Much more than just another acronym in an alphabet soup of technology terms, GIS (Geographic or Geospatial Information Systems,) is quickly developing into a critical teaching and research tool at Washington University. T.R. Kidder, Professor of Anthropology, answers questions about GIS and associated resources on campus.

What is GIS?
A Geographic (or Geospatial) Information System, or GIS, is a term given to a collection of software, hardware, and data that can manage geospatial information. GIS can range from very specific applications with simple and limited abilities to corporate-scale server networks running extensive software with the power to perform sophisticated geospatial data analysis.

Find out more about various GIS software, using GIS in research, and accessing GIS through the university at http://gis.wustl.edu ,  the University’s GIS web portal.

A more detailed description is available from What Is GIS? at http://www.gis.com by ESRI, the vendor of ArcGIS software.

What is your role with regard to GIS at the University?
My informal role is to serve as the University’s GIS Development Coordinator. In this capacity I work with Dennis Martin, Associate Vice Chancellor and Associate Dean of Arts & Sciences to do several things. First, we are trying to develop and implement effective teaching of GIS and related skills at the undergraduate, graduate, and staff levels. In addition, we are working with University College to coordinate teaching between UC and the schools on the Danforth Campus. We are also helping the university develop and implement appropriate infrastructure to support GIS as a tool for researchers at both the Danforth Campus and in the Medical School. This effort involves developing and implementing appropriate technology infrastructure (including IT issues) as well as software purchase and evaluation. In this effort Dennis and I are working very closely with Jan Weller, Assistant Vice Chancellor, Network and Technology Services, and her staff.

Until now, there has never been any University effort to develop, use, and teach GIS at Washington University. Because this is such a vital tool for research and education in the 21^st century we feel that the University will benefit by a coordinated effort to bring this technology into the classroom as well as into a myriad of research endeavors. My role is to champion the technology, to bring stakeholders together, to encourage the use of GIS where appropriate, and to identify and secure resources to move this process forward.

Dennis and I co-chair the University GIS Committee that serves as the oversight group to provide ideas about effective use and implementation of GIS in teaching and research.

Would you describe how you use GIS in your own work?
GIS serves several functions in my research. One, it helps me manage large data sets that involve spatial data. For example, we use GIS to manage a multitude of data that can be attached to maps of archaeological sites. For example, an amateur archaeologist collected over 500,000 artifacts from the surface of one site where I work. These artifacts come from known locations across the site and we are using GIS to map the distribution of different classes of artifacts to determine how people lived at the site. We can query the data base for a particular type of data (for example, wood working tools) and then show where on the site these artifacts are found.

Images of a prehistoric mound at the Poverty Point site in Louisiana produced using GIS. The GIS allows researchers to take data and analyze spatial relations. Here we see cross sections of the earthwork generated using  topographic information and data from geological coring. Using these data we can reconstruct how the mound was built and how much effort was required.

Another use is analytical. For example we are studying how people built mounds and what this tells about social organization. We use GIS to explore how the mounds were built by connecting stratigraphic data with topographic and photographic images. These maps can also be used to test if the mounds were built to a common, purposeful plan. We are now exploring how building mounds (including the excavation of dirt from borrow areas) affected the long term history of the landscape. We can use GIS to model where water flows when you build a large mound or dig a borrow pit. We are finding that even so-called prehistoric people had a dramatic impact on their landscape. 

How is GIS used outside the educational environment? What areas or industries have benefited most from GIS application?
The diversity research on the Wash U. campus mirrors the remarkable number of uses of GIS by a myriad of businesses, industries, and governmental agencies. One example of how GIS has grown and how it affects a host of users and consumers is the recent use of this technology in the Hurricane Katrina disaster. GIS has been and continues to be used to identify how to deploy resources for reconstruction. GIS is being used to plan where to relocate stores, warehouses, pipelines, hospitals, and schools, to name only some of the affected resources. GIS is being used to understand how the hurricane affected the environment and how we can minimize damage in the future. These applications are being pursued by businesses, by federal, state and local government agencies, private advocacy and relief agencies, and by academic groups. GIS is helping to bring order out of vast amounts of data and is allowing decision makers to be more efficient.

What GIS resources are available for faculty and researchers at WU?
Software Licensing Services maintains a University-wide site license for the ArcGIS software produced by ESRI. Our site license allows the campus community to download and use ArcGIS at no cost including most of the associated ESRI GIS products. This includes access to the ESRI Virtual Campus for tutorials and specific lessons on ESRI products.

How can WU faculty and researchers get access to GIS software?
The best place to start is to visit the GIS web site at http://gis.wustl.edu where users can apply for permission to use ArcGIS as well as find instructions on how to download the software. The web site also includes a variety of Frequently Asked Questions, links to campus and off-campus GIS information, course and education offerings, and a host of useful GIS-related information.

What are the best steps to take to find out more about GIS or to learn if it would be useful in someone’s work at WU?
There are a number of ways to learn more about GIS at Washington University. One is to go to the University’s GIS web site at http://gis.wustl.edu.  Another is to come to the GIS day activities on November 16, 2006. Here one can learn about how GIS is being used on campus and gain knowledge about resources for GIS development at the University.

Who can a faculty member or researcher contact with questions about using GIS software, support, etc.?
If you have questions about GIS for teaching and research you can e-mail T.R. Kidder (trkidder@wustl.edu); for technical questions or if you are interested in learning more about GIS you can contact Aaron Addison (aaddison@wustl.edu).