The first lecture centers around the introduction of GIScience and its application in research. Specifically, it is applied in three major fields which the class will dive into intensely throughout the school term. The three fields are landscape ecology, crime analysis, and health geography. Though they seem different, but they share the core 5 P’s principle which are patterns and processes, places, people and perspectives.
Landscape Ecology: The study of how landscape structure affects the abundance and distribution of organisms. The goal of ecological research is to understand how the environment, including biotic and abiotic patterns and processes, affects the abundance and distribution of organisms.
Health Geography: Health geography is a subdiscipline of human geography, which deals with the interaction between people and the environment. Health geography views health from a holistic perspective encompassing society and space, and it conceptualizes the role of place, location and geography in health, well-being and disease.
Crime Analysis: Crime analysis is a systematic analysis for identifying and analyzing patterns and trends in crime and disorder. Information on patterns can help law enforcement agencies deploy resources in a more effective manner, and assist detectives in identifying and apprehending suspects. Crime analysis also plays a role in devising solutions to crime problems, and formulating crime prevention strategies.