The Nature of GIS

This is a thought-provoking question. According to ESRI, GIS is an integration of "...hardware, software, and data for capturing, managing, analyzing, and displaying all forms of geographically referenced information (http://www.esri.com/what-is-gis/overview#overview_panel)." This is a standard definition used widely. The term, "science", however, is used in a variety of ways. At its most basic, "science" derives from the Latin "scientia" for "knowledge". From there, its usage diverges into 2 main directions. For some, science is a particular body of knowledge. For others, myself included, science is a way of thinking and a method of inquiry that involves making observations about the natural world, asking questions based on those observations, forming a hypothesis to try to explain what is being observed, gathering additional data, testing the hypothesis, and sharing the results. Therefore, I consider GIS an immensely useful tool for scientific inquiry, but not a science in and of itself.  Cory Blackeagle 12/23/2012

People who fully appreciate how data is collected, used, and distributed discover the most effective ways to analyze the data to create information. The experience we gain through data collection, digitization, conversion, etc. is how we gain confidence to ask the right questions when presenting information via map applications. We all realize that just because you can mash apps together does not immediately create value. The data may not have the scale, temporal, or integrity expected. Those who can make the best interpretation add value while those who cannot will not last long.  Chris Blough, Oct. 2012, http://www.directionsmag.com/podcasts/is-gis-education-bait-and-switch/289488?goback=%2Egmp_49657