Map were conventionally used to answer this question!

Spatial Information is all about Where isWhat?

Few Glimpses

› The first route map showing the whole of the Roman world (366–335 B.C.)

Modern Age

•Before GIS revolution the link between Where and What was by the traditional, manually drafted map

•The tools used were pens, rulers, planimeters, dot grids, and paper sheets

•Historical use of map was for navigation to know the location of physical features

PRE-GIS ERA

▫First printed Atlas of the world by legendary geographer Claudius Ptolemy (150 A.D.)

▫Map projections of a spherical earth and use of latitude and longitude to characterize position -Claudius Ptolemy (Alexandria, Egypt) (north arrow notation)

› Contour maps showing curves of equal value: an isogonic map, lines of equal magnetic declination for the world, (Edmond Halley, England) (1701)

› Geological map (distribution of soils,

minerals)- Johann Friedrich von Charpentier, Germany (1778)

› Maps of the Battle of Yorktown (American Revolution) drawn by the French Cartographer Louis-Alexandre Berthier contained hinged overlays to show troop movements (1781)

▫Statistical map of production in Europe, possibly the first economic and thematic map (shows geographic distribution of 56 commodities produced in Europe)- August Friedrich Wilhelm Crome , Germany (1782)

▫First topographical map- Marcellin du Carla-Boniface , France (1782)

▫First maps of the incidence of disease (yellow fever), using dots and circles to show individual occurrences in waterfront areas of New York by Valentine Seaman (1798)

› The first large-scale geological map of England and Wales (William Smith, England) (1801)

› First graph of isotherms, showing mean temperature around the world by latitude and longitude (Alexander von Humboldt - Germany) (1817)

A choropleth map is a thematic map in which areas are shaded or patterned in proportion to the measurement of the statistical variable being displayed on the map

A choropleth map is a thematic map in which areas are shaded or patterned in proportion to the measurement of the statistical variable being displayed on the map

› Map with shadings from black to white (distribution and intensity of illiteracy in France), the first choropleth map, and perhaps the first modern statistical map (Pierre Charles Dupin, France). (1819)

Choropleth Map

• Map which shows regions or areas which have the same characteristics • 0, 1, 2 = light shade• 3, 4, 5 = Medium shade• 6, 7, 8 = Dark shade

▫ First simple dot map of population, 1 dot = 10,000 people— Armand Joseph Fr`ere de Montizon – France (1830)

▫ First published flow maps, showing transportation by means of shaded lines, widths proportional to amount (passengers)— (Henry Drury Harness, Ireland) (1837)

▫ Dr. John Snow mapped cholera deaths in London and used geographical analysis to trace the outbreak to a contaminated well (dot map to display epidemiological data)- 1854 (or 1855)

▫Pictogram, used to represent data by icons proportional to a number- Michael George Mulhall , England (1884)

Pictogram

▫Street maps of London, showing poverty and wealth by color coding - Charles Booth (1889)

BLACK: Lowest class. Vicious, semi-criminal. DARK BLUE: Very poor, casual. Chronic want. LIGHT BLUE: Poor. 18 shillings. to 21s. a week for a moderate family PURPLE: Mixed. Some comfortable others poor PINK: Fairly comfortable. Good ordinary earnings. RED: Middle class. Well-to-do. YELLOW: Upper-middle and Upper classes. Wealthy

Summary• As far as basic principles are concerned, GIS is

not a new technology• Computer-based GIS is in use since late 1960s

▫ Computer hardware developed the capacity to provide cartographic output

▫ Computer systems become more robust in terms of speed and memory

▫ Computers become cheaper and smaller• From 2-D map display to 3-D visualization to 4-D

incorporation of time to 5, 6, 7-D incorporation of touch, sound and smell

Reference

• http://www.gisdevelopment.net/history/index.htm• http://www.innovativegis.com/basis/MapAnalysis/

Topic27/Topic27.htm#Early• http://mama.indstate.edu/users/gejdg/447wk2.pdf • Milestones in the history of thematic cartography,

statistical graphics, and data visualization by Michael Friendly August 24,2009: http://www.math.yorku.ca/SCS/Gallery/milestone/milestone.pdf

• Most of the slides are taken from Prof. Maria Antonia Brovelli’s lecture notes.