Charles Dana Tomlin is an author, professor, and originator of
Map Algebra
Map algebra is an algebra for manipulating geographic data, primarily Field (geography) , fields. Developed by Dr. Dana Tomlin and others in the late 1970s, it is a set of primitive operations in a geographic information system (GIS) which allows ...
, a vocabulary and conceptual framework for classifying ways to combine map data to produce new maps. Tomlin's teaching and research focus on the development and application of
geographic information system
A geographic information system (GIS) is a type of database containing Geographic data and information, geographic data (that is, descriptions of phenomena for which location is relevant), combined with Geographic information system software, sof ...
s (GIS). He is currently a professor at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
School of Design and an adjunct professor at the
Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
Yale School of the Environment (YSE) is a professional school of Yale University. It was founded to train foresters, and now trains environmental leaders through four 2-year degree programs ( Master of Environmental Management, Master of Environme ...
, having also taught at the
Harvard Graduate School of Design and the
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
School of Natural Resources. His coursework in Landscape Architecture has extensively included GIS and
cartographic
Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an im ...
modeling applications.
Contributions to GIS
Tomlin's contributions to GIS extend across a number of years and a wide variety of applications. As a student at Harvard University in the mid-1970s, he developed the Tomlin Subsystem of IMGRID as a master's thesis. Many analytical functions in IMGRID were later integrated into
Imagine
Imagine may refer to:
* Imagination
Music Albums
* ''Imagine'' (Armin van Buuren album), 2008
* ''Imagine'' (Eva Cassidy album), 2002
* ''Imagine'' (Janice Vidal album), 2012
* ''Imagine'' (John Lennon album), 1971
** ''Imagine: John Lennon' ...
, a satellite image processing application developed by ERDAS.
As a doctoral student at Yale University in the late 1970s, and as a junior faculty member at Harvard in the early 1980s, Tomlin developed MAP (the Map Analysis Package), one of the most widely used programs of its kind. The open source
GRASS
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns an ...
application derives many of its raster analytical capabilities directly from MAP and was extensively used by the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
, colors =
, anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day)
, battles =
, battles_label = Wars
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, commander1 = ...
and other federal agencies throughout the late 1980s. Tomlin's work on MAP has also been directly inherited by a long list of other software packages, including, OSUMAP, MAP II, MapFactory, MFWorks, MacGIS,
IDRISI
TerrSet (formerly IDRISI) is an integrated geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing software developed by Clark Labs at Clark University for the analysis and display of digital geospatial information. TerrSet is a PC grid-based syste ...
, MapBox, pMap, and MGE.
In 1990, Tomlin led an informal group of City and Regional Planning doctoral students at the University of Pennsylvania in founding th
Cartographic Modeling Laboratory The Cartographic Modeling Lab conducts academic research and urban and social policy analysis using GIS and spatial research applications. Tomlin has been co-director of the lab since 1995.
Map algebra
Tomlin's landmark book
''Geographic Information Systems and Cartographic Modeling'' was published in 1990 to expand on his earlier dissertation work on Map Algebra.
A significantly revised version was released a
''GIS and Cartographic Modeling''in 2012. Map Algebra is used for a broad array of GIS modeling applications, including suitability modeling, surface analysis, density analysis, statistics, hydrology, landscape ecology, real estate and geographic prioritization.
Early in its development, Tomlin made the decision to openly share all of the source code, documentation and algorithms associated with Map Algebra. Consequently, the overall concepts of Map Algebra are still used today in every GIS application that supports raster calculations.
Esri
Esri (; Environmental Systems Research Institute) is an American multinational geographic information system (GIS) software company. It is best known for its ArcGIS products. With a 43% market share, Esri is the world's leading supplier of GIS ...
’s Spatial Analyst solution, as well as its predecessor, the GRID module of
ArcInfo
ArcInfo (formerly ARC/INFO) is a full-featured geographic information system produced by Esri, and is the highest level of licensing (and therefore functionality) in the ArcGIS Desktop product line. It was originally a command-line based system. ...
, has incorporated most of the Map Algebra concepts.
While primarily applied to raster data, Map Algebra has also been extended to support 3D, temporal and other cartographic modeling applications. Tomlin continues to freely share his ideas on Map Algebra with students, educators, software developers and others in the GIS industry through articles in cartographic and environmental journals,.
[Tomlin, C. Dana.]
Speaking of GeoDesign
Preliminary Proceedings: ''Teaching Landscape Architecture'', Anhalt University of Applied Sciences Bernburg & Dessau (2011): 136-144.
See also
*
Map algebra
Map algebra is an algebra for manipulating geographic data, primarily Field (geography) , fields. Developed by Dr. Dana Tomlin and others in the late 1970s, it is a set of primitive operations in a geographic information system (GIS) which allows ...
*
Field (geography)
In the context of spatial analysis, geographic information systems, and geographic information science, a field is a property that fills space, and varies over space, such as temperature or density. This use of the term has been adopted from ph ...
*
Geographic information system
A geographic information system (GIS) is a type of database containing Geographic data and information, geographic data (that is, descriptions of phenomena for which location is relevant), combined with Geographic information system software, sof ...
*
ERDAS IMAGINE
Hexagon AB is a publicly listed global information technology company specializing in hardware and software digital reality that was founded in 1992 and headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. Hexagon's B share is listed on the list of large companie ...
*
GRASS GIS
''Geographic Resources Analysis Support System'' (commonly termed ''GRASS GIS'') is a geographic information system (GIS) software suite used for geospatial data management and analysis, image processing, producing graphics and maps, spatial and ...
*
ArcInfo
ArcInfo (formerly ARC/INFO) is a full-featured geographic information system produced by Esri, and is the highest level of licensing (and therefore functionality) in the ArcGIS Desktop product line. It was originally a command-line based system. ...
References
External links
Cartography, redefined: Mapping a pathway through the digital agepublished October, 2011
URISA GIS HAll of Fame, 2010 Inductee: C. Dana Tomlin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomlin, Dana
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Harvard University faculty
Ohio State University faculty
University of Pennsylvania faculty
Yale University faculty
Harvard Graduate School of Design alumni
Geographic information scientists