are boosted by new synergies betweencognitiveandcomputationalapproaches;andthestudyofontologiesfor space and time, a subject since the ?rst COSIT, is gaining more depth.