Understanding Earth Processes Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
In addition to remotely sensed data from airplanes and satellites, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) use many types of spatial data to try and better understand both physical processes and how humans interact with their environment. The "first" GIS, as many geographers like to call it, was a map developed by a doctor, John Snow, during a cholera outbreak in London in 1854. Cholera epidemics were a constant source of fear in the 19th century, and no one knew how the disease spread. When a new outbreak occurred near his home, Dr. Snow developed a hypothesis that it might be spread through a tainted water supply. To test his hypothesis, he made a map showing the location of the wells from which people got their drinking water, and the locations and numbers of deaths from the disease. His map looked like this (water pumps are the orange circles, deaths are the blue dots):
Combining these two sets of spatial data convinced John Snow that the Broad Street water pump, right in the center of the fatalities, was contaminated and needed to be shut down. His theory was later proved conclusively by epidemiologists once they began to understand germs and bacteria.
Today, we use GIS and spatial data to test all kinds of hypotheses and better understand spatial relationships. One example of this is the use of spatial data to understand the sources and impacts of acid rain in the US. Acid rain forms when water molecules interact with sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, two gases that are emitted during the manufacturing of heavy metals. Humans have significantly increased the amount of these pollutants in the atmosphere starting with the Industrial Revolution, but a GIS can help us understand how acid rain develops spatially and what it impacts.
Today, we use GIS and spatial data to test all kinds of hypotheses and better understand spatial relationships. One example of this is the use of spatial data to understand the sources and impacts of acid rain in the US. Acid rain forms when water molecules interact with sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, two gases that are emitted during the manufacturing of heavy metals. Humans have significantly increased the amount of these pollutants in the atmosphere starting with the Industrial Revolution, but a GIS can help us understand how acid rain develops spatially and what it impacts.
Assignment - Acid Rain and GIS
In this activity you will use an interactive feature of the textbook support website called MapMaster, which is a simple GIS. Log into BBLearn, Go to Module 1, and Click on Mastering Assignments. From the list of assignments, complete "Assignment 1.1: Acid Rain GIS."