Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Representation and Communication
In this topic, you will learn about both the old concepts and the new con-
cepts within cartography and geography. You will find that the old and the
new concepts of geography merge with new information technologies in rep-
resentation and communication, the two essential activities of geography
and cartography. In this topic “representation” refers to the active process of
observing the world and symbolizing those observations to make meaning.
“Communication” means the process of presenting these representations by
some people and the viewing, or reading, of those representations by other
people. Geographers and cartographers are always involved in communica-
tion, for even if it is not their immediate goal, maps and geographic informa-
tion are always made to share information and knowledge about the world.
A “geographic representation” is the specific process of abstracting observa-
tions of the world into things or events, often resulting in a model. “Things”
are the results of activities, measured properties of objects or features, and
distinct characteristics about people, places, or situations. “Events” are
records of processes—for example, the movement of cars and trucks, the
f low of water, the melting of ice, or the spread of a disease. A “cartographic
representation” involves the process of symbolizing the geographic represen-
tation. Successfully communicating information about things and events
requires you to know something about geographic representation and carto-
graphic representation. These two concepts include color, symbology, mod-
eling, projections, and, now with GIS, spatial database queries and attribute
types (all covered in later chapters).
This topic considers representation and communication as related and
fundamental topics in geography and cartography. A peculiar geographic
fascination is common among people working with GIS, whether they work
for a utility company, a county government, a university administration, or a
corporate marketing department: How can the infinite complexity of the
earth's surface and related processes be reliably represented? This seemingly
abstract question touches on the key issues these people have become aware
of through their education, training, and work experiences. They must
decide how to represent selected things as patterns that show important ele-
ments and processes in relationship to the places where they take place. Fig-
ure 1.4 shows simplistically a few basic choices and the different ways events
can be represented either by highlighting the process or by translating the
site of the process into a pattern. How representation is chosen also must
consider the context of the intended communication, particularly the
reader's/user's knowledge and background: How well does the application
or map correspond to what the readers/users know or could know? Are data
available to provide that information? How long would it take to acquire new
data? The issues include many specific questions—for example, Is it sufficient
to show trees as points where their trunks are located or as areas that show
the reach of the foliage?
The answers to the question of representation usually come back to
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