Geographic inquiry leads to an examination of how and why phenomena (e.g., landscapes, migrating wildlife, or the spread of a disease) vary across space and time. Geographers interested in GIScience study and develop methodologies to address the unique challenges associated with the analysis and modeling of these types of phenomena, using the latest computer systems and technologies. GIScientists are concerned with the nature of geographic information as well as the application of geospatial technologies to solve basic scientific questions. As the demand and interest in these technologies continues to grow at a rapid pace, the range of applications for which an understanding of GIScience is necessary is also expanding. From understanding hand-held mobile devices that help a person navigate through space, to applications that track moving objects such as hurricanes or disease fields, GIScience offers a stimulating and rewarding area of study.

 

GIScience at Iowa offers students the opportunity to learn from some of the leading experts in GIScience in the US and participate in a program that is both exciting and cutting edge.

Studies in GIScience

As a student studying GIScience in the Department of Geography at The University of Iowa you will learn about the fundamentals of GIScience including such topics as geographic data collection, storage, analysis, and display (what is 'special' about geographic data?), the latest trends in GPS and GIS, mobile GIS, time and GIS, and many more current topics.

As a student you will build expertise in:

 

• Geospatial statistical methods
• Geographic information systems
• Remote sensing
• Mobile GIS
• Spatiotemporal data modeling and simulations

 

GIScience Research

Faculty and graduate students in the Department of Geography are conducting research on many topics that are fundamental to an understanding of GIScience. These include topics that relate to understanding the dynamics of geographic domains and include spatiotemporal modeling and geosimulation research. Other research relates to geocomputational methods for health data analysis including studies involving state-of-the-art sensor-based collections of health data. Some examples of current research in GIScience at Iowa includes:

• Agent-based geosimulation modeling
• Geospatial decision support systems
• Geospatial semantic modeling
• Geospatial statistical visualizations
• Ontologies for GIS
• Remote sensing and GIS
• Spatiotemporal data modeling
• Wireless and grid computing for mobile GIS

For examples of other recent research projects in GIScience see our Research page.

 

Related Faculty

 

Marc Armstrong Dave Bennett Naresh Kumar Marc Linderman

George Malanson Claire Pavlik Gerard Rushton Kathleen Stewart