Spatial Modelling:Basic Introduction

Question 1

Science basic 3 questions

Answer 1

What is there
How does it work
How did it come to be this way

Question 2

Nature of science

Answer 2

world is understandable
tentative
can’t provide complete answers

Question 3

Scientific inquiry

Answer 3

demands evidence
logic and imagination
explains and predicts
identify and avoid bias

Question 4

Scientific method misconceptions

Answer 4

no one scientific method

evidence is a product of data

Question 5

Hypothesis

Answer 5

statement that answers a posed question

supported by evidence

Question 6

Theory

Answer 6

explanation for something that has been tested and accepted by scientists

Question 7

Law

Answer 7

describes the relationships between variables

Question 8

Model

Answer 8

idealized and simplified representation of reality

how the world looks

Question 9

Data model

Answer 9

Provides a template for representing the real world in a GIS

how the world looks

Question 10

Process model

Answer 10

how the world works

Question 11

Spatial model

Answer 11

represent real processes
represent variation over the earth’s surface
manipulate geographic information in multiple stages

Question 12

Why model

Answer 12

support a decision or design process
allow experiments to be conducted on simulated system which is cheaper and less invasive
allow for alternative scenarios to be evaluated