Overview. GIS Terminology

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1 Overview GIS Terminology MFworks Terminology Overview This is a glossary of geography and MFworks terminology and concepts that may not be familiar to novice MFworks users and non-geographers. The explanations are short; they are intended only as a synopsis, not as a full explanation. Users requiring a complete explanation are encouraged to seek the references listed in the Welcome document, or to visit their local library. GIS Terminology Attribute Every cell in a MFworks map represents some condition at the location represented by the cell. The condition is identified by a data value that can be nominal, ordinal, interval, or ratio (refer to the Data Representation document). The condition is the attribute of the cell. Attributes can be any measurable or derivable quantity or quality. For example, population density, surface roughness, mean temperature, elevation, land cover, dirt road, and visibility from a point are attributes. Back bearing The angle measured relative to North back from a selected location to the original location. It is given as a value between 0 and 359. This value is offset 180 to the bearing (see below). Basemap A map onto which attributes can be overlaid. Basemaps can be road maps, property maps, or contour maps they provide points of reference such as boundaries or features from which other boundaries or features can be located. Bearing The angle measured relative to North from one location to another. It is specified as a value between 0 and 359. UG-TRM-1

2 Cartesian Plane A two dimensional surface, real or virtual, onto which a coordinate system has been imposed. The coordinate system is bounded by two perpendicular axes: the horizontal X axis and the vertical Y axis. The data structure in MFworks is a Cartesian plane that is divided into a grid of squares. The horizontal axis is numbered left to right and is called "columns" the vertical axis is numbered from top to bottom and is called "rows". Cell Resolution vs. Map Scale Cell resolution is the number of units that are required to make up a single side of a map cell (e.g., 1 cell side equals 8.4 metres, therefore, resolution equals 8.4 metres). Scale is the number of cells in a known distance times the resolution reduced to a ratio (e.g., if there are 233 cells in a fixed distance on the map that represents metres in the real world, and the resolution is 8.4 metres, then the scale would be: divided by 233 times 8.4, which would be 1: ). Colour Separation The process by which a full colour image is broken down into its component colours. For computer monitors the full colour image it is broken down into the relative brightness of red, green, and blue light for offset printing it is broken down into dot densities of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black ink. Conformal Projection A map projection that sacrifices equal area characteristics for the true shape of objects. See Map Projections below. A one centimetre square will represent varying area depending on where on the map it is placed. DEM Acronym for Digital Elevation Model. These are raster maps where the value of a cell represents the average elevation in the parcel of space represented by the cell. Equal Area Projections A map projection that distorts the shape of objects to preserve true area representation. A one centimetre square placed anywhere on the map will represent the same area in the real world. Euclidean distance The straight line distance between two points (hypotenuse) determined by taking the square root of the sum of the squares of the lengths of the two lines that form a right angle when extended from the two points. UG-TRM-2

3 Fixed Point Number A positive or negative integer value (i.e., a value with no decimal places). It is sometimes called a discrete datum. For example: 13, -100, and 0 are fixed point values. Floating Point Number A positive or negative number with variable decimal precision. For example: , 0.0, and are floating point values. Geographic/True North (compass North but not magnetic North) The point on the surface of the Earth where the rotational axis occurs. Lines of longitude all converge on this point. It is measured as 90 North latitude. Georectification The transformation of a map layer to match the coordinate system geometry of a reference map layer. Refer to the Warp operation. GIS (Geographic Information System) A Geographic Information System is a facility for preparing, presenting, and interpreting facts that pertain to [a] surface a configuration of hardware and software specifically designed for the acquisition, maintenance, and use of [spatially referenced] data. (Tomlin, C.D. (1990) Geographic Information Systems and Cartographic Modeling. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.) Large Scale Map Usually a map that covers only a small area such as a city or neighbourhood. Maps with ratios of 1:200 to 1: are considered large scale. Large scale maps show a lot of detail. See also: Small Scale Map. Latitude Concentric circles drawn parallel to the Equator. They are measured in degrees of arc from the Equator (0 ) to either pole (90 North and 90 South). Lines of latitude are part of a coordinate system called Latitude and Longitude that allows location and distance to be determined on the surface of the Earth. Longitude Arcs drawn perpendicular to the Equator from pole to pole, also called Meridians. They are measured in degrees of arc from the Prime Meridian, at 0, to 180 East and West. The Prime Meridian is accepted as the line of Longitude that passes through the observatory at Greenwich, England. Lines of longitude are part of a coordinate system called Latitude and UG-TRM-3

4 Longitude that allows people to determine location and distance of objects on the surface of the Earth. Magnetic North The point on the surface of the Earth where north magnetic field lines converge. This point is not fixed, but wanders over time. Since its position was first determined in the 19th century it has wandered about the Canadian Arctic Archipelago for several hundred kilometres. In recent geologic time it has remained in proximity to the true North Pole, but it has been in vastly different locations throughout the past. Functional compasses point to Magnetic North rather than True North as the needle of a compass will align itself with the Earth s magnetic field. As one moves around on the surface of the Earth, the declination angle between the Magnetic North Pole and the True North Pole will vary. When establishing position based on compass readings, it is necessary to know the angle of declination to determine exact location. When using old compass reading data it is necessary to know the angle of declination at the time the original measurements were made. Map Projections The Earth is a spheroid and a map is a plane. In order to portray a sphere on a flat surface, the sphere has to be transformed into a plane. Projections are accomplished by applying geometrical formulae to points on the surface of the sphere. This transformation leads to inevitable distortion of the features of the spherical surface. There are two main trade-offs that must be considered: the preservation of equal area for squares over the surface, and the preservation of the true shape of a feature. In raster GIS the grid based data structure dictates that maps with equal area characteristics are better than those with true shape characteristics. Orthorectification The transformation of a map layer to match the coordinate system geometry of a reference map layer with consideration taken for elevation induced spatial distortion. Parallax The apparent displacement of an object when viewed from two different points. Parallax is an angular measure of the difference in direction to an object when measured from two points not on the same line as the object. Try this: open both eyes and hold your finger out in front of your face. Now close one eye, then open that eye and close the other at the same time. Repeat this action and your finger will appear to jump back and forth. UG-TRM-4

5 Raster A grid based data structure that breaks an image or map into square grid cells of equal size. Each grid cell contains a value that represents a condition that exists in the equivalent square parcel in the real world. Reprojection The translation from one map projection to another. Refer to the Warp operation and to Map Projections. Rubbersheeting The transformation of a map layer to match the coordinate system geometry of a reference map layer. Refer to the Warp operation. Scale Variation The scale of air photographs and satellite images varies over the surface of the image. The scale further away from the nadir (the point looking straight down from the imaging platform) of the image becomes more and more distorted. Areal coverage increases as one moves away from the nadir. The same size object will appear larger at the nadir of an image than at the edge of an image. Fortunately image correction routines are widely available, and air photographs and satellite images can be purchased pre-corrected. Small Scale Map Usually a map that covers a large area such as a county or province. Maps with ratios of 1: , 1: and up are considered small scale. Small scale maps show little detail. See also: Large Scale Map. Spatially Referenced Data/Information Data that have a spatial component (i.e., a location). The number of people living at a particular addresses are spatially referenced data. The elevation at particular Latitudes and Longitudes are spatially referenced data. The number of traffic fatalities at particular intersections are spatially referenced data. Theissen or Voronoi polygons Defined by boundaries or lines that are equidistant from a set of sparse points. The boundaries define catchment areas for each point. For example, the points could be rain gauge stations, in which case the polygons would represent the area over which the measurements would be applied, or the points could be shopping malls, in which case the polygons would represent the customer base for which a given mall is the closest UG-TRM-5

6 UTM (Universal Transverse Mercator) A grid-based coordinate system that is an alternative to Latitude and Longitude. The particular projection used to derive the UTM grid minimizes both shape and area distortion on large scale maps (refer to the Data Representation document). Vector A data structure based on points, lines, and areas. Each point has a location and an attribute. Lines are defined by start and end points. Areas are bounded by a series of lines and are defined by the location of the start and end points of each line. Warping The transformation of a map layer to match the coordinate system geometry of a reference map layer. Refer to the Warp operation. MFworks Terminology Annotation Text and/or graphics that can be placed along with the map element in the Layout window. Annotation usually takes the form of titles, labels, by-lines, dates, graphics, and comments. Cell The fundamental unit of raster based GIS. Each cell contains a value representing a condition at a specific location in the map. Raster maps are composed of a grid of cells that are referenced by their row and column positions within the grid. Colour Sequence A progression of colours (e.g., from black to white, from yellow to red) that is applied to a sequence of zone values in the legend to denote a gradation or progression in the phenomenon being mapped. Coverage The area represented by a map layer. It is bound by a coordinate system (row & column, Latitude & Longitude, or UTM), and defined by cell resolution and azimuth. Geometry A spatial referencing system that can be attached to the Map window to allow locations and distances to be determined. MFworks supports row & column, Latitude & Longitude, and UTM geometries. UG-TRM-6

7 Legend A window that provides information on the data contained in the map layer. Each zone on the map is represented by a legend entry. Legend entries can include a colour box which relates the legend to the map visually, a zone value which matches the zone value in the map, an area/cell count for the zone, a total for the zone, a percent area for the zone, and text describing the zone. Map Layer A file of spatially referenced data that can be displayed as a map image. The map is composed of a grid of cells, with each cell containing a value that represents a condition at a specific location within the map area. Map layers with the same geographical coverage, cell resolution, and azimuth can be used for analysis purposes in MFworks operations. Module A file containing programming code that is loaded by MFworks on an as needed basis to perform operations on maps. Modules are also used to import or export map data. Native Mode Power PC computers are designed to run software that has been written in RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computing) code. The processor in a Power PC computer is called a RISC processor. When Power PC computers run software written in RISC code they are said to be running in native mode. When Power PC computers run non-risc code, the code must first be translated into RISC. This translation step increases the time necessary to process the software code. When Power PC computers run non-risc code they are said to be running in non-native mode. Operation A module that performs an action on map layer data to produce a new map layer based on the results. Project A system for organizing related map layers. Operations can be performed only on map layers that are part of a project s map layer reference list. RGB Space A theoretical way of viewing colour as a sphere or as two cones, one inverted on top of the other. Pure black is at the bottom, pure white is at the top, and all the gradations of grey form a polar axis connecting the two. Pure hue occurs as a continuous ring around the equator of colour space and gradually becomes less saturated towards the axis. Colour lightness UG-TRM-7

8 increases towards the top of colour space and colour darkness increases towards the bottom of colour space. Refer to the MFworks Tutorial for an explanation of how MFworks handles colour space. Script One or more statements which perform analyses or functions on one or several map layers to generate new map layers. Scripts can be used to build spatial analysis models. Service Bureau A company which provides input and output services and a variety of printing and reprographic services. Tile To divide a map that is larger than one printed page size into page size portions. This technique allows large to be printed on standard size pages. The map tiles must be assembled by hand after printing. Tracker A Map window feature that displays the position of the cursor in rows and columns. Positions can also be displayed according to a user defined map geometry. Translator A module that converts data generated by other applications, such as Lotus or ARC/INFO, to MFworks map layers or converts MFworks map layers to another file format, such as USGS DEM or XYZ. Zone A unique value that occurs on a map layer and represents the condition or phenomenon being mapped. MFworks map layers are composed of one or more zones. Zones are composed of one or more cells in the map. Each zone is referenced by a legend entry. UG-TRM-8

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