dankarran.com > gis

Geographic Information Systems (or 'GIS' as they are more often known) are computer programs which allow information about a specific geographic area to be stored, analysed and displayed in such a way that we can better understand what is happening in that place. Geographic Information Science, then, is the science behind these systems, incorporating an understanding of what they can do, how they work and how we can use them to perform geographic analysis most effectively.

In the 2004/05 academic year I was studying for an MSc degree in Geographic Information Science in the Department of Geomatic Engineering at University College London (UCL). The department is one of the leading departments for geomatics not only within the UK but in the whole world. Having completed a BSc in Computing and Geography with Industrial Experience at UMIST (now the University of Manchester) I had become interested in geographic information, with interests stemming from the purely technological to applications of that technology in the field of geographic information.

As part of the course I studied a number of subjects including Spatial Data Acquisition, IT & GIS, Algorithms and Data Structures, GIS Analysis, Management, Advanced Topics, Spatial Decision Support Systems and Social Science Research Methods. I have gained experience in ESRI ArcGIS software, MapInfo software, Microsoft MapPoint and a number of other systems.

Projects that I have was involved in as part of the MSc GIS course include:

• Design of an urban atmospheric pollution GIS
• Entity-Relationship view integration in database design
• Space Syntax analysis of poverty in Soho, London using 19th Century Booth maps
• Polygon area calculation using Visual Basic programming
• Street crime analysis in London boroughs of Camden and Islington
• 3D mapping of St Paul's Cathedral and surrounding area using LiDAR data
• Improving interoperability using OGC Web Map Service
• Conceptualising a prototype Spatial Decision Support System for antenna siting
• Case for a professional qualification in GIS

The final component of the course was the completion of a project and writing an 8000 to 15000-word report on it. For the project I worked with Multimap - one of the UK's leading online mapping providers - towards creating a geographic analysis tool to help understand usage patterns of online mapping applications such as their own Storefinder service.

Now that I have finished the course, I am working as a Software Engineer putting my web development and GIS skills to use whilst working with the Drupal content management system / framework. You can find more information about the work I do at geodan.org - my nickname in the Drupal community because I am really interested in the furthering Drupal's geospatial capabilities.