Mapping (A little freewriting)

Mapping in Architecture is an interesting thing. I have become increasingly aware of how much interest there is in GIS. I feel like the whole concept of space and data and how to analyze this kind of data has just ballooned in so many disciplines. I did a speech competition this week and I was surprised at how many students knew about GIS mapping from other departments. I love meeting people from completely different knowledge sets, who are doing very similar things to me. I get this "hive" feeling about being human and about learning as a species.

"The results of the experiments demonstrated that a variety of computational and

visual tools is needed to support different decision making styles"(Gennady, 2003)

Anyways, I am pretty sure the internet and GPS and the rise of ridiculous amounts of data from phones has led to an increased interest in GIS. It's like the world is flooded with spatial data suddenly and people are fishing through, trying to make some sense of it. I first became interested in mapping when I did the behavioral mapping project. I did not use GIS or GPS data, instead I just gathered it myself through observation. I then digitized it and that's when I started to realize how and why there is a whole world of digital mapping that I have been ignorant about.

"Participatory spatial planning and decision making requires a combination of software

tools for group decision support, individual decision support and geographic analysis and

presentation."(Voss, 2004)

Lately I have been thinking about why and how this interest has affected architecture and I am pretty sure the reason that the flood gates of GIS data analysis has yet to hit architecture in a profound way is because the GPS data is not specific enough to apply to a building. GPS data has about a 30m error factor that makes it hard to determine exactly where a person is in a building. This makes data collection from phones, etc difficult. Often architects approach the mapping process in site analysis and site selection - where the scale is larger, but once you get down to analyzing the building it is less common. This may have something to do with the lack of research in this area due to less available data sets.

"The analytic component provides technical information that ensures broad-based, competent perspectives. GIS has provided technical information in such processes as maps can represent changes in landscapes.The deliberative component provides an opportunity to givevoice to choices about values, alternatives and recommendations." (Nyerges, 2005)

What I currently think is interesting is how the spatial data makes its way to inform a design. I actually don't think we are there yet with software or with intuitive design processes where we can take spatial data and systematically explain the best way to use it. Its really hard to look at a bunch of dots on a map and figure out what it is telling you about a place...But I believe that's where the key lies for future research and discovery. Its also where other disciplines can really help/inform architecture. So much work in spatial data analysis has been a part of ecology and urban planning and though architecture may not use digital collection tools, it is possible to collect analogue data that can be digitized, and in the end, use the same analysis methods.

"The first thing one discovers on closer inspection of the literature is that the supposed

inefficiency of consensus-based decision making has not been empirically demonstrated." (Leach, 2016)

Statistical spatial data analysis is pretty complicated and way out of my knowledge set, but I am pretty interested in learning more.

References

Gennady, Andrienko, Andrienko Natalia, and Jankowski Piotr. 2003. “Building Spatial Decision Support Tools for Individuals and Groups.” Journal of Decision Systems 12 (2): 193–208.

Leach, Darcy K. 2016. “When Freedom Is Not an Endless Meeting: A New Look at Efficiency in Consensus-Based Decision Making.” The Sociological Quarterly 57 (1): 36–70.

Nyerges, Timothy. 2005. “Scaling-up as a Grand Challenge for Public Participation GIS.” Directions Magazine.

Voss, Angi, Ivan Denisovich, Peter Gatalsky, Kiriakos Gavouchidis, Andreas Klotz, Stefanie Roeder, and Hans Voss. 2004. “Evolution of a Participatory GIS.” Computers, Environment and Urban Systems 28 (6): 635–51.