Principles of Geographical Information Systems

Description

Principles of Geographical Information Systems provides a thorough, broad-ranging account of the theory and practice of GIS. It explains why spatial data and the information systems based on them are so important in the modern world for solving a range of practical problems.

• Provides a thorough, broad-ranging account of the theory and practice of GIS, which is suitable for students who are serious about mastering the subject.
• Numerous and diverse real-world examples, with clear explanations of methodology, demonstrate the usefulness of GIS to solving practical problems and foster enhanced understanding.
• End-of-chapter summaries, questions, and further reading allow students to check their understanding and explore the subject further.
• An Online Resource Centre features additional resources for students and lecturers, enhancing the educational value of the text.

New to this edition

• The book has been redesigned in full-colour, enlivening the text, artwork, and photographs and helping students to visualize the concepts being explained.
• A new chapter on visualization has been added, covering topics including ephemeral and permanent output, three dimensional visualization, and virtual reality.
• Dynamic modelling is also now covered in a new chapter, which provides a detailed introduction to the connections between GIS and these models.
• The statistical analysis of geographical data is covered in another new chapter.
• Coverage of mobile GIS, remote sensing, network analysis, spatial analysis, point pattern analysis, and digital elevation models has been enhanced.
• Common datasets are now used throughout the book to illustrate how one set of data can be explored and applied in numerous ways.

About the Author(s)

The late Professor Peter A. Burrough, Former Professor of Physical Geography at Utrecht University, The Netherlands, Rachael A. McDonnell, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford and International Center for Biosaline Agriculture, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Christopher D. Lloyd, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Liverpool, UK

Table of Contents

1:Geographical information systems and society
2:Spatial data and their models: formal abstractions of reality
3:Geographical data in the computer
4:Data input and verification
5:Visualization
6:Exploring geographical data
7:Analysis of discrete entities in space
8:Interpolation 1: deterministic and spline-based approaches
9:Interpolation 2: geostatistical approaches
10:Analysis of continuous fields
11:Digital elevation models
12:Space-time modelling and error propagation
13:Fuzzy sets and fuzzy geographical objects
14:GIS, transformations, and future developments

Reviews

Review from previous edition [This second edition] builds upon the previous work in providing a very welcome basic, concise and more up to date introduction to the principles underlying GISs ... a osund and readable introduction to a complex subject. - International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, v. 9 no. 3, 2000

Choosing a course text in the early post-GIS years was very easy. Peter Burrough's Principles of geographical Information Systems for Land Resources Assessment was the definitive work. Beautifully written and illustrated...Peter Burrough set himself a hard act to follow...In almost every respect this is a new book, and not the second edition it purports to be...So, this is a rarity in textbook publishing a second edition that improves on the first. It looks set to be my recommended course text for many years to come. - David Unwin/GIS Europe June 1998.

This book presents a strong theoritical basis for GIS, which is often lacking in other texts...the optimising of timber extraction from forests and the redistribution of Chernobyl radioactivity by floods are explained clearly in detail. - Mapping Awareness April 1998

This new publication is up to date and provides comprehensive coverage of virtually all aspects of GIS. It is clearly written and technical where appropriate ... it should be recommended for postgraduate courses and for all teachers of GIS. - David Walker, The Times Higher Education Supplement

Additional Resources

Online Resource Centre
The Online Resource Centre to accompany Principles of Geographical Information Systems features:

For students:
· Datasets with instructions of how to repeat analyses presented in the book using widely-used software

For registered adopters of the book:
· Figures from the book, available for download