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Encyclopedia of Database Systems pp 1231–1236Cite as

Geographic Information System

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Synonyms

Geospatial information system; Spatial information system

Definition

A geographic information system (GIS) is a computer application designed to perform a wide range of operations on geographic information. Geographic information is defined as information about locations on or near the surface of the Earth, and may be organized in a variety of ways. Thus a GIS includes functions to input, store, visualize, export, and analyze such information. Commercial off-the-shelf GIS software is today capable of virtually any conceivable operation on geographic information, and capable of recognizing hundreds of different formats. GISs are used in a wide range of applications, from the management of the distributed assets of utility companies to emergency response. Their scientific applications are found in any discipline that deals with phenomena distributed over the surface of the Earth, from ecology to criminology. Increasingly GIS technology is encountered by ordinary citizens, in the...

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Recommended Reading

  1. Arctur D. and Zeiler M. Designing Geodatabases: Case Studies in GIS Data Modeling. ESRI Press, Redlands, CA, 2004.

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  2. Clarke K.C. Getting Started with Geographic Information Systems. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 2003.

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  3. Foresman T.W., ed. The History of Geographic Information Systems: Perspectives from the Pioneers. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 1998.

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  4. Longley P.A., Goodchild M.F., Maguire D.J., and Rhind D.W. Geographic Information Systems and Science. Wiley, Chichester, UK, 2005.

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  5. van Oosterom P. Spatial access methods. In Geographical Information Systems, P.A. Longley, M.F. Goodchild, D.J. Maguire, and D.W. Rhind (eds.). Wiley, New York, NY, 1999, pp. 385–400.

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  6. Worboys M.F. and Duckham M. GIS: A Computing Perspective. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 2004.

    Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

    Michael F. Goodchild

Authors
  1. Michael F. Goodchild
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. College of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology, 266 Ferst Drive, 30332-0765, Atlanta, GA, USA

    LING LIU (Professor) (Professor)

  2. Database Research Group David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, N2L 3G1, Waterloo, ON, Canada

    M. TAMER ÖZSU (Professor and Director, University Research Chair) (Professor and Director, University Research Chair)

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© 2009 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

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Goodchild, M.F. (2009). Geographic Information System. In: LIU, L., ÖZSU, M.T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Database Systems. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-39940-9_178

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