Lab 2B

This lab exercise was a beneficial introduction to the use of the ArcGIS program, and highlighted some potential strengths and weaknesses of GIS. Being concurrently enrolled in GEOG167, I have already been exposed to ArcGIS; however, this exercise showed me many functions which I had not discovered through the "crash-course" style exercise of the first week in 167.

A major strength of GIS generally, and the ArcGIS program specifically, is the ability to combine a multitude of information to create meaningful map products. The ability to create different layers and different frames allows users to examine several aspects of the map at once. This exercise revealed this strength of GIS by examining the affect of the noise contour from the proposed airport on key areas within the city. ArcGIS users can create maps designed for very specific purposes by showing the spatial relationships between different kinds of information. For example, the first map's purpose is clear: to highlight that there is one school that would be affected by the noise of the airport. This was accomplished by overlaying the noise contour with the local schools. The ability to sort and visually depict different kinds of data makes GIS a powerful tool.

However, this exercise revealed a large weakness of GIS: the anonymity and impersonality between the GIS user and the subject matter. From the beginning of the exercise, this county is nameless and our purpose in creating this map product is not revealed. For the purposes of this exercise, as a tutorial - this information was not necessary. A new user of ArcGIS is capable of going through this well-written tutorial, and create a map product, as described in the instructions. However, there is a potential for anonymity and impersonality of this exercise to exist throughout the field of GIS. The separation of a GIS user from the subject matter of the map is a problem that could result in the creation of maps which do not fully achieve their purpose. So while this exercise was merely an instructional tool for learning ArcGIS, it reveals a weakness of GIS. Users of GIS should have an interest in the product beyond that of merely trying to finish their work.

Therefore, this exercise proved to be very useful and instructive - not only from the functional standpoint of knowing how to use ArcGIS, but also by revealing more behind the concepts of map development. I was able to apply the skills learned in this exercise toward my products for GEOG167. I believe my products are far superior this week, after having gained more familiarity by practicing with this tutorial. Additionally, I was able to experience the impersonal nature of creating a map. I think it would be beneficial to be an engaged user GIS whenever possible. A detached approach to creating a map could work well when creating a reference map, but I believe thematic maps require a level of engagement between the user and the subject. Both functionally and conceptually, this has been a valuable exercise.